It's May! This is probably one of the busiest months of the year for us with the end of the school year, spring sports, and a lot of other activities keeping us on our toes. There is no rest for the weary during May.
At work I got to drive the train. I like driving the train but I don't do it often enough to remember everything so I basically have to get retrained every time. After a couple laps around the track though I get the hang of it again.
While I was driving, Russell brought Brooklyn over so she could ride the train with me. Together we drove around the track a few times and she got to blow the whistle. She loved it and didn't want to leave.
Logan had his final choir concert of the year. The choir performed various Broadway show tunes and Logan had a couple of solos.
His favorite part in the concert was when he and his friends were Newsboys during the Newsie's song "Seize the Day." The boys all danced around on the stage while the choir sang. It was so funny to watch.
They even did some gymnastics moves like cartwheels. It was interesting to see the boys do cartwheels and then see Logan do a professional gymnast cartwheel. I loved the end when the boys threw up their hands and tossed their hats.
The next song he sang a solo in was from Les Miserables, "Do You Hear the People Sing."
In this song he also waved a flag around as a show of triumph. It was a good concert and Logan did a great job performing.
My hike training is continuing through the month of May. Occasionally I can convince someone to go with me on my hikes. The first hike I did this month was only about 2 miles but quite a steep incline. I convinced Russell to do this hike with me and he went about half the way up before he told me to go on without him. We hiked up the Millville Face. It is the mountain we can see from our front porch. Our neighbor, Kurt, said this climb would be great elevation and incline training for Rim 2 Rim and boy was he right.
The climb was about 2000 feet of elevation gain over one mile so it was basically straight up. The trail was about a half mile to a tree that had a victory bell tied to it so if you made it there, you could ring it. After that, we were bushwhacking our way to the top of the peak following the ridge line. It was pretty strenuous but I kept plugging along. The views from the top were spectacular!
From the top of the peak, you could see for miles around. You could see the whole city of Hyrum and into Millville, Providence, and Logan. The other side of the peak you could see the mountain ranges going on and on up Blacksmith Fork Canyon. I really wanted to keep going along the ridge line of the mountain because it would lead to the peak of the next mountain over and then into Millville Canyon. That is about another 9 mile hike so I was not really prepared nor did I have time for that but it would have been awesome. After snapping a bunch of pictures, I made my way back down the mountain ridge line and met back up with Russell. To tell you the truth, going down was much harder than going up! The steep incline down really took a toll on my knees. I was glad I had my trekking poles to take a little bit of weight off my knees as I went down. I was more sore after this short 2 miles than I was for any of my other hikes. The nice thing is my feet are feeling much better after getting better shoes and taking a few rest days.
During May something cool happened with the atmosphere and we were able to see a glimpse of the Northern Lights at night. I don't know the whole scientific reason behind this but it was kind of cool.
I took this picture after getting off work one night. From the Heritage Center in Wellsville I could see the lights pretty well because it was really dark. When I got home I tried to show Russell and the kids but there was too much light pollution to see the Northern Lights. I know the Northern Lights are probably more amazing in Iceland or somewhere like that but it was kind of cool to get a small glimpse of them from Utah.
May 13 was the annual Canyon Colt Leadership Run at the Elementary school. Logan and Charlotte were able to race and finished really strong. Emily and a few kids from her Track team came and ran with the elementary kids and acted as pacers and encouragers.
Logan ran first and was so fast! He finished third overall in his grade!
Logan finished with the time of 6:34 for his mile. Hello Speedy! He was really cruising.
Charlotte ran later in the day and did amazing as well!
Charlotte finished with a time of 6:41 for about 2/3 of a mile. She was really happy with her time and kept a great pace the whole time. Emily ran about 100 miles working as a pacer through out the day. Emily had fun running with Logan and Charlotte and even decorated their legs with motivating words. If you can't see it from the pictures, she wrote "I am Speed!" on the back of each of their legs. It definitely made them faster!
The end of the school year also means end of year Band concerts. Thankfully the high school and middle school band directors work together so they had the concert on the same night.
