One More Thing -- A Trip to Yellowstone

You've probably noticed that we've had a bit of a crazy few months around here.  Between our travels, my Dad's death, my kids going a million different directions, and Adam starting his mission...it's felt pretty nonstop.   In the weeks leading up to Adam starting his mission, we kept talking about how we realllllllly wanted to do "one more thing" with him before he left.  We went back and forth on what that one thing should be, but ultimately decided that a trip to Island Park, Idaho would be just the fun and nostalgic thing we were looking for. 

 Glen's grandparents owned a cabin in Island Park for many years and we would bring our family there every few years for Yellowstone adventures while they were growing up.   Sadly they sold the cabin a few years ago, so we didn't have an easy place to stay this time.  At first we shopped around for another cabin to stay in, but after lamenting over the high prices and less than ideal locations,  I had the bright idea that we should make it a camping trip.       

Camping, you ask?  Yes.  Never mind we haven't been camping in several years and a lot of our gear was still in boxes in the garage.   We like spending several hours tracking down items we haven't used in years, setting up our tent in the dark, cooking over a fire, getting bitten my mosquitos, and sleeping on hard surfaces.   Yeah, we're crazy like that. 

Seriously though...despite the rough/slow start and the weird amounts of wind and rain we encountered, it ended up being exactly the kind of fun memory making experience we were trying to create.   

  

We spent lots of  time in Yellowstone and went on as many hikes as we could...

Glen was excited to put his canoe to good use and to get in some world-class fishing!  

We saw "Singin' in the Rain," and "Tarzan" at the Playmill (a long-standing family tradition)! 

We cooked breakfast and lunch over the fire most days.  We took this picture after  Emma and I started a fire in the wind and drizzle, while Glen and Adam were out fishing. 

 It was one of our first times starting a fire completely by ourselves  and we were quite proud to start it in less than ideal conditions!  

We ate dinners and treats out on the town--in West Yellowstone before the shows.  

We weirdly didn't see much in the way of wildlife in Yellowstone, but we did enjoy the opportunity to snuggle together in the car during our drives, because it was cold and windy for part of the time!    What wildlife did we see?  A handful of buffalo, maybe 2-3 elk, and a bunch of chipmunks.   

We had forgotten the stark beauty of Island Park and Yellowstone and we enjoyed soaking in the gorgeous scenery there.    

I couldn't get enough of the wildflowers and took way too many pictures of them...

Actually...what am I saying?  

Is it possible to have too many pictures like these?   

I don't think so...  😍

This really may be one of the prettiest places on earth..

Of course we  made sure Adam got lots of love....

We finished off the adventure (after having to get our car jumped before we could leave the campground) with a stop at the Rexburg Temple to do baptisms together.  It was an awesome experience.  

After three nights of living the tent life, we were pretty exhausted by the end.

 But it was a good kind of exhausted.  The kind where you sack out in your smoke and unshowered body scented clothes while you bask in not having a rock underneath your left hip.  Yes, it was a great laid back trip filled with a lot of memory making experiences, but it was also pretty heavenly taking that first shower and sacking out in our own beds. 

Maybe we'll even go camping again...someday.  😄  

Trek to Albion Basin

 Ask me how I like Utah and I'll definitely give you a mixed reaction.  There are a lot of things I love about living here (more on those later), but there are also A LOT of things I miss.   I miss trees and songbirds in my backyard.  I miss humidity (yes, really!).  But mostly I miss being known.  I miss someone asking me how my older kids are doing (and actually caring).  I miss someone knowing that I like to do something and asking me to help them with it.  I miss people asking me for that one recipe. And I miss people knowing a little of my story. 

We've been here a year now and I very much still feel like the invisible woman.  People are so nice to me when they see me, but NO ONE seems to have any interest in having anything to do with me other than those built in times when they see me anyway.  My true friends are the ones I made in Virginia  or to a lesser extent, in Pennsylvania.  Starting my own book group, attending YW camp,  and reaching out to people have helped the cause a little, but I never feel truly seen or known unless I'm with an old friend. 

Alas, I cannot deny all the spiritual impressions that landed us here.  I KNOW 1000% that we are exactly where we are supposed to be right now, but, to be totally honest, moving 3 times in 2 years (and 4 different wards) has been more difficult than I imagined.   And if that kind of adjustment wasn't hard enough, throw into the picture my Dad dying, and I have to admit that I often feel pretty lonely.  Thank goodness for having a full house the last month or two, which has distracted me from the loneliness a bit.  

