The Last Days of Summer

I know there is still a little bit of time left of summer, but once school starts, it just seems over. I am not in school anymore and it still feels like that. With the end of summer, I have been thinking about all the things that happened this summer. I had some great and crazy times. Our summer started out going to Mountain Home, Idaho, to visit Brett's cousins and deciding that he was going to join the Air Force. What a way to start summer break!!

Knowing, or at the time thinking, that Brett was going to join the Air Force had us wanting to do things that we have never done since we moved to Orem almost 4 years ago. One of the big things was hiking to the Y. We had never done it before and within 3 weeks, we hiked it twice! Brett carried Micole up the mountain and boy, did Brett get his workout. That trail is steep, especially carrying about 40 lbs on your back. At one point, we let Micole get out of the backpack carrier and she wanted to carry the backpack herself. We helped her for a little ways. It was funny to see the expressions of some of the people we passed on the trail.

My next big adventure for the summer was my 2 week vacation, where I was on the go constantly. It all started with Girls Camp up at Heber Valley Camp. I love the young women in my ward and I love girls camp. Heber Valley is really a plush camp, but it is fun to interact and be around the girls. After doing that for a week, I came home and went to a family reunion in Loa. After the family reunion, I finally got to sleep in my own bed one night before heading of to another family reunion at Martin's Cove. Brett wasn't able to come because he had to work, so it was Micole and I, my mom and dad, and Audrey, Houston's wife. It was a very interesting and different experience for me. I think I may have learned in a small way what some of the single pioneer women went through going across the plains. At one point, I had to carry Micole almost 2 miles. She was tired and wouldn't let anyone hold her. My arms and back hurt so bad, but all I could think about was how many women carried their babies. I couldn't even think about complaining when I thought about that. While at Martin's Cove, we were able to hear some of our own family history as well as the history of the pioneers that were stuck in Martin's Cove. It has really sparked my interest in my own family history and what my ancestors went through so I could be a member of the Church. It was definitely an experience I hope to always remember.

This summer we have tried to spend a lot of time with our families, knowing that we will be living away from them once Brett is finished with all of his training. We helped herd cows and went to Rawlins to see Brett's mom and stepdad. We have had an eventful and sometimes uneventful summer. The events all seem to happen at once and then we have a drought. We have also had some ups and downs. Not knowing if Brett was going to be able to join the Air Force to the joyous call that said he was in. Like I have said, it has been a great summer.