driving along the Nebo Loop

Well, when I was searching online awhile ago looking for the best drives to see the fall leaves in the mountains here (and trying to win Swagbucks, of course), I discovered that the Nebo Loop is on the registry of National Scenic Byways and I've been waiting ever since for a free day to go up and drive it. I've never been up those mountains and I was determined to make it happen. But with soccer games every saturday, it seemed I was going to have to wait until the leaves were all gone.


But then. Zac took yesterday off work to spend the day with us since all the kids are out for a 2 day "fall break." And so off we went!! It took us about 4 hrs. or so to do the drive and stop at various points to enjoy the scenery.


It was so gorgeous.

And I took lots and lots of pictures.

And I made Zac stop at just about every pull-out so I could take more pictures.

All the world seemed silent and peaceful. We only saw a couple other cars the entire time.

And I was thrilled to have the kids out in nature. As I walked along with Abigail, she remarked how beautiful everything was with all 5 senses; you could smell the fallen pine needles and fall leaves, taste the air as you breathe, hear the rustle of the aspens and the overall quiet, feel the crisp air, and see everything. I think it rejuvenated all of us.

There is Mt. Nebo in the distance. It is the highest peak on the Wasatch Front at over 11,000 Ft.

And more lovely fall foliage.

Anyway - it was a great day. We also took a little side hike to a place called The Devil's Kitchen. But I'll put those pictures in another post. :)

my thoughts exactly

(photo I found on the web somewhere last year)

oh, I just can't help myself. I have to share this link to a post today on one of my favorite blogs:

Eyeblog

autumn, hunkering down, crisp air, cozy blankets, sweaters, herbal tea, nature's grand finale before the quiet of winter. I love it, love it, love it.

And this post at Eyeblog says it all.

Also, take the link she gives to the definition of the Danish lingo, hygge. That is my type of thing, to be sure.

As a side note, we had a wonderful rainy day all day today and I felt energized and peaceful and profoundly happy. Rain in the fall, temps in the 60's = happy me. :)

Samuel Update

Well, I seem to be having a problem with "dragging and dropping" photos to move them around, so these aren't in the order I wanted but it will have to do.

First, last week I took Samuel and Elisabeth to the Farm Country at Thanksgiving Point and Samuel actually rode the pony ride!! This is the first time he's done it since I can remember. He is usually frightened by it. But I was so excited that he seemed to gather his courage and decide to do it! He was nervous at first and clung to my shirt (and he still made me walk along side of him) - but he did let me walk ahead a minute to snap this picture, and doesn't he look proud of himself! :)

He also played soccer again this season. And he did really well!! He happily ran around on the field (remember last year he wouldn't even go on the field unless Zac or I was standing by him?). So it was a definite improvement. And he had a great coach who encouraged him to kick the ball and gave him lots of praise for every effort, which was great.

He even scored a goal his last game!! It was in the wrong goal, but nevertheless, we celebrated big time!! hehehe.

(oh and in the above pic, I accidentally left the camera on the color accent mode and Zac didn't realize it as he took pictures. He didn't even know the camera could do that, so it didn't occur to him that maybe it was unusual for the blue to show up so much!)

And here he is posing with his medal. He is such a crack-up sometimes, always making goofy poses. I know I often grumble about all the problems he can cause with his extra energy and uncooperative-ness, but really he has such a hilarious personality. It's really hard to get him to comply with much of anything we want him to do, but when he is happy and doing his own thing, there's just no way to contain his giddiness. So we are happy when he is happy, for the most part. :)

His teachers at school say they love him, and his church teachers say he says funny things. I wonder sometimes what he may be hiding behind his silliness (getting attention that way instead of contributing meaningfully) - but I am trying extra hard to appreciate him for his fun and spirited traits lately. I wouldn't ever want to change that about him.

Reading Round-Up: July, August and September

Whew!! How did these 3 months fly by? Have you been wondering when I would talk about books again? Well, here it is. Finally.

