Daredevils and Budding Athletes

The girls love watching the shows with extreme obstacle courses like "Beastmaster" and "American Ninja Warrior."  When they saw the new obstacle course at Snowbird, they were so excited to try it. 

Carolyn  was fearless and jumped in without even thinking about it.

She ran through it fast, fell a lot, got back up, came out covered in bruises, and 

ran to do it again and again and again.  Brute force.

  

Lizzie studied the course and observed each obstacle for a long while before she would try it.

She was methodical and meticulous as she mastered each obstacle, often on her first try.

(She is a little too little for some of the obstacles, but she tried them all.)  Planful and strategic.

A ropes course - separate from the obstacle course. 

  The obstacle course photos are from a camp they went to at Snowbird.  

We only found photos of Carolyn in the camp gallery, none of Lizzie. (too bad)

And, on the day I was with them at the obstacle course, I did not take any photos of us in the course.

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This summer, it has been fun to see both girls develop their athleticism. I have no idea what sport they may end up liking most.  The mountain landscape provides them with so many opportunities to explore and start to build their endurance, strength, and athleticism. I have a feeling they will both be (and probably already are) avid and lifelong outdoor athletes. I do not see either of them as team-sport athletes, but we will see.  

Albion 2018

Our 2018 annual summer camping trip to Albion Basin -- it is within the ski areas of Little Cottonwood Canyon.  It is just a short drive from our house.  It feels like millions of miles away.

We are thankful for the scenery, the friends, and the time we have to just enjoy the summer!

 

We always have games and coloring at the campsite.
The kids particularly enjoyed playing "Life" this year.

At our camp site, we had 4 hammocks and a slack line. 
They called it the amusement park and even invited over some other kids to play too.

Hiking & Exploring.

The wildflowers were in bloom.
We hiked from the campsite up to Catherine's Pass, and then down to Lake Catherine.

Thankful for our friends who share the weekend with us!

The second summer holiday

Out west, we celebrate the pioneers who trekked west in search of new land on July 24th.  It is called Pioneer Day.  Those who have no connection to the original mormon pioneers tend to celebrate "pie and beer" day, but welcome a second holiday in the middle of the summer. 

Our days were devoted to the kids, who were allowed to invite their friends to hang out with us each day.

SATURDAY
It is yoga day in our household, and both girls brought friends to their yoga class.  Steve cooked up some delicious BBQ for us afterwards.  In general, it was kind of a lazy day.  We all slept in, did a little yard work, and just took it easy.


SUNDAY
Maeve and Vera joined us all day.  After creating an obstacle course and tiring themselves out, they had a brainstorm to create purses out of scrap fabric. They really wanted zippers on their bags, and they convinced me to take them to the store to buy some zippers.  As I was measuring zippers, this ensued!  FYI - I do not know how to sew zippers.  And, yes, I did laugh pretty hard when I turned around and saw this.  Fun and funny girls.

MONDAY

I took a gaggle of girls up to Snowbird to use the summer "activity passes" we get with our ski season passes.  I will never tire of the views in little cottonwood canyon.  I feel lucky to call this place home. At one point, I said, "Girls, this is your home!" as I was struck with how incredibly beautiful it is in the mountains. They looked at me a little strangely and I do not think shared the same sentimental feeling as I did.  Oh well. At least I know they had FUN riding the mountain coaster and ziplines and all the other activities in the mountain.

 

 The Alpine Slide.

I was with Lizzie who was doing a different activity 

when I happened to look up and see 

Carolyn and friends coming down the slide. 

 The Vertical Drop.

Can you see this?  It is Carolyn jumping off the tower.  

A bungee catches you and lowers you down.

(I skip this activity, and so did the other three girls!)

The climbing wall. 
I find that as they are getting bigger and heavier, it is harder for them to get to the top!
Time for them to build some upper-body strength

  Bungee Trampoline.

We all did a couple of rounds on the bungee trampoline. 

Lizzie has not yet figured out how to flip.

(She says she does not want to! And god forbid, she take any tips from anyone! Ha!)

Tram Ride.
Carolyn's friend, Zoe, moved here from California this year and had never been to Snowbird.
She told her parents when she got home, "It was the best day EVER."
It was so fun to see her take in the views from the top. 

There are ropes courses, a zip line, a mountain coaster, tubing, a spider climb, and a legitimate obstacle course (like 'beastmaster' - a favorite show in our house).  My camera was secured away in a backpack for all those activities.  The girls said the best activity was the obstacle course.  It was HARD. I am surprised I did not hurt myself doing that one.

TUESDAY

It was art day at Red Butte Gardens.  This was Lizzie's choice.  She got to invite a friend this day.  We brought a picnic, along with our sketch pads, watercolors, and colored pencils.  

At one point when I redirected a group of boys (probably the same age as Lizzie and her friend Addie) who were throwing large rocks just to see if they could hurt one, I was thankful for having girls!  

These girls spent nearly 5 hours (and it would have been longer if I did not put an end to our day), hiking through the gardens, stopping to draw and paint, and just enjoying their time together.  

 

Dad Week

He says it is kind of like "Shark Week" 

It is a week in the summer where it is all dad, all day!  

Dad Week 2018 included:

• A hike in Big Cottonwood Canyon
• Wairhouse (trampoline park)
• Natural History Museum
• Circuit class at the library
• A bike ride & picnic, with the dog in tow
• Golf lessons each day
• Fishing at Deer Valley
• Random Acts of Kindness Day - where they baked pies for the neighbors 
• Lagoon (amusement park)

The days were long and full.  Everyone slept well each night!

 

Video of Lizzie:  https://photos.app.goo.gl/ZrKS9VVKs34ormgN7

(She is her own person, and sometimes you find her doing the funniest little things)

Oh, how these girls love their dad!

And how happy was Steve that they wanted to learn golf and asked to go fishing?

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Steve recently decided to accept a new job, to start later this summer.  The biggest negotiation point before he would accept the offer was for more dedicated vacation days.  He said that there was no way he would work full-time again if he weren't able to do things like "Dad Week" every summer.