And the journey continued...

Vacation was a bit unusual this year, in that it wasn't just travel to Idaho, visit, then return to Iowa.  First, there was the week spent in Colorado. Then on Friday, Kevin drove by himself from Iowa.

Catherine and her children flew into Denver, so I drove the hour to pick them up.  Unfortunately, there was some heavy traffic to delay us on I-25, then a heavy downpour just before we reached the airport.  As we drove towards it, we were enthralled by the rainbow, which was a full double at times, and even a triple one for a bit.  Beautiful! 

But the darkness behind it was scary. And driving IN it was scary.  I was so glad Kevin had put new RAINEX windshield protector on just before we left. The rain just beads up and runs off--letting you see far better than if the wipers were being used.   So although other cars were pulling off because they couldn't see, we were able to sail on through--until we started hydroplaning. That slowed us down a bit!

Then, trying to find which of the 8 lanes we should be in as we approached the airport was difficult--when we couldn't see the signs until just a few feet away.  Which terminal?  Long-term parking?  Short-term parking?  Pick-up lane? etc.  In spots, red water was flowing swiftly over the roadway--do I dare drive through it?   Thankfully, with cell phones, we were in contact with Catherine, and eventually all were collected, with their luggage and back to Ft. Collins we headed. I was SO grateful Alice was along with me to help with phone calls and reading signs! 

We arrived back at Ryan & Jamie's about 5 minutes after Kevin arrived.  Oh, what fun everyone had together--the Bailey girls showing the Sullivan kids their back yard and their chickens.  And the Sullivan kids, after hours and hours of traveling, were delighted to run and shout and let off some energy.

 

It was so fun to see all of our grandkids together, and having fun! Saturday morning, Ryan and Catherine jointly cooked breakfast, and everyone enjoyed the pancakes.

  

Then, it was off on the 8-hour journey to Idaho, for our two-week vacation.  We used both cars, Kevin and the girls in one, and I drove the other one with Catherine and her kids.  At Rock Springs, Catherine's family went on to Utah to visit Sullivan relatives, and we headed for Hoback Jct.  I'm always thrilled at the first sight of the Wind river mountains along the way. The drive is always interesting from then on. There were more brief downpours, a small forest fire, and the beautiful Hoback river canyon to drive by.  Finally, we arrived.

And I just have to include this last picture.  

 

I guess not EVERYTHING was fun and games....

Other activities in Colorado

Fort Collins has a great splash park and playground!  Judging from the small playground built at our elementary school 2 years ago that cost $1/2 million, I'd say this was in the $20 million price range.  Extensive.  Varied.  And lots of fun!

It's the kind of place where you need two adults to keep track of the kids, because there so many different places they can be. 

The kids can play and get hot, then cool off in the water.  Or cool off first and then go play in the various fountains. 

It's a great place to spend an hour or two (as long as your sunscreen lasts). 

Then, for Nellie's very first time in her car seat,

she got her very own bike trailer as we went on a bike ride.

An afternoon thunderstorm threatened and rumbled, but never came our direction, so we had a great ride.  A bike was borrowed for Alice.  Emma had her own bike, and I got to pull a trailer with Jane and Marta.  Jamie took Nellie.

It was my first time pulling a trailer, and it was quite the workout for me. I was glad to be able to share in it!

First Day of School

Since both girls are "returning" students at their respective schools, they didn't have to be at school until almost 11 a.m. yesterday.  New students reported at the normal time of 8 a.m.

With the later starting time, we had time for nice photos. This was yesterday,

and the next picture was only 5 years ago (2005).

It is a trite statement, I know, but how time flies!

Elley made an interesting statement last week after spending an hour at the high school during registration. She said it was almost shocking to be back with the "regular" clothing styles and vocabulary after spending a "church" summer with girls' camp, youth conference and EFY.  I just hope all those church things have helped her armor be strong enough.

***

It's interesting that they self-position always on the same side...

And they couldn't resist one self-portrait.  Notice Elley's ringlets--they are natural!

Comparing the 1st Day of School pictures makes me nostalgic and tender-hearted.  I am so grateful for my family!  And all the experiences we've had together.