 So, enough about my woes...there are a few things I love about Utah.  For one, I love that Ellie has access to the perfect school for her.  After so many years of homeschool, there wouldn't have been too many places I'd feel comfortable sending her, but her school is exactly what she needed.  I feel like that is one of the reasons we needed to be here.    I also love living close to family.  I had no idea my Dad had cancer when Glen accepted the job here, but it's very clear that we were very needed here over the last year and I'm grateful to have been able to spend so much time with my parents through my Dad's final days.  I also love living closer to my college kids.  Instead of seeing them only at Christmas and summer breaks, we get to see them a couple times a month.  And I get to meet their friends, which is a huge blessing.    

I also love the cool mornings and open vistas.  I do miss the thick covering of trees of the East, but there is something pretty spectacular about a Utah sunset streaking the sky with golds, pinks, and purples...and actually being able to see a clear view of it {instead of peeking out through the trees}.  

A few weeks ago we decided to trek up to Albion Basin to see the infamous wildflowers and Cecret Lake.

What can I say?  

WOW!  WOW! WOW! 

We got off to a later start than we wanted (thanks to a super long line at the admission gate), but being there at sunset was a sight I'll never forget!

If it were a little closer to home, I might be tempted to head up there every night for sunset! 

Have I mentioned how much I absolutely love wildflowers?   There's something about their  effortless beauty dotting the landscape and blooming where they landed that just makes me happy.  I guess I could try to be a little more like a wildflower, and try to bloom into my best self right here in Alpine.  I feel like I'm still breaking through the rocky ground and finding my place, but I have faith that I will find my spot eventually! 

Speaking of the joys of Utah...we saw a mama moose and her baby near the parking lot. 

And Ellie may have shed an actual tear when we saw this cute little porcupine cross our path on the way home. 

How's that for an entry into her baby book?   First wild porcupine sighting:  July 2022

Thanks for reading my free therapy session!   Have an amazing day! 

Hepworth Family Reunion June 2022

Every summer the descendants of my maternal Great-Grandparents {Clarence Joshua and Rose Ellen Hepworth} hold a family reunion.  Clarence and Rose had 10 children--including 2 sets of twins--one of which is my grandfather! Of those 10 kids, most of them also had large families as well, meaning that Clarence and Rose have A LOT of direct descendants.   I've never attempted to count them up myself, but I hear that it's over 1000 these days.  

To keep the family reunion running smoothly for so many years, they take turns rotating through the descendants of each one of the original children of Clarence and Rose to be the host family.  The host family chooses the location and date, and plans all the details.    This year it was the descendants of  Fay and Florize Hepworth {my grandparents} that were the host family, which meant that my Mom and a couple of her sisters were the ones that had the reins.

As you know, my Dad's health had been very poor leading up to his death on July 13th.   This reunion took place on June 18th, which meant that things were pretty dicey at my parents' home during that time.   I wouldn't really call myself much of an event planner by nature, but I do hate to see an event fall by the wayside due to unfortunate circumstances, so I decided to step in and help make things happen. 

I created flyers, helped plan the food, planned some activities, collected the RSVPs, and answered questions from people interested in coming.   It felt a little crazy in the moment with all the other things going on in my life at that time (namely...my Dad's worsening health, a bridal shower I hosted the day before, the houseful of guests that were at our house that weekend to visit my Dad for Father's Day, and scrambling to get Ellie and Adam out the door for their summer activities), but I thought it came off beautifully! 

Two of my  aunts, my sisters, and some cousins stepped in and helped the details come together.   Here are some of the activities we did: 

1. Family trivia game garnered from information my sister, AnnaLisa, found in family member's obituaries found online.
2. Family bingo game (trying to find family members that have certain characteristics)
3. Food was homemade cafe rio salads that we provided.  The rest of the food was potluck style.  
4. We collected advice from people, then combined all of the tidbits of advice and created a document, which we shared afterward.  
5. A couple of my cousins brought some physical activities for the kids

 Here is a glimpse of who was there and how it turned out....

The reunion was held at the church right behind my parents' house, so we brought my Dad down for a bit.

For as distracted as I was, I felt like it all came together well and I loved the opportunity to get to know so many "long lost" cousins, which I'd never met before.  I'm also grateful my Mom got to connect and spend time with so many relatives before Dad passed!   Family is awesome!