Off the Beaten Path

So, since we left Wall, South Dakota, we have driven through the rest of South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. With the exception of a little jaunt to Minneapolis, we have pretty much avoided the interstate. Right now we are in a little town called Rhinelander, WI. Since Wall, I think we've only seen one 'out-of-state' license plate besides ours - it was from Florida.
Here are a few highlights thus far:
I think BB was feeling a little jealous of missing out on Pioneer Trek so he took the opportunity to pull a handcart at Martin's Cove (ours were a little heavier though :)
Devil's Tower
Mount Rushmore - or Mushmore Mountain as Anushka calls it - was definitely worth the drive to South Dakota.
The South Dakota Badlands
How many people have actually walked across the Mississippi River? We saw the headwaters of the Mississippi in Minnesota.

Some of the beautiful fall colors of Minnesota. MB - we already know where we want to go camping with you when we visit!

Hello from Twins Territory

Just a quick note to say hi from 'the heartland'. We left Sunday and have been through Wyoming, South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota and are headed to Wisconsin today. I'll post more later and add some photos (when we get an adaptor cord). Let me just say right now that I no longer think MB is entirely crazy for wanting to move to Minnesota. I'm still not sold on the winters but we have seen some amazing country around here!

Did You Ever Enjoy the Dentist This Much???

I have been very negligent as a parent in getting my kids (especially the eldest) to the dentist. Had I known the sheer delight they would find in the experience, I would have started taking them much sooner. Yesterday when I told Anushka that I was dropping her off at her aunt's house so that I could go to the dentist, she melted into tears. I couldn't understand this because she usually would rather just live with her cousins. Then I realized that she thought I was going to HER dentist without her. The office was set up like an undersea cavern - complete with Dori and Nemo swimming around in a big tank. Each chair was child-size with a flat screen above it where they could watch movies or play games while the dentist (dressed in Mr. Incredible scrubs) counted their teeth.

And finally - the reward for getting their teeth counted and shined:

Not bad eh? On a completely other note, we're leaving in two days for 'the heartland' as MB refers to it. Looking forward to seeing parts of the country we've never visited. We'll try to post as often as possible...

9/11

So, the first thing I thought of when I woke up this morning was about the World Cup soccer match between the U.S. and North Korea. I've been counting down the days to 9-10 for about the past 2 months and now it's finally here.
As I sat and watched the game with rapt attention, I had a clear flashback to six years ago - sitting in front of the television on another Tuesday morning. I'm sure everyone can remember where they were when they first heard of the attacks. I was driving home from the temple in S.L. at about 7:00 a.m. and heard on the radio that a plane had crashed into one of the Twin Towers. Picturing in my mind a small private plane gone off course, I hurried home to see if any news stations might be covering the crash. When I realized the seriousness of the situation, I called for Brad to come see. It was about this time that the second plane hit. We watched and listened horrified as we heard reports of the Pentagon being hit as well as the downed plane in Pennsylvania.
Six years later, I still have a difficult time wrapping my brain around the events of 9/11/01. We have visited Ground Zero a couple times since. The first time was a few months after the attacks. I remember directing my brother and parents to the site and, when my dad asked which street it was on, I realized that I had always used the towers as my guide. I had no children in 2001 and it will be years before mine hear about those events with any kind of understanding or sympathy. I don't really know if I have a point to all of this beyond just remembering and honoring the victims and heroes of that day. We live in a great country - flawed, no doubt, but great nevertheless. I just want to voice my gratitude today for all of our freedoms and opportunities - we are blessed!

30 going on 13...

So, I had brunch with Daph and Lisa a couple days ago and, after hearing this story, Daph said I should blog it.
It all started on Trek about a month ago. For anyone who might not have experienced pioneer trek, just imagine about 300 people all dressed in pioneer garb, pulling handcarts, walking in families and companies through the Wyoming/Utah wilderness for about 26 miles over 4 days. Pretty authentic, no? Well, it is at least until you look to the front or end of the pioneer train and see motorized vehicles carrying food and pulling porta-potties along.
Two other characters are critical to this story. So, let me introduce Ken and Tamara. Ken is the husband of my ward's RS prez - a really great, fun guy. He is one of those big cowboy looking guys that loves everyone and always winks at you when he goes by. Tamara is a blast - she was the chair of my committee (activities), loves to talk in loud speakers, and get the kids to do funny cheers that they normally wouldn't be caught dead yelling. Her husband is the bishop of her ward and she's a few years older than me.
So, after herding kids up a very long, difficult hill, Tamara and I both really needed the potty. So, we asked the driver if we could just sneak on the trailer and use one (the trailer pulled about 6 porta-potties). He said we'd just have to take the plug out of one - I'm sure you can understand that they put plugs in them when they drive to prevent (ugh) splashing. We figured out how to do it and I went first. While Tam was in there, Ken came down to see what was going on. Once he got to the trailer, the trail boss radioed him asking him to bring the trailer up to the kids. Radios were carried by all the company leaders, drivers, medical people, etc. There were a lot of radios out there and they were always on. So, when Ken got on his radio and said, "I can't do that right now because if I start driving, Tamara will get it all over her butt!" there were probably at least 30 people who heard it - including Tamara - which explained the screaming - "I heard that Ken and you are DEAD!". And he and I LOST IT. She came running out, yelling threats, still hoisting up her bloomers and Ken and I were literally in tears and he was on the ground laughing.
It was a running joke for the rest of Trek; all the while, Tamara tried to come up with good revenge. Nothing came to her and Trek ended. The very next day was Fast Sunday and, as I mentioned, Ken is in my ward. It was a real shock when he got up and shared the story from the pulpit (he did change the word 'butt' to 'fanny'). Tamara is not in our ward but does share the building. As I walked out of sacrament meeting, she caught me in the hall and had already heard that he told the story (props to the Mormon grapevine). I think this was the last straw for my friend Tamara because she called me at 9:30 that night and asked for help in getting Ken back. OF COURSE I was in.
40 rolls of toilet paper strewn around his perfectly manicured front AND back yard as well as his cars and front porch - along with the words "ha ha" written on his back lawn with toilet paper and rocks - later, her revenge was complete. We also attached a note to his front door that said something like, "Dear Ken. We heard you've been telling some potty stories - so here's some toilet paper to go along. P.S. - Debi (his wife) is not allowed to clean up any of this." I talked to Debi later that week. She didn't.
She took some photos so if I can get a hold of them, I'll post later....