Monday, September 1, 2008
On The Move Again!
Now that we have physically moved our family from Bellingham, WA to Park City, UT it was time to change things up in our blogging world. So from now on you will find us here. Hope you will visit us soon and often both on-line and at our new home!
Friday, August 29, 2008
Stuart Falls
We drove an hour south to Sundance (owned by Robert Redford) where we rode the lift up and hiked over to Stuart Falls. It was beautiful! It was really hot so we enjoyed playing in the water and feeling the spray of the waterfall. Sundance Resort is absolutely a gorgeous resort if any of you ever get a chance to visit there. It is built to be low-profile and have minimal impact on the environment and scenery! Everyone here says "its what Park City used to be." Very quaint and quiet. You can click on picture to see more at our flickr account.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
A Free School Bus
I won my first battle with the school district. This morning all 16 kids from our neighborhood who attend Parley's Park Elementary got a free bus ride to school. The great part is the school bus will be free to everyone in our neighborhood from now until forever! And we will be guaranteed spots for all our kids! Check out all those happy kids and parents. Many of the kids had never ridden the school bus before this morning because the parents had refused to pay and opted to drive them instead. One mom said "My girls were up, dressed, and ready to go before the alarm had gone off. They were standing at the door at 7:20am asking if it was time to go to the bus yet!"
Monday, August 25, 2008
Basketball Hoop
Lydia received an early birthday present from her Grandma and Grandpa Rollo! This weekend we got a chance to put it together. We have a nice long driveway for playing hoops. I think its going to be a lot of 2-on-2. Maille is turning out to be quite the scrappy little player! Its a great outlet for Lydia's energy. Thanks Anne and Scott! We are ALL enjoying the new hoop!
Friday, August 22, 2008
School starts Monday
Today we went to pick up a few things for school. With the exception of Lydia's binder, Park City School District provides everything you need. Some of the teachers have a wish list for donations or you can chose to provide your own things as well.
We were also able to visit the classrooms and meet the teacher's of both girls today. Lydia will be in the 5th grade with Mrs. Hopkins who just moved here with her family from Northern California. Maille will be in 2nd grade with Mrs. Lee. She is very young and doesn't have any kids yet.
Everyone we meet who finds out Maille has Mrs. Lee exclaims "Oh we LOVED Mrs. Lee!" Apparently everyone LOVES Mrs. Lee and she did seem very nice.
Maille's classroom was decked out with 5 of the nicest Apple Computers I have seen and Lydia's class will be starting the district's new "Computers Across the Curriculum" in January. I'm not sure what that means exactly yet, but I'll keep you posted.
Apparently the program will eventually put a laptop in the hands of every student in the district starting in 6th grade, but this year the implementation of the whole program starts with the 5th graders. I don't think they will be getting laptops, but I do think it is intended to help the teacher let the kids learn at their own pace. This will be great for Lydia and other independent, bright students. We will see how it goes for the others. Like anything else, I think it has stirred up some controversy with people on both sides of the spectrum.
Speaking of controversy, I have been stirring up some of that myself. According to a neighbor, I was on the local radio today. I guess my appeal to the School Board on Tuesday evening was local newsworthy. You see, I have a bit of a bone to pick with the School Board about the busing situation in our neighborhood.
Getting on a school bus here is not something you take for granted. I could bore you with all the gory details, but I'll just say this...our neighborhood is considered a "walking" neighborhood. Even though the only way for the kids to actually walk is a mile down the highway. A highway that is traveled at 45+ mph by THOUSANDS of vehicles a day, most of which are transient (vacationers) to this town. There are NO sidewalks and it is 2 lanes in each direction with a center turn lane. Not to mention the 10 foot wall of snow that builds up along the edge of the road in the winter. Basically NO ONE makes their kid walk to school from our neighborhood. My kids make numbers 21, 22, and 23 for kids in a few short blocks. Sixteen of those kids are elementary school aged.
All of the parents have been paying $200 a year per student to have their kids bussed to school or driving them. The problem for me is that the bus is full. Basically they told me I was tough out of luck and my kids either walk or I drive them. The other half of the story is that I am supposed to be going to work, which makes driving them nearly impossible.
