Saturday in Sabino Canyon

We had a great little hike last Saturday up Sabino Canyon, just NE of Tucson.  We went up a very nice paved road to a little place where we could rest by the water and then hiked out using a trail through the desert.  It was about 4 miles altogether and only Ani had to be carried.  It was cool enough all day, making it pretty crowded, but a fun time all around.  Here is what it looked like to us:

 Getting started at the canyon's mouth.

 Grandma in her hiking shoes next to her friend, Mr. Saguaro.

 Our delightful hosts for the hike.

Both TV & ME were the best of hikers, toughing it out the whole way.

Jeff took the 3 kiddies over the creek, jumping rocks as they went.

 The beautiful desert.

 I love the Saguaro forests here.

 More desert and clouds.

 More Saguaro forests.

 The pretty side of the desert.

 I thought this was pretty, with the Saguaro silhouetted against the rising sun.

 The water in the creek was very very clear.

 More desert scenery.

 The Hippo Rock.

Deer tracks.  When we went off onto the trails they mostly seemed dry washes.

This is Sunday.  It rained while we were attending Church

and this is what it looked like pretty much all day.

Mornings on Horseback

How do you like that for headlining?  In fact, I just today finished reading this fascinating book by David McCullough about the Theodore Roosevelt, Sr. family.  There was some extra attention given to "Teedie", as Theodore, Jr. was called by his family as a child, but the main story was about his immediate ancestors, parents, siblings, and extended family.  I was particularly impressed by what was presented about the father and the older of the sisters, Anna.  And for the first time I was impressed with New York City and some of its inhabitants, and glad I was able to work there for a time.  A great book, I recommend it.

But this is not about that book, it is about our trip to NW Tucson last Friday to watch ME take her riding lessons.  She's just getting started, but clearly loves horses and is comfortable around them.

 First she had to brush down the pony and clean our her hooves.

 Then she put on her helmet and led the pony around back to the corral.

 At first her teacher had her just ride around with the proper posture.

 Then she had to ride around with her arms up, then out, then touching her knees,

and finally touching her toes.

The last part of the lesson was getting the horse to go and stop.

She worked on stop first, which I thought was a great idea.

Later that day we got to watch TV in action on the soccer field.  He gets around very well, and although he made a great goal in practice the previous day, he only came close during the game on Friday.  He made some great shots on goal though, and saved some goals on defense as well.  He really knows how to hustle.

 Fighting for the ball.

 This would have been a goal if the other team's keeper hadn't been so good.

 Big Defense - getting that ball down the field.

Heading off a ball on defense.  This kid was everywhere.

They say that its all happening at the zoo.

We had fun this last week at the Tucson Zoo.  The weather was cool and the crowds were pretty much non-existent, so the animals were out and about.  Although not nearly as large as the Indianapolis Zoo, we had some fun anyway.

 Ani looking at the fish as big as her.

 With the Jaguars.  One was pure black, but this one had spots.

 I didn't see any monkeys, but I did notice these guys monkeying around on the bars.

The giraffes were out looking for food, but just found this big smile.

 Chinese Bear

 Anteater.

 Capybara, also known as a Rodent Of Unusual Size.

It is difficult to see how big this guy is, but he is larger than most dogs.

 One of the tigers.  They were setting up quite the roaring competition.

 Some beautiful big bird.

The white rhino was the star of the day, He trotted around the grounds, then rolled in the mud a bit, then ran around some more.

December

 On our way up to see Nathan and Emily we stopped to see Sister Thacker.  We had such a great visit.  It was so fun to just spend some time with her.  She looks wonderful and just still has such a great sense of humor.  When we left there was a big wind storm and all the lights in that area of town were out.  It took us a while to get out of town and then off to drive for a couple more hours to get to the Bates.

 The book signing.  Michelle came to be with us.  She couldn't stay very long but it was so fun

 to see her

 It was a great evening for a first book signing

 Nathan and Em took us around to see the sites in Seattle

 Becca and Rosie having story time

 Christmas Morning and the line up

 Lots and lots of presents

 We went to the park a couple of times.  The first time I was with Maddy and Ani and we were to meet Nathan, Em and Rosie.  By the time we got there the Bates had already left the park because it was sooooo cold.  Maddy and Ani just wanted to go to the park so we got out and played for about 10 minutes and we were frozen so we went home.  A few days later it was much nicer and we had a Taco Bell picnic and played a long time at the park.  

 This was Maddy's favorite slide.  I think she went down that slide forward and backward, upside down, head first, you name it she tried it.

 Chelsea came and joined us.  Now every time she comes to our house she asks, "where are the kids?"

 Everyone down the slide

On the tire swing

It was such a fun day

Our Thanksgiving Day

Well, this has been a good day all the way around for us.  We began the day by sleeping in.  That's always a great start.  We got up and exercised and began getting ready for guests.  We were delighted to have 3 of my 7 siblings with us, along with my mom and our two sons and their families as guests today. As can be seen in the photos below, we had plenty of good food and good company, and were blessed to talk to many of our posterity on the phone and other wonders of technology to share the day with them.  Among the other activities of the day we availed ourselves of the opportunity for reflection upon our blessings.  Right at the top of the list are our "roots" and our "branches".  What a great heritage we enjoy, and what a bright future we see in our posterity.  Naturally, also at the top of the list is the light of truth that we receive from living prophets, as well as those who have left us the word of God in prior days.  And rounding out the top three major blessings is the great country we live in, with all of it's challenges still the best place on earth.  We hope you had a wonderful day and that we all can live in thanksgiving daily.

 Roses from our little rose garden.

 The Turkeys.

 Melody's Magnificent Rolls.

 The place setting, including special china, utensils, and a guest turkey - made entirely of butter.

 Great sides: green beans, sweet potatoes and stuffing.

The Pies! Chocolate Pecan, Dutch Apple, Blackberry, and Pumpkin.

 The gang in action.

 Mom with half of her kids.

 More of the guests.

And one with the photographer and Chelsea.

What a fun day.