Rocky Mountain National Park...

We picked Thursday afternoon for a visit to the nearby national park, not realizing it would be a rainy day.  We drove into the mountains through drizzle, and almost despaired of being able to get out of the car or see any of the sights.

But then, the clouds cleared a bit.

We were able to walk to a little mountain stream, and wade in it.

Man!  Was it ever cold!  Jane stood in it and started to whimper.

I don't think she understood that it was the water itself the was causing the hurt.

It made my ankles ache, after just a few seconds!

As we drove around, the rain would stop about the time we found a place we wanted to get out and explore.

Well, at least it lightened to a few sprinkles.  The mother duck and her babies seemed to enjoy the weather, and didn't mind all of us watching them.

We really enjoyed the stroll around a scenic small lake.  The light sprinkles didn't seem to actually get us wet.

The real rain waited for dinner time in Estes Park.  As we went from shop to shop, looking for souvenirs and a place to eat, the rain became more steady.

Finally, we opted for pizza.  And the rain stopped long enough for us to eat in the city park.

Though the benches were wet...

...at least it wasn't snow, though we did visit a Christmas shop, complete with life-size Santa.

And a place for the girls to rest their feet for a moment.

A VERY memorable day!

Vacation Revisited

Home again!  Laundry is done.  Overgrown lawn and flower gardens have been subdued (mostly).  Now it's time to reflect.

We were so happy to arrive in Colorado before dark.  We were greeted with a spectacular sunset over the mountains,

while on the east, a peaceful full moon was rising over the plains.

For awhile, we were "rubber-necking" as we looked back and forth between the opposing scenes.  What a pleasant surprise when we arrived at Ryan & Jamie's to have the girls still up, and ready to visit with us.  An even more pleasant surprise was Marta's ready acceptance of us--no shyness on her part! 

The next morning, the busy week began with Elley off to EFY.  The girls were happy to be able to see her dorm room,

after which we visited the park.

I wondered if Jane would be comfortable with us, but there was no shyness on her part either, even when Ryan bid us goodbye and went to his office to put in some needed hours.

Jamie had several activity options planned for our week, things we could do with the three girls while Jamie rested at home with Nellie.  One place we visited was a petting farm.

We took a picnic lunch and thoroughly enjoyed playing together.

And that play included

 snuggling in my bed, 

or playing dress-up.

Such dolls!

Ahhh... Vacation

No pictures to post...yet.  Just experiences.  The pictures will come after we get home.

Experiences like strolling around a reflective mountain lake with 3 darling granddaughters, along with Ryan and Alice.

Or, hydroplaning on the freeway in a cloudburst as we picked up Catherine from the Denver Airport.

Or going down the canal on innertubes.

Or gathering eggs.

Or quietly reading a book in the afternoon heat.

Or riding bikes in Teton National Park with my sister (15 miles!)

Or eating supper in the shade on the lawn

because it is too hot in the house.

Vacation.

It's all good.

Fruits of our labors...

With all the rain, things have been growing very well here.  The flowers have been the best in years.The 1st crop of raspberries has actually been worth picking--often we just let them go and wait for the 2nd crop in September.  I've made several batches of jam, besides having berries on cereal or ice cream.

The leaf lettuce has been plentiful and delicious.  I had stopped planting lettuce years ago, because it always had a bitter taste and I preferred the taste of what you buy at the store.  But this year, I heard about the secret for making lettuce taste better:  cut it, wash it, and store it in the fridge for a day or two before using.  That allows the sugars to mature, and takes away the bitter taste!  And it WORKS.  We've loved our lettuce.

We've also had plentiful green onions (the ones that accidentally got left in the ground last year and came up again this year).  We got a second picking off the peas--since the deer ate off the first pods, that made the plants put out new blossoms, so we still had fresh peas.

But the biggest treat so far is the new red potatoes.

When I was planting the garden back in April, I had a few leftover red potatoes that had gone soft and had sprouts all over them.  I threw them away--then dug them out of the garbage and decided to try planting them.  Iowa is not known for producing potatoes, so in all the years we've had a garden, I've never planted potatoes.  I cut the potatoes so there was a sprout in each section, then planted them.  I was almost surprised to see plants begin to grow.

