One of those losing my mind moments

That's what happened to me today at work.

I was at my desk and needed to take a bag of samples into the lab to pack them in a box. Lab coat, check. Pen and marker in the pocket of the lab coat, check. (And by pocket I mean the upper left pocket, hooked to the pocket, just like a nerd but without the pocket protector. ha ha). Packing tape gun, check. Paperwork for shipping the samples, check. Safety glasses...hum.

My safety glasses were no where to be found. This was very strange. They are always either on my desk or on my face because I have to wear them into the lab. I searched everywhere; my desk, the pockets of my labcoat, my head, the rest of the office, the lunchroom. No where. This bugs me because I hate losing stuff.

I go up front to get a new pair from the secretary. There are two other people up front who I explain my dilema to as she gets the new pair. She hands me the new pair and I put down the tape gun and my safety glasses to open the new package....wait a minute. There they were. In my hand with the tape gun the entire time!

Instead of just going back to my desk I tell the secretary and two other people that I found my glasses, they were in my hand the whole time. They laugh at me and say I shouldn't have confessed to them. Oh well, at least I was being honest. But I felt like I had completely lost my mind. It happens.

What's best about a reunion in Park City?

Pretty much everything. All of the family was there, we had tons of fun, and the mountain weather was perfect. The condo (compliments of my mom's aunt and uncle) made for a very homey feel.

We made some crafts...cards and flowers and played tons of games and tons of bocce. David won the bocce tournament; maybe because he had the best focus (bottom left) or the best skill. We also had family pictures, visited Grandma and Grandpa G. and Aunt Shirley's family in Logan and read plenty of books. Caitlin and Bailey both love books so much, it's fitting that they are sitting on the stairs together and reading.

We had great food. Despite what a couple of the pictures portray, Katie and Ryan did not have to do all of the cooking. Our food included tons of sweets: roasted marshmallows, Katie's fabulous birthday cake, cookies, ice cream sandwich cake, homemade ice cream, candy, cookies and other things that I'm sure I'm missing. We did also eat a lot of great home cooked and nutritious meals.

We took some time to rest. Although the condo had plenty of rooms and beds for everyone, sometimes people needed extra naps. It was pretty funny when Ashlee fell asleep at the table...she was already so worn out and it was only the second day.

We played. The swing set and slide at Grandma and Grandpa's house in Logan were a big hit for the little girls. We also went to Jordanelle Reservoir one day for some fun in the sun, sand, and water. One night my parents had Grandparents Night so all of the "adults" could go out and do something. We called it date night...I even had a date :) I planned that we would go mini-golfing and found the 1 coarse in Park City. Upon arriving we discovered that maybe it would be fun for children under the age of 8, but not so much for us. We ended up playing volleyball at the park and then Battle of the Sexes. No pictures of this outing, but it was fun and worth mentioning.

We went to the Salt Lake Temple. On the way there Ashlee got car sick, which altered the master plan a bit but everything ended up working out fine. We also got to go to Music and the Spoken Word in the Conference Center on Temple Square on Sunday. It was very good and we got to see Gwen, one of our friends from our Laramie days. It looks a bit like we posed in front of a mural of the temple...no, it is the real thing.

That was our reunion in a nut shell. It is so great to get together with family.

Hiking the Y

About 1 week ago my family had a reunion in Park City. It was a great time with lots of fantastic pictures, however they are all on Beth's camera. Needless to say, I can talk about the reunion in more colorful and picturesque detail when I have the pictures so I'll wait until then.

I will tell about hiking the Y. After the reunion, Katie, Ryan and I went to Provo to spend some time with our friend Tisha. We decided the best use of the morning would be a nice, relaxing, perhaps slightly aerobic hike. Tish decided we would hike the Y (that's the "Y" on the mountain). We were excited; after all we hadn't done this before.

At the beginning of the hike there is a sign showing the trail and the different options...the top or the bottom of the Y. Tish said, "we better decide now which way we'll go because otherwise at the top we'll just go to the bottom". We decided on the top, but we didn't know yet how true her comment was.

We started walking/hiking...and it was very steep. I love hiking and am in good shape, but it was still very steep. When you factor in the altitude, it was a difficult, tiring and a very much aerobic hike. Katie and I were feelin' it, but nothing that a few stops to rest didn't fix. And, in the end, we made it to the top of the Y.

After lunch and some "take in the view" time, we walked back down (it was equally as steep going down) and headed back to Tish and Chris's (her husband) apartment for some quality Canasta and Rock Star time. It was a fun day and a great hike.

The 4th of July...one of my favorites

Back in the Laramie days, the 4th would have meant BBQ-ing with our “family”; aka some awesome families whom we got together with often.

In AZ it is not quite so fun to have an outside BBQ in the middle of the summer, but the 4th of July is still one of my favs.

I can’t lie, part of the beauty is the day off from work that it offers. But, I really like the history and pride that comes with this holiday. It’s great thinking back on the founding fathers and the inspired and awe-inspiring men they were.

I also love the patriotic songs playing on the radio, sung in church, etc. This morning I played The Star-Spangled Banner on the piano and, like always, as I got to the middle of the song I sang the words to the 3rd verse in my mind (yes there are three verses to this song).

Praise the Pow'r that hath made and preserved us a nation!

Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,

And this be our motto: "In God is our trust!"

I wish that we could sing these words more often, but sadly if most of the country knew of this verse it would probably be changed or banned. On second thought, I’m okay leaving this verse a secret. It will, however, always be the best part of the song in my mind and the best reminder of why the 4th of July is one of my favorites.