For the most part the district has A LOT of walkers. WAY more than where we moved from. But from talking to other parents in neighborhoods who have already fought this fight, its a HUGE battle to get them to approve the funding. To me its absolutely flabbergasting. But I refuse to back down and my neighbors are all just laughing. But I'll bet they won't be laughing when I save them $200 per student, per year!
We were also able to visit the classrooms and meet the teacher's of both girls today. Lydia will be in the 5th grade with Mrs. Hopkins who just moved here with her family from Northern California. Maille will be in 2nd grade with Mrs. Lee. She is very young and doesn't have any kids yet.
Everyone we meet who finds out Maille has Mrs. Lee exclaims "Oh we LOVED Mrs. Lee!" Apparently everyone LOVES Mrs. Lee and she did seem very nice.
Maille's classroom was decked out with 5 of the nicest Apple Computers I have seen and Lydia's class will be starting the district's new "Computers Across the Curriculum" in January. I'm not sure what that means exactly yet, but I'll keep you posted.
Apparently the program will eventually put a laptop in the hands of every student in the district starting in 6th grade, but this year the implementation of the whole program starts with the 5th graders. I don't think they will be getting laptops, but I do think it is intended to help the teacher let the kids learn at their own pace. This will be great for Lydia and other independent, bright students. We will see how it goes for the others. Like anything else, I think it has stirred up some controversy with people on both sides of the spectrum.
Speaking of controversy, I have been stirring up some of that myself. According to a neighbor, I was on the local radio today. I guess my appeal to the School Board on Tuesday evening was local newsworthy. You see, I have a bit of a bone to pick with the School Board about the busing situation in our neighborhood.
Getting on a school bus here is not something you take for granted. I could bore you with all the gory details, but I'll just say this...our neighborhood is considered a "walking" neighborhood. Even though the only way for the kids to actually walk is a mile down the highway. A highway that is traveled at 45+ mph by THOUSANDS of vehicles a day, most of which are transient (vacationers) to this town. There are NO sidewalks and it is 2 lanes in each direction with a center turn lane. Not to mention the 10 foot wall of snow that builds up along the edge of the road in the winter. Basically NO ONE makes their kid walk to school from our neighborhood. My kids make numbers 21, 22, and 23 for kids in a few short blocks. Sixteen of those kids are elementary school aged.
All of the parents have been paying $200 a year per student to have their kids bussed to school or driving them. The problem for me is that the bus is full. Basically they told me I was tough out of luck and my kids either walk or I drive them. The other half of the story is that I am supposed to be going to work, which makes driving them nearly impossible.
For the most part the district has A LOT of walkers. WAY more than where we moved from. But from talking to other parents in neighborhoods who have already fought this fight, its a HUGE battle to get them to approve the funding. To me its absolutely flabbergasting. But I refuse to back down and my neighbors are all just laughing. But I'll bet they won't be laughing when I save them $200 per student, per year!
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Constant Interuptions
I finally said to my girls today...
"If I stopped what I was doing every time you asked me to come look at something or help you with something, I would NEVER GET ANYTHING DONE!!!"
Then I felt guilty, but it was SO true! I guess its just one of those days. Am I alone here, or does anyone else ever feel that way!?!? And honestly is vacuuming such an important thing to do anyway!?!? When I woke up this morning I said to myself "Today I need to do laundry, vacuuming, and send out at least 3 more resumes"...is that really too much to ask!?!? Maybe I shouldn't ask the question, as I may not like the response I get back. But what the heck. Sometimes you just gotta stick your neck out there and see what happens. I either need a nanny, house keeper, and personal secretary or I need someone to ease my guilt here for me!
"If I stopped what I was doing every time you asked me to come look at something or help you with something, I would NEVER GET ANYTHING DONE!!!"