Just last week I noticed that the plants were dying off.  Either the potatoes were ready, or the plants were diseased--which wouldn't have been a surprise, considering our very wet weather.

I felt like a child on Christmas morning when I overturned the first shovel-ful of dirt and bright red orbs lay there.  What a gift!

We've since had a great potato salad and I'm looking forward to grilling some potato logs.

***

And here's the fruit of Elley's labor...

First, with flash, so the door is bright and the room is in shadow;

And then with no flash.  Elley purposely turned her head from the camera.

We LOVE the color--so peaceful, calm and fresh. 

Now, on to the hallway, and the front window boxes, and the white kitchen chairs, and the white trim in my bedroom...

Elley is going to be earning her money!

Secret Combinations...

I've told some of you the saga of the dutch oven cook-off at girls camp.  It started out like this: Each ward was required to supply 3 dishes for the camp cook-off--a main dish, a side dish and a dessert.  Being a novice at dutch oven cooking, I worried a bit about this, and did my best to prepare.  As I got ready for camp, I precooked or premixed the ingredients I could, to cut down on prep time there.

For the peach cobbler, I had a ziploc bag with the flour, sugar and baking powder.

The only problem was, when it came time to make the cobbler, I could NOT find that bag.

It was time to fall back on the first rule of camping--make do with what you have.

And I had pancake mix to take the place of the flour and baking powder and Tang to take the place of the sugar..

As the girls mixed up the bright orange batter, we all wondered how it would turn out.

We just hoped it would actually be edible.

I tried a tiny corner before adding it to the serving table, and it was surprisingly good!  A bit on the sweet side, but alright.  Then came the judging... and the eating.

The "YCL's" (youth camp leaders) got to serve, and

they made sure everyone got to sample all the wonderful dishes.

Then it came time to announce the winners...

Third place was announced first, and although I had no illusions about any of our dishes being "the best", there is always a hope that we might win something.  I thought , if we get anything, it would have to be a bonus prize for "making do."

Then came 2nd place, and finally 1st place was announced, and

our "Secret Combinations" or Tangy Peach Cobbler WON!

My jaw dropped.

We won a cake mix and a wooden spoon with a gold ribbon.

And, if I had been able to find the bag with the dry ingredients,

our peach cobbler would have turned out just like the other peach cobblers that were there--good-tasting, but hardly unique.

So there's my story of how losing a bag of flour led to 1st prize.

Our new rain "barrels"...

One side benefit of our gazebo is the opportunity to save rainwater. 

I'd never thought about doing it before--here, in the land of (mostly) abundant rainfall--yet, I have long been aware of the fact that when we did need to water our lawn or garden

that an inch of city water with its clorination and hard minerals did NOT equal an inch of rainfall.

When we set up the gazebo, we noticed the grommeted holes, two on each side, and wondered why they were there.  We soon found out.  They are "relief" holes.  Without them, the pooled water would get heavy and tear the strips that attach the tarp to the framework.

It wasn't until this week, when we've had about 5 inches of rain in 3 days, that I hit on the idea of using that water.This morning, as the rain started pouring,I put a bucket under each relief hole--and the buckets were full in about 20 minutes.

The rain gauge showed 1 inch of rain.

Now, we're seriously investigating getting rain barrels.  I'd LOVE to have all that soft, great rain water for watering my gardens!  Now, I just need the actual rain to stop ...

A summer project...

A summer dilemma... how to keep the girls busy AND earning money?

Hire them for some major projects!

Elley has spent several hours already, scraping wallpaper, spackling holes,

spraying "orange peel" to add texture over the repaired spots,

and is now priming the walls and will paint later today. 

She found out that some of the wallpaper had completely

adhered to the wall, and did not want to come off.

It's been a great learning experience.

And this is the color we've chosen for the wall. 

It will be a nice update. 

And when it comes time to sell the house,

it will be easier to just repaint with a neutral color

instead of having to do the wallpaper removal as well.

Getting Ready for Girls Camp

I received the call to be the camp director for our ward a few months ago.  With my Young Women calling, and then filling in for the seminary teacher in April and May

I didn't have a lot of time to plan and mentally prepare.

