F. U. N.

It's all about tradition during our annual trip to Vernal. Our first night there Morgan makes his famous grilled pork loin, mmmm! We always stay up way to late talking. Then get up bright and early the next morning and head up to the base of Flaming Gorge Dam. Right after a quick stop off at the old "Sev" for ice. :) Enjoy an incredibly beautiful, fun, wet and wild run down the river. Followed by chicken salad/watermelon (no chips, oops:)) lunch at Little Hole. And we have to have a huge bag of peanut butter m&ms...we...maybe just me.

I did get in the water too...head first and backwards, thanks to Jeremy. No one captured the graceful moment on camera, thank goodness. :)

This year Alison got tickets for us to all go to the Demolition Derby later that night. The kids loved watching the cars smash crash, eating corn dogs and nachos and dancing out in the arena. (Well Luke didn't like the dancing part.) The next morning before we headed home we drove down to a huge sandbar on the river to play, dig sand castles, and let the kids let their jars of little frogs go. (That was, I'm pretty sure, the kid's highlight of the entire trip, catching frogs with the girls!)

Alison and Morgan took some family pictures of us. They do a great job! There were some really darling ones of the kids. I stole these off her blog. :) Thanks you guys for all the fun and adventures. As ALWAYS we had a wonderful time!

The other day Ava's little prayer went something like this... "Please bless the food. Please bless Matty that she can have fun in heaven. Please bless the little kitty with the eyeball hanging out. Please bless Papa John's old dog because it was old." It was a very nice prayer, don't you think. Maybe a bit descriptive right before we had to eat breakfast. The sad kitty incident happened 2 years ago. The kids and I had all watched someones little kitty get hit by a car and as you know it was pretty gross. I must have retold the story to someone since Matty died because I really don't think either of the kids remember seeing it. Then the part about Papa John's old dog? I'm thinking he must have told her over the phone about his little dachshund dog he had when he was a kid. I'm afraid I have one little obsessed animal lover on my hands...I have no idea where she gets that from?:) I promise things are better-happier around here since everything seemed to hit the fan. It's not all dieing pets and broken down cars. I will post some of the fun pictures I just downloaded. Well, enjoy your breakfast!

Missing Our Matty

This morning I got a phone call from a police officer. He explained to me that he had walked into Reams this morning and noticed our "Lost Dog" flyer hanging up. He wanted to call and let me know that unfortunately she had been hit by a car. He had been the officer called to the scene that Sunday. He was such a nice guy and just kept telling me over and over how sorry he was. I told him how grateful I was that he had called to let us know. But the only thing going through my mind during our phone call was, how could I tell the kids? I did tell them... and then held them on my lap while the three of us cried it out. Our little Matty will be so missed. She was one of the sweetest dogs. Always letting Ava drag her here and there, hold her and squeeze her. Never once snapping at her. Those two loved each other from day one. We didn't even have her quite a year but I think in those months she was probably more loved by that one little girl then her entire 13 or so years of life. I once read a quote that said, "Lucky is the man who has the unconditional love of an good old dog."



My friend Malina took the above sweet pictures of Ava and her Matty last year. I just love them. I thought it would be sad to look at all these but instead they just make me smile. Such fun times.

Crap

Yep crap. My last post was called "stuff". This post is called "crap". Why? Things were going just great. We had such a fun weekend with our good friends in Vernal. Then on the drive home things took a quick/sharp turn for the crappy. Our car crapped out on us. Crappy. Then our little Matty dog went missing. Crappy. Crappy, crappy, crappy!!! We did make it home safe and sound from our trip, thanks to many answered prayers. And maybe, just maybe we will find our Matty yet. I really miss that little stinker. The pictures I just posted make me so sad now. Ava pets her on the computer...how sad is that! Oh I hope we find her. In the mean time it's hello to having a car payment again and only two dogs. :(

Stuff

Ava and her Manny dog.

I love how the cat and the dog both have their tongues sticking out.:)

Ava leaves so she follows...

...right up into the hammock with the kids. I don't know why but that dog loves climbing up in there with them.

Some pretty petunias in the yard.

Caught the last of a pretty rainbow over the house today.
Not my kitchen of course but I just wanted to stick it on here because I love it!

And last be certainly not least Ava and Luke's favorite video of the very talented Dakota and his trainer Sarah. It's so cool what she can teach a horse to do!