MERRY CHRISTMAS

It's that time of year again.  Christmas.  The season of joy, love, peace, happiness, stress, expectations and sadness.  This season is a sad time of year for me.  It's a time to think about all of those that have left this world too early.....my young and old Angels.  Tonight, after taking the kids to the zoo to see the lights, I told them what I was most grateful for.  Being alive and healthy!  To be their mom.
The person I miss the most right now is my Papa.  Christmas will never be the same without him here.

                                                  I lit this lantern tonight for all of my Angels........

Lauren 18

Andrew 15

Finn 11

Bubbs

Dreaming

Hicks/Kelly/Probst

Happy Holidays.  Cheers..........

A River Runs Through IT................

LEDORE CANYON 2010

Tom approached me with an idea two weeks ago. It went something like this...."hey baby, I have a surprise for our Anniversery! Want to go on a river trip with Brett?" ha ha ha......i had to bite my tongue.  First of all, our anniversery is next month, second.....a trip with his buddy Brett? Really, why not Hawaii, Paris, anything alone, tropical, romantic.......
Ok. I took the bait and gave in.  After all, when does Tom ever take off that much time from work?
So we found a babysitter, got our gear together, and off we were....... Headed straight for Lodore Canyon....The Green River.....Party!

We were told to be at the home of our river guide at 3:30 on Friday afternoon.... and we were there.  Unfortunately, no one else was.  Tom grew up in Long Island, NY, and isn't quite accustomed to the MST....mormon standard time..... So, let's just say we were out of there by 6:30.  Only 3 hrs late!
It was about a 6 hr drive in a 16 passenger van.  Oh joy! We got to our camp around 2:30 am.  Exhausted, we set up our tent, snuggled together, Tom passed out!
The morning came early......and it took awhile to get the gear together. Thank goodness for the river guides.  It's so much work.......

Getting the boats and stuff ready to go!

The first day on the river was great! Such a beautiful place to see.....

Tom and Bret

having Lunch in the Rain........

the water bottle.....

                              

Our tent and stuff...at Triplet

camping at Triplet......just around the corner

Triplet is one of the main rapids on this stretch.  The picture is so deceiving because it's hiding right around the corner.  It was an amazing camping spot.  Listening to the sound of the river all night long was heaven!

After going through triplet, the next rapid is called "Hell's Half Mile" home to the famous Lucifer's Rock!

Lucifer's Rock

The trip was approximately 4 days long.  The group we went with were all great.  Most of the work was done by the guides, which made things nice.  We mastered the art of packing up our camp in 3 dry bags.

Tom packing up our Dry bags....

These bags are amazing.  They keep all of your gear dry! Not exactly Louis Vuitton, but still....very functional.

Tom's snake

Tom was like a kid in a candy store....chasing snakes the whole trip!

View from hike up to see the water fall

Tom and Em by the water fall

Path to Jones Hole

steps

a Babbling Brook

Tom's lil' buddy

One of my favorite pictures of the trip! Such amazing color, scenery, clouds.......

Tom getting it full force 

End of this beautiful hike......love this shot of me....thank you TOm

chillaxing

Heart

The genus Tamarix (tamarisk, salt cedar) comprises about 50-60 species of flowering plants in the familyTamaricaceae, native to drier areas of Eurasia and Africa

Snake Hunting

Best dessert! Strawberry short cake.....

Group shot @Whispering Cave

Tom and Em

"Crow" my 2nd attempt.  Crashed the 1st time:)

Final View from the river......

Tom and I are ready to hit the river again......Any day we say! It's was a great trip and we hope to one day have our own Raft and take our kids through these glorious canyons and see that amazing part of the world that is still untouched by man................


Thank you Doug......our fearless leader.  It is his passion and love for this place that made this trip possible.

Doug Smith

Final Notes:

"Day 4....... This group of people have grown on me. Everyone has their own story..... Part of me wishes it was a longer trip so I could spend more time in this amazing place.  This river, the canyons, the wildlife....treasures hidden and protected from most of our world.  I feel so blessed be in this place, nature at it's most beautiful state..... A state of Glory....

The river is trickling as the stars begin to fill the darkening sky.  The First star, the west star (Venus?) fills the darkening sky. Just took a quick dip in the water to cleanse the body......only to realize the sage found in the desert near this river rubbed against my skin helps cleanse my soul and renew my spirit.  Water babbling through the creeks are creating an oasis to provide homes to those creatures that live in this perfect place.  The bat flies by in the night, insects gather towards the light of my tent, only separated by a simple screen.  They long for a small part of who we are.... a simple drop of my blood that is a blueprint of  my mortal body. We are just insignificant creatures against these towering rock formations that have been here for years unknown.  If the mosquito bites me and takes that drop of my blood and shares itself with this magical place, will it share my spirit, my soul? Will I become more than a footprint on this sandy beach?

What treasure can I leave the Raven soaring through Lodore Canyon.......I can share the beautiful images I have captured and leave this land untouched.... Undisturbed.......And I will hope and dream that I will return to this beautiful river and it's surrounding land.  I want to share this place with my children.  I want to know this magnificent river and it's surrounding beauty..... "

EH 7/12/2010

angel wings

will I return......

Summertime and camping....

We finally did it! The T@B has been hanging out in our driveway for two weeks and we finally took it up to Rockport for a night of camping and boating.  Unfortunately, by the time we got up to the lake, there were no more camp spots left.  Luckily, Tom flirts with the old lady who works at the booth at Rockport, so she was kind enough to get us into a spot at the campground below the spillway!
Wow! It was a beautiful summer evening............

                                                                  The View from the camp spot.......

Unfortunately, we had some neighbors......

But they were cute(the rest of the group...not so cute or nice)

Bubbs had cars and he was happy!

and the picnic table was a perfect place to play with them...

So Content.......

After getting set up for the night......we went for a walk......

Played a soccer game (usa vs. Bosnia)

Hung out with Winnie

Took more photos.....

and more.......

We built a fire

Relaxed by the fire and roasted marshmellows

cuddled by the fire

Great Brothers

There was a full moon......the weather was perfect.  Finn slept in his own tent and Tom, Bubbs and I slept in the T@B. Yes, it was crowded, but we made it through the night.  Thomas only woke up one time.  He enjoyed falling asleep in Daddy's arms in front of the camp fire.  

What a great camping trip.  We realized that we had left the boat key in my car so we drove home in the morning! We are looking forward to many more nights camping this summer. Next weekend is the 4th of July! Wow! Summer is flying by so fast.