Moab, Day 2

We spent a majority of Saturday in the Fiery Furnace.  This is a hike which requires a permit and only 75 people are allowed in the area per day.  You have to watch a movie and answer questions about staying on the trail and not ruining the eco-system.  Essentially you can be on rock or in the creek bed.  Everywhere else is off limits.  There are no set trails, so it is a day of exploring.....

Here are a few of our pictures taken as we explored.

After the Fiery Furnace, we spent a little time watching the kids roll down the sand hill just outside

of Arches National park. Deryn is at the very bottom of the picture ... I believe Brayden and Megan are behind her.  Jansyn is the one coming down on her stomach just above the large rock. 

 

After dinner, we had time for one more hike.  I don't believe everyone had energy for one more hike, but they all participated anyway!  We headed for Corona Arch

 

A beautiful blooming cactus we passed as we hiked

 Here is Corona Arch... still beautiful!

By the time we finished, it seemed like a really fun idea to lay on the railroad track and get our picture taken.... Here are James and Andrew.  James  took several pictures of the whole family, then individual families, and then couples since he has the nicest camera....  perhaps we will be exchanging railroad christmas cards this year!  

THAT WAS IT FOR DAY TWO.....

Day 1

Moab, April 12-15

The Journey begins...  here we are pulling out of the driveway! We left Thursday afternoon, the rest of the Byg family joined us on Friday.

Jansyn and Deryn posing for pictures on our Friday Morning Hike.... we attempted to hike Fisher Towers.  We are not sure we made it to the right spot, but it was beautiful!

Jansyn exploring on her own ... she was very excited it was a "climbing hike" and not a "walking hike".  She managed to get back down on her own.

Deryn strikes a pose!

Maryann

Mike

Some crazy rock climbers on the very top.... we saw them move their arms, so they are real!  Too scary for me, but I am impressed.

That's as high as we go.....

Next stop was the ghost town, Cisco.  Since I am a mail carrier, I took a picture of the post office.

 

Some old houses and telephone poles

 

 

Next, we met the rest of the family at the visitors center.

 We hiked Balanced Rock...

 Sand Dune Arch..... oops forgot to take a picture of the arch.  Had too much fun taking pictures of the kids in the sand.

 Is that a family tree???

 Next we hiked here...

 to see this...

 We ended our day at the Bar-M Chuckwagon where we watched a gunfight, ate way too much delicious food, and were well entertained with music and skits. 

Things My Kids Say

Just a few funny conversations from the past couple of months:

1. While grocery shopping with Jansyn I put 2 bottles of ketchup in the shopping cart...

Jansyn:  I hope we don't lose our house because you are buying 2 bottles of ketchup.

Me:  Why would we lose our house?

Jansyn:  Because if you buy all that ketchup, we won't have money to pay for our house.  They take your house away if you don't pay for it you know.

Where do they learn this stuff???

2.  At the library with Deryn:

I am casually reading the back of the book she is checking out.  I am surprised to find it is a mystery.  She has refused to read every mystery I have ever tried to interest her in.

Me:  Whoa - you are checking out a mystery?  Since when do you like mysteries?

Deryn:  I have always liked mysteries, as long as they have a twist of romance.

Me:  Did you just say romance??  

Deryn:  Yes... (with a mischievious smile)

Me:  How old are you???

3.  Sunday afternoon.... out of the clear blue.....

Jansyn:  Did you know that in New York, when you turn 12 you have to fight to the death?

Mike:  No, I don't think so.  Not that I've heard of.

Jansyn:  Uh huh... it's true.  Katrina even told me.  

Mike:  Wait, are you talking about The Hunger Games?  I think you are talking about a movie.

Jansyn:  No, it's real.

Thank you Hunger Games and parents who take your 7 year olds to see the movie.....

4.  Jansyn has always had problems saying the letter "R"... but this solution is really quite genius.

Jansyn:  No one can ever understand me when I ask what the Rules are.... So now I don't ask what the rules are.  Now I say "what are the instructions?"

See!  She is brilliant!

What's next?

One more post, and then I will be done with history events and back to current events!

As I reflected on the first 13 years of marriage, I couldn't help but wonder what the next 13 years will bring.

Certainly our Grandmas, and your Great Grandmas will probably have all passed on.... GG is 88, Grandma Coleman 99, and Grandma Perry will be 95 in June. While it is not impossible for one of them to still be alive, it does not seem likely. This makes me sad though I know death is a natural part of life.

Deryn, you will be 24! Wow! Done with high school and most likely graduating from college. I wonder what you will choose to study? Even scarier to me, you could be married. You could be a mom, which is even scarier because that would make me a Grandma....

Jansyn, you will be 20! You too will be done with high school and will hopefully be attending college. What will you be studying? Maybe you will be working as a gymnastics coach to put yourself through college.

When I start to think about the fact that both of you might be gone from home, I start to realize just how short my time with you is and how much I still need to teach you. It also makes me think about the things I will miss....
Will I miss towels on the bathroom floor and naked barbies in the living room? I am guessing that I will.
I will probably miss overhearing conversations like this:

Deryn: Can Sadie borrow your scooter so we can get to art faster?

Jansyn:Give me your grape chapstick and she can borrow it.

Deryn: Jansyn, come on. I don't want to give you the grape one. How about Mango? I will give you the mango one.

Jansyn: No, I want the grape one, so I guess you can't borrow my scooter.

Deryn: How about gum? I will give you some gum if Sadie can borrow your scooter.

Jansyn: Well.... I guess so.

