Spring Break!!

Spring Break was pretty chill this year. Rick was gone on a work-cruise (interpreting). He said it was pretty easy (unlike the one he did in February, which was extremely busy). 

Josh had soccer training for the Snow Canyon High School soccer team Monday through Wednesday. Part of their activities included a hike up the Turtle Wall trail, pickleball, a motivational speaker, an alumni game, a polar plunge, awards etc. 

Monday, Jenna and I went with Allison and Clarissa and Audrey for a little hike in Snow Canyon. Snow Canyon is SO incredibly beautiful! We are fortunate to live in such a beautiful area!  

Then we went to a place called "Berries and Cream" in the outlets. I had never been there before. You just pick what berries you want and then what kind of cream you want and that is it! It was really good! 

Then the girls wanted to go to Fashion Runway since we were right by it. Jenna ended up getting a whole bunch of t-shirts!!

Tuesday I ended up interpreting most of the day. I had a medical appointment in the morning and then ended up at a last minute job at the hospital in the afternoon. Jenna and I had prepared a gluten free lasagna yesterday and then I cooked it tonight when I got back from the hospital. Jenna's friends were over and so we all ate some and then I ran Jenna and her friends over to the movie theater because they had tickets to go see a horror movie called, Imaginary. 

During this time I started to feel SO sick to my stomach!! I decided to go for a walk to see if that would help. It didn't. I finally decided to go check the ingredients of the lasagna noodles. Rick had purchased a whole case of gluten free lasagna noodles for us. Well, turns out that they were NOT gluten free! This particular brand carries both gluten free and regular noodles and the packaging looks exactly the same except for the gluten free has a gluten free label on it. I remembered that he had ordered them for us and didn't check the label. Lesson learned -- ALWAYS check the ingredients!! 

I was finally able to throw up and that helped reduce some of the discomfort. My eyes started swelling up and I thought, "Oh no, not again!" Last time this happened it lasted for three days! Thankfully it didn't swell up too bad and was okay the next day. I was grateful for that. Now we have an entire lasagna in the fridge that Jenna and I can't eat. And a whole case of non-gluten free lasagna noodles that we can't eat! Ugh!! Somehow, thankfully Jenna didn't get sick tonight! 

Jenna came home and slept with me because you know -- scary movie and all that. She also slept with me the past couple of nights since Rick was gone. I was okay with that, ha ha! 

Wednesday Jenna went with Clarissa and Audrey to get their nails done. Allison had set up appointments for all of us, but when I learned how expensive it was I bowed out. I am not a nail person and had no idea how much it cost!! Jenna's came to $70.00! To me that is a total waste of money!! I met them all at Costa Vida for lunch when they were finished and then ran over to the hospital again for another last minute appointment (gotta pay for those nails somehow, right? Haha!) 

Wednesday night Josh and I went to see Legally Blond at St. George Musical Theater. We went to support Bridget Layton in it. It was really cute! 

Thursday I brought Jenna driving and then she spent the rest of the day with friends (Josh, Manny, Bria, Claire). I picked her up from Target that evening and she drove to Cortnie's house. I was glad that we did our hike on Monday, because today was cold! Friday I worked and ran errands. Jenna hung out with friends and I brought them all to the mall. I got a night to myself and watched a Hallmark movie. Josh worked at Tuacahn Thursday through Saturday. 

Saturday I worked in the yard for a few hours and filled up a whole garbage can with weeds. The little girl from next door came over and helped, it was so cute. She is around 9 years old. But she only speaks Spanish and so we couldn't really communicate except for hand gestures. 

Saturday night Jenna helped to serve food at Drue and Colin's reception from 6:30 to 10:30. She said it was so much fun!! 

The reception was so pretty! It was cold, but at least it didn't rain! It was been raining off and on throughout the day and so I was worried that it might rain during the reception. It held off though -- tender mercies! They had heater's set up throughout the reception. 

It was set up so that you walk through the Allred's backyard (through an archway of lights) into the Gulbranson's back yard (since their yards are back to back). Drue and Colin had their infamous cars on display and also had platforms set up with vintage furniture. They had decorations and photos on display. They even served a full dinner -- brisket, pork, salad, rolls, and drinks. They also had churros. (The dinner is what Jenna and her friends helped with.)  There It was fun to see a lot of our friends from our old ward. After the reception I went to Mari Purdy's birthday party. It was fun to visit with her and see her kids. I also visited with Michelle Joines, who I haven't seen in a long time.  