Then I felt guilty, but it was SO true! I guess its just one of those days. Am I alone here, or does anyone else ever feel that way!?!? And honestly is vacuuming such an important thing to do anyway!?!? When I woke up this morning I said to myself "Today I need to do laundry, vacuuming, and send out at least 3 more resumes"...is that really too much to ask!?!? Maybe I shouldn't ask the question, as I may not like the response I get back. But what the heck. Sometimes you just gotta stick your neck out there and see what happens. I either need a nanny, house keeper, and personal secretary or I need someone to ease my guilt here for me!
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
USPS vs. UPS
Really there is a bigger difference than just that one letter in the acronym. And other than to put a letter in my mailbox (does anyone really do that anymore???) the US Postal "Service" doesn't provide me any "service" worth my time to utilize. Before we left Bellingham I stopped at the downtown post office to mail a box to Brian in Utah. Let me just say that I absolutely DREAD going into the post office. And this visit only solidified that I will NEVER set foot in a United States Postal Service Office again. Mostly because there is truly no "service" in what they do. In fact if they were not a government entity, they would be bankrupt and out of business. But I digress...
Soooo, I stepped inside the door and immediately counted the 12 people in line in front of me. I then evaluated the 2 employees working behind a counter built with 8 stations (and I have never seen more than 2 people working behind that counter in all 10 years I lived there). At that point I contemplated walking out knowing that it would be AT LEAST 15 minutes before I got to the counter. But also knowing from experience that there was never a "better time" to go to the post office, I decided to stick it out. Promptly after making this decision I see one of the employees finish with a customer and rather than taking the next person in line, she puts up her closed sign and walks away. At this point there are at least 5 more people in line behind me! Floored, I think there MUST be someone else coming to take her place. But to no avail. The only other person who came to the front counter to help was a male who announced he could only help people who were there to pick up packages. Not kidding you, 25 minutes later, I am the next one to be helped and this employee returns from what I assume to be a break. She removes her closed sign and calls me up. Without so much as a smile or how can I help you, I hand her the package I am attempting to mail. Our conversation went something like this...
me: How are you today?
employee: Fine (with a funny smirk on her face)
me: How was your break?
employee: Fine (with a quizacle look)
me: That's good. I spent your entire break standing in this line.
employee: Oh, really. (notice not even so much as a hint of care or apology)
me: See this is the only place on earth that can stay in business and have this kind of customer service. If you worked anywhere else and provided this type of service, the company would be out of business and you'd be out a job.
employee: (no reply so I continue)
me: Not to mention that my time is worth money too, so I will be sure to send the Postal SERVICE a bill for MY time spent in their line. Oh and by the way I do have other options for mailing things and I WILL NEVER send another package through you guys and you will continue to have cuts in staff and eventually you won't have a job anymore, because people are starting to figure it out.
At this point I am done and leave.
But today I am going to mail a box to my brother in San Diego and I will be sending it UPS! Because when they ask "What can Brown do for you?" I know the answer will NOT be standing in line for 25 minutes to mail a package! And when I need to pay a bill...I will use on-line bill pay! And when I need to send a letter or thank you...I will send it via email. And so at this point in my life the US Postal "Service" could quit their "service" altogether and then I wouldn't have to keep recycling all the CRAP they leave in my mailbox! But that's a rant for another day.
Soooo, I stepped inside the door and immediately counted the 12 people in line in front of me. I then evaluated the 2 employees working behind a counter built with 8 stations (and I have never seen more than 2 people working behind that counter in all 10 years I lived there). At that point I contemplated walking out knowing that it would be AT LEAST 15 minutes before I got to the counter. But also knowing from experience that there was never a "better time" to go to the post office, I decided to stick it out. Promptly after making this decision I see one of the employees finish with a customer and rather than taking the next person in line, she puts up her closed sign and walks away. At this point there are at least 5 more people in line behind me! Floored, I think there MUST be someone else coming to take her place. But to no avail. The only other person who came to the front counter to help was a male who announced he could only help people who were there to pick up packages. Not kidding you, 25 minutes later, I am the next one to be helped and this employee returns from what I assume to be a break. She removes her closed sign and calls me up. Without so much as a smile or how can I help you, I hand her the package I am attempting to mail. Our conversation went something like this...
