Cascade Springs

It was the beginning of October if I remember right, we took a drive up into the mountains.  Our destination was Cascade Springs.  We took lots of snack type things that were left over from the previous days breakfast.  Pancakes, grapes, melon, and then some granola bars.  We had dinner kind of in the car or on the trails as we went along.  Lauren decided she was like a chipmunk stuffing her cheeks full of grapes.  We had to put a stop to that very quick, I didn't want anyone choking on grapes.  Of course, after I got a picture.

 I am not sure how Lauren got in so many pictures... but she seemed to be the one lingering as I was taking pictures.  Cascade Springs was kind of crowded so Robert was herding us through quickly not wanting to hang out to get too many shots, or any that took any time to take.

 I thought I got some pretty good shots of the girls all together.  I would have been more happy if they all would have looked at me at the same time and smiled.  I guess I can't have it all right.  We got some good ones anyway.

 They had several little bridges, the girls liked to watch the water move under them.  I was a little nervous for the little girls.  They seemed so small and the water seemed so fast.

Notice Amber's leg, she is holding it up.  She is such a poser when we take pictures!  lol

 Look at that, it is Lauren again!  Although looking at this picture, and her facial expression, I think it could pass as me at 8 yrs old.  Her nose all scrunched up like that, that is identical to mine. 

 I like this last picture, if only Lindsey would have leaned forward a little more.  I was trying to get them all arranged, and then I heard this, "Hurry, there are people waiting!"  Robert is aways so concerned about other people!  I was thinking, let them wait for just 2 minutes and then we will be done.  It is still cute. 

A sneaky plan

So it all started back in Aug.  I got a call from my sister in law, Sarah who asked if she could come for a day to visit.  She was driving back with a friend, Natalie who was visiting Utah.  I told Sarah I would for sure pick her up from the airport, it would all work for me.  As we talked we decided it would be fun to do some fun stuff while both of them were here, I would get a baby sitter and we would have a fun day doing whatever.  I marked it on my calendar, she arrived on the 22nd of Sept.  I got it all planned out.  I then got a babysitter all round up too.  Everything was fine. 

The day before Sarah needed to be picked up, my babysitter canceled.  (It was Rob's mom that was going to watch the kids, but her husband was having a skin graft for a cancer spot on his eyebrow.)  Sarah seemed really bummed, but I figured we could work around it.

I got to the airport, Natalie drove with me, and my 2 little ones that didn't have school.  We got to the airport.  Picked up Sarah.  Then once we got back to the car I started hearing our family call... "Peeeeeacock!  Peeeeeeeeeeacock!" (That is a long story maybe I will tell another time.) I thought it was just some crazies at the airport yelling having fun. I was right about that, but it was MY crazies!  Out of the concrete pillars pops out one of my friends, Summer.  Then I see someone else, is it Renee, my neice?  No, it's my sister Tracy, and there's my other sister Brenda!  Where did they all come from? 

Apparently I was the only one who didn't know!  Robert and his mom both knew, my whole family knew.   I guess they didn't tell my mom until the very end afraid she would spill the beans, and accidently tell me. 

I had NO CLUE!  There were a few things that seemed strange, like why when Sarah was trying to figure out how to meet us, why was she calling Natalie instead of me...?  It was an airport I was familar with, I wasn't sure if Natalie even had ever been there.  Then Sarah was on the phone which I thought was my brother, but it was really my sister's who were hanging out back behind us.  I guess another time when we got on the elevator they totally saw me, and I could have saw them but I wasn't even suspecting anything so I didn't even notice anything.  In the elevator as we were getting on, Natalie and Sarah were discussing which floor we were going to...

"We are going to number 2?"
"No, we parked on number 3."
"So push 3?"
"Yeah we need to go to floor 3."

I thought it was odd.  But of course later found out why.  It was such a surprise, such a sneaky plan!  My sisters are sooooo sneaky!