Sunday was a really busy day for me. I got called to fill it at a last minute interpreting job (for another church meeting). Then I hurried to our ward for Roy and Karen's missionary Homecoming. They did a great job and Jenny Awerkamp sang "This is the Christ," and did a beautiful job. After church I hurried to help Josh with his mission papers. He said that he only had like one thing left, but there was a lot more left than that, so we were scrambling to try and finish before his appointment with the Bishop. 

I was trying to hurry and scan in all of the forms and upload them and the website kept saying that the files were too big. Finally we got everything done and he met with the Bishop. Now he just needs to wait for the Stake President to contact him, and at that appointment his papers can be submitted! Exciting! 

Anyway, after all that I took a nap and Jenna surprised me by fixing dinner. Yay, Jenna!!! We had a nice taco dinner and then I hurried to the church for the RS Devotional. It was good, but went over time and I was stressing a little because I still had a lot to do. I came home and Josh taught the Come Follow Me lesson and then I picked up Rick from the shuttle place since he was just getting home from his Cruise. He got delayed and so I had to wait around for him for twenty minutes. I should have not left until he told me he was closer. Oh well. Busy day!! 

Monday the kids had ANOTHER day off since it was a teacher work day. I was scheduled to work all day, but then most of my classes cancelled since one of the students was sick. That worked out well for me, because I needed to go shopping and get food for the Josh's team night tonight. I drove Jenna to dance and then brought the food over. Then we had our weekly call with Jaiden and then picked Jenna up. Then we had a family meeting tonight to discuss the church history trip this summer. So....that was my Spring Break!! 

Spring Break Cruise to Mexico!!

Friday, March 10:  We left at 5:00 a.m. to drive to Los Angeles. The kids and I slept a lot of the way while Rick drove. He stopped at a park halfway there and took a 20-minute nap while we walked around. We drove to Walmart and picked up a few things and then headed on our way. After driving for a bit, we ran into really bad traffic, due to an accident. It was slow moving for an hour or so. We eventually made it to our pier and grabbed our luggage and headed to the ship, Royal Caribbean’s Navigator of the Seas. It was raining by this time and there was a huge line to get on the ship. Rick said that it is unusual for there to be a long line like that and said that usually he is able to walk right on. When he and I went on our cruise over Christmas break we just walked right on also. But today there was a huge line, which was unfortunate, since it was raining and cold!

We finally made it on and went and got lunch at the Windjammer, which is an all-you-can-eat buffet. Then we went to our rooms. Our room was near the back of the ship, but it was in the middle aisle and so we didn’t have a window to the outside. I didn’t like having a room in the middle aisle because I always got lost whenever coming and going from our room. But the room was nice because we had two rooms connected together, and so we had plenty of space. Rick had reserved the rooms with Rick and Josh in a room, and me and Jenna in a room (because I guess we couldn’t book a room with two kids together and no adult). But once we arrived we switched it so that Rick and I were in a room (king bed with the two beds put together) and the kids in the other room with two twin beds. We had the room attendants unlock the door between the two rooms. It was nice having two rooms. Rick said that when he went with the girls for their Senior trip they were all squished into one room. This set up was much better!

We took a little nap before dinner and Rick walked around with the kids to show them around the ship. The dinner was delicious, and Jenna and I were able to pre-order for the next night so that they were prepared with gluten free meals for us. We went to the comedy show tonight (Mike Pace). It was pretty good. Some of the jokes went over the kids’ head, but luckily there wasn’t anything too terribly inappropriate. We didn’t do too much after that since we were all tired from the long drive and so we all went to bed early!

