Still Going Strong

Well, it is just about the end of October and we are still teaching and learning at school. It can definitely get exhausting making sure kids have their masks over their mouths and noses and are social distancing, but I will take it if that means we stay in school.   Let's just hope this continues during the holidays and ski season.  Fingers crossed. 

Abigail had a successful fall soccer season and both girls have been doing swim lessons.  We have spent quite a bit of time at the cabin this fall and ventured out for our last camping trip of the season.  I will let the photos do the rest of the talking.

September 19th: We had the ladies frisbee golf tourney in September up at the cabin.  It started out cold and rainy but ended up being a nice day.

Kim took 1st place in the senior division and Emma took 1st place in the junior division.  (Note: They were the only participants in their divisions.)

Brighton is just spectacular in the fall.

We also love to play pickle ball while we are in Brighton.

We had our 1st snowfall in September.  It didn't last long.

exploring beautiful Summit Park in the fall...

The girls have each been picking out and making dinner 1x/week.  One night, Emma made a delicious chicken and ham pot pie.

Abigail made spaghetti and meatballs.

On another night, Emma made orange chicken.  Yum! Yum!

September 25th:  So proud of this girl--Emma received the principal's tie for the month of September.  Each month, our principal awards 2 students one of his ties.  These are 5th grade students who have gone above and beyond to show respect, organization, cooperation, and kindness at school.

September 26th:  More time in Brighton--this time for the men's frisbee golf tournament.

September 27th:  taking a hike to the fairy tree in Summit Park...

October 3rd:  The girls made a little money selling golf balls while they were at Kim's condo (which is right on the golf course).

October 4th:  Each year, people make scarecrows and they are displayed at the McPolin Barn.  It is always fun to see the creativity.  This year we biked from Kim's condo.

This is the reality of playing with the neighbors right now.  

October 15th:  Last weekend, we ventured down to the Swell for our last camping trip of the season.  We like to rent a trailer for this last trip because it tends to get a wee bit chilly.  Well, about 30 minutes from our destination, the trailer frame broke.  Luckily, a very nice guy drove Andy to a place where he could get service and call a tow truck.  We ended up sitting on the side of the road for about 2 hours, waiting for a tow truck to come rescue us and the trailer. We had to keep the truck running so we could have some heat.  We ended up staying at a Ramada Inn in Price, Utah for the night.  

October 16th: The next morning, the trailer went to a local welder in Price, who fixed it so it could at least get back to the shop in Coalville.  Meanwhile, Escapod had someone drive a different trailer down to us so we could continue on our trip.  It was about a 3 hour trip so we just hung out in the Ramada Inn parking lot for few hours.

At about 2:00 p.m., we made the trailer exchange and were on our way once again.

The friends we were camping with just got a new puppy. 

October 22nd:  taking our fairy garden supplies down for the winter

October 23rd: Even though we did not have our pumpkin carving party this year (sniff, sniff), we still had to get pumpkins to carve.

walking through the haunted forest

October 24th: We have officially closed up the cabin until next summer (unless we decide to stay there this winter). The girls helped Kim sprinkle wildflower seed around.

This is our new addition to the cabin this year--the pantry.  It looks so good!

Shot Ski: Each year, Park City and Breckenridge, CO battle it out for the world record for the most people taking a shot off a ski.  This year, it was done all virtually due to the obvious circumstances.

  

Oh August, How Quickly You Came and Went

 Well, we have all been back at school for 7 days now (11 for Andy and me) and, so far, things are going well.  It is definitely a different kind of school year, but the students (ours included) have been rockstars in keeping their masks on.  They all know they need to keep a safe distance from others but, let's be real, that is not always easy for 7- and 8-year olds.  They are really trying, though.  They just can't help it.  

Before we had to get back to reality, though, we did have a few more adventures at the end of July and beginning of August.  Enjoy!

Andy and Emma headed out for their annual backpacking trip!  This year they went back up to the Uintas for 2 nights at Weir Lake.  They had a blast!

They went with some friends, which always helps the trek in and out.

cooking the fish they caught at the lake

Andy and Emma have really been into fishing lately, so they headed out the next week for more camping and fishing fun.  (Side note: Abigail and I would have joined them but I had special contract duties to get done for the school district so we had some quality girl time!)

taking a hike in the neighborhood

August 17th = A few days before school started, we did have one unfortunate event happen.  This is what happens when you run into something just right...  After spending about an hour at a local clinic, they determined the cut was too deep and sent us down to the emergency room of the Primary Children's Hospital for deep stitches.

Once we got settled into a room at the hospital, she calmed down and was a rockstar.  

Since the cut was so close to her eye, it was decided it would be best for her to be sedated to make sure the doctor could do the job safely.  Here she is, waiting patiently to get started.

She is slowly coming out of her sedation.  It took about an hour.  She was quite funny and was seeing double (which was totally normal).

She was very excited to get a root beer slushy.  I, on the other hand, asked for a coffee.  

When it is close to 10:00 p.m. and Mom has had a full day of work (before students started), you feel ecstatic when you are told you can go home!

August 19th = Thank goodness we got the okay to start soccer 2 days later!  The girls didn't do any summer camps so Abigail was quite excited to get back into soccer.

August 20th = 1st day of school for Emma: 5th grade

August 20th = 1st day of school for Abigail: 2nd grade

August 28th = Abigail was chosen as Moose of the Month for August!  Students were picked because of how well they wore their mask and remained socially distanced from other students.

August 28th-30th = We spent the weekend at the cabin for a much needed weekend of Brighton air and relaxation.

She beats me every. single. time.

Emma tried out a friend's hover board.

It wouldn't be a trip to Brighton without a hike, or two.

And then when we get home we find our mama moose and her not-so-baby-looking-baby in our backyard.  It never gets old!

Stay safe, everyone!