Deryn: Ok, but you can't have my good gum.

Jansyn: Fine, then you can't borrow my scooter. If I can't have to good gum, then I want the grape chapstick.

Yes, I am quite sure I will miss conversations like that.

I wonder where I will be working, where Dad will be working and if we will be living in the same place.

I don't know everything the next 13 years will bring, but I do know that whatever adventure we may face, we will face together.

Adventures: part 5

School and Education

The final consistent adventure in our marriage has been education. When we met, Dad had just graduated from BYU with a bachelors degree in Economics.
I had completed some classes at Ricks College (now BYU Idaho), and was enrolled at the Salt Lake Community College.
As we continued to date, I eventually changed majors and schools and finished my bachelors degree at the University of Utah. Dad began an MBA program at Westminister, but eventually decided he had an interest in Computers. He stopped working towards his MBA and began taking computer class at Salt Lake Community College.
Sometimes he didn't take a class, he bought a book and taught himself. He would read computer programming books that were 2 or 3 inches thick with the same gusto I would read a mystery or a romance novel.
Eventually he had learned enough to begin a career as a computer programmer.
Then, shortly after Jansyn was born he asked me, "So how do you feel about being a single mom for 2 years?"
That's when he began the EMBA program at BYU.
Now, thirteen years later, I am re-enrolled in school at the University of Utah. Right now it is classes for personal interest - though it may become a second bachelors degree.

Either way, learning is never wasted. Relationships and knowledge are the two things you can take with you when you die. We hope that both of you will have the same love of learning that we do - never be afraid to learn about something new!

Adventures: part 4

Landlord & Rental properties

I am sure both of you will remember the rental properties. We decided early in our marriage we wanted passive income... we didn't want all our money coming from one place. So, we invested in rental properties. We also wanted something we could work at as a family. I am sure you have "fond" memories of cleaning up trash and tree branches in the yard or of helping us clean after someone has moved out.
Some of the properties have been a good experience, others not so good.

Tenants come in great variety and we have certainly met interesting people along the way.
We have had tenants leave that we are truly sorry to see go, and others who did not leave soon enough.
We have had apartments left spic and span.... while others have had to be gutted and re-done.
We have served eviction notices, and gone to court to try and claim rent money (which is nearly impossible to get -even when the judge decides in your favor.)
We have had tenants who pay on time every month and tenants who are late every month.
My personal favorite is the obvious lies.... like when they can't afford rent in december, and they tell you this as you are staring at the new snowboards under the Christmas tree.....

Tenants have been a consistent adventure in the last 13 years of marriage.
I have to say I have enjoyed the times your Dad and I have spent the day (or days) working together laying tile or painting walls. Nothing is better than working side by side with your best friend.

Adventures: part 3

HOME PROJECTS

This was the first house we bought. It was located in West Jordan, Utah. We moved in December 1999 - just a couple of weeks before Christmas.


So, what projects can we recall from this picture.... We added the fence and the sprinkler system ourselves. We also built the decorative arbor over the fence. It is not in the picture, but on the left side of the driveway, you girls may remember the "mermaid rocks" where you spent hours playing with your friends pretending to be mermaids.

Deryn, I am guessing you will remember our "secret garden" through the gate on the right of the house. We turned the previous owners dog run into our secret place. We made a rock pathway, and you chose all the rose bushes. We had a table and chairs, and while Jansyn napped we would sit in the shade and read our scriptures or another book. Do you remember that?

Do either of you remember the bird feeder we had on the ground in front of the bay window. We would watch the Mourning Doves come and eat in the morning while we ate breakfast.
This it the deck we added one summer. We totally splurged on the door - I think Dad & I both fell in love with the most expensive door at the store. The deck was just off the master bedroom.
On summer weekends we would take our dinner outside and eat. Dad & I also watched movies outside on the deck in the evenings.

Here are the two of you on the deck, Easter 2005.
Here is the door going out to the deck... unfortunately it doesn't show the design in the glass as well as I would like.
In our room we added the recessed lighting and the ceiling fan. We also added wood closet organizers to more efficiently use the space in the closet.

This was the bedroom you two shared. Do you remember the quilts and pillows I made for your beds? We also painted the dresser red to match the bedding.

Deryn

Jansyn

This was our living room. Wendy Paul & I made the curtains and the pillows. The pillows were really fun, we made them from old denim shirts.
Remember the purple wall? Dad agreed to have a purple accent wall. It had a sand like texture to it.

This was the kitchen and eating area. We added the flat top stove and the small TV under the cupboard. I miss the window ledge in front of the sink. My plants did well there, and it was fun to decorate at Christmas time.


Aah, the game room / toy room. Lots of fun for everyone! Originally this was our family room / tv room until we finished the basement. There was also a door off of this room leading out to the back yard.
Seeing the fireplace makes me laugh. When we were getting ready to sell the house, the fireplace, which we hadn't used for a while, would not work. We tried and tried to get the key to turn it on. Finally we called a repair man. We paid just over $100 for him to tell us one of you had shoved a packing peanut in the hole where the key was supposed to go. Talk about funny and embarassing!

We finished the basement as a theater room on one side, and exercise room on the other side. Maybe you remember the incredibly loud speakers in the ceiling? We added lots of insulation in the ceiling so it would still be quiet upstairs.

Dad and I did everything ourselves except for the wood work. I am sure you remember how we spent every free moment cutting rock and putting it on the wall.


Movie night with your cousins.... For some reason everyone needed to sit in the same chair.

Here is the exercise section of the room.