Everyone crashed on my front room... it reminded me of some middle school sleepover party. 

 We went to Timpanogas caves.  It was a great day to go.  It was sunny and warm.  I found a neighbor to watch my little ones and we were off to the caves.

 Here's Tracy in the parking lot. Waiting for our adventure to begin.

 Unfortunately something was on my camera lens so it made some of my pictures that were in the sun turn out all bad.  Bummer!  It would have been a good picture.

 Natalie and Sarah on the trail.

 This was a cool little place we walked through.  Tracy is on the other side.

 This steep trail, I think they said it was 16% grade was really hard on Brenda!  She was taking forever!!

 Tracy sitting next to a fault line, which is that crack in the rock.

 Rattlesnakes?  Really?

 Here we are, almost to the top, in rattlesnake territory.

 Apparently this is a very trecherous climb. We were always on the look out for falling rocks.  There was one place that ha some rocks sliding down right after we walked through. 

 Oh yeah... see!  Here is some falling rocks right here!  Luckily Tracy was able to escape the falling debri.

 This is our group at the top waiting to go into the caves.  Back row, Karla (me), Sarah, Tracy, Summer, and then Brenda and Natalie in the front.  Man I had a great time while they were here!  I would like a replay if I could.

And this is the only picture I got before my camera died. 

We had a fantastic time.  I am not sure Robert would agree.  He comments on how bad it is to share a house with 6 girls, and then to add 5 more...  he was one brave soul to go along with it and be so supportive.

Not pictured, beacuse I can't access the photos is the races on the wiggle cars we had going down the street.  I will have to post those.  I sure love my family!  I hope my girls have as much fun with their sisters later as they grow up as I do with my sisters.  My sisters are my best friends!  My mom is one of my best friends too!  It seems like that is how a family should be.  And I am grateful that my family is that way.  I hope for the family that I am raising will be the same way too. 

Thanks Sisters for a great time!  I really needed a day and  a half of fun filled chaos to give me a break.  It was much needed!  Come again anytime!!

O where, o where is my little black kitty?

As a child I remember my mom singing a song about a little gray kitty that was lost.  It started out, "O where, o where is my little gray kitty, o where, o where could she be?"  Or that is how I remember it anyway.  It talks about how they look under the table and under the chair, they even go down to the brook to see if the kitty drown. 

I find myself in the same problem... but with our black kitty.  GATO (gee-ah-tee-oh) has been gone for about a week an a half.  In fact he disapeared the day before my sisiters came into town.  It wasn't like him to go off for more than a day. 

I called the animal control and they didn't pick up anything in our neighborhood around that time, I even looked at the animal shelter.  That was REALLY sad, all those poor kitties meowing and begging for their homes, or even for some attention.  There were a few that looked much like him, but he had a bald spot on his back side where he was in a fight and I shaved his back so I could treat the area. 

Now we are cat-less.  Not that Robert really cares, he has been wanting to get rid of the cat since we got it.  It is strange when you get use to having something and then you don't have it anymore.  I am constantly going somewhere and expecting to see him.  On the kids' beds, in my closet, on the couch, in Samantha's bed, sitting on the stairs in the garage.  I still will hear something and think it is him meowing, which then makes me run to the door and search for him. 

I think something ate him.  Poor cat.  He was about 9 years old.  He was a good cat.  He was great with the kids, even when they tied him up in a pillow case, or we dressed him up and put him in a build-a-bear box as the build-a-cat.  The girls have drag him around, crawled on him, sat on him.  I remember Lauren once sitting on him like a horse and he was squished to the ground... Lauren was rocking back and forth yelling, "go, go, go!" 

Now I am just wondering when do I get our next cat, for Amber's birthday or maybe Christmas?  Robert says we shouldn't get one again... but it doesn't seem right to not get one.  Maybe what would be best is get a kitten when we get a puppy so they can be friends together?  Until then, I have a just opened bag of cat food.