I Never Want Summer to End

This has been such a fun summer!  Unfortunately, we are having such a great time together that the time really does seem to be FLYING by!

A couple of weeks ago we took an unplanned trip to Provo, UT.  Glenn wanted to attend a religious freedom conference at BYU.  With his crazy work schedule, we didn’t figure out if he could go until late Saturday night, then hit the road immediately following church on Sunday.  Whew!  It was last minute, but it couldn’t have been better if we had planned it for months!

We came crawling in to Brook and Jake’s house around midnight on Sunday, and they took great care of us the whole time we were there!  We just love them.  After all, it is not every relative who will house a family of 6 on less than 24 hours notice while expecting a baby any day, and make it seem effortless and like they were actually happy to have us come and invade their house and play with all the new baby’s toys and sleep in her sparklingly clean nursery!

We had to start off our trip with the most important attraction in Provo- a visit to the ole’ alma mater!  Monday morning we arose, dressed in our blue and white (and yellow-oops), and headed out to explore the campus. 

Uncle Jake gave us a detailed and fascinating tour of the BYU wind tunnel and the Crabtree Building- the engineering building on campus.  By the time we walked out of there the boys were torn between wanting to grow up and be a part of the BYU Engineering Department with all its gadgets and glory, and being so terrified of all the hazardous substance warnings and emergency alarms everywhere that they never wanted to step foot in the building again.  There was no question, however, that Uncle Jake is a genius and a hero in their eyes!  We completed our science education for the day with a stop at the Eyring Science Center.  Ah, the memories!

I gave the kids the grand tour of campus- we walked past where Glenn and I used to meet for lunch when we were dating, I pointed out the Elementary Education building, the HFAC, and the library.  We mourned over my old dorm building that had just been torn down and is now a construction site.   Derek and I danced in the Wilkinson Center ballroom followed by lunch at the Creamery on 9th, and I foolishly tried to get a picture of all 4 kids at the Tree of Knowledge statue without one of them running through the partitions.  Despite my threats and bribes, it just wasn’t meant to be.

There is no place on earth quite like BYU!

The weather there was stiflingly hot, so on Tuesday we opted for some water entertainment.  The boys and I headed over to Bridal Veil Falls in the morning.  I only remember going there one other time.  It was in the fall when I was pregnant with Derek (possibly even past my due date), and Glenn and I went there one evening for a leisurely stroll.  It must have been a memorable evening for Derek there in the womb, because on this visit he took to Bridal Veil Falls like he was an old pro!

Going with the boys was not exactly leisurely.  They were buzzing with excitement and immediately set off hiking up to the waterfall. 

The mountain was steep and the rocks slippery and treacherous.  Despite my best attempts to yell at them to come back down, the water roared so loudly over the falls that they could not hear me and still higher they climbed.  Evan realized his limits and turned back, but Derek was determined to keep going up.  You can see how I might have been slightly concerned for Derek’s welfare on a steep, slick mountain when he obviously struggled to maintain his balance even on the nice flat log.

  I thought for sure that Derek was going to plummet to his doom, but he eventually came back down- after posing on the waterfall for a picture, of course.  (You might notice that there are no other 9 year old children wandering around up there.)

Once he arrived safely back to civilization, Derek enthusiastically exclaimed, “Mom, that was one of the creepiest, most awesome moments of my life!”  I wouldn’t want to deny him that, right?

There was also a little pond at the bottom of the falls where people can feed the fish.  The fish were so tame that they would swim over and let people touch them.  It kind of grossed me out, but unsurprisingly did not gross the kids out.  They even went scavenging around for fish food to lure the fish closer.  They loved every minute of it!

Amelia was tempting fate to make her fall in and become a fish herself!  She insisted on running along the edge of the pond over and over and over again as fast as her little legs would carry her.  It might have been the creepiest, most awesome moment of her life though.

And so by the time we got back home to the Gotberg house, we were so worn out that the only solution was to spend the afternoon playing in the backyard with the adorable cousins!

Wednesday morning we went and visited our good friends, the Moores.  They were our neighbors in Virginia, and we love them.  At the time I had 2 kids and Natalie had 3.  Now I have 4 and Natalie has 9.  My, how our lives have changed!  A change for the better, except for the part where we are no longer neighbors.  That is definitely a change for the worse, so it was good to spend some time with them.

From there we headed to Thanksgiving Point.  I have never been there before, and was impressed by the curiosity museum we visited there.  It was packed with people, and I could see why.  The kids had a great time!  The best part was when I took the kids on a rope bridge course two stories above the ground.  Trying to hold the hands of 3 children who were paralyzed with fear while trying to keep up with Derek and Evan while swaying through the air and forcing myself to not look down was a thrill everyone should have the opportunity to experience!

