Crazy California Trip

Last week our family went to Huntington Beach to visit Mark's parents and to spend time together as a family...

I have great memories of my childhood summers, going to the Jersey Shore and spending time with my family. Every year we would take a trip to New Jersey for a week and stay at my Aunt's condo. It was heavenly to sit on the beach all day and walk the boardwalk at night. Seeing my children love the beach as much as I did as a child warms my heart. I asked them several times if they would want to go to Disneyland or the beach and every single time they all said,"THE BEACH!"

So we left our home in Highland and headed for the California beach...



Our first day there Keri and I spent a perfect day at the beach together just soaking up the sun...



While we were soaking up the sun the boys went to an Angels game with Grampy and Dad.
There was a little bit of rivalry going on now that Cole is a Yankees fan. But they kept it a clean game...:)




Every day we took walks on the beach at night...



The kids learned how to ride the waves with a little help from Grampy...





We built sandcastles...



Took naps...



Ate at Rubys...



Found a starfish family...



Flew kites...





And caught crabs...




But during the last 10 minutes of the last day of our trip, Keri got stung by a stingray. We had to take her to lifeguard headquarters and they had her soak her foot in HOT water for over an hour...




That put us behind schedule driving back home. We hit all the traffic going from California to Vegas. Ugh!! We ended up driving all night. But it was so worth it to be able to experience California during the summer. Thanks Grammy and Grampy for some awesome memories and for letting us invade your home for a whole week. Hope we didn't remind you of "fish" too much. We love you!!!

P.S. The lizard never made it home. He escaped in our garage about a week before we left. He's probably in the field out back somewhere grateful he's free of the Cooper family, especially Mark and Carson.

4th of July

This summer is goin by so fast!! I finally have time to catch my breath and post...
The 4th of July was a blast. We went over to Aunt Celeste's house for a great dinner and then we went to the Bees game. It's turning out to be a family tradition. One I'm sure the boys will love every year, now that they consider themselves baseball players. Carson was so cute at the game. Within 1/2 hour of the game he knew all the players and their records. It made watching the game a little bit more fun for me.

Scout Falls

"Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves." ~John Muir




"Me thinks that the moment my legs begin to move, my thoughts begin to flow." ~Henry David Thoreau


Our first hike this year was to Scout Falls up American Fork Canyon. I know, we're getting a late start this season. But the weather has been pretty rainy and life has been pretty busy...
Hopefully, we can hit Stewart Falls and Bridal Veil Falls this next month.
Ever heard of the book 60 Hikes within 60 miles of Salt Lake? If you love hiking you should check it out...

Twins take 2nd Place

While Cole was at Scout Camp his team played their last game of the tournament and lost. They were short 1 player. I'm sure if they had 9 players they would have won. Anyway, they came in 2nd place. And are now moving on to a tournament in Spanish Fork. Go Twins!!!!

Carson's Lizard

Last week Mark went down to Cedar City to visit Cole at Scout Camp. On his way down there he pulled off the side of the road and shot a few rounds with his gun. He also caught a lizard for Carson.???? I guess there was a whole bunch of lizards. I think it was really for him but he didn't want to admit it. Joi asked me where Mark put the lizard once he caught him. Well, he put it in the console of his truck. Seriously. That poor lizard. He was probably saying to himself, "Of all the people in all the world why did I have to run into this one." The poor thing had to stay in the car for 6 hours while Mark visited with Cole. Then he probably had to listen to Mark blast his rock music for 3 1/2 more hours. Of all the luck...
When Mark was little he used to catch lizards all the time. One time his Grandmom was hosting a dinner party for all the college professors and Mark's lizards got out 2 hours before the party was to start. I can just see Grandmom McDonald running around trying to find all of Mark's 7 lizards.
Anyway, for the next week or so I have another animal to take care of. Like Rocky and the rest of the clan isn't enough. We will be taking the lizard back to his family on our way to California in a few weeks...

Twins Are Going to the Championship Game!

Cole's baseball team has had a rollercoaster ride of a season.
They lost the first 6 games they played. Then they won a couple and lost a couple. During the tournament they lost the first game they played. Since it was a double elimination they got to keep playing. And much to our surprise they won the next three games. (The last two games the Twins only had 9 boys because everyone else on their team was away on vacation.) So that means that Cole's team gets to be in the championship game next week.
Unfortunately, Cole will be at Scout Camp down in Cedar City. The game will have to go on without him.
But Keri and I are planning to stop by and cheer the team on. Maybe even bring some gatorade...

The Year Was 1909

There was an email going around Mark's work about the year 1909. Here's a picture of a Ford Model R car from that year. And below are a few stats that may REALLY surprise you:

The average life expectancy was 47 years.
Only 14 percent of the homes had a bathtub.
Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone.
There were only 8,000 cars and only 144 miles of paved roads.
The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.
The average wage in 1909 was 22 cents per hour.
The average worker made between $200 and $400 per year .
A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year,
A dentist $2,500 per year, a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year, and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.
More than 95 percent of all births took place at HOME .
Ninety percent of all doctors had NO COLLEGE EDUCATION

Wow! We've come a long way baby! Wonder what the next 100 years will be like...