me: How are you today?
employee: Fine (with a funny smirk on her face)
me: How was your break?
employee: Fine (with a quizacle look)
me: That's good. I spent your entire break standing in this line.
employee: Oh, really. (notice not even so much as a hint of care or apology)
me: See this is the only place on earth that can stay in business and have this kind of customer service. If you worked anywhere else and provided this type of service, the company would be out of business and you'd be out a job.
employee: (no reply so I continue)
me: Not to mention that my time is worth money too, so I will be sure to send the Postal SERVICE a bill for MY time spent in their line. Oh and by the way I do have other options for mailing things and I WILL NEVER send another package through you guys and you will continue to have cuts in staff and eventually you won't have a job anymore, because people are starting to figure it out.
At this point I am done and leave.
But today I am going to mail a box to my brother in San Diego and I will be sending it UPS! Because when they ask "What can Brown do for you?" I know the answer will NOT be standing in line for 25 minutes to mail a package! And when I need to pay a bill...I will use on-line bill pay! And when I need to send a letter or thank you...I will send it via email. And so at this point in my life the US Postal "Service" could quit their "service" altogether and then I wouldn't have to keep recycling all the CRAP they leave in my mailbox! But that's a rant for another day.
Monday, August 18, 2008
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Have you ever mattress surfed?
As a kid I remember going to my neighbor's cabin on Mt. Hood where we would spend our indoor hours (which were few really unless we were sleeping) mattress surfing. At the top of stairs was a large room containing 12 twin sized mattress which provided endless hours of entertainment (we also designed some of the coolest obstacle courses and forts)! So if you haven't tried it you should. My kids discovered it today all on their own. While I had nothing to do with them discovering it, I did discover that I am not nearly as graceful of a mattress surfer today as when I was a kid. There are more pics here.
Friday, August 15, 2008
The Jordanelle Reservoir
We went here last Sunday. Lydia and Gretchen had a good time. Maille was cold and Brian was tired. I just liked the opportunity to be out of the house and taking pictures.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Coincidence in Church???
I do not believe in coincidence, but here is where we've gone to church the last two Sundays. The first Sunday was a little awkard as the people who were supposed to run Sunday School and the nursery didn't show up. It it being a fairly small congregation, people jumped in and it all worked out. I could tell they were not TOO used to it, but very willing to help when needed. This week started a 4 week series on Finding God's Will for your life. It gave me some confirmation that we are where we're supposed to be here in Park City!
The second week upon entering the nursery to drop off Gretchen I met an amazing home schooling mom of 8 children. Through our conversation (or rather me prodding her for information on local pediatricians, where to buy soccer cleats, and what kind of gear we will need for a very snowy winter) we discovered that we live in their old neighborhood and just around the corner from their old house! Then upon going upstairs to find Brian in the sanctuary, I see our neighbors just down the row. This young couple happens to be heavily involved in Young Life and he is a pastor at the church. We also came to find out, through further conversation with them, that the area Young Life Director also lives in our neighborhood. (For those of you haven't known Brian and I long enough to know that Young Life is the reason we are married today!) It felt like further confirmation that things are as they are supposed to be according to God's will...not coincidence.
