American Fork 1/2 and Hosting 2 Brazilians, 4 Chinese Kids, Going On Trek, 4th of July… So Much!

We came home from our family trip to lots of chores (and the girls did really well with not complaining too much)… mowing, cleaning, taking care of the dogs and their wastes 😳, etc.

… and to 2 coaches from Brazil. We had so much fun this week with them. Very nice and respectful people. We went to an indoor soccer arena to play a couple of soccer games with some local teams (my sister works there and my brother met us there to play). It was fun to watch the guys play (and it was so fun to see my niece and nephew). What was neat was the team that needed extra players had a couple of guys from Brazil (they moved here a while ago) and another player that went on his mission there. Corom took the guys to the lake one night and we all went bowling. 1st time bowling for them. We had quit a few laughs. We did say goodbye to the 2 as they headed to a new host family in Colorado.

Saturday June 24th: I woke up to the alarm at 3:15 a.m. I was asked on Thursday evening if I could pace the American Fork half… the 1:30 pace (6:52 per mile pace). I couldn’t say no. 😉 I do love pacing and this race was especially special. All proceeds go to cancer awareness… it’s the race against cancer. I met so many wonderful people, heard so many of their stories and saw many of my running friends. There were many that pr’d today…. so fun. The rest of the week… running for the girls (I told the girls if they were to run everyday… well 6 days a week and then do their 20 min of school work in the morning, I would pay them $100 at the end of summer). So they get up every morning and do what they need to do. We helped our good friends move (Fullmer’s and still close by). We’ve had friends over (some I have not seen in years… so good seeing you, Hanchette’s). And then high school cross country practices in the morning and bike riding even in the heat. We’ve also been hanging out at the library and participating in their programs… it was reading and learning about ponds and then pick up trash day around the pond. It’s been nice having Corom around for the summer (with his school job). It’s been really good for our family. Lots more to come this summer!

Trek (June 29 – July 1)

Corom and I went on our own adventure… Trek. The definition of trek: to travel or migrate, especially slowly or with difficulty.

Trek is a church activity that happens every 4 years for our youth (ages 14-18). We reenact some of the events our ancestors/pioneers had to go through as they crossed over the lands to come to Utah.

Corom and I were asked to be “moms and dads” to a group of teenagers on pioneer camping trip. We had an awesome “family”. Sorry Bri… the person taking the picture accidentally cut you out (the bottom one). It was a 3 day trek with pulling handcarts with all of our belongings in it. The 1st day we walked 9 1/2 miles through hot wind, major dust in some areas, heat and people getting blisters…but we sure had a fun time with everyone around us! The 2nd day, we walked 7 1/2 miles, through more heat, more dust and more people getting blisters… and it was still fun! we played a few pranks on the other “families”

We played games that the pioneers would play and made different stops along the way to hear “actors” tell stories of the pioneers. On the 3rd day, we walked a little over 5 miles. We did the women’s pull and this is what another lady wrote about it. She said it perfectly and I’m just not good at writing, so I’m going to put down what she said. She starts off saying 6 women per cart but I had the privilege to pull a lady who was unable to walk but wanted to be a part of trek. Very humbling experience…       “With six women per cart, the half-mile trip was very doable. But as our feet sank into deep dust and we worked to keep the handcart wheels turning, I imagined the women who traveled such paths alone, sometimes with empty stomachs, sometimes through snow and rain, sometimes with the added burden of a wounded or ill family member on the cart. I felt so grateful to have the power of sisterhood and unity. There are journeys we sometimes have to take alone, but oh, how wonderful it is when we can help share each others’ burdens and enjoy each others’ friendship along the way. About half-way along the path, I looked up through thick clouds of dust and saw the men standing in two long lines on either side of the trail, hats lowered to show their respect.  I saw the emotion on their faces as they struggled to accept that this was our journey to take and they could not step in and rescue us. And even though they couldn’t help us physically, I was buoyed by the love and concern on their faces. I can not begin to describe the comfort I felt from their presence, the gratitude I felt for the bond we all collectively shared at that moment, and the longing in my heart that each of my young sisters would wait for a husband who would show her the respect I saw in the eyes of many young men on the trail that day. As I’ve been thinking back on that scene, the veil feels very thin to me. I think the scene on that trail yesterday is a good metaphor for our true relationship with our ancestors. They are with us more than we know. They stand ready to strengthen and comfort us. They honor us for every good decision we make and for every act of courage we embark upon. Likewise, I suspect we were with them, stengthening, comforting, and honoring them when they made their difficult trek westward in our behalf.”

And then the crossing of the river… the men carried majority of the ladies across the river. This, too, was so amazing to experience. I knew I could cross the river and I even wanted to because it was so hot… but I allowed myself to let my husband have the experience of what these pioneer men had to do as they crossed the plains. It was humbling! And as I looked up at Corom, a overwhelming sense of love rushed through me.

We finished our trek experience shortly after the river crossing, with all of us (about 350-400 people; youth and leaders) gathered around for our last meal. We were dirty, hot and tired but all so happy for this time and experience we shared.

While we were at Trek… my 3 younger girls were with their G-goat (grandma Sarah). She put them right to work. 🙂 They did have a lot of fun there…

and my oldest went on her 1st overnight camp out with all the other 5th graders. They went up to Shadow mountain. 

4th of July Fun: We went to Yuba Lake with the Boothe’s, Fullmer’s and Thompson’s before we met up for a BBQ and fireworks. 

We had 4 boys from China come stay with us for a couple of weeks. They were so fun and had fun playing with our kids. They were a younger bunch. We had s’mores, went to the bean museum, went to a carnival…

Went kayaking, went off of rope swings, had many nerf gun fights, etc.

A good group of boys!

Cross Country Camp

We (the high school cross country team) had our annual camp up at Shadow Mountain. Always a fun experience with these kids. Lots of fun games, team building activities, running, eating, clinics, goal setting classes, traditions, swimming, etc…

My girls came up for the last night and spent the night. The last morning we packed up, played volleyball and then ran the 3 miles down the mountain to our bus. My girls ran with the high school kids. My youngest didn’t last too long on the bus. 🙂

Corom’s Fam Time

All of Corom’s family came into town to see the oldest cousin (our nephew) Eldon. He is leaving on a LDS mission this next week. He is going to Chicago. We went hiking up at the hidden waterfalls, went to Salem pond…… then we went swimming, played games and watched lightening storms…

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… We had a family/friend lunch-on… and then Eldon was off to the MTC to serve his mission! He is going to be a great missionary! 

Our house flooded a couple of times this summer. 😬 With all the construction (with the school and City) going on the pipes were put in wrong. They were so good and took the blame but still very frustrating! At least the girls had fun. 😉