vIsItOrS

We actually had some company come stay with us for a few days. Brandon and Janna and their kids came down even though they were given fair warning about the heat during the summer here in lovely Las Vegas. I don't think they have been here for at least a couple of years so I guess it was about time. They went to Tuachan on Saturday night and came here after the play, so it was pretty late Saturday night when they arrived. We went to church Sunday morning and then we thought it would be nice to go up the mountain and cook a burger. What a difference a 30 min. drive can make. We went up Lee Canyon to a little picnic spot. I wondered if we would even get a spot but we were the only ones there. (except for the occasional carload stopping to use the bathrooms) It was only in the 70's where we had our picnic. Rex took his propane cooker and we had the yummiest burgers, deviled eggs, chips, Brandon's macaroni salad, fruit and dip, and rice krispie treats. Rex and the boys went looking for lizards, but no luck. We played some games and then took them across the mountain, stopped at a lookoff point and then back home.

Parker, setting us up some shade.

3 cute kids - Parker, Lauryn and Ashby.

Me, Rex and Brandon - relaxing with full bellies.

Janna and Lauryn

For entertainment on Sunday night, Brandon and Janna watched popcorn pop in the microwave!
Well, really we watched a movie and had popcorn, but they thought this microwave popper was pretty sweet. (it really is)

On Monday, Rex hooked us up with a pass to go swimming at "The Tank". It's the pool at the Golden Nugget. It actually has a shark tank that a water slide goes through. He was able to get us a behind the scenes tour of the tank and how they care for the sharks and other marine life that live in the tank. It was really interesting, I had no idea all that went into that. The day at the pool was fun and HOT! That night we went to dinner at BJ's and then they took their kids to see the "strip".

Listening to the tour girl talking about the shark tank.
Looking down into the tank.

The best part of the tour, Rex's fire sprinkler system.

Janna and me.
Me and Ashby.

Lauryn, coming out of the slide.Ashby, coming out of the slide.

We loved having them here and hope it's not years before they come back....maybe not in the summer though. Good times!

Weekend 4 wheeler Rides

Over the 4th weekend, Rex and I took off over to 3 peaks for a couple of evening rides. It was nice to ride somewhere so close...10 min dirve from the house, unload and ride.

Rex..unloading the bike. We did not take mine, I just rode on the back.

The clouds made for a beautiful sunset.

Looking towards Cedar from 3 peaks.

Another shot of the sunset, and me.

Rex, loading back up.

On Friday, we took the ranger and rode up on Little Mtn. in Harmony.

Me, on Little Mtn. I have so many good memories of picnics up on this mountain.

Rex, taking in the best view anywhere. (no, he's not peeing)

On the afternoon of the 4th, after we had taken in all the festivities, we hopped on the bikes for another little ride. It did not last long, it started to rain and we were not prepared.

Doesn't he look good on that bike?

Another little creature in the wash...this one was a bit smaller than the one I almost stepped on a few weeks ago.

Just some random shots....

sunset at sand hallowbridge we ride over on our 4 wheelers (marysvale ride)

braffits mtn.

flower on north mtn.

our property in harmony

does this need an explanation?

sunset...from enoch

our property in harmony

Where's the Beef?

I spent the week in Utah last week. One of the things I did was can beef. I know....sounds weird- but this is something I learned @ my Cooking with the Chicks group. (thanks Connie) Dad was there also. He was helping with the pressure cookers. He set up his camp chef out on the back patio and we put the pressure cookers out there. For the most part, this is a really easy thing to bottle, and although I have not tried it yet...I'm told it is delish!

If there is one thing I can always count on it is having Mom there to help with things like this. A I get older, these are things that I am wanting to learn more about and she is always willing to help me. We had a good time and I think we got 47 or 48 pints done that day.

Filling the pints with the beef.

Mom - making sure the tops are clean so the lids will seal.

They are ready to pressure cook.

Dad, making sure they stay at the proper pressure.

All done - pulling them out to cool.

Side note...another thing Mom and I did. Look at this beautiful wheat bread. Yummy!

SuMMeR dAys

It's not officially summer for me yet. I still have a couple of days left of work before I am off for the summer. Rex and I both took Monday off and took a spur of the moment trip to Huntington Beach. We hit the road early Saturday morning. When we arrived we actually spent the day at Newport Beach, then checked into out hotel, that was right on Huntington Beach. We spent the day Sunday taking a drive up the coast, eating at the famous Pinks Hot Dogs in LA, and we went to a Dodger game that night. Monday, we spent a couple of hours on the beach before heading home. We had a really nice time and the weather was fantastic.

Newport Beach

These guys set up this sno-cone stand right in fron of us at Newport beach...funny...they had a little generator to run the ice shaver and everything.Lunch @ "Pinks" Hot Dogs. You should have seen the line! Popular place!

Us @ Dodger staduim. They played the Phillys. The Dodgers lost. Last day @ the beach. Time to go home ....

I caught him in the act!

When I came home from work the other day, I walked in to find this....

Need I say more?

Birthday Cake, Coconut Oil & Pine Trees

It was a really fun couple of days...in the middle of the week no less! It was my birthday on Tuesday and after work, Rex and I ventured over to the "other" side of town. We got a room at the Green Valley Ranch Hotel for the night. It was a really nice little get away for a change. We really did not do anything...but that was the point. The pool there is beautiful. It has a beach entry at one end, sand and all. We just lounged around there for the afternoon and evening. Then we went to dinner and after dinner we walked around at the District. It's a neat place, but the shops are a little snooty. It was a nice little walk after dinner. While we were walking, we passed The Cheesecake Factory-had to stop in for a piece of vanilla bean cheesecake with warm Carmel topping-to go. That was my kind of birthday cake!

We spent the next morning at the pool again. After we checked out, we stopped at Lucille's Bar-b-q for lunch. That evening, after we got home and unpacked, we took the motorcycle for a ride up Mt. Charleston. It was a beautiful evening and nice and cool. As you can see from the picture, I had to put a jacket on. What a difference a few miles up the mountain can make. It was a really nice couple of days.

We took a little walk up a path on one of our "pit-stops"

Ahhhh....the smell of fresh mountain air.