One Wild Weekend

The weekend of May 14-16 turned out to be one Wild and Crazy weekend.  We were hoppin' the whole time.

Let me try to start from the beginning.....

Clear back in March we scheduled this weekend as one of our "friend" camping trips.  We have four families that get together once a month and we've decided for the summer months to make the get togethers camping trips.

Scheduling for all of the activities coming to an end were falling perfectly until the e-mail came that the TaVaci final performance needed to be moved back a week due to USU's Graduation.  This put graduation the night of May 15. 

It actually took me awhile to put two and two together and realize that the TaVaci concert was now going to be on the same weekend that we were going camping.  The girls have worked so hard since January on this performace and Hannah was actually in a specialty number so it's really hard not to let them perform.

Dave and I chatted and decided that the camping spot was 1 1/2 hours away and we'd go ahead and bring the girls back Saturday afternoon, let them perform and then drive back while they slept in the truck.

From my previous post you noticed that Dave had his motor graduation on May 14.  This started the whole whirl wind.  Graduation was scheduled to be at 1 p.m. and then the day before they decided to move it back to 2 p.m.  Mind you, the graduation is in Ogden.  We are wanting to pull out of our driveway by 5 p.m. to be on the road heading for the camp spot.  Yea....that's not going to happen.  I remember commenting to Dave that they couldn't move back graduation.  This did not fit with our schedule! 

Graduation ended about 3:15 and the girls and I arrived home around 4:30.  Dave didn't arrive home until after 5:00.  He had to leave graduation on 21st street, go to 12th street to load the motorcycle and drive the truck and trailer home.  So when the girls and I got home it turned into a mad dash to get everything loaded in the trailer and clothes packed.  Good thing I had the day off work and was able to do all of the grocery shopping in the morning hours before heading to Ogden.

We pulled out of the driveway at 6:30 p.m. along with the Waetchler's and Bryce Benson crew.  As we're leaving, Dave used his iPhone to map our destination to The City of Rocks in Idaho and THEN we realize that we're not 1 1/2 hours away.....we are 2 1/2 hours away!  Yes, that's right!  We will now be driving 2 1/2 hours home on Saturday for the TaVaci concert.  Oh well!  Too late now.  We're committed.

We made two stops on our way to City of Rocks and so I think we pulled in around 9 pm.  By the time we got the trailer set and the girls in their pjs, it was close to 11 pm and time to shut down for the night.

On Saturday we loaded in trucks and went exploring the City of Rocks.  It was pretty cool.  All of the kids were in heaven because they were allowed to crawl all over the rocks.  I am not too hip on heights so I was FREAKIN' OUT watching my girls climb higher and higher and getting closer and closer to the edge.  Everyone had a good time teasing me about it too.

Dave, Ashley, Nicole & Taylor

Nicole loving Chris

Cheryl, Jacee, Hannah & Ashley

Nicole, Jillian, & Tif

Haylee, Taylor, Ashley, Hannah & Nicole

We left at 3 pm while everyone was getting ready to go off on a hike and headed for Mendon to get ready for TaVaci.  The ride home was quiet.  Ashley and Nicole napped and Hannah watched a movie.  We arrived in Mendon at 5:30 and quickly showered all three girls.  We quickly downed some dinner and were suppose to be to the University by 6:30 pm but didn't arrive until 6:55 and the show was schedule to start at 7:00.  Thank goodness for "mormon standard time" and the show didn't start until 7:10.  Phew!  Dave dropped me, Hannah, and Ashley off at the sidewalk and we ran into the theatre.  Dave and Nicole parked the truck and came in and were there in time for the performance to start.
Pictures of Hannah........

"You're a Grouch Like Me" - Specialty Number

Ashley's Pictures.......as you'll see, she gets into it and needs her space.....

and finally the whole group.......

We left USU campus at 8:30 and took the girls to Tummi Yummi for a frozen yogurt treat and then back to Mendon to change in to pajamas and we were back on the road by 9:40 heading for City of Rocks.  We made good time on the way back.  Could have been that all three girls were asleep and we weren't listening to the bickering and also we weren't pulling a trailer.  We arrived back to the camp at 11 pm, unloaded the girls from the truck, and off to sleep we went.

The next morning we went back to in to the City of Rocks with the Waetchler's and took the girls on a 2 mile hike.  Of course, from the craziness of the night before I left the camera home so I didn't get any pictures of our adventure.  Oh well!

We arrived home Sunday night at 5 pm and still had a full evening ahead.  We unloaded the trailer and got everything back in to the house.  For this trip, we ended up borrowing Bryce Benson's truck because our poor little green truck would have struggled with the trip.  So, we needed to clean the truck and get it back to town so he could have it for work Monday morning.  Plus, we still had the Sheriff's Office truck and trailer that Dave used for training that needed to be returned.  At 7 pm, even without dinner, we loaded back up in the trucks and headed to town for the process of returning everything.  The Sheriff's office trailer had to be returned to the Search and Rescue building, which is located at the airport.  then we had to fill both trucks up with gas and return the Sheriff's Office truck to the office and THEN we returned Bryce's truck to the south end of Logan down by the Y.  We arrived home at 8:30 pm just in time to catch some quick dinner a quick shower for everyone to check for ticks because he hiked in sage brush that morning and then off to bed for some sleep before needing to arise early for work and school.

I think I'm getting anxiety again just writing this post!

