Canning

Despite all the work it takes I really do love canning. I really love it when you take the jars out of the pot and you hear the popping sound. This sweet sound tells me that it actually worked and my jars have sealed. This year I canned tomatoes and raspberry jam. Since I didn't plant any tomatoes this year I had to buy some. The one year I really need to can tomatoes is the year I don't plant any. Oh well that's how life goes. I spent a good part of the day last Saturday dedicated to canning. I made a mess of my kitchen and my feet were killing me for several hours later but it was worth it. I got 16 pints and 3 quarts of tomatoes and 10 pints of raspberry jam. I really love the sense of accomplishment that comes with canning. So here's some pictures of my accomplishment.


Before


My big mess


After

State Fair

It is tradition that Jon and I got to the State Fair each year with Jon's parents. I look forward to this every year. The animals are always fun to watch and pet. I also enjoy looking at all the crafts, food, pictures, etc. that people in our state submit. My mother-in-law and I were looking at the canned items and it was really interesting to see what people made. For example, geranium jelly (who knew you could do that and how do you make it), basil jelly (I can't imagine putting that on my morning toast), pickled watermelon rind (I would never think to do that with a watermelon rind), but there were also items that were a little more common like raspberry jam. Besides all the usual items you look for at the fair there is also the joy of people watching. That's a joy in itself. So here's my tribute to the Utah State Fair!

The sheep sleeping on each other


All the cows in a row - so well behaved


Here Bessie!


The goat is trying to escape


Jon petting a goat


Now that is one ugly chicken


This one was just singing away


Lop eared rabbit


One of the tigers from the India Tiger show


Cute little piglets


That is one big pig

LABOR-less Weekend

Labor Day Weekend Jon and I went down to St. George for a little fun in the sun. My parents have a timeshare down there and it was their week and since they weren't going to be down there till Sunday night (along with my sister Nancy) they invited us to use it for the weekend. It was nice to get away and just relax by the pool and play a little miniature golf. Our main reason for going was to scuba dive Sand Hollow Resevoir. This dive experience was much better than Blue Lake. We could actually see where we were going. Sand Hollow has a section roped off for just swimmers and this is where all the scuba divers go. In this section a local dive shop has sunk an airplane and then they also have an obstacle course which is pretty fun. We went with my sister Nancy and met up with our friends Steve and Tiffany. It was a great weekend and just nice to get away.

Here's a picture of the sunken airplane. This was taken about two years ago, now its covered with a green film.

Scuba Diving

Last night Jon and I along with some friends went to Blue Lake in Wendover to go scuba diving. This was the first time I had been since I certified. I was a little nervous about the whole thing. Blue Lake is a popular spot for divers as it is a warm spring fed lake and the water is pretty warm. We got in the lake and decided to go under. I think I descended too fast because I got down and my ear was in pain and I couldn't equalize it. So Jon and I went back to the surface. Our friends came up soon after we did and we all decided to swim towards the middle of the lake and then go down. The second time we went down I didn't have any problems equalizing.

The lake was so merky we couldn't see anything - not even five feet away. If no one has touched the botton of the lake and stirred up all the silt then the lake is usually clear. Not the case this time. I was a little scared of not being able to see anything. I clinged to Jon. Not letting go of him at all. I made sure one hand was always touching him. Since he is the more experienced diver I put my trust in him. And then this got me thinking about life. Many times I go through life thinking I can do everything on my own. When really I can't and I need to cling to my Heavenly Father and let him lead me. It was so easy for me to put my trust in Jon but it's not always easy to put my trust in the Lord. Probably because I'm stubborn and want things done my way. Something to work on I guess. We got home late last night but needless to say it was a fun trip and I can't wait to do it again.

Uinta's

Last weekend Jon and I took off for one of our favorite places - the Uinta's. Here I got to do four of my favorite things - spend the day with Jon, sleep in, camping and fishing.

We left Friday after work and after searching for the perfect spot we settled in at about 8 pm. We got dinner cooking and then sat by the fire. Saturday we slept in, made breakfast and then headed off to go fish. We went to our usual spot and there were dozens of people. We had to walk halfway round the lake to find a spot to fish. It was more like casting instead of fishing because we didn't catch anything or even get a bite.

We left the lake to go fix lunch and it was a good thing we did because soon after we left it started to pour. Since it was raining, hailing, thundering and lightening we took a nap - a three hour nap. I guess we both needed it. After we woke up I got tired of being in the trailer so we went for a drive. We drove throught the campgrounds. While driving through one of the campgrounds we noticed a tent had collapsed. It had hailed so hard that the tent poles broke.

Finally the rain had stopped while we were driving throught Mirror Lake Campground so we decided to stop and fish. This is where I caught my first fish of the year. I have had a bad dry spell and now it is finally broken. Later that day Jon caught a fish at a different lake. After out excitement of the fish we went back to the trailer to fix dinner and sit by the campfire.

Sunday we got up and went fishing again. We fished for about 1 1/2 hours with no luck. We went back to camp and packed up and left. It was a great trip even with all the rain.

Overnighter

Last weekend we went up American Fork Canyon to spend the night with some friends. It was nice to get away from the heat and enjoy the great outdoors. As soon as we got up to Forest Lake and started a fire we heard a clap of thunder and it started raining. Well not raining but pouring. We hurried and put our tent up and then huddled under the trees. Our shirts were soaked for most of the night and it made a muddy mess. It only rained for amout 45 minutes, so we got to enjoy the rest of the evening by the fire.

While we were huddled under the trees a moose came down to the lake. As you can see my picture is not the best, but needless to say it is a moose.



The next morning was beautiful, as you can see in the pictures.




On our way up to the lake somehow Jon managed to get a branch stuck in our shocks. Now this wasn't a small branch but more like a small tree trunk. We had to use the winch to get it out. What would a trip be without getting out the winch?

It was a short trip but well worth it to get away from the endless heat.

ODE TO A DOUBLE CHIN

Double Chin, Double Chin
Where on earth did you begin?
Was it the ice cream, chocolates and chips
That tasted so good on my lips?
One day you showed up on my face
I wish you'd find some other place
You just hang there
As if to say "I don't care"
But wait, what is that I see
Your source is from the sting of a bee
"Oh thank Heaven" I say
You'll be gone in seven days

That's right, I now have a double chin thanks to a small honey bee. Sunday I was out with my father-in-law looking at his honey bees. It was cloudy and windy and bees are very testy in such weather conditions. My father-in-law was moving some of the boxes and as soon as he told me that the bees would get feisty one came up and got me under my chin. I didn't even see it or hear it buzzing around and wham it got me good. I started running away hollering and flailing my arms about trying to keep other attackers away. In my defense there were two more buzzing around in my hair. All my father-in-law could do was just laugh at me. Because I was running around like a mad woman I didn't get the stinger out fast enough and now I am dealing with a double chin that itches like crazy. As if the double chin weren't bad enough, the skin is all red making it much more noticeable. So hopefully by the end of the week it will be gone and I'll be back to my single chin.