Pioneer Children Sang As They....

Pioneer Day. The day when we Utahns get together to celebrate and honor our intrepid forefathers. Some offer prayers of thanks. Others gather with their families and renew geneological connections. Still others shave their heads and participate in kazoo bands. The Warby family would be among the.... well, just look at these pictures.




Following our Pioneer day festivities, we (along with our fantastic red-headed nephew) headed northward in true pioneer fashion. If you think about it, a Ford Windstar does somewhat resemble a covered wagon, don't you think? Well, with gas prices the way they are, we may have been better off pulling it up by hand or at least hitching the kids up to some kind of harness.
Anyway, we drove to Orem where we were put up by my sympathetic and kind brother/sister-in-law Shane and Tracy. We had a blast with them playing games and going out to dinner. They introduced us to the coolest movie theater at jordan commons near SLC. We saw Journey to the center of the earth 3-D. The effects were cool and exciting. Worth seeing in the theater. The next morning we got up early to hike up to Timpanogos Caves. It was a hard steep trail but it was very worth it. The caves were cool (literally) and we had a lot of fun. See pictures.

After hiking we went to Seven Peaks water park. It was very hot and very crowded. The kids did have fun though and it was a good learning experience. We learned how to cook feet on hot cement.

Afterward we drove home to Washington and collapsed into bed. The next day (saturday) we went to SGMT's HONK! It was an excellent play. Amy's brother Darrin played the lead role and did a masterful job. Afterward, we met Grandma and Grandpa Warby at Blue Bunny for some ice cream. Very yummy.

Our Little Rising Star

Preston is thrilled to be the understudy for "Colin" in "The Secret Garden" at St. George Musical Theatre. He will have the opportunity to perform all the Saturday Matinees. The show will run from Sept. 18th to Oct. 11th. For more information about the show visit: http://www.sgmt.org

Swim Meet

Yesterday we awoke early and started off towards Mesquite Nevada for Byron's swim meet. We left the house running a little late (like usual) and 5 minutes later realized that we forgot our chairs. Now if you have ever been to a swim meet... you know how miserable it would have been to spend four hours without a place to sit. So, we turned around, made the short drive back home and retrieved our chairs.

We got there with plenty of time to spare considering they started the meet two hours later. It turned out OK because the weather was not too hot. Byron took third in all three of his races and had lots of fun.

Memories

I found this Memory Post on Aliese's blog. I thought it was very appropriate as I have recently spent time contemplating the things of the past, and have come to the conclusion that I must have some kind of memory loss.

The Memory Post

1. As a comment on my blog, leave a memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you know me a little or a lot, anything you remember! If we're only blogging friends, write about a post that is the most memorable for you.

2. Next, if you feel so inclined, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. If you leave a memory about me, I'll be sure to write one about you...!

3. If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all. ☺ And please do this on your page, too, so we can all share in the fun times together. :)

Please take some time to help me remember those times that your mind may have retained that mine might not have.

Smart Fish

Yesterday we spent half the day trying to catch some slimy stinky fish out of the Pine Valley Reservoir. After baiting each line and casting into the sometimes still lake, we would patiently wait for the bobber to disappear. Well some of us were patient. Others... not so much. Many times we would see the bobber vanish only to pull in a half eaten night crawler or an empty hook. Miranda would then observe excitedly "hey, you caught a worm". We caught many worms. I don't know what we are doing wrong. I think we may need fishing lessons. Because too many times yesterday the excitement that came as a tug was felt on the line was soon replaced with disappointment, as a wriggling half eaten worm broke the surface of the lake. It was only more devastating as the realization came that we were the only group at the lake not catching the little buggers. What did they have against us? Needless to say, we left the lake a little broken hearted that we were robbed of all our bait.

Things started looking a little brighter as we spent the rest of the afternoon swimming at the Fry's house. It got a little rough as Nathan began teaching the boys a made up game that was something like basketball. Points were made by shooting the ball into an inner tube. The boys would stand outside the pool, and Nate would start the game by throwing the ball and the boys would jump in. They each had a different inner tube to shoot into. If it went into someones tube other than their own, it didn't count. When a point was made, they would get out of the pool and start again. We did have to make up some rules like: you can only touch the ball, not each other. Miranda and Amy played ring around the rosies and tried to stay out of the way as the boys splashed around. A favorite highlight is when Nate takes one of the inner tubes, or one of the kids, and makes waves by bouncing up and down. "Make waves Daddy".

We finished our day by driving up to Formaster Ridge to watch the fireworks. We sang patriotic songs on the way, then set up our chairs in an empty lot and waited for the show. During the amazing display, Miranda fell asleep, Landon was on the verge, and Byron wondered, with his feet curled up on his chair, if there were any tarantulas up there. Preston also ended up with his feet on his chair.

We had a fabulous day celebrating this land of the free and home of the brave. We feel blessed every day that we have the privilege to live in this great land.