Motor School Graduation

On Friday, May 14, Dave completed his two weeks of INTENSE motor school training and graduated top of the class.  He graduated with the highest score of 96.  Wahoo!

Friday morning Dave got up and left at regular time in order to be in Ogden by 8 a.m.  All of the motor students plus the instructors went for a bike ride up Ogden canyon and enjoyed lunch at a restaurant in celebration of them reaching the end of training.

Dave can give you many stories of his two weeks of training.  It turned out to be one of the hardest trainings he's ever done.  I think it would be safe to say that the first week the bike was on it's side more than it was standing.  Dave would come home with sore muscles, blood blisters, bruises, and one day he even came home drenched.  That was the day we had a down pour of rain the entire day but training still went on.  I think it took three days for his boots to dry out!

Here's a picture of Dave on the morning of graduation....

After running errands in the morning to prepare for our weekend camping adventure, I checked Hannah out of school early, picked the other two up from Traci's, met Grandma Peterson in Mendon and we all headed off to support Dave.  We splurged and had lunch at Maddox.  The girls were in awe of eating at the drive-in where they bring the food to your care and hook the tray on your window.  This was one of the coolest thing we've ever done according to them.

We made it to graduation a bit before everyone arrived back from their ride.  Ashley had the camera while were were waiting.  Here's a bit of her view..........

For graduation, each of the instructors gave a few words of advice and then we watched a 12 minute video of the two weeks of training.  It was fun to see that they did train in 8+" of standing water and a few fell off and had to get back up and get back on.  After the video they presented the graduates.

After all was said and done, we walked downstairs to take some pictures of the graduates with their motorcycles.  I forgot to mention that when we left Cache Valley it was sunny and warm.  We were dressed appropriately.  We reached the summit of the canyon and it started to cloud up and sprinkle.  In Ogden, it was a down pour of rain.  This is why the picture of Dave at the beginning on his bike is in a garage.  It rained the entire time in Ogden but once we hit the canyon summit on the way home, out came the sun!

I don't care who you are a picture or the sight of motorcycles lined up is impressive.  The Sheriff motorcycle is Dave's.

Now comes the time when school will be dismissed and Dave will go out of the roads of Cache Valley as a Motor Cop.  I have to say.....he looks mighty sharp in his attire.

Congratulations Dave!  We are proud of you for your accomplishment!

Ashley's Soccer Season

Both Hannah and Ashley played soccer this year.  We missed the boat last year in getting Hannah started but we got both her and Ashley going this year and they made leaps and bounds in progress from start to finish.  I do have to say though.....there are times when it is frustrating that we've taught our girls to give others a turn.....we forgot the disclaimer that when you're playing sports to "GET IN THERE AND KICK THE BALL!"

Ashley had her last soccer game on Tuesday, May 11.  Here's some shorts of her in her uniform before going to the game.  She has extra clothing on because it was a cold and rainy day.  In fact, I think most of the games were this way.  There might have been two maybe three that were played in ok weather.

FINALLY for the last game Ashley decided it was much more fun to chase and kick the ball than watch the others do it and chase her shadow and feel her hair bounce as she was running.  It may have been because I told her I had the camera and I needed some action shots.  Her coach even asked what happened.  He wanted to know if we bribed her! This is what I got (she's the one in the crazy pink hat):

Mother's Day

For Mother's Day this year I was showered with beautiful handmade gifts from my girls.  To me, there is nothing better a Mom can get than things her kids make for her.

I was surprised on the Thursday before Mother's Day at work with a UPS delivery of a large box containing flowers, chocolate, and bath essentials.  Dave and Hannah ordered them online and had them sent to me at work.

The flowers are beautiful and still alive today!

Dave and I got a babysitter for Saturday night and enjoyed an evening out on a date and had dinner at Cafe Sabor.  Yummy!

On Sunday morning, Dave and the girls let me sleep in until 9:30.  This in itself is a perfect gift for any mom!  I loved every minute of it.

From church I was given a card from Nicole saying that I was the icing on the cake and both Hannah and Ashley made me the cutest cards with sayings and candy bars.  I also got the standard flower from church but I love these.  I love planting them outside in my barrels.

After dinner I was given all of the other awesome gifts from the girls.

Both Hannah and Ashley made me a butterfly......

I got "lots" of handmade flowers thanks to hannah...........

Ashley made me this cute bag at preschool that has a key chain attached and also contained some bath crystals.  She gave me a handmade card and they asked the kids questions about their mom's and this is what Ashley said:

My mom's favorite food is:  Mac & Cheese
While this is a really good answer, I'd have to say this is actually Ashley's favorite food.

My mom's favorite drink is:  Sprite
Again, this is a great answer but this is what Ashley prefers to drink.  I myself will take a Diet Coke.

My mom's favorite thing to do is:  Watch TV
Okay, this answer SHOCKED me.  We hardly watch TV at our house.  In fact, the TV really doesn't turn on until after 9 p.m. when the kids are asleep so I'm not sure why she pulled this one out of her hat.

I love my mom because:  she helps me with my bedroom.
This is a true statement!  We love cleaning bedrooms!

Hannah made me quite a few cards at school.  One is actually written in Spanish.  She made this one during her Spanish class and was very proud of herself.

If you look closely at this one, Hannah actually used every letter in my name and wrote something to go with it.  Very impressive!

There is nothing better in life than being a mom and to me there's nothing sweeter than getting a special gift from one of my girls that they are so proud of themselves for making.

I LOVED this Mother's Day!!!!