Something to Celebrate

There is nothing like getting away for an anniversary. What a blessing it is to be able to spend a whole weekend with my best friend. This year we went to the Beaver Mines area and enjoyed exploring. We hiked around the campsites (there are a lot), walked along the edge of the lake and EVEN climbed table mountain - at least to the tree line. .At that point rain was threatening and we didn't feel like it was wise to keep going up when we should be going down!

Headed down to the lake

Our first point of exploration was the lake. We hiked down the hill through the trees following what was probably a game trail. We came out at the waters edge. As we hiked west the sun began to set and I couldn't resist capturing it on film. The colors were lovely.

Sunset

 The mountains were hazy but the forest vegetation was brilliant. What a beautiful evening!

Hazy mountains

 Day 2: We decided to hike up Table Mountain. Now I break out in hives if I get overheated so I have to be pretty careful hiking. As we hiked up the mountain we took our time and enjoyed the scenery, resting when necessary. I never broke out in hives even once and we went all the way to the treeline!

This is the lake from just below the
 treeline on table mountain.

 When we got to the top of the treeline we thought we would turn around and go back down. There were some dark rain clouds gathering in the west and we didn't want to be stuck on a mountain trying to climb down a muddy slippery trail...

Rain threatens our hike

 But just as we were ready to turn and go back some hikers came by and told us of the wildlife they could see just a little further down the trail. We decided we would go for it and continued hiking. It only took a few minutes and we discovered what they were telling us about. Chad got out his scope so he could see up close...

We discovered something to look at across the
valley on the next mountain. Chad's
spotting scope brought us in pretty close.

 I got the camera on full zoom. It is pretty hard to take a picture that far away (they were on the neighboring mountain) and have it come out clear and crisp, but this is what we got.

This is what we saw! Mountain goats at
a natural salt lick.

Had to have a picture of the two of us before
 we head  back down the mountain!

 We headed back down the mountain and made it back just in time to have supper before the rain drove us inside.

Sunrise. Isn't it glorious?

 Sunday morning was glorious! What an amazing sunrise! I couldn't believe how the sun hitting the mountains turned them such a brilliant red!

Sunrise. I couldn't get enough of the changing colors!

 Sunday was a beautiful relaxing day. We got to do lots of reading and relaxing after attending church in Pincher. I love going to church when we are on holidays, it sets the tone for the day so beautifully.

Sunset  over the water. It was a little on the windy side that day.

 Sunday night we enjoyed yet another wonderful sunset.

Dusk - looking out over the lake.

 The water shone like a shimmering mirror very different from the previous nights sunset.

Chad enjoying the view

 Before turning in and in the last hour of daylight Chad hiked up to a huge rock and enjoyed the view. I had the camera so I don't know what he saw from there, but if it was anything like the side we were on, it would have been breathtaking.

One last shot of the scenery as we drove away.

We had a wonderful weekend. The scenery was amazing. I couldn't believe how often I could take the same picture with just a little bit of different lighting conditions and come out with a completely different view. As long as there was light I could take a good picture, but as the sun sank lower the picture quality changed completely until it was pointless to try because the results were fuzzy and out of focus.

I couldn't help but think how life with light is a lot like taking pictures. As long as there is light in ones life things are clear, crisp and beautiful. Colors change as quickly as the season of life do. Yet each is absolutely breathtaking! However, if we try to live without light, then things quickly become distorted and blurry. There is no real joy left and it is difficult to know where to look for clarity. I find clarity every day in the light of the gospel of Jesus Christ. What a blessing it is to live in light and enjoy the wonders of life in every season.

I am so grateful for the wonderful time I enjoyed with my eternal companion as we celebrated another anniversary. Time marches steadily onward, and each year seems to get better!

My Biggest and 'Bestest' Decision!

You know when you are just out of high school you can't help but wonder what life will bring and how many of your dreams you will see fulfilled. From my youngest memory, I have always wanted to be a mother. It was something I prepared for conscientiously throughout my teenage years learning to cook, clean, sew, craft and prepare to go to the temple. Probably one of the biggest skills that helped me was learning to work - even when I hated the job I was doing. 

When I went off to college, I chose a profession that would suit raising kids - something that could  be done on the side, and possibly even come in useful as my children grew older. I took floral design. My favorite part of the course was making wedding bouquets and corsages. I have done a number of them over the years as friends get married. It has been a very rewarding skill to have. In hindsight, I can't help but think it will come in VERY handy since time has blessed me with 7 daughters - so yes, knowing how to do wedding flowers will be VERY convenient at some point in time. But that wasn't the biggest decision I ever made.