I think Amelia had the most fun though!

Finally on Thursday it was time to head home (armed with a container of Brook’s amazing homemade zucchini brownies).  We said our goodbyes to Brook and Jake and were very impressed that we couldn’t hear them cheering when they closed the door behind us.  We had so much fun with them!

We made a couple of stops on our way out of Provo for nostalgia's sake.  We just had to see Cougar Stadium!

We then headed back to our old house.  It is so strange visiting our past.  We’ve lived in the same house in Colorado now for almost 8 years.  Time passes, but I never think about the past here because it is also our present.  Going back to visit our old condo in Orem was like walking back in time.  We have visited it before since we lived there, but Regis and Crystal were living there so it had new life.  Now there are strangers living there, so we just peeked in the windows and took pictures- the people who live there don’t even know that Glenn and I bought that little condo when we got married and brought our first baby home to live there.  I can’t believe how it seems that just days ago we were walking through that front door on a daily basis!  Those were good days.

These are too.

What a great trip!  I will always love Utah as my home of 5 years where some of the most significant parts of my life were brought about!  And, I will always love summer for the freedom to go on these wild, last-minute trips!  I wish summer never had to end!

A Little Girl

Sometimes I still can’t believe that we have a little girl running around this house, particularly when most of the time she just does whatever the boys are doing.  There are times, though, that the femininity just can’t be denied.  Like this morning when out of the blue Amelia began to dramatically sob about I-have-no-idea-what while wearing the pink tutu she put on herself and clutched her doll for comfort.  She makes me laugh!  We sure love our funny girl!

A Summer Adventure

A few weeks ago Derek and Evan were able to go on a grand adventure- a hiking trip with Grandma and Grandpa Roper and cousins Liberty and Audrey.  Grandma flew out here to pick up the boys, then they flew to Las Vegas where they met up with Grandpa and the cousins.  From there they are the ones who will have to tell the story, since Glenn and I weren’t there.  I had them each write a short account.  Here you go:

FROM EVAN:
Hello everybody!!! It is finally time to tell you about our trip! On June 18,2014, we went with our Grandma Roper to go to las Vegas and go hiking in Bryce Canyon in Utah with my grandpa and 2 cousins.

First, we hiked the rim trail, a trail around the top of Bryce Canyon. Next, we hiked Navaho loop and wall street. Last, we hiked to the twin bridges, two bridges carved in the rock by erosion.

We also went on a geology talk where the park ranger told us: there are 5 types of cliffs. The chocolate cliffs, the blue cliffs, the white cliffs, and the pink cliffs. he also told us how hoodoos were formed. Hoodoos are formed when erosion cuts part of a wall of rock and forms a pillar.

After all that, we went back to las veges and flew home on spirit airlines. It was fun to go on a trip with my grandma Roper!

FROM DEREK:
Recently I visited Bryce Canyon National Park with my brother, cousins, and grandparents. It is just as good as the Grand Canyon!

We drove in to the sight of amazing Hoodoos, towering pillars of yellow-red rock. Birds were chirping in the setting sun. It was easily one of the most amazing things I had seen in my life.

It was getting late, but we decided to hike a short trail to a place called Sunrise Point. We looked at the view of huge mesas, big columns, and craggy formations for a while, then headed home to our hotel that looked like a log cabin.

In the morning after a breakfast of toast and muffins, we headed off to the canyon. We decided to hike Navajo Loop Trail, a twisty trail with cool rock formations. there were two rock bridges high above us. We found some spacious caves where we could cool off under the big rocks. As we looked up, it seemed that the towering walls could come crashing down on us any minute.

We also went on a horse ride to the bottom of the canyon. Cootberry, my very obedient horse, was a light amber color with a dark mane and tail and liked to trot along playfully every once in a while when he got tired of plodding along in the back. ( We were the last of the group. )

At one point, Cootberry and I thought we had gotten ahead and we were no longer last because Libby and her snorty mule were behind us. Unfortunately, they snuck up on us and butted us out of the way while we were stopped. I was so mad that Cootberry just let them pass by, but I guess he though we should let ladies go first. I finished the ride feeling hot and tired, but glad to have been a real cowboy for an hour.

I loved going to Bryce Canyon. Maybe you should go there sometime!

FROM JULIE:
Here are the bold adventurers on the trail:

We’re lucky to have such spunky and fearless grandparents!

Glenn’s mom came and stayed with us for a few days after the trip.  It was so much fun to have her around to chat and helpful to have an extra pair of hands at home.  The kids would have been thrilled if she would have moved right in for good!

Thank you, Grandma and Grandpa, for an unforgettable trip and a wonderful week!