The second week upon entering the nursery to drop off Gretchen I met an amazing home schooling mom of 8 children. Through our conversation (or rather me prodding her for information on local pediatricians, where to buy soccer cleats, and what kind of gear we will need for a very snowy winter) we discovered that we live in their old neighborhood and just around the corner from their old house! Then upon going upstairs to find Brian in the sanctuary, I see our neighbors just down the row. This young couple happens to be heavily involved in Young Life and he is a pastor at the church. We also came to find out, through further conversation with them, that the area Young Life Director also lives in our neighborhood. (For those of you haven't known Brian and I long enough to know that Young Life is the reason we are married today!) It felt like further confirmation that things are as they are supposed to be according to God's will...not coincidence.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Writer's Block
This is Cambria by the way, not Lydia as it says at the bottom of the post. I am working on my resume and cover letter and its been a long time since I have had to do this. I am hoping you all can help. Since SO many of you leave me comments regularly (or not) here is another chance. Give me insight into ME. What should I include? Not include? Strengths? Personality? I don't know, that's why I am asking you! So leave me a note in the comments.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Park City House
In case any of you are wondering what our new digs look like, here's some pics. Most of them are pretty boring, but maybe it will give you an idea. My favorite room is the front room with big windows, big rock fire place, and exposed wood beams. Makes me feel like we are living in a cabin on a mountain...which in a lot of ways we are. My favorite thing is our location. 3 miles to either Kimball Junction (TJ Maxx, Outlet Mall, Pier 1, Bed Bath and Beyond, Whole Foods, Walmart, etc.) or to main street Park City (Brian's work, Sports Authority, Frontier Bank, Albertson's, and a TON of cool shops and restaurants). We are literally right across the street from The Canyons Resort where there is a Farmer's Market all day every Wednesday and a free outdoor concert every Thursday evening. We just walk across the street. We might ski there this winter and I am looking into getting a job there where Gretchen can go to their on-site childcare. Everything is so close by and convenient, with the exception of a Costco. One is opening here in a year, but in the meantime we will be a taking a once-a-month trip to Salt Lake. It takes all of 25 minutes to get there! Really only about 5 minutes more than it took from our house in Sudden Valley to the Costco on Meridian! Oh yeah and that is a pair of skis holding the mail box and an old ski lift chair on the porch. This house is owned by one of the former Olympic Ski Coaches.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
On The Move
We are here in Park City, Utah and slowly getting out of the sea of boxes. Amidst all that we have spent some time at a very fun swimming pool and rode our bikes to town and back stopping at the Farmer's Market! I have been getting things like trash, recycle (its FREE!), banking, and insurance accounts taken care of. Tomorrow the schools open so we will be registering the girls for school. The girls have made fast friends with the neighbor girls two doors away who happen to be exactly the same ages! Unfortunately shortly after our arrival they left for a 10 day vacation much to all the girls' dismay! They were asking for sleep overs after the first day playing together! Its been very hot here and yesterday the clouds rolled in...we were actually glad to see them. But no rain to speak of. We miss our "home" in Bellingham and sometimes I feel like I am just here on vacation! I promise to post some pics soon, but first I want to let you know that this blog will be on the move too. We are heading to wordpress and will be changing our name to something a little more appropriate. Stay tuned for the link to the new blog!
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Anniversary Note
Every year it seems that we have something major going on over our anniversary. Last year, we were at a family reunion with a 3 week old baby. This year, our anniversary happened to fall on the weekend of our move to Utah. So we've decided to pretend that our anniversary is still a few days away and will celebrate it after we get to Park City.
But that doesn't change the fact that Cambria and I have now been married for 11 years. It's been an eventful time with 3 children born, 1 business started and closed, 2 houses bought and sold, a few vacations, and a wide variety of difficult and wonderful times.
I just wanted to say that I'm very thankful for having Cambria as my wife. Despite our having completely opposite personalities (I'm an INFP and she's an ESTJ), I can't think of a better person to be my wife and the mother of my children. She works harder than anyone I've ever known and is a wonderful mother. She also really helps to keep me from disappearing into my own head too much. Without her, I'd probably be a major mess (rather than just the minor mess that I am now).
Anyways, I just wanted to say that I love you, Cambria. Thank you for being such a wonderful wife to me. I'm excited about our new life and adventures in Park City and I'm certain that you'll love it there.
But that doesn't change the fact that Cambria and I have now been married for 11 years. It's been an eventful time with 3 children born, 1 business started and closed, 2 houses bought and sold, a few vacations, and a wide variety of difficult and wonderful times.
I just wanted to say that I'm very thankful for having Cambria as my wife. Despite our having completely opposite personalities (I'm an INFP and she's an ESTJ), I can't think of a better person to be my wife and the mother of my children. She works harder than anyone I've ever known and is a wonderful mother. She also really helps to keep me from disappearing into my own head too much. Without her, I'd probably be a major mess (rather than just the minor mess that I am now).