Saturday 11: (Day 2 – Sea Day) Rick walked around the track on the ship this morning, but it was still pretty wet and cold and so I thought I would just walk around the inside of the ship instead to check it out. I mean there are a million stairs and so it is pretty easy to get a good workout, ha ha! I ended up at the fitness center and worked out there for a while. Our family had purchased tickets to the escape room and went this morning. It was just okay. The room was neat, but we felt like the instructions were not very clear and so we didn’t know what we were doing. I guess vague instructions are supposed to be part of the puzzle, but we felt like it would have been challenging enough figuring out the puzzles, without trying to figure out the instructions too! And there were too many people, so after we figured out the puzzle we were working on we felt like we were kind of standing around. Anyway, our group made it out before the time limit, but the guy in charge had to give us several clues, which I don’t think we would have needed had the instructions been clearer. After our group solved all of the puzzles, he took a picture with some of our phones of the group next to our time, but the picture on my phone turned out blurry.  

Rick said that he wanted to go to the nice sit-down restaurant for lunch instead of the buffet at the windjammer. The kids didn’t want to go, so they went off to eat at the windjammer and then do their own thing while we ate. The food was good, but it took a while. Rick was complaining that he was exhausted and wanted to go lie down. We had thirty minutes before we were to go ice-skating, and he considered going to the room to lie down for a bit, but then decided to just wait until after ice-skating. Well, we signed all of our waivers and Rick and the kids went out on the ice. I had these endlessly long laces and was trying to figure out how to get those extra laces tucked in so that I didn’t trip over them. 

When I finally walked over to get on the ice I saw that Rick was on the other side of the ice, on his butt, with the ice-skating manager trying to help him up. I thought, “Wow, I am not even on the ice yet and Rick is already down!” He didn’t even finish one full loop! I didn’t realize until later how bad his fall was. I guess he slipped and fell backwards, trying to grab the handrail, but missed it and landed on his back, with his head hitting the ice. I wasn’t sure if he landed on his back or his head, but Jenna later told us that he had fallen on his back first and then his head whacked the ice. This made me feel a little better knowing that his head didn’t take the full brunt of the fall. Thankfully he had a helmet on! When they gave helmets out to everyone I thought it was a little silly, but now I was extremely grateful! 

A couple of people came up to me afterwards and said that they had seen him fall and that he hit his head really hard. The scary thing was he couldn’t even remember falling! The worker helped him off and I asked if he was okay. He said he was just going to watch for a bit and take some pictures. So I went out to skate. He took a couple of pictures and videos. He then looked confused and so I stopped to ask if he was okay. He said he was standing there wondering why he wasn’t on the ice. I said, “Because you fell.” He said, “I did?” Josh was laughing and saying that he was just kidding because Rick was joking about not remembering who Josh was. So, I totally thought he was kidding. But as it turns out, he really couldn’t remember falling – or even being out on the ice at all. Rick decided to go sit down and about 10 or 15 minutes later the ice captain came to check on him. When it was apparent that he really didn’t remember, the guy said, “I think we better take a little trip to the medical center.” I agreed. I said I would meet them there in a few minutes. 

I know that confusion and memory loss are signs of a concussion and so most likely Rick had a concussion. Then a few minutes later I get a text from Rick saying, “Why am I in the hospital?” Oh dear! I said I would be right down. Anyway, the whole thing was pretty crazy. Rick remembered signing the waivers and getting skates on, but he couldn’t remember getting on the ice or falling. He couldn’t remember being helped off the ice and unlacing his skates. He just found himself taking a couple pictures of the kids and wondering why he wasn’t out there skating with them. At the medical center they checked him, and I signed some forms explaining what had happened. Rick kept saying, “I can’t believe I fell. I have been ice-skating plenty of times before and know how to skate.” After a while they let us go, but they said to watch for any danger signals, and Rick went to take a nap. Someone from the medical team called Rick every day to check to on him. It is nice that they showed enough concern to do that, even if it was just their job. 

Finally, the sun made an appearance and the kids and I laid out. Tonight, was formal night and so we got dressed up and took some pictures both inside and outside. Jenna wore one of her sister's prom dresses and looked beautiful! We ate dinner and then took some more pictures. Everyone just wanted to go relax in our rooms instead of doing any of the activities, and so the kids decided to just watch a movie in their room. We were able to get Rick’s laptop hooked up to the TV, but the Internet wasn’t working well enough to stream a show and we wished that we had downloaded some movies before we came. They offered some pay-per-view movies, but they were $12.99, and we didn’t want to spend that much on a movie. They finally were able to pull up The Lorax (one of the kids’ favorite shows). They only made it halfway through before deciding they were too tired and went to bed. Man, they are as bad as us old people, ha ha!