Here are the books I have read since my last round-up:

1. Recovering Charles - Jason F. Wright
2. Maybe (Maybe Not) - Robert Fulghum
3. You will Dream New Dreams - Kim Schive
4. The Uncommon Reader - Alan Bennett
5. Into the Wild - Sarah Beth Durst
6. Across the River and Into the Trees - Earnest Hemingway
7. Spilling Clarence (reread) - Anne Ursu
8. Refuge - Terry Tempest Williams
9. The Year my Son and I were Born - Kathryn Lynard Soper
10. The Parents Guide to Speech and Language Problems - Debbie Feit
11. The Scarlet Pimpernel - Emmaska Orczy
12. Inkdeath - Cornelia Funke
13. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle - David Wroblewski
14. To the Lighthouse - Virginia Woolf
15. Circle of Friends - Maeve Binchy
16. Mississippi Trial, 1955 - Chris Crowe
17. The Complete IEP Guide - Lawrence Siegel
18. A Northern Light - Jennifer Donnelly
19. Follow the River - James Alexander Thom
20. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - Ken Kesey
21. The Little Guide to Your Well-Read Life - Steve Leveen
22. The Martian Child - David Gerrold
23. Inkspell - Cornelia Funke
24. Uncle Tom's Cabin - Harriet Beecher Stowe

And some superlatives:

Best book made into a movie - The Martian Child

Best book about reading - The Little Guide to Your Well-Read Life :)

Biggest heart-wrenching adventure - Follow the River

my favorite classic - The Scarlet Pimpernel

Best books for parents of children with special needs:
Really, I have to highly recommend all 3 of these. The Complete IEP Guide is an ESSENTIAL handbook for the IEP process. The Year my Son and I Were Born is the first-hand account of an mom's first year with a child with Down's Syndrome. It was incredibly moving.
And then You Will Dream New Dreams is an anthology of essays written by parents in various stages of raising a child with special needs. These essays articulated so beautifully the full range of emotions this process and journey entails. For me, it was something I really needed to read right now.

The book furthest removed from my usual reading: Refuge (a lot about birds and ecology - interesting, but not really in the subjects dearest to my heart).

Best Youth Fantasy - Into the Wild
I was very impressed with this book! It was so fun.

Best by one of my favorite authors - Maybe (Maybe Not)

And my highest recommendations for general good reading:
Circle of Friends
The Story of Edgar Sawtelle
and the Inkheart books

We also discussed Spilling Clarence for book club this month. I thought we had an interesting discussion about the fickle nature of memories. How tainted our views of history can be (personally and as a society) because it all depends on how we remember them. Why some things are remembered and why others forgotten. And how our memories remembered and forgotten shape who we are and keep us sane. I just found it all fascinating. Although I admit I am endlessly fascinated by brain science in the first place, so I can understand why not everyone would find it as interesting as I did. But I do think it was a good book for discussion.

Have you read anything good lately? Have you read any of these?
Any of these sound good to you?

And one more Public Service Announcement

ok, there seems to be some more confusion, so allow me to clarify.

I will be taking some of the posts off of the old blog, editing them for privacy, and then reposting them on this blog. Just here and there, a little over time, until maybe eventually everything from the old blog can be found again here. Maybe. I will probably start with the most recent posts and then maybe move back through categories or something. I don't know for sure. But if you see some posts and think, didn't I already read this? Yes, yes, you did.

Your big clue will be that I will put {reposting} in the title. So you know it's being {reposted}.

So, once again, the ones that say {reposting} in the title are not new, and you're not just having random brain misfirings (otherwise known as deja vu). You're not crazy (I'm just the crazy one for starting all this craziness!).

Boy, this starting over business is more complicated than one would think! But, I think it will be worth it in the end. Hang in there with me, pretty please.

Any other questions?!? :)
ok, carry on . . .

awesome

There are no other words for this.

a movie to see

I don't usually review movies. But I do try to write about things that affect me. Tonight we watched this movie. And although this isn't an "escape from reality"-type movie and it is difficult to watch in many respects, I think that everyone should see it. Have you seen it?

Taking Chance is a movie that made me think about honor, courage, respect, sacrifice. Made me stop and think about war, and my sons, and marines and soldiers everywhere, in a way that I never have before. And sometimes it's good to think about things.

I will admit I think I cried more than I possibly ever have during a movie.

Regardless of what you may think about the US government or policies, military, or stances on any current conflicts - rent this one and see it.

Like a producer said in the behind the scenes, it is important for us all to know that this journey takes place. It's just important for us all to know.