doctor my eyes

if there is something you ought to know about my family it is that we love the outdoors.  at the end of every school year we go on a camping trip to welcome in the summer months.  i missed last years annual outing because i was still in hawaii but this memorial day weekend made up for it.  

although there was snow we still had a great time.

bear baiting, bear hunting, eating, games, laughing, chatting, bike riding, animal watching, marshmallow roasting and throwing, napping, and sitting by the fire.

good times, good times.

 

   

 

  

  

the cold ground

there is a thrill so real and powerful that comes from living near the ocean.  the salt water gives me an exhilaration that i will never feel elsewhere.  but, as i have spent my time living thousands of miles away from home i have realized where my heart lies.  i am a mountain girl.  the red rock, the clear starry nights, the towering mountains, rolling hills, the wildlife, and trees that reach endlessly toward the sky are my lifeline.  they give me the freedom and independence a girl needs.  i don't know if i'll ever be able to love a man the way i love the great-outdoors.  we are all products of our environments and mine just happens to be mule rides, tents, hiking boots, mosquito bites, and dirt underneath my fingernails.

  

{images via}

have you ever...

i spent a good part of this past week up in idaho getting eaten alive by mosquitos and spending quality time with the fam.  gosh, we have a good time when we get together.  

we saw my cousin alex's performance of high school musical at the playmill in west yellowstone, played in the river, ate, laughed, fished, slept, hiked, and did a little geo-cashing.  i think the sanders family are some of the only people who can make me tear up every time i leave them, they are pretty amazing.

     

Let me out of my watery grave.

My summer hasn't been too crammed with a bunch of adventurous trips but this past week or so has been really stellar! Two weekends ago the King family headed up to Park City. Shopping, swimming, eating, a Deer Valley Drive, the Alpine slide, and The Office make for one heck of a fun weekend. The Saturday we came home, I had my first job for Kimberly Roy and the Celebrations team. They put together awesome weddings and other killer events. I would highly recommend them. It ended up being a really fun night. I love helping at weddings because it helps me decide what I like and don't like. The things I liked include: an awesome videographer, an ice cream bar, and time set aside for a dance. I didn't like that they just had crackers and fruit to sustain their guests and I definitely don't like the colors bright green and navy blue...bad combo.Last Sunday, I left with my mom and the Anderson's for Mac's Inn. I look forward to this trip every year. I love my mom's side of the family. They are so open and accepting and I know I could tell them absolutely anything and they wouldn't judge. Besides that, they are hilarious. Here's what made this Island Park trip the bomb: We FINALLY went on our midnight cruise down the river (one we have talked about doing for years) We ate crab and shrimp for dinner, delicious dutch oven cake, and giant marshmellows galore. We told urban legends and scary stories, we fished, four wheeled, swam, went to a play, played games, hiked to "big rock", saw a bull moose, "fondled" baby otters, and I am pretty sure everyone had their chance to play "bazooka" with Porter.. We know how to camp, let me tell ya. I had a leach attack me and about peed my pants when Kell and Brennon rang the bell at The Dirty Old Mens Club and Mitch and Josh's tube popped. I can't even begin to list the jokes that were pulled and the funny things that were said. I think this may be one of the best Coffee Pot trips to date.

just around the corner..

Summer brings two of my favorite things.
My excitment can't be contained.

Lake powell: I have gone to Lake Powell every year of my life since I was 3.  I love going with my cousins.  I love how much fun we have together.  I love being lazy, doing nothing but swim, ski, and sunbathe.  I love our Mexican Train sessions and watching Brian Reagan and School of Rock (multiple times in a day).  I love cliff jumping and taking boat rides to the marina to get ice cream.  I love hiking around and attempting to catch lizards.  I love eating non stop.  I love when my Aunt Nicole would braid our hair.  I love when we spend hours each day going off the slide.  I loved when my cousins the Stuarts come with us.  I love making sand ditches.  I love staying up late to look at the stars and waking up to the sun in the morning.  I love when it rains and we are all huddled inside the houseboat.  I love "showering" at night because it's the only time of day we are allowed to swim without life jackets.  I love driving down the channel and waving at other boats. I love the 7 hour drive and when we use to stop at Hole-in-the-Rock gas station.  I love blasting STYX, Def Leppard, and Journey. I love when my dad acts like he is my age.  I love the Indian ruins and Rainbow Bridge.  I love Antelope Point, Bullfrog, and Wahweap.  I love the excitement of loading the houseboat.  I love how sunburned we all leave.  I love how Trevor always attempts to catch fish. I love the sunset.  I love my uncle Kevin and how he cannonballs off the slide. I love wakeboarding.  I love competing with my brothers.  I love eating bagels, cereal, and muffins every morning.  I love when Trevor kills mice.  I love the patatoe gun. I love the cheer-offs we have had with other boats. I love swimming in the middle of the channel when we are looking for a place to camp.

 I LOVE LAKE POWELL!

Camping: When I was in second grade, we bought a trailer. About a year later the Kevin King family bought one, and then the Scott King family. Ever since then camping has become a lifestyle.  We go every year to a campground in Duchesne called Yellowpine and for all I know that may be what Heaven is like.  It is beautiful.  I love biking. I love when we look for dear and elk.  I love hiking.  I love Dutchoven food.  I love having no reason to look good.  I love Ray from Rooselet.  I love Moe and Sadie.  I love walking on the nature path.  I love getting clean on Saturday night so that we can go to church the next morning.  I love my Uncle Kevin's "light" dance (...1...2...3...4), I love having no access to technology, I love the quiet.  I love getting ready for bed.  I love sitting around a campfire for hours.  I love chopping down trees and gathering wood.  I love tinfoil dinners.  I love Mac's Inn.  I love jumping off "the bridge", I love going swimming at the condo's, I love tubing down the river, I love being with my Sanders cousins.  I love my mom's brothers and sisters. I love my grandpa and how he use to make up plays for us to act out...Reginal Meanie?...I love doing crafts. I love going to West Yellowstone and seeing a play. I love hiking to the rapids.  I love when Brandt tries to throw us in the river.  I love watching movies outside. I love having the whole family together.  I LOVE MY FAMILY.