An announcement came over the loudspeaker saying that they needed help with one of their passengers and were asking if someone with O negative blood type could come donate blood. Well, Rick has O negative blood, but we couldn't find any proof since he didn't have an American Red Cross card with him. He went anyway, but they ended up using someone else. A couple of days later there was a really nice card from the captain on our door thanking him for volunteering and they even offered us a free "Presidential Tour" of the ship with the captain, which would have been cool, but I didn't think we would be back from our excursions in time and so we didn't take advantage of it. The person who donated blood was the dad of one of the kids on board who became friends with Josh. Apparently they invited him to have dinner with the captain. We didn't hear any more about the person who needed blood, but assume he was okay.  

Sunday 12: (Day 3 -- Cabo San Lucas) This morning Rick got up early and worked out and went to the spa. (He is an early riser). I got up around 7:30 and walked the track on the deck for two miles. It felt really good out! Today the ship arrived in Cabo San Lucas. The ship didn’t arrive until around 12:30 or so. Our tender was #13 and so when our number was called we headed out to our tender boat that brought us over to Cabo. We hadn’t been able to buy any excursions ahead of time. We tried, but they were all at the wrong times or already sold out. But it was okay, because there are always dozens of people with signs, trying to earn money by taking you where you want to go.

We purchased a ride on a glass bottom boat. He brought us around to see the famous arch and rocks and told the story behind them. Then he dropped us off at a place to go snorkeling. We had purchased our own snorkeling gear before the trip and brought it with us. Rick and the kids went snorkeling and I stayed on land to keep an eye on all of our stuff. I have been snorkeling a couple of times and didn’t really like it. But maybe there were too many people because they couldn’t really see any fish. Josh finally saw a few. We saw a lot from the glass bottom boat though. But it was fun to see the sights and take some pictures. We were only there a few hours, but that was okay with me. Jenna and I went back on the ship because we had pre-ordered our gluten free meal, but Josh and Rick stayed and shopped for a bit. Jenna and I went back and took a shower before dinner. Rick and Josh made it back in time for dinner also.

After dinner we went to an ice-skating show, and it was AMAZING!!! Definitely my favorite shows of the ship. They had this whole light show done with drones and it was so cool! And the ice-skaters were incredibly talented! Several of them looked like they could have been in the Olympics, that were that good! They did so many amazing tricks. It was so good that Rick and I decided to come back and see it again a couple days later! The kids also came back to see it again with the teen group.

Josh and Jenna hadn't been interested in going to the teen activities (The Living Room) the past two nights, but tonight they decided to go check it out. They had fun and got to know some of the other teenagers on board. Jenna finally came back, and then at 11:00 Josh came back, but said he was grabbing his swimsuit to go hot-tubbing. I had trouble going to sleep that first night with the kids running around at the teen activities because I was worried about them, ha ha. But I did okay the other nights.

Monday, March 13 (Day 4 -- Mazatlán): Man, I totally slept in!!! I was still sleeping at 8:45 when the cabin phone started ringing. My first thought was, “Is everyone okay?” It was the service desk calling to check on Rick after yesterday's fall. We all get ready and went to breakfast and then left the ship. Today's port was Mazatlán. We took a taxi to the beach in The Golden Zone. The kids had wanted a "beach day," and so today was the day. It was a nice beach and we enjoyed playing in the water and laying out and doing a little photoshoot. Josh wanted some pictures in his soccer uniform on the beach. He wanted to bring a soccer ball, but it took up too much space in his bag and so he brought a mini one instead. 

There were some locals taking people parasailing, and we considered it, but decided not to since it was just a one-seater instead of a two-seater. After hanging out at the beach for a while we went shopping at the nearby shops and bought a few things and then headed back to the beach until it was time to catch our taxi back to the ship. We took a shower and went to dinner. We had reserved the earlier dinner time (5:30) which was nice since I like to eat earlier than later and that freed up the evening for various shows and activities. The restaurant was really fancy and I really enjoyed having a nice dinner together as a family each night. Each evening after we ate they gave Jenna and me a menu so that we could pre-order our dinner for the next night, so that they could make it gluten free. We loved trying all of the gluten free desserts!  