Anyways, I just wanted to say that I love you, Cambria. Thank you for being such a wonderful wife to me. I'm excited about our new life and adventures in Park City and I'm certain that you'll love it there.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
1 Year Old
Saturday was Gretchen's First Birthday. Thank you to the Watters, Esias, Kallins, Chasteens, Tipps, and Jamie and Shannon for celebrating with us. It was a good time. Click the picture to see more.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
about my kiddos...
Joanna tagged me so here's how it works...
1. Link your tagger and list the rules on the blog.
2. Share 7 facts about your kiddos on your blog…random, weird, funny…whatever you want!
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post
Lydia Cassie
1. loves to read, play webkinz, mountain bike and play soccer
2. didn't have her first hair cut until she was almost 3 years old
3. always wants to fit "one more thing" into each day
4. won the award for "Most Intense" on her last soccer team
5. has had the same best friends since she was 3 months old
6. chews her nails since she was 2 to avoid fingernail clippers
7. is my CTO (Chief Technical Officer) while her dad is gone
Maille Renee
1. is very proud of her recent reading accomplishments
2. loves to ride her bike around "the loop" at our house
3. is friends with everyone, but really wants a "best friend"
4. loves arts and crafts
5. is NOT a morning person
6. has feet almost as big as her older sister's
7. was not a very cute baby, but is a very beautiful little girl (now her dad has to worry!)
Gretchen Sophia
1. has a bit of a temper already
2. is taller and has more hair than both her older sisters did at one year old
3. LOVES her bottle (i'm a little worried about how we're going to get her off of it!)
4. climbs everything, but especially likes stairs
5. her favorite book is "Pat the Bunny"
6. has 9 teeth and is working on 3 more!
7. all 4 legged animals bark
So I tag Lisa, Betsy, Tami, Amy, and Sara
1. Link your tagger and list the rules on the blog.
2. Share 7 facts about your kiddos on your blog…random, weird, funny…whatever you want!
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post
Lydia Cassie
1. loves to read, play webkinz, mountain bike and play soccer
2. didn't have her first hair cut until she was almost 3 years old
3. always wants to fit "one more thing" into each day
4. won the award for "Most Intense" on her last soccer team
5. has had the same best friends since she was 3 months old
6. chews her nails since she was 2 to avoid fingernail clippers
7. is my CTO (Chief Technical Officer) while her dad is gone
Maille Renee
1. is very proud of her recent reading accomplishments
2. loves to ride her bike around "the loop" at our house
3. is friends with everyone, but really wants a "best friend"
4. loves arts and crafts
5. is NOT a morning person
6. has feet almost as big as her older sister's
7. was not a very cute baby, but is a very beautiful little girl (now her dad has to worry!)
Gretchen Sophia
1. has a bit of a temper already
2. is taller and has more hair than both her older sisters did at one year old
3. LOVES her bottle (i'm a little worried about how we're going to get her off of it!)
4. climbs everything, but especially likes stairs
5. her favorite book is "Pat the Bunny"
6. has 9 teeth and is working on 3 more!
7. all 4 legged animals bark
So I tag Lisa, Betsy, Tami, Amy, and Sara
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Flaming Gorge: Green River Fishing Report
The Green River just below the Flaming Gorge Dam is well worth a visit. I fished it for two days this weekend. I was going to fish for 3 days, but I developed some blisters on my feet that cut things short.
The Green River flows through a steep canyon of red rocks. The water is amazingly clear which makes it fairly easy to see the trout. A number of times I was able to watch a trout for several minutes as it would rise for bugs or cruise a hole.
There were a lot more people there than I would have liked. Every 10 minutes or so a boat of fishermen or rafters would come by. The "A" stretch of the river is about 8 miles long. I hiked in from Little Hole which is at the bottom of the "A" stretch. After about a mile and a half, I was by myself on the shore. The first mile or so seems to get a lot of traffic as there were fishermen everywhere. I have heard that going downriver from Little Hole into the "B" stretch or even further into the "C" stretch, will reduce both the numbers of fishermen and fish (though the fish are supposed to be much larger).