Colby is really liking band this year. At the beginning of the year he played the trombone but once that got too easy, he moved to the tuba. He was playing the tuba in this concert. Emily is also liking band and enjoys being in the percussion section with her friends. She played mallets this concert as well as the drum set. Nice job kids!
For a Relief Society activity we learned how to shoot bows and arrows. It was so fun!
I even shot an arrow pretty darn close to the bullseye! I am always surprised when I make a good shot because I feel like it is a once in a lifetime thing. I think it would be fun to get into something like archery or shooting or something and actually get good at it. For now though I like surprising myself with the occasional lucky shot.
On May 18th I ran the Crossover Half Marathon. This was the first year this race was put on and it was a pretty good race. The course was all dirt roads and trails through the mountains so it was more of a trail run than a road race. The trail started in Paradise and ran Baxter Hollow up and over the mountain to the highway in Sardine Canyon. We had to cross over the mountain which is why the race was called the Crossover Half.
I felt really good while I was running this race. I was kind of hoping for a better time but when I found out it was a trail run with quite a bit of elevation gain, I decided to just do my best. I ended up finishing in 2:13 so it was slow but steady. The one thing I am sad about though is I came in 6th in my age group and they gave awards to the top 5 so I missed a trophy by just a minute. Bummer... Other than that, the trail was really nice, full of beautiful scenery. I wonder if we could take the four wheelers out on this road because it would be a fun ride. I'm not really sure if it is a private road or not.
Charlotte finished her soccer season this month. She has really loved playing soccer this spring and has learned a lot about playing, being competitive, and most importantly having fun with her teammates.
Charlotte learned ball handling and dribbling skills and even made a goal in one game. The girls on her team were so cute and friendly too. They were all just there to have fun but they also won quite a few games too. It is nice to see Charlotte out there and becoming more active in sports.
Logan and the rest of the fifth grade got to compete in the annual Wellsville Mile. This race is put on every year for all of the fifth graders in the county. It is a big deal! After doing so well in the Colt Leadership Run, Logan was placed in the fastest heat of boys.
Once again Emily and some other track runners came to encourage and pace the fifth graders. Emily ran with Logan for most of the time and said he was too fast! By the time Brooklyn and I watched him at the starting line and then ran to the finish, he was already coming in!
Logan ended up running the mile in 7 minutes placing 16th overall and 2nd from his school. We are still trying to figure out who beat him from our school though because I didn't see anyone before him. So let's just say he was first from Canyon!
After racing he met back up with his friends to eat lunch together. Watching these kids run does my heart good. I love seeing them doing so well and enjoying something I love.
Russell and I hiked Leatham Hollow with Brooklyn one day while the kids were at school. This trail is up Left Hand Fork and it was a good trail.
We hiked up to Leatham Spring and watched the water run all the way down the mountain from out of no where. It was very serene and peaceful. Then we continued hiking up the mountain and went until we hit the 2.5 mile mark. At this point there was an amazing lookout point where we could look out over Left Hand Fork and the trail we had just hiked up. It was amazing to see the landscape. At this point we decided to turn around and head back. The trail continues up and over the mountain and leads to Millville Canyon but that is about a 10 mile trek. Some day I would love to do the whole trail.
Hiking back we found a kid's water bottle that looked a lot like Brooklyn's friend, Harvey's, water bottle. I knew Kurt had just taken the boys on this hike a couple days before so we joked that it was probably their water bottle. We decided to grab it and pack it back home. If anything we would be picking up litter from off the trail. When we got home and jokingly took the water bottle over to the Sunada's. They were so surprised we had actually found their lost water bottle! We were surprised too because we didn't even know they had lost it. What a funny coincident.
The baby carrier pack is getting a little easier to carry which is nice because it means I am getting stronger. After a while though, especially when I am going downhill, it does start to weigh heavily on my shoulders.
Emily's first track season has come to a close. She has enjoyed running with the team and has gotten to know a lot more friends though her experience with track.