But now I do, and I have come to realize that although I usually

way over prepare,

that's the way I need to do it or I 'll wake up in a panic during the night--"what about ...?"

So, camp is always on my mind.

What food to prepare?

How to make it fun for the girls?

What about all the equipment?

So we've been doing some dry run-throughs.

Yesterday, Alice and Elizabeth set up the new tent to make sure they

knew how to do it--since it will be the tent they are sleeping in.

I bought the tent 2 years ago and we've never had it out of the box.

And, since it was still raining, off and on outside, we swept out the garage

to try it out.

While we had it set up, we sprayed on some water-proofing around

the seams on the inside

(recommended in the instructions).

We are going to stay dry this year!

***

I've also been brushing up on my outdoor cooking skills. 

In the case of the Dutch oven, I'm starting from scratch.

We got the oven a couple of years ago for emergency preparedness,

then hoped we never had to use it.

Well, I'm happy to report that I have now cooked a casserole in it, and it was delicious! 

And NOT burned, like so many dutch oven meals I've tasted.

I used Grandma Bailey's chicken enchilada casserole recipe.

I started the charcoal in the chimney. 

The one shown is a homemade one, but I actually purchased a bigger one.

And it works GREAT!

2 sheets of newspaper wadded up in the bottom.

24 briquettes in the top.

1 match. 

And in 15 minutes the charcoal was all ready to use. 

(NO stinky lighter fluid).

Then I put 9 briquettes underneath and 15 on top

(using the tongs to place them).

I found out from a presentation that the secret is to rotate the

oven a quarter turn every 5 minutes so you don't get a hot spot.

Also turn the lid a quarter turn.

I REALLY wish I'd remembered to take a picture before

we devoured the food.  The taste was superb!

Tonight, we're going to try monkey bread in the dutch oven.

And, we got out the old camp stove

and cooked dinner on it last night.

I'm really determined to not have any

bad surprises at camp this year!

Sunday Morning

The gym floor at the ward is being refinished and the smell was so bad this morning that the rest of the block of meetings was cancelled after sacrament meeting.  People were getting headaches, and some of the more environmentally-sensitive had raspy throats.  The real clincher came when the Primary president was home with sick kids and both counselors are pregnant and the smell made them nauseous.  So there was no one to take care of Primary.  So... we have extra time here at home today.

I'm listening to the gentle rumbles of thunder as it softly rains and love seeing the bright green of a well-watered landscape.  There is nothing greener than Iowa at a time like this!

 And, speaking of landscape,

I'm amazed at how the colors entirely change in

just a couple of weeks.

In May, the mailbox garden was all purple, bright pink and soft yellow.

Now it is almost all yellow.

The wisteria has been beautiful this year. In late fall two years ago, I trimmed it back severely.

Last year it was pretty sparse and I was afraid I had made a mistake.

But this year it is full and lovely again-, and hanging down over the windows

(with Elly practicing her viola in the background).

Now we're back to constantly trimming wandering tendrils as they try to wiggle up under the siding, or they want to hang over so far (and so heavily) that they pull the wire trellis away from the wall.

I guess it gives us something to do (on a day other than Sunday).

How does our garden grow?

Very well!  (This year, at least!)

On May 24:

Today:

It's growing so well that the finches gather, 2 or 3 at a time,

to drop in and snip off baby beet leaves. 

They must be tasty!

And for the first time this year, a deer has gotten across our fence and left deep prints.

It also left several pea plants with empty stems

 where there should have been pods just beginning to fill out. 

Those deer know just when the peas are their most tender and delicious! 

Still, I'm so happy to have real pods this year. 

It helps me realize that the gardening failures of the past two years

really were weather-related, and NOT my fault.

And the tomatoes seem to like the trampoline spot.

Lots of sunshine.

Lots of room.

I put garbage bags around the new plants when I transplanted them, to protect them from the winds.  After a few days, I pushed the plastic down to expose the plants more.

Funny thing.  The plants with the black bags are larger than the others,

even though they all came from the same group of nine plants.

And all of them are larger than the two plants that were left over and were planted by the white fence where there was a spot.