Within a year of graduating from Floral Design I met my soon to be husband. Today I celebrate my wedding day - the BEST decision I ever made!

I am so grateful we were married in the temple. It is a joy to me to look back over the last 20+ years knowing that I have NEVER  ever regretted that decision. Chad has cared for, supported and provided for me. He is my best friend. Marrying him has brought more joy into my life than anything I ever could have done on my own. What a blessing marriage and family are. 

Happy anniversary to us!!!

Cherry Pickers

Summer is always busy with the varying stages of harvest. In July we picked raspberries and then later on Evans cherries. In August we picked peas, cucumbers, tomatoes, chokecherries and apples and in September we will pick grapes. The most fun we had so far was picking cherries. We were invited out to a couple of different friends places to pick their excess. We didn't get any cherries off our own trees this year so it was a boon to have such good friends share their surplus with us this year.

So we went out to a farm to pick Evans cherries. As you may know, birds absolutely love to eat these juicy, tart berries and with the size they grow to, the birds can't stay away - so the farmer pulls out his gun and uses the birds for target practice. He proudly proclaimed as we drove up that he had killed about 7 birds in the last 12 hours. That meant that we were picking berries with a few dead birds underfoot and some of them had been there quite a while. We were game though and picked cherries for 2 hours filling nearly 3 large stainless steel bowls before we had to leave.

Charity looks at the camera...
She was getting tired by that time of picking cherries.

Beth and Melodee standing high in the trees to pick the
laden branches.

Looking through the tree at Myles reaching for a high
branch filled with cherries.

Upon on the ladder - we never could have
done it without the help of those ladders!

The kids enjoyed climbing high into the trees and met the challenge of reaching the still heavily loaded branches. Rain threatened and still we persevered with smiles on our faces. With the sun shining through the clouds we enjoyed some beautiful prairie scenery as we picked cherries. It was a wonderful day, just cool enough to enjoy.

Looking off over the neighboring fields.
The colors were incredible.

Evans cherries aren't the easiest berries to pick. They are very juicy and quite easy to squish. Our hands didn't take long to get sticky as we worked to fill our buckets. Sometimes it seemed to take forever for the cherries to accumulate. But despite the discomforts and the slow pace I was so pleased with my children as they worked together to complete the task at hand. It was a fun and memorable afternoon. Beth was the oldest one there as the older kids were all at work,  but even without the extra hands, the work was done quickly. We are so thankful for the opportunity made available to us to pick cherries this year. They make fabulous juice and it is healthy too! We will be enjoying the fruits of our labors all winter.

Sometimes life is like picking berries. When we pick berries it often seems to take forever to fill a bucket and sometimes life seems to be seemingly pointless or mundane. But as we persevere, doing good things, one day we will look back and be surprised to find that our buckets are full and the harvest is great. With it comes a lot of joy and a sense of accomplishment. It is very satisfying to see and recognize the good things in life. I love it!

 Life is good.

The Little Fisherman

This summer we have enjoyed a fair bit of trout thanks to Myles interest in fishing. It all started back in June when a friend who loves to fish invited Myles to go along with him. They were not lucky that time though and came home empty handed. Not a week later, that same friend showed up on our door with two fish in hand. He had been out fishing and thought Myles would enjoy a couple of fish since they hadn't caught anything before. Well, Myles wasn't home, so mom got to clean the fish and freeze them so they could be enjoyed when Myles was around. However ALL his sisters saw those dead fish and immediately declared that they don't like fish!!!

We cooked one up anyway as soon as Myles was home again. There were only about 3 of us who were willing to eat it that time. 

So, then we went camping in August. Myles brought along his fishing supplies and a new hook. He couldn't wait to get out there with his fishing pole!

 The first day, Myles went to the lake and started fishing. 

 He even let Charity give it a try...

And Melodee too!

There he is, patiently waiting for the fish to bite!

Another cast...

Oh! Was that a tug on the line?!?

 Yes... that was a tug on the line, but for some reason it wouldn't budge. Deadwood. Now to rescue the hook...

Naomi to the rescue.
The lake gets deep fast and she went in up
 to her chest to retrieve the stubborn hook...

Their plight was noticed by a nearby fisherman who came
in his boat to help them rescue the hook just as they
were about to cut the line.

Mission accomplished.
Naomi hands Myles the hook he nearly lost.

