Ponderosa Grove Camping

I can't decide if I'm procrastinating or being extremely effective.  Our family is supposed to leave to camp with friends in three and a half hours.  I have SO much packing left to do, but golly-gee-willikers, I refuse to be three camping trips behind on this blog.  And so, without further ado, here's the photo tour of our third camping trip of 2020, once again in Southern Utah.  

In mid-May, we met up with most of the Wheeler clan just outside of the Coral Pink Sand Dunes for a few nights camping at Ponderosa Grove Campground.  Grandpa Charles and Grandma Susie drove down from Hyde Park, Uncle Ben and Aunt Christy drove up from Arizona, while Justin, Brianna, Ruby, and our clan represented Salt Lake.  Uncle Lance, we missed you!

As we pulled into the campground, Annika was excited to drive the final few feet.

The campsite was perfect!  A green, wooded oasis surrounded by dunes.  There was plenty of room everyone to spread out, with the only downside being that you had to provide your own water.

Talia immediately set to work constructing a Bucky Fuller geodesic dome out of pinecones.

 

Camping brings out my inner happy--at least once we arrive.  Getting prepped is always a challenge, but worth the effort.  (This is me giving myself a pep talk.)

 

Grandma Susie is all smiles with family gathered around.

 

This section of fine earth must be God's sandbox.  All we had to do was walk across the road and we were surrounded by impressive dunes.  

 

Add shovel for instant fun.

 

I love how this sand sculpture looks like Zion or Bryce Canyon in miniature.

The kids sleep amazingly well while camping.  You'd think the morning light would function as a natural alarm clock, but not for this crew.  It takes bacon to get them to emerge from their comfy cocoons.

The next day we all headed for a short slot canyon hike up Wire Pass by Coyote Gulch.  Since our family had been there before, we should have been able to navigate there without difficulty.  Instead, we were the only ones to get TOTALLY off course, not realizing we were headed the wrong way until we hit Jacob's Lake.  We ended up taking a dirt road for miles so that we could connect with the trailhead from the south side.

 

The road got a bit sketchy at the end, but we made it.  

 

Such a pretty hike!  Definitely a winner if you want to get lots of bang for your buck.

One downclimb is a bit tricky, but we made it with the help of a log that doubles as a ladder.

 

My pictures really don't do Wire Pass justice.  It's really something you need to experience in person.

 

Emerging out the other side.

The beauty of southern Utah.

 

 

Cousin love.

 

 This rock is amazing.

 

Plus, these brothers rock out.

Peanut Butter and Jelly

 

Back at camp, Christy colored with Ruby and Annika into the evening hours.  Three cheers for the artists!

 

Getting prepped for a campfire with epic tales from Uncle Ben about the fiery shenanigans of his youth.  

 

Doing dishes is so much more fun with Aunt Brianna's wash station.

 

On Sunday morning we gathered together for Come Follow Me and home church.  The kids particularly enjoyed acting out the exodus of King Limhi and his people.

 

Ruby and Annika also gave us a tour of their desert museum.

 

I found the exhibitions to be quite endearing.

 

After breaking camp, we drove a few miles to the outskirts of the Coral Pink Sand Dunes for a final chance to play in the sand.  And my oh my, what sand!

 

The sand is incredibly fine--it clings to everything.  The weather was perfect, with the sand comfortably warming your toes instead of scalding them. 

 

Plenty of wind for kite-flying.

No better place for leaping.  Watch Talia go!

 

Brooklyn's turn, then Eli.

 

 

Mommy Kara gives it a go.

 

Check out Grandma Susie!

The most epic sand dive, however, is awarded to Uncle Justin.

Another reminder that life is good.

 

A photo op for the Millcreek Wheelers...

...and the Avenues Wheelers too.  In case you can't tell who is who, from left to right we have Kara. Brooklyn, Talia, and Jason, with Annika and Eli up front.  And yes, the height differential is just about right, with Talia now being the tallest Wheeler gal in the house.

Thanks to all for the amazing weekend!   While we may find red sand in sundry nooks and crannies for ages, we will cherish the memories even longer.

Made it to May

At the height of the coronavirus, Salt Lake County issued an official public health order: Stay Safe, Stay Home.  The upside of this new mantra: our home is a generally a great place to be.