After dinner we went to a song and dance show called, "Showgirl." It was good, but a little too flashy for my taste. It was totally Las Vegas style. Rick went to bed early to read his book (I had recommended a new series that I just finished, and he totally got into it.) I wrote in my journal and uploaded the pictures to my laptop and the kids went to their teen activities. They both made friends among the teens and then they wanted to hang out with them all of the time! 

Tuesday, March 14 (Day 5): Puerto Vallarta. This was the port that Jaiden and her friends did the really cool excursion where they went zip-lining, rappelling, tubing down a river, and horseback riding! They absolutely loved it! Jenna would have wanted to do that same excursion, but Josh didn't. He said that he was afraid of heights and didn't enjoy stuff like that. So, we looked for other excursions instead. The problem was that we waited too long to book them and then everything was sold out. Rick kept trying to warn us in the weeks leading up to the cruise, saying that we needed to book our excursions, but we just had so much going on that none of us wanted to spend hours researching possible excursions. When we did finally start looking up excursions two or three weeks before our cruise, we had trouble finding ones that fit the timeframe of when the ship would be there. Every time we thought we found one and booked it, we received an e-mail the next day saying that the excursion didn't fit the schedule of the ship or that it was already sold out (but it hadn't said that on the website). That happened like three times! So, we didn't end up booking anything. 

We were expecting a lot of available taxis like at the other two places, but there were only a few. We almost took one who offered to bring us to various sites, and it was a one-time fee for the whole day, but only part of the sites interested us. We weren't really interested in seeing how Tequila was made, ha ha, and we hadn't brought the snorkeling gear for snorkeling. So, we bagged the taxi and just ended up walking to the nearby resort beach. The waves were rough, and the sand was really rocky (like millions of tiny pebbles and rocks) that hurt our feet. Plus, it was super crowded. I wished we had paid for a taxi to take us to a nice beach like yesterday, but Rick didn't want to spend $45.00 each way just to go to a different beach. We did splurge on a nice umbrella and chairs though. The kids still had a lot of fun playing in the water and laying out is the same anywhere, so it worked out okay, it was just a little disappointing that we hadn't been able to get an excursion for something else. 

We came back early and had time to take a nap and shower before dinner. After a nice dinner the kids took off to their teen activities. Rick was still having headaches from his fall and wanted to read his book, and so I left and walked the track that went around the ship. It felt really nice outside! They had an outdoor movie playing, Mamma Mia 2, and so after I got my 10,000 steps in I decided to watch the rest of the movie. Jenna was in by midnight, but I woke up and it was almost 2:30 a.m. and Josh wasn't back yet! The curfew for the teen activities is 1:00 a.m. I started to get worried, and Rick said, "Do you want me to go look for him?" I said, "Yes," and Rick got dressed and opened up the door and there was Josh sitting in the hallway talking to a couple of girls whose room was right next to ours. Apparently they were from St. George also and went to Crimson Cliffs High School and they had all been in the hall talking for almost two hours! I was surprised that we couldn't hear them until we opened the door. I am surprised how quiet the rooms are! So, Josh got in trouble!  

Wednesday, March 15 (Day 6): Today was a "sea day." Everyone kind of did their own thing -- the kids were off with their friends most of the day and went on the waterslide a couple of times and did other activities. Rick and I laid out in the Solarium, and I tried out the hot-tub. Rick happened to run into some of our friends -- Mike Armstrong and his wife. Mike used to teach seminary with Rick. So, we arranged to meet up with them for lunch at the Windjammer and ate and had a great visit for 2 1/2 hours! Then we pretty much got ready for our early dinner with the kids. It was formal night again and so Josh and Jenna wore their same outfits as last time and I wore a dress I had purchased on the beach yesterday. After dinner Rick and I went to the ice-skating show again. Then he went back to the room, and I went to a really cool juggling show. I wished that the others had come with me, the kids would have really liked it! 