I actually saw a fish swim up to my fly (size 10 cicada), pause, and then finally go for it! That was my first catch and it was an awesome way to catch a fish. That fish ended up being a 14 or 15 inch brown trout. Since that fish was being fairly stubborn about coming to shore, I was able to turn on my camera and get it ready. I ended up with these pictures:
I also took a few pictures of the river and the surrounding areas. Unfortunately, the area is much browner than it used to be because of forest fires a few years ago. You can really see this in the 2nd picture down.
This last picture shows the Flaming Gorge just above the dam. The dam is just to the left of the picture.
The Green River flows through a steep canyon of red rocks. The water is amazingly clear which makes it fairly easy to see the trout. A number of times I was able to watch a trout for several minutes as it would rise for bugs or cruise a hole.
There were a lot more people there than I would have liked. Every 10 minutes or so a boat of fishermen or rafters would come by. The "A" stretch of the river is about 8 miles long. I hiked in from Little Hole which is at the bottom of the "A" stretch. After about a mile and a half, I was by myself on the shore. The first mile or so seems to get a lot of traffic as there were fishermen everywhere. I have heard that going downriver from Little Hole into the "B" stretch or even further into the "C" stretch, will reduce both the numbers of fishermen and fish (though the fish are supposed to be much larger).
I actually saw a fish swim up to my fly (size 10 cicada), pause, and then finally go for it! That was my first catch and it was an awesome way to catch a fish. That fish ended up being a 14 or 15 inch brown trout. Since that fish was being fairly stubborn about coming to shore, I was able to turn on my camera and get it ready. I ended up with these pictures:
I also took a few pictures of the river and the surrounding areas. Unfortunately, the area is much browner than it used to be because of forest fires a few years ago. You can really see this in the 2nd picture down.
This last picture shows the Flaming Gorge just above the dam. The dam is just to the left of the picture.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
More Utah Scenery
The other day I decided to take an alternate route home. I wanted to see some new areas. I ended up driving back to Layton via East Canyon which runs just on the east side of the Wasatch mountains. The Wasatch range is the series of mountains that runs immediately to the east of Salt Lake City. Anyways, I took some pictures of the drive. As always with these pictures, the sheer size is not well reflected. These mountains and rock formations are enormous.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Almost a one-year old
She's almost one. Which means...
tantrums
-opinions to have tantrums about!
-climbing
-words (like "ee-a" for Lydia and "ay-yee" for Maille)
-bops up and down with her whole body and her head to say yes
-picking up the phone and saying "ya, ya, ya, ya"
-emptying EVERYTHING
-knocking over towers is HILARIOUS
-cutting 4 molars all at once (she was sleeping through the night!)
-busy body syndrome (even when she's sleeping her body is moving)
-understands the word "no", but doesn't have the maturity to override the desire
-friendly and shy at the same time
-"to be in mom's arms or down exploring...just can't make up my mind!?!?"
-knows that socks and shoes go on the feet, but can't figure out how to get them on and they come off SO EASY!!!
-everything in hand is to be smelled, felt, AND TASTED!
-stairs are like magnets
-if all else fails just scream really loud in a high pitched squeal...it gets everyone's attention
tantrums
-opinions to have tantrums about!
-climbing
-words (like "ee-a" for Lydia and "ay-yee" for Maille)
-bops up and down with her whole body and her head to say yes
-picking up the phone and saying "ya, ya, ya, ya"
-emptying EVERYTHING
-knocking over towers is HILARIOUS
-cutting 4 molars all at once (she was sleeping through the night!)
-busy body syndrome (even when she's sleeping her body is moving)
-understands the word "no", but doesn't have the maturity to override the desire
-friendly and shy at the same time
-"to be in mom's arms or down exploring...just can't make up my mind!?!?"
-knows that socks and shoes go on the feet, but can't figure out how to get them on and they come off SO EASY!!!
-everything in hand is to be smelled, felt, AND TASTED!
