Elders Quorum FHE at Sand Hollow

Last night we had an Elders Quorum dinner at Sand Hollow Lake. When we first got there, we were a little worried because it was so windy, but right after the blessing was given on the food, the wind calmed down and it turned into a beautiful night. We ate some great food and the kids swam and had fun making this horrible pile of stinky dead fish. The moms weren't too thrilled with it, but they thought it was great!
Amanda & Laura keeping an eye on the little guys...

Lots of kids having lots of fun!

Aspen & Rhett with their 1 little fish (by the end of the night, there were about 10 in this same hole)

24th of July at Kolob Reservoir

Since I have been down most of the summer, I was feeling well enough to attempt a camping trip with the kids. Richard had Thursday and Friday off the weekend of the 24th, so I thought it would be a great weekend to go camping. We left Thursday afternoon and came back Saturday. We rode four wheelers and motorcycles, swam in the lake, ate yummy dutch oven and camp chef-cooked meals and enjoyed good company. A few cousins came up along with Richards Dad & Kitty. Jennifer and Tiara came up with us as well and had a lot of fun. Friday, we went for a drive around the mountain and enjoyed some deer and the beautiful flowers and scenery. We also had some fun swimming in the lake (well, I watched the swimming). Friday night, a few more came up to join us and we had a great dutch oven dinner, ate smores, and lit sparklers for the kids. Saturday, we went on a few 4-wheeler rides, the men and boys shot their bows at targets, and we went swimming some more (I watched again, but it was really fun). There was a group of students down from BYU for the weekend and they had turned a canoe over on the dock and made it into a slide. It was quite entertaining watching them ski and flip and slide on the canoe. The kids sure enjoyed it. Saturday evening we headed home completely exhausted and I spent the next full day in bed, but it was well worth it. The weather was beautiful and we had so much fun!

This is a beautiful 3 x 3 we saw on our way up to the lake...

This is Rich & Mike rowing in the canoe...(with their arms)

On our scenic ride with the kids...

The BYU students on their self-made slide...

The kids having a blast at the lake...

FHE at the River...

For Family Home Evening a couple of weeks ago, we took the kids down to the Virgin River in Hurricane and the kids and Richard went swimming. I sat nicely on the beach and took pictures of them. It looked like a lot of fun from where I sat! We took our dog, Ellie, along and she didn't enjoy swimming as much as the kids did, but it was sure fun watching her paddle around!

Summer Fun...Finally!

So Trissy's friend, Jennifer, has been staying with us this weekend and it has been a lot of fun. Today, Richard moved the tramp onto the grass and put the sprinkler under it and gave them a hose to play with. These were the fun pictures I took when I saw all the fun they were having. Awww to be a child again...Who wouldn't love to join them? It is hot!!!!

Horses Horses Everywhere!

Here are some pictures of our new family members. Richard got a new Palomino a few months ago and we finally settled on calling her "Bree." She is a beautiful horse and Richard is excited to get her broke and have her a long time. He says she is very mellow and I will probably enjoy her (let's not push it). May 9th, Lady (who is not our horse) gave birth to Trigger (who is our horse). He is a beautiful Saro who is already built very well. Here are some pics of him the day he was born and at 2 months old. July 7th Kate (our beautiful black pony) gave birth to a cute little maybe Bay maybe Buckskin little man. His name is Banner. He is only 11 days old now and he has been struggling with an infection, but he is doing so much better and we are so happy. He was really sick there for awhile. Let's see if you can match the horse with the picture (ha ha just teasing). It's hard enough for me to keep all the new names straight!
This is Bree...

This is Trigger just born with mom, Lady...

This is Trigger today at 2 months with his mom...

This is Banner just born with mama Kate...

This is Banner yesterday at 10 days old just getting over his sickness...

Stitches Out, PICC line out, and Happy 4th!

Well, Independence Day sure brought a new sense of independence to me - no more wires attached to me! Yay! Thursday, Richard and I drove up to Murray and took Rhett with us (since it was just his birthday and we thought it would be fun to spend the day with him). We went to my Drs appointment and everything was looking good. He took the stitches and staples out of my head and removed the PICC line. I was thrilled. I was a little tired and sore from driving all that way, but so happy to be detached from stuff. Afterward, we went and visited my sister and her family and then headed home. This is a picture of my new haircut that my cute niece Chelsey gave me to help out the growing pains of my shaved rear head. It's a little grown out and messy in the picture, but you get the idea and look how well my wound is healing!


4th of July is always fun for our family. We love the small town stuff and we love the atmosphere of the day. Since we got home so late and I wasn't feeling well, Tris is the only one who got up in the morning. She rode in the parade with Grandpa Hirschi and went to the park with him and then came home. We actually didn't even go to the parade or the park this year, which was weird for us, but all the kids were sleeping and I really wasn't up for it. In the evening, Stan and Shani were over for an impromptu BBQ and then we headed up to the ball fields for the home run derby and the Hurricane vs. LaVerkin softball game. Richard has been in charge of this for the past few years and it has been a fun thing for our family to do. I was a little worried if I'd make it through the evening, but I took a couple pain pills and I did okay. I had a lot of help and the kids were pretty good. Hurricane won the softball game and the fireworks were wonderful! 4th of July was a wonderful day!