Thursday March 16 (Day 7): Today was another sea day, only now it was cold! It had been cold and drizzly in the morning and so the pools and pool chairs were empty! I had wanted to try the waterslide, but now it was too cold! The kids took off with their friends again and Rick and I ate together and did some other activities. We met up with the kids for miniature golf, and that was fun. Rick went and spent some time in the spa this afternoon and I took a nap. We all went to a dance party where you wear headphones that play different music. Then the kids went to play laser tag with their friends, but there was such a long line that it took well over two hours and so they were very later for dinner. They eventually made it though! After dinner, Rick and I went to the comedy act. It was okay -- a little too negative for my taste though.  

Friday, March 17: Happy St. Patrick's Day! Back to California! We got up early and went to breakfast at 7:00 a.m. and then gathered up our luggage and headed out! Getting off the ship was a lot quicker than getting on. We drove home, stopping at an extremely crowded Costco for gas on the way home. Josh wanted to be home for his soccer game at 4:30 (and then again at 7:30). So, we drove straight home and arrived at 4:15!! He made it to his game and then I went to the varsity game at 7:30. Josh played in both games, and they won both games. All in all, the cruise was very fun and I was glad that we had the opportunity to go!!  

Jenna's write-up: 

The cruise was sooo fun, it was definitely one of my favorite vacations. At first, before me and Josh met anyone, we just kinda explored the ship and chilled in our room and that wasn't very fun. So, one day, I think it was the second day, we went to the teen club at night. We had been there before during the day, but not many people were there, but at night it was packed and since everyone already knew each other from the previous nights it was kinda awkward. But it’s okay, because we all played this game called Scattergories and it was boys versus girls and it was fun. After that we all played Capture the Flag and it was really fun to get to know some of the other kids there. I was tired so I went to bed and Josh went hot tubbing.

The next day we stopped at the port Cabo San Lucas and there we went on a tour and saw all the pretty rocks and then stopped at a beach and went snorkeling. It was so fun, but my snorkel didn't work. After that we went back on the boat and went to dinner. The dinners there are crazy nice and sometimes they have formal nights where you dress up nice and go, but tonight was just casual. It was very nice because we got to pre order our food and get it all gluten free. That night me and Josh went to the living room (teen place) again and Josh was already friends with most of the guys because he went hot tubbing with them the night before, but I was still looking for some girls to hang out with, and that night they were playing a game called fireball for the activity, and that was fun, it’s kinda like dodgeball. That night I met two girls named Gemma and Vanessa and I went hot tubbing with them, and we became friends. Also, here are the names of all the friends we made on the trip: Riley, Gemma, Ella, Trey, Jay, Gabe, Preston, Sam, Vanessa, Tyson, Alex, Logan, Kade, Lindsey, Max, Paisley, Elena, Emmy, and a lot more. 

On the third day we stopped at Mazatlán and had a beach day. The beach there didn't have very clear water like Cabo, but it was still a nice beach. We also went to look at the stores and I bought a bracelet and a hat and that was fun. After we got back on the boat we ate dinner and went to the ice-skating show and comedy show and those were really good. Then me and Josh went to the teen club again to see all our friends they didn't have an activity that night, so we all just kinda hung out and this group of guys came over to me and Gemma and Vanessa and they were like, “Hey, our friends think you're cute and stuff,” and we talked to them for a little but they were just funny friends and then me and my friends and those other guys we met just were talking and then me and my girlfriends just walked around the ship till it was pretty late and we said we would meet up the next day and that night me and Josh stayed up to watch The Lorax haha.

The last port we went to was Puerto Vallarta, and there we just went to the beach. Then we came back and had dinner and went to the club and it wasn't very fun there so we just all went hot tubbing and that was fun. The next two days were at sea and so me and Josh just hung out with our friends, and we went on the water slides and went to all the different fun things they had on the boat and that night was also formal night, so we got dressed up and went to that. Then the teen club was having a teen dinner and that was fun and we also all went to the ice skating show then we got home and me and Josh watched “Horton Hears a Who.”

The last day was so sad, we woke up and got ready and played mini golf with our family and then me and Josh found our friends and we did a lot of stuff. We were about to play volleyball but instead we did Laser tag, and we also had lunch at the Windjammer and we did a silent dance party and that night was karaoke night in the club so we went to that and it was a blast, but I didn't sing, because they ended before it was my turn. I was gonna sing with Alex. So overall this was such a fun experience and I would love to do it again but I will really miss all of my friends that I made there!