Emily and I attended her end of the season Track Banquet. During the banquet, Emily was awarded a Varsity Letter in Track. This is a big deal! She was able to run in a couple Varsity meets this season like the one in Morgan that was rainy and cold! She is an amazing runner in the 800 and the 1600 meters.
Congratulations on the great season Emily! You should be proud of yourself and your efforts!
More Hiking! This next hike was my really long hike just to see if I could do the distance with my actual pack and practice my nutrition and hydration along the way. This was a 15 mile solo hike for me up Richard's Hollow and back down Herd's Hollow road in Left Hand Fork.
I actually loved this hike and would love to do more solo hikes in the future. I started on the Richard's Hollow trail and that was amazing. The trail was completely shaded and green for most of the time. I followed the river and even had to stone and log skip across it in some places because the water was running so high. When I got a little less than 2 miles up the trail, I got to the waterfall. The waterfall was running really well this time of year because of all of the spring run off. I have hiked to this point with the rest of the family in the past but in July (when we went) the waterfall was nonexistent. It was barely a trickle then so it was so cool to see it in full motion. It was a little chilly still so there were icicles hanging off the branches hanging over the waterfall. That felt like a rare sight to see.
As I hiked up above the waterfall and continued on, the trail lead to a peaceful meadow and out into the warm sun. I did have my All Trails map going so I knew where the path was going. This part of the trail was probably my favorite because it was out in the open and I could hear the birds singing. Just passed this area is where I had to do a lot of river crossing. The trail went back and forth across the river. After this, I reached the crossroads of a few different trails and had to decide where I wanted to go. One way led to a forest road, the other way led to another trail head for Richard's Hollow, or I could just turn around and hike back down the same trail. I decided to sit down and check out the map and see what the mileage was going to be. I finally decided to continue on to the top trail head for Richard's Hollow and see where that took me. This led to a climb out of the canyon to the top of one of the ridges in Left Hand Fork. At one point there was snow on the trail but not enough to worry too much about. Finally I reached the top of the mountain and got to the trail head sign for Richard's Hollow. I had hiked the whole trail! At this point I was probably 8 miles in so I once again had to decide which way to go. I could turn around and go back the way I came or continue on the dirt road through Herd's Hollow, both were about the same distance. I decided to follow the road through Herd's Hollow and complete a loop instead of an out and back.
I was feeling great and had been snacking but decided I should eat some lunch. I pulled out my tuna packs and crackers and ate on the go because I knew I still had quite a ways to go. This worked just fine and the trail was now a dirt country road so it was easy to walk on. I did try out my umbrella hat to see if it would help with the sun. Well that hat was a pain in the butt because even the slightest wind would blow it off. I ended up having to hold on to the chin strap the whole time so it wouldn't blow away. It did work great for shade but that's about it.
The road through Herd's Hollow was not as scenic as Richard's Hollow because it was on the wrong side of the mountain. Instead of trees and grass it was mostly sage. I followed the road as it wound around and down the mountain. I kept checking the All Trails map to see if I was on the right road because it seemed to take forever and lead to nowhere. Finally the road led back to the main Left Hand Fork road near Gray Springs and I knew exactly where I was then. I was still about a mile or more from the parking area so I continued walking down the main road. Right at around mile 15 I was back at the truck. I had finished the whole loop.
I felt really good about my nutrition plan and my hydration and electrolytes. I was also really impressed with how well my pack felt on my shoulders and back the whole time. After doing this long hike, I am feeling more confident about the Rim 2 Rim hike.
Over Memorial Day I took the kids on my last training hike. This time we hiked to the Wind Caves in Logan Canyon. It seemed like everyone in Cache Valley was doing this hike as well. The trail was so busy and we were following people and passing people going the opposite direction the whole time.
The trail was amazing though. The kids were very good at keeping or leading the pace the whole time. Charlotte did get a little tired and ornery on the way up but that is to be expected because it is a pretty strenuous hike going up. There are a lot of switchbacks and the trail just crawls up the mountain. It is a little more than 1,000 feet of incline over 2 miles. This was rough with Brooklyn in the pack especially when we had to keep stopping and starting as we passed people. Charlotte and I took it a little slower, though, and made it to the top with the other kids.