Lately I've felt discouraged about all the weeds in our yard.  I just need to remind myself how beautiful the flowers are in spring.

Our yard may not be large, but there's room enough to roast hot dogs.

Who needs J-Dawgs when you've got Jason's dogs?

The best part of our house is really the neighborhood.  When COVID-19 hit, our neighbor put out all these little wooden homes for families to take home and paint before returning them to the fairy garden.

Inside our home, we decided it was time to break out the unicorn crafts, courtesy of NomiAnn.

We've also been working on our Girl Scouts of Utah Centennial patch, including a 1913 badge requirement to secure a burglar using eight inches of cord.  (Boy Scouts enjoy this as well.)

Also from our Centennial patch--learn to play a Filipino game, Tapatan (1980s)...

...and make a rain cloud in a bottle (2000s).

Maybe the 2020 Girl Scout handbook will have a new requirement: learn to sew a face mask.

Our brave teachers from Wasatch Elementary held a drive-by parade for all the students to come and wave.  Despite the rain, Annika loved getting to see Ms. Blank, if only for a moment.

In an effort to entertain ourselves at home, we broke out the slime.

Talia's art class kept her busy painting.

Beautiful!

Sometimes she looks to nature for inspiration.

Whatever the medium, this gal's creations shine.

On a tastier note, Talia took a Foods and Nutrition class this semester. 

I'm not certain how nutritious, but we sure enjoyed sampling her homework!

For science, we watched our caterpillars morph into butterflies over quarantine.  

These eight butterflies were so active and fun!  I felt joyful (and a little jealous) watching them fly away, so completely free.

My emotional stability during this pandemic has been the foothills.  I get up into the mountains as often as possible.  One run along the Bonneville Shoreline Trail was so beautiful that I made the kids hike it with me later in the day, just so they could enjoy the flowers as well.

Talia ran eleven miles down Emigration Canyon and across the shoreline trail with me.  This gal's tough!

Home at last.

This tiny hike up Rocky Mouth Canyon was fantastic.  Just a half mile from the trailhead, and you discover this.

In case I forget where the trailhead, it's just south of Little Cottonwood Canyon.  11248 Wasatch Boulevard in Sandy.  Well-worth the trip!

Plus, some sunsets are not to be missed.

At the beginning of May, Utah began to slowly reopen as restrictions lifted.  Our very first adventure out was to the Hogle Zoo.  Zoo aficionados, we happily showed up on the very first day.  The zoo did a really great job spreading out admissions and creating a one-way walking path that made the experience both enjoyable and socially-distanced.

Personally, I think the animals missed us.

For May the Fourth, we joined up with Justin, Brianna, and Ruby for a Star Wars celebration.  Uncle Justin has the best Star Wars swag.

The Star Wars battle scenes took over the dormitory as well.

X-wing in action.  Now if only it folded laundry as well.

On May 9th, Jason and I celebrated our seventeenth wedding anniversary.  Seventeen!  I loved being a newlywed, but there's a unique richness and depth to love that matures over time.  

Ever willing to make my dreams come true, Jason spent the day hiking up Big Cottonwood Canyon with me.

In truth, Jason's not hard to convince.

I certainly hadn't anticipated the route being so snowy!  Good thing we brought our yak trax and hiking poles.  

We lost the trail for a while.  I wonder why...

At last, Dog Lake.  It'd be fun to hike it again in the fall and compare the vistas.  

  

When we got back home, our kiddoes had baked us a special celebratory dinner.  

Plus, they made us the cutest card.  They're really the best!

Happy Anniversary, Peanut Butter!  Together, life is so beautiful.

Speaking of beautiful, we went back to Temple Square to soak in some more spring,  I just can't get enough of all the flowers.

Look closely, and you'll see that they were in the process of disassembling the temple.  I think these repairs were due to the earthquake, not the renovation.

Angel Moroni is still missing his trumpet.

My favorite munchkins.  (Am I still allowed to call them that, especially when half are taller than I am?)

And now for the brilliant colors.

In honor of my Grandma Garda's baby brother.

Most of the flower photo credits go to Talia.  I love her fresh perspective on the world.

One final message.

As Eli can reassure you, life is still good.