 

Tukupetsi Trail

Another beautiful hike less than five minutes from our home! This hike (the Tukupetsi Trailhead) is a little ways west of the Jacob Hamblin home, on the south side of the street. Turn south where the big Santa Clara Power sign is and drive up a dirt road to a parking lot. The hike is above the Santa Clara River Reserve. The temperature was in the mid-50s -- perfect for hiking! 

Turtle Wall Hike

Today was the only day that I didn't have interpreting appointments and so I planned to take the kids on a hike. But Jaiden had a fund-raiser activity for her Exec Council and Josh didn't want to go, so I just took Jenna and her friend, Lindsey. Jenna's friend, Grace, was going to come, but wasn't feeling well. We went on the Turtle Wall loop. It was such a pretty hike with gorgeous views in every direction. I can't believe that this hike is only five minutes from my house and I have never hiked it before! The weather was absolutely perfect too. I look forward to doing this hike again! 

Fractures and Soccer

Josh fell wrong on his hand during the alumni soccer game last Saturday night and wondered if he might have fractured his wrist. Monday morning I brought him to the Insta-care for x-rays. He had also twisted his ankle and it was swollen and so we got that checked out also. They said that the ankle was not broken, but they were not sure about the wrist. They couldn't see a fracture, but since it was in the anatomical snuff box they wanted him to get checked out by an orthopedic specialist. Then a few hours later the clinic called and said that the radiologist looked at the film and there actually was a fracture. 

We were able to get in to the orthopedic specialist on Tuesday (I was able to get out of my interpreting job) and Dr. Millward looked at the x-rays and said that this type of fracture (if there was one) was hard to decipher. He said to keep the splint on it and come back in ten days and they would x-ray again and be able to tell if it had healed with the splint or if it would need to be put in a cast. He said if it needed to be cast then it is a big cast that would need to be worn 8-12 weeks. So hopefully next week's appointment has good news. Josh thinks he won't need the cast because he said that it is feeling a lot better than it was. 

In the meantime, the doctor said that Josh could still play soccer, so that is good news. I brought Jaiden, Jenna, and Jenna's friend Grace to watch his game tonight in Hurricane. Josh's JV team beat Hurricane's team 7-0 and the Varsity won 4-0. So it was a good night! 

Elephant Arch Trail

Jenna went hiking with her friend, Grace, and their family to Elephant Arch in Washington, Utah! Unfortunately it was hot and Grace got sick from heat exhaustion, which was a little scary! 

Spring Break Snow!!

The Monday of Spring Break was beautiful weather! Then it turned cold and today (Saturday) we had snow!! Snow for Spring Break in St. George? That never happens!! Jenna took advantage of the snow and made a little snow princess on Janelle's car. Josh had gone with the SCHS soccer team yesterday to Farmington for pre-seasons games. They were supposed to have another game in Orem on the way home today but it was cancelled due to the snow! Of course our snow had disappeared by the afternoon, but it was still chilly! 

Cousins!

Derek and Danielle were in town for a quick visit with friends and stopped by on Saturday so that the cousins could play. Too bad it was lousy weather for their visit! There was snow this morning but it had melted by this afternoon, as it always does. We were glad that they could come over. The kids had fun playing and we had visiting. Check out Derek wearing Janelle's newly cut pony-tail!! 

Spring Break Temple Trip!!

This week was our Spring Break.  Jase and Jared left for their temple trip Monday morning at 6:30 a.m.  They had a good time and did over 800 baptisms!  I have attached a collage of pictures.  Grandma Jensen met them in the Ogden temple on Tuesday and they ate lunch together in the cafeteria and she took them out for ice cream afterwards for Jared’s birthday.  I was hoping the boys would try and get with Grandma and Grandpa Westra on Wednesday but Jared said that their schedule was too tight. 

Rick had a very busy and interesting week interpreting in Las Vegas.  They kept him busy from morning until night.  The first day after working all day they had him interpret at a hospital from 11:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. and then asked if he could stay until 6:00 a.m.!  But seeing as he was scheduled to start working the next morning at 6:55 a.m. he said that he had better finish at 1:00.  He had quite a variety of appointments and said that a couple of them were really sad situations.   