We finally made it to the Wind Caves. The Wind Caves are so cool. It is a huge hole in the mountain that lets the wind blow straight through. From inside and on top you can see over the entire Logan Canyon. The views are spectacular. When we got to the Cave, Charlotte was so excited and so glad that she kept going to see this fun place. The trek up was worth it she said.
Inside the cave we ate lunch and our snacks. That really made everyone feel better. I think we were all getting hungry. The boys had a blast climbing on all of the rocks and walking on top of the cave and exploring everywhere. The girls were happy to sit and chill and look at the view. Brooklyn wanted to explore but I made her stay by me because the end of the cave is a huge drop off.
After finishing our lunch and resting of a while, we made our way back down. First we had to take a few pictures of us at the top to prove we had made it! Isn't that view just incredible?! All of the kids did great on the hike. Even though it was hard to climb, they were happy they made it to the top to see the great view. The hike down was much easier and Charlotte didn't complain at all. We definitely need to go on more family hikes!
May 30 was Paul's high school graduation. We drove down to Lehi to support him in this great event.
Congratulations Paul! We know you will go on to do great things!
On the last day of school Logan and the entire fifth grade put on a Civil War reenactment. This is probably one of the most exciting things the elementary kids look forward to when they become fifth graders. It is also really entertaining to watch as a parent.
Before beginning the reenactment, they presented the winners of the Great American award.
Logan was the only student from his class to earn the Great American Award. There were only six recipients in the whole fifth grade. This is a very prestigious and hard earned award. To earn this award, Logan had to do a ton of memorizing. He had to know the National Anthem, write the Pledge of Allegiance, know all of the 50 states and capitals, memorize all of the US Presidents in order, memorize the Preamble to the Constitution, and finally memorize and recite the Gettysburg Address. This was a lot of hard work but Logan was able to do it. He made the goal at the beginning of the year and made a plan to achieve it. The whole family helped him memorize by singing different songs and just listening to him as he recited coaching him on missed or forgotten words. We are so proud of Logan for his hard work and I hope he is proud of himself for achieving this goal.
Then it was time for the battles to begin!
As the Union and Confederate armies marched out and took their positions, Mr. Hawkes told us a little more about each battle and what they were fighting for. When it was time for each battle the kids took aim and hurled water balloons at each other. They loved it! The most emotional part of the reenactment is when they show the Battle of Gettysburg field and the many graves of the people who fought and died there.
At this point in the reenactment, Logan got up as Abraham Lincoln and recited the Gettysburg Address that turned the tides of the war. Logan did such an amazing job on the Gettysburg Address!
After memorizing the Gettysburg Address and passing it off for his Great American Award, Logan thought he could just forget it and move on. Well then his teacher gave him the part of Abraham Lincoln and he had to memorize it all over again. This time it was just a refresher though so he remembered it pretty quickly. He was so brave and did so well! I would have been too scared if I was in his place but Logan just got up and did it! Nice job!
The Civil War ended with a giant water balloon fight and the surrender of Robert E. Lee and the Confederate army at Appomattox Court House. Thanks fifth graders for teaching us more about the Civil War!
Now that school is out, we can stop and smell the flowers!
I love all of the irises that are in bloom right now. Brooklyn is a great example to me about just stopping and enjoying the flowers. Everyday she goes outside to see which new flowers are in bloom. I love it!
I have also been finishing a few craft projects:
First is the name plaque for Brooklyn. Since her name is longer, I glued the letters on to a board so it would be easier to hang up. Unfortunately the wood glue did not hold very long so I will have to figure something else out.
I have been wanting a wreath to hang on the door throughout the whole year so I finally made my own. I actually love how it turned. It is simple but nice enough to hang all year round.
Well if you made it all the way to the end of this post, you know how eventful May has been for us. Hopefully we can relax a little now that summer is finally here!