Well that was enough fishing adventures for the day. But it didn't deter Myles. He was still determined to do some good fishing. There were fishermen all over the lake catching fish seemingly all day long, so... attempt number two.

Everyone was going their separate directions. We had a group that went hiking up a nearby hill, a group that went to the beach and a much smaller group that went fishing. Myles came upon a fellow fisherman who helped him set up his line to fish off the bottom of the lake and before anyone else got back to camp, along came Myles proudly carrying his very first catch ever!!! It was even cleaned this time (YAY!).

 And there we have it a nice little 15" trout! 

No time was wasted in cooking it up and before everyone else returned to camp it was frying nicely on the stove, ready to supplement the supper meal.

It is such a joy to see my children take an interest in new things and seek to develop talents in new areas. I am so thankful that Myles is willing to share his developing fishing talents with us. Since that time he has again gone fishing with our friend and brought home 7 more fish. It is interesting to watch as we cook them up. I am finding that more of my children are willing to eat the fish he catches and they are enjoying it too. 

Life is a lot like learning to eat fish. Sometimes new experiences don't appear appealing at first and yet, when we engage ourselves in those same activities we discover that they are fun and enjoyable. I know that was my experience when I participated in Pioneer Trek as a youth. It is important to be willing to try new things - things that uplift and strengthen the spirit. As it turns out I enjoyed Pioneer Trek then every bit as much as I enjoy eating fish now and even more because those memories and friendships that I made at Trek lasted a lot longer than a little bit of food!

Out in the Wilds

This year we held our first official Rice family reunion. It was a wonderful weekend and delightfully fun to have everyone together for almost 4 days! Just a few days before we headed out we decided that tradition has been consistent enough that a reunion isn't really a reunion unless you have a pinata. So we busily created a basic one the day before we left...

 There it is, hanging outside to dry. Breanna decided at the last minute to add streamers to it, but then after it finished drying we found some thin spots so we decided to add a complete additional layer after stuffing it full of exciting possibilities. Incredibly enough, with the intense heat the thing was actually dry before we left early in the afternoon!

So there it is getting the finishing touches at camp. We took the primary colors of paint and the kids took some time decorating with their painting skills. It turned out to be a primary colored camouflage design! LOL! It looked pretty good all painted up and waiting to be bashed. Breanna and Melodee primarily supervised and executed the construction of this years pinata and they made it thick!!!

There they are - a pinata truly made as a family project. By the time it was finished just about everyone had helped put it together!

Well I will spare you the numberless photos of scenery that were taken as we traveled to our destination... Naomi had the camera and she loves to take photos. She's a pretty good photographer too, but they take too long to upload onto the blog... so moving right along... we traveled in two vehicles so that we could not only transport people, but also supplies. The car arrived first as the suburban was getting a little tire TLC on the way up. We didn't have a lot of supplies in the car but... we did have tents.

 So in a short time we transformed the campsite from this...

To this! It actually took some doing to make everything fit properly. We loved having the sun shelter! It gave us shade when we wouldn't have otherwise had any! It seemed to be the preferred choice of places to sit as well. Everyone loved it there.

There were lots of different things we did - some of them will be written into different blog posts, but they included pinata painting (above), game playing, photography, hiking, fishing, swimming, hair washing and styling, BB shooting, reading and lots and lots of relaxing and visiting!!!

BB Shooting
Ready, Aim, Fire!

What?
I can't believe I missed!

Playing games

Exploring and enjoying nature

Photography - the perfect setting for great shots!

Here fishie, fishie, fishie...

Sisters - Enjoying the scenery together.

A favorite past time - reading every chance we get!

Fishing or swimming....

Hiking the hills

Warm fuzzy feelings captured on film...

Yup, that blur is the pinata after a smashing hit by Breanna!

Hiking together

Good food!

Braiding - getting readying for family photo's!

We made sure to take some family pictures before the weekend was over. They turned out well, but we didn't do any variations as the camera was running low on battery life.

I love this picture. It is funny because I have in the past suggested to my family that they wear similar colors for the picture so we all coordinate. When we were all assembled I had to laugh because we had 5 red shirts in the group! (Shylah put her hoodie on to cover hers). But as for color, I don't think I could have planned it better. The bright colors reflect our joy and happiness at being together and exploring the area as a family. I am so grateful for the promise of eternity with this fabulous group of people. I look forward to spending eternity with them. They are my joy and delight and there is nothing I can think of in this world that is more important to me than the welfare and happiness of these people.