 

Meanwhile the kids and I got some fun activities in.  Monday the kids and I worked hard in the morning for two or three hours cleaning the house and then I rewarded them with a trip to the dollar store to pick out a prize.  I had an afternoon interpreting appointment and then we got “The Good Dinosaur” from Redbox and had a movie party.   Tuesday morning I brought the girls in for haircuts.  Jaiden wanted layers and I love how it turned out!  I wished that Janelle had done layers too but she didn’t want to.  Her hair was really long and so she got a good 8 or 9 inches cut off.  Jenna’s too. 

I had trouble doing Jenna’s expander last night (Rick usually always turns the key on it). I had done it for a couple of nights before he left knowing that I would need to do it while he was gone and was able to do it quickly and easily.  But then I must not have turned it a complete turn last night because I couldn’t see the hole and I tried and tried and couldn’t get the little key in the hole and Jenna and I were both getting really frustrated.  So while the others were getting their hair done I ran her over to the Orthodontist a couple blocks away.  I learned that they are closed the whole week for Spring Break!  But the secretary let us in and tried helping me even though she isn’t the one who actually works on teeth.  I thought we finally got it, but then later that night I couldn’t see the hole again and still had trouble.  

 

On my way back to the hair place I got pulled over and got a ticket!  I was so upset about it!  Apparently the cops are on full force during Spring Break in St. George because after that I saw them everywhere!  I didn’t even know what I had done wrong.  He said that I had turned right into the right lane and then slid into the left lane without signaling.  I didn’t even realize I had done that – there were no cars coming in either lane and I had to make a quick left a block away.  Of course I should have signaled but still…it seemed a little nit picky.  I haven’t been pulled over in years and years – I can’t even remember the last time.  I don’t know how much it will cost me until I go in to the courthouse next week.  So frustrating!!!

 

Tuesday our activity was the Spinny Park.  The weather was gorgeous.  The Purdy’s came too and Mari Purdy had texted two other families to see if they wanted to come.  So that was fun for all of the kids to play together and for us moms to visit.  She had also brought ice-cream bars for all of the kids (and a popsicle for jenna).  The girls all went to Purdy’s afterwards for a movie but Josh didn’t want to go.  I went to the church to get my temple recommend renewed and then picked up Jenna and let the other girls stay later.

 

Wednesday I interpreted at 11:00 and then picked up a birthday gift for a party Janelle was going to on Thursday.  I took the kids to the Children’s Museum and they had a blast!  I had never been there before and was pleasantly surprised at how nice it was.  They kids lasted for THREE HOURS!!  I thought it would be really crowded but it wasn’t too bad – a little at first, but it really slowed down as it got closer and closer to closing time.  We just did quick easy meals all week.  The kids watched a movie tonight and I worked on pictures. 

 

Thursday I had an early interpreting appointment, which ended up being a cancellation.  We did work at home and then I brought the kids to the Splash Pad hear the St. George library since I knew today was supposed to be hot.  It was really crowded!  Janelle stayed home with Layla and Josh didn’t want to go and so it was just Jaiden and Jenna and we had invited the Purdy’s.  Janelle had a birthday party for Carter clear in Diamond Valley.  She went with her friend Layla and so Mari Purdy brought the girls at 4:00 and I picked them up at 9:00.  They had fun at the party playing games and fugitive with a huge group of teenagers.

 

I got an interpreter request for all day Friday and decided to go ahead and take it and let Janelle babysit.  It  lasted for 6 ½ hours and then I had to go back in the evening for almost four hours.  So it was a long day but there wasn’t a lot of interpreting and it was fun. Rick got home Friday night before I did.  The tournament continued Saturday and Rick took over that one (another six hours).  The weather had turned colder and he said that he froze!  I stayed home with the kids and we worked hard cleaning the house for most of the day.  The boys arrived home from their temple trip and Jase went to work Saturday night. 

 

Today was ward council, choir, and church.  Rick fixed a delicious Salmon dinner and it tasted so good to me!  Well, that is our week.  I am NOT ready to get up EARLY tomorrow morning!  It is always difficult jumping back into an early, busy schedule again after Spring Break – especially after the time change!

 

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Roy and Karen Phillips brought Ky, Jase, Jared, and Ben Sellers on an awesome temple trip this week!!