-stairs are like magnets
-if all else fails just scream really loud in a high pitched squeal...it gets everyone's attention
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
The New Job
I've now got two days under my belt at my new job. So far, I'm pretty happy at how the job is working out. The two other programmers I work with are both smart and very easy to work with. I think we'll get along great.
Everyone else at the company has been very nice as well. It seems that everyone is good at what they do, excited about the company, and very happy to be in Park City. Nearly everyone there is from some other part of the country. So far I know of North Carolina, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, California, and Washington being represented.
Currently, I'm staying with my aunt, uncle, and cousin in Layton, Utah. They've been nice enough to let me have a room in their home while we try to sell the house back in Bellingham. They're a pretty easy-going family which is very nice.
The only downside to staying in Layton is that it means I'm commuting 1 hour each way. Fortunately, there is some tremendous scenery along my driving route. The picture is a little crooked, but that's what you get when you are taking pictures while driving.
Finally, I wanted to share a couple pictures I took today from the deck that is literally 5 feet from my desk. Today we had a bbq lunch out there. It was about 80 degrees and I was told that is just slightly warmer than usual. I like it here.
Everyone else at the company has been very nice as well. It seems that everyone is good at what they do, excited about the company, and very happy to be in Park City. Nearly everyone there is from some other part of the country. So far I know of North Carolina, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, California, and Washington being represented.
Currently, I'm staying with my aunt, uncle, and cousin in Layton, Utah. They've been nice enough to let me have a room in their home while we try to sell the house back in Bellingham. They're a pretty easy-going family which is very nice.
The only downside to staying in Layton is that it means I'm commuting 1 hour each way. Fortunately, there is some tremendous scenery along my driving route. The picture is a little crooked, but that's what you get when you are taking pictures while driving.
Finally, I wanted to share a couple pictures I took today from the deck that is literally 5 feet from my desk. Today we had a bbq lunch out there. It was about 80 degrees and I was told that is just slightly warmer than usual. I like it here.
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Look who's walking!
Its Father's Day and we are missing Daddy as he is already in Utah. I wish he could have been here to see Gretchen take off walking across the living room today. Fortunately the camera was right next to me. Happy Father's Day Brian. Thanks for being such a great daddy to your girls.
Saturday, June 14, 2008
The Drive to Park City Part 2
So I didn't end up taking any interesting detours today. Because I got into the hotel so late last night, I just slept in and left a bit later.
Today's drive was fairly uneventful and actually quite dull. Once you leave Boise, it's mostly just flat ground with mountains off in the distance. Other than the occasional canyon, there's not too much to see.
Once you get past the 86/84 split and start heading south, it becomes pretty desolate. This stretch is easily the most forgettable part of the drive.
I kept waiting for a "Welcome to Utah" sign so I could take a picture but I never saw one. I did end up taking a few random pictures while driving to help pass the time.
The first picture is of the Rockies in southern Idaho probably about a half hour before going into Utah. Please notice the lack of clouds in the sky.
The second picture is what the back of the Subaru looked like with 2 bikes, a suitcase, and a bunch of other random stuff.
The final picture shows the temperature as reported by the Subaru. I took that picture because I'm coming from low 50's and dumping rain on Tuesday to 89 and sunny on Saturday. This is a big reason why we're moving to Utah.
Today's drive was fairly uneventful and actually quite dull. Once you leave Boise, it's mostly just flat ground with mountains off in the distance. Other than the occasional canyon, there's not too much to see.
Once you get past the 86/84 split and start heading south, it becomes pretty desolate. This stretch is easily the most forgettable part of the drive.
I kept waiting for a "Welcome to Utah" sign so I could take a picture but I never saw one. I did end up taking a few random pictures while driving to help pass the time.
The first picture is of the Rockies in southern Idaho probably about a half hour before going into Utah. Please notice the lack of clouds in the sky.
The second picture is what the back of the Subaru looked like with 2 bikes, a suitcase, and a bunch of other random stuff.
The final picture shows the temperature as reported by the Subaru. I took that picture because I'm coming from low 50's and dumping rain on Tuesday to 89 and sunny on Saturday. This is a big reason why we're moving to Utah.
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