And So It Begins

Monday morning started bright and early for us. We had to be to the airport by 5:00 am so we were up by 2:45 to get ready and finish the last minute packing. We got everything in and under 50 pounds in each suitcase. Peter and Melody were so kind to come and pick us up and take us to the airport. We arrived in SLC at 9:00 and N&E were there to greet us and help us gather our six bags and fit them into their car. We had time to have a quick breakfast and to see N&E's new apartment. Then off to the MTC.

Signing in

Ready to go

Stunned by Seattle

I know you have all heard this before, but . . . we're back . . . again . . . for a couple of days. We just had the most impressive weekend in Seattle. As the time draws short for us to depart on our mission, we just flew up on Saturday morning and back Sunday evening. Way too short for this beautiful place. Saturday it was sunny (i.e., partly cloudy) all day (until time for the reception) so we were treated to some wonderful views. Here are a few photos to whet your appetite. We'll post some of the reception when we get them from N&M (I forgot my camera).

The beautiful rice fields of the Central Valley.

The Sutter Buttes.

An anonymous mountain - possibly Shasta.

A cool picture of our flight above the clouds.

Coming into Seattle.

Our visit to the oldest public market on the west coast.

What luck!! It just happened to be the day of the Seattle Cheese Festival - lots of free cheese samples. I actually found some goat cheese that I liked.

These guys were good.

Okay, here's the main attraction - FISH.

And the rest of the attraction - the fish chuckers. As people make their decisions, the guys on the lower level chuck them up to the guys on the upper level, who wrap them. It is quite the show, but as we got there pretty early in the day, not many were buying.

Fish, fish, and more fish . . . I thought I'd gone to heaven - cheese and fish. Wooohoooooo.

Oh, and fresh produce as well. This place had it all.

And flowers - scads of them, so beautifully arranged. It was an incredible sight and smell.

And here's another beauty in her natural habitat, with beautiful flowers.

These photos don't even come close to expressing how cool it was to see the Olympic mountains across the Sound.

Of course we went to Ivar's for fish. It was great, and afterward we posed with Mr. Ivar & the seagulls.

We also visited an interesting place, but I didn't get any pictures of the mummies. I thought they were cool though.

And here is where we stayed - with some of the nicest folks in town. We loved our time in Seattle.

Stay tuned . . . more photos to follow.

"In Him All Things Hold Together"

The title for this post comes from one of my favorite addresses from Elder Neal A. Maxwell, of the same title. This address was given 31 years ago today (not April 23, but on Easter Sunday) and describes "the journey of journeys" that we must all travel in coming to our Redeemer. He also provides what I believe to be a great sermon on the mission and ministry of Jesus Christ. We pray your Easter was as happy as ours, with family around, and the Savior in the center; and that you celebrate Easter all through the year on the Lord's Day.

(NOTE: This was supposed to be my Easter post, but time got away from me. We had a great time with Pelah, going to their Ward, and having dinner with them. We then took off and picked up Gmah in Preston and made it to Don & Janna's around 8:30 pm, where we had more good food. Thanks to all for a fun day.)

We're Back!

We are back in CA now and heading into the home stretch for the big wedding. Yesterday my Mom in one car and N & M in another drove to CA in a wide variety of weather. Mostly cloudy for the first 1/2 of the trip, and just partly cloudy after that, we encountered intermittent rain, from light sprinkles to heavy downpours, and rather ferocious winds for much of Nevada. A little bit of snow flurries between Wendover & Wells, and over the Summit rounded things out nicely. It did make for a long day, but pleasant company made it bearable. Today my sweetheart brings in the crowd from AZ, so I will be back to work with a vengance. In the meantime, take a look at some "time lapse" photography showing how the old back yard is coming into shape. The garden is growing like crazy, and the flowers are blooming. Even the fences are getting into shape.

Saturday Hike On The Buttes

The Menan Buttes, that is. Saturday Peter & I hiked up to, and around, the north butte. It was a beautiful day, not too cold, very sunny, with great vistas. Here is some preliminary information, then on to the hike:

This is where we made our ascent, pretty much straight up here. There seems to be a multitude of trails, so we just found one that suited us and up we went.
Here he is on an outcropping with South Butte in the background.
This is me on a pile of rocks on the west side of the rim.
The South Butte as seen from the south rim of the North Butte.
These are pictures of the interior of the bowl. This firs one is of the northeast side.
This is the view from the west looking at the east side of the rim, inside - looks like a little protrusion there.
This is a wide shot of the inside of the bowl from the west side about where the trail from the western trail head comes up (we parked at the southern trail head). There is a trail passing through it east/west.
This is another shot of the same, but from the NW of the rim.
This is a shot from the north side of the rim, looking at the SW part. To the left of the picture is where Peter, Leigh-Ann, and David shot those incredible photos last Fall.
Another two shots, from the east looking west.
The marker pin at the top.
And here's a sight I wasn't expecting - pokies in Idaho. I thought of Jerebht when I saw them.
And here is springtime in the Rockies - Idaho, that is. There were a lot of these little plants just sticking up through the mud, and these through the snow as well.
Another shot of my very cool companion for the hike. This time on the north side of the rim.
Although the photos don't do it justice, the view was spectacular. Here are a few examples of how far we could see. This first one is looking north; those are the St. Anthony sand dunes in the distance.
Looking southwest, with a nice river scene in the foreground.
And finally, looking east. You can see all of the water outside of the river in the foreground.

Thanks Peter for the fun time.