Opening the ranch!

We had a chance to take a day and go visit the ranch!! So much fun.  We learned how to turn on the water and open the cabin for summer.  What a great place to be able to visit.

Of course we had some time to do a little riding.  It was a CHILLY day, so we chose helmets and goggles to keep us warm.

Dale is always so much fun! I'm so glad he likes to do it. He did all the work too..loaded them and got everything ready.  How lucky I am!! He's awesome!

 I love this handsome man!

Fun pictures from Ashley's wedding!

Track

Dallin has been part of the track team (club) this spring.  He seems to like it. It's keeping him in shape and getting him ready for football!

The weather has been so nice and Maura and I have really enjoyed watching him.

 LOVE those freckles!!

Field Trip!

Oh I love field trips!  A couple of weeks ago I got to spend the day with some pretty great first-grade kiddos!  We had a great little group!

 I forgot how much fun it can be riding on the bus...and how TALL the seats are!  

 Our little group loved to look at the map and plan the next stop. We really had a great time together.  They were full of energy and helped each other and stuck together!

 AND they were super silly!

 The very very favorite part for everyone was the stingray exhibit.  

 Maura was not afraid to try and touch them and the water was refreshing after a warm day.

 She was extra careful to be soft and only touch with two fingers.

 Or not...

First Grade class with Ms. Steeley

 Bus ride home was fun too!  Less rowdy than the ride to the zoo...everyone was a little tired.  We sat with Maura's good friend, Kayden.

Love this cute girl!

This weekend we spent a delightful couple of days as part of the Queen Creek West Youth Conference.  This was a huge event kicking off our Pioneer Trek that will happen in June.  Many people worked so hard to make it happen.  It was a success!

They really went all-out decorating.  It looked fantastic!

It started in the cultural hall with an introduction to the leaders who will be going with the youth.

Dale and I have been asked to be a 'Ma' and a 'Pa' to a group of kids from our ward.

Getting some last-minute instruction for what we would expect that day.

On stage introduction!

There was a little bio describing us along with the other adult leaders.   Pa Mullenaux is going to keep us fed on this trek with his mad skills at downing an elk with a bow and pulling trout from a stream!  It was silly and fun!

Dallin wasn't super thrilled to go to this conference because it was ALL night on Friday and then ALL day on Saturday.  BUT, at the end he said he had a great time...and surprisingly, the best part he said was the dancing?!?  Is this my kid??

Friday night they had a fireside and then a dance that was pretty cool...

Saturday they had a workshop that taught them some fun dances and then a hoedown on Saturday night.

I had to sort through about 1,000 pictures that were taken of the evening...it was kinda' like a "Where's Waldo" book.  Can you find him?

They were super organized for food! It didn't take very long to feed all 300 kids plus adults.  I think the teenagers could have eaten a lot more though!

 Dallin hung around with some pretty good kids.

 Throughout the day they had different stations to go to: Quilting, Family History, Cart building, Goat milking, Chicken chasing, Goat dressing, food preparation, dancing, etc...

 The family history center was full and surprisingly all the kids were really excited to use the ancestry file to find famous people they were related to.

Quilting was a nice break to sit down and enjoy the air conditioning for a while.  When the quilts were finished, they had some fun games to play.

We had to learn to put a hand cart together and practice driving it.  This is what will have to carry all the supplies for our family of 10 for 4 days.

They had some great outdoor games too.  This challenge of this one was to not let others smash the crackers that were in the little baggie on your back.

It was so much fun getting to know other people in the stake.  We are looking forward to this adventure!!

One last picture, a "blast from the past".  This is Adam Layton.  I thought I recognized him, but I couldn't really place him.  He finally recognized me and said hello.  He is a former student of mine.  I taught him while he was in high school about 15 years ago!  He and his sweet wife will also be on the trek.  It's a small world.  

I feel old....