More roadtrippin'. This time: HOME

Yay! I finally got to go home! I miss my green trees and forest and ocean so much when I am in Utah. And, I miss being close to my parents. So, this trip was a much needed vacation. And, this time, I even got to leave my laptop in Logan and didn't have to work one little bit!

I drove up to Forks with Grams. She still refuses to fly. I guess those security checks are too much stress for her. So, I picked up some books on tape (I finally used my library card!) and headed off. It was a long drive, with me driving most of the way. However, I did finally convince Grams to take the drive in one day, which was nice.

We were in Forks for Bryce's farewell talk over Memorial Day weekend. So, Aunt Moose, Uncle Pat, Aunt Linda, and Uncle Scott also came up for the weekend.

While in Forks, we got to hike out to Shi Shi Beach, which is one of the best around for tide pools, and drive out to Cape Flattery, the most northwest point in the lower 48 states. Unfortunately, it was another cloudy day. But, truly, that didn't bother me, as I was just happy to be home and in the fresh air.

And, of course, I got to see my cat. I love her so. :) She will be 17 soon.

Grams and I stayed for about a week, and then I had to get back to work. The drive back took two days, however, which made for a long trip.

Temple Square and a trip HOME

I love Temple Sqaure in Salt Lake at Christmas time. Bryce and Landon hadn't been there in awhile, so I made them come with me for an evening to see the lights. We went with my roommate, and we met one of our friends from Forks there for dinner at Crown Burgers. It was fun, even though it was freezing. There were tons of people there, though. It was way annoying to have to navigate through the crowd. I guess that's what we get for going on a Saturday.

The next Tuesday we started our road trip home for the holidays. It was a long day, but we made it home to Forks in one day -- we actually made pretty good time. We actually suprised Mom and Dad and Kelsie. We had told them that we would be there on Wednesday. Mom's reaction was priceless. So, that was fun. :)

I had to work some while I was home, but just simply being there was quite nice for me. I needed a break from Logan, and I had been rather homesick. I missed my family, my trees, my ocean....

So, I got to see all of that while I was home. We had a good Christmas with the family, and it was nice and relaxing.

Mom, Kelsie, and I went out to La Push, where I almost took a tumble into the ocean. haha. Never turn your back on the waves! One big one is bound to suprise you. We had lunch at River's Edge. I must say, I really miss fresh yummy fish.

On New Years Eve we went up to Hurricane Ridge to go snowshoeing. I'd been snowshoeing once before. Can't say I was anymore impressed with it anymore the second time. It was fun, but not something that I plan on taking up. The boys then headed to Seattle for a YSA dance and to see the lights at the Space Needle. I prefer to spend time at home, no matter how lame other people say that might be.

We spent a good two weeks at home. I wish that I could have stayed longer. There was even more snow there than there has been in Logan. I mean, really, what's winter without at least some snow in the mountains.

Summertime, Summertime, Summertime

I should probably get caught up on all my summertime adventures before I forget all the details. I'll try to keep it short, so you don't get bored. ;-)

First, I know my birthday is not in the summer, but, hey, I missed it on this blog. I turned 24 this year. Crazy. I just don't think that I feel that old, lol. I had a fun birthday, though. I got to have two parties and two cakes. I'm just that awesome. :)

In the beginning of June, I drove up to Forks with my grandma so that we could go to Bryce's graduation from Forks High. I went to the library before we left to pick up some books on tape to listen to in the car. It actually made the trip seem a lot faster, and since I drove most of the way, that's a good thing.

We stayed in Forks for a week and a half or so. It was beautiful weather while I was there. I got to visit my wonderful ocean. I got to see Pursey. I drug my family out to the Hoh Rainforest for an afternoon. We also discovered that there was an archery range in town. I actually really enjoyed myself, and I don't think that I did too bad. :)

I went back to Logan for about a week and then headed off on my next road trip. One of my good friends from Forks was getting married in Las Vegas, so I headed down there for a few days. It was my first trip to Vegas. I can't say that I was really impressed. It was interesting, lots of flashy lights, but lots and lots of people.

It was also very hot down there. I think that I saw one store thermometer that read 120 degrees. Seriously!? That's way to stinking hot for me to handle. And, we were genius enough to decide to walk the strip during the day in that heat. We basically walked from place to place, hanging out in each building for awhile before heading back outside. Next time I go to Vegas, it will be in the winter, lol.

My friend had a bachelorette party a couple days before the wedding. I think I expected a Vegas bachelorette party to be, well, a little more extreme. But, it was really pretty tame, and therefore pretty fun for me. The wedding was also a good time. It was the actually the first one that I've ever been to. It was small, out in a little gazebo behind the casino. It was nice to see all of my Forks friends again, too.

It was then another week back in Logan, some fireworks and holiday things, and then I was off on another road trip. The Johnson Family Reunion was in Clayton, Idaho this summer. It's always a good time being with the family. We did some crafts, played some games, watched some movies, visited an old mining town, and slept in a loft with lots of loud children. Oh, that last part was the most enjoyable. ;-) I actually really enjoy family reunions, and it was good to see everyone again.

Kelsie and Mom also came back to Logan with me after the reunion. We went to Bear Lake, a Pickleville play, did some tubing. I think Mom wanted to spend some time with her parents and in Logan, and it was a fun couple weeks for me, too.

So, my summer was pretty busy, which is how I prefer it to be. Fun times. :)

I'll be home for Christmas

This post is a little late, I know, but at least I remembered that I did have a blog. :) Although, now that I found that episodes of I Dream of Jeannie, one of my all time favorite shows, are on hulu I am being severely distracted...so, I hope this all makes since, lol.

Here's my Christmas card for the year. I was just too lazy apparently to send it out earlier.

For Christmas this year, I was able to go home (YAY!) for almost two weeks...that was really not long enough for me either.

I did have to work some while I was home, but it was fabulous to be there. I got to play with my bro and sis, see my kitty, and hang out with my family. Landon got to call home on Christmas morning. It was good to hear from him, and he seems to be doing well. We even ate a big pancake breakfast before we opened presents. It was nice to sleep in...that never happened when all of us kids were younger.

While I was home, we all went to Ocean Shores to watch Bryce play in a basketball tournament. He made a few good shots, but he didn't get to play as much as we "i.e. the Grandparents" wanted him to. ;) A few weeks ago, though, Bryce scored 22 points and played most of a game, so...maybe his coach is just finicky.

Forks itself doesn't change much. At least in the winter. The Twilight phenomenon seems to die down for awhile. It rained a lot, which I have missed, and we had a few good hail storms. We also took some family pictures while I was home. I thought that we should have put a cardboard cut out of Landon in, but oh well, he will be home next Christmas. :)

Anyways, it was nice to see the beach and play and be with my family. I love being home.

I was really rather sad to come back to Logan after the New Years.

Oh, if every day were such as these!

Yes, I am going to have to play just a little bit of catch up here...but, it's only a few weeks back so this shouldn't be too long of a post.

In the end of July, Kelsie came to Logan (I like to say that she came here just to see me) to go to her first EFY with our cousin Sierra. I think she enjoyed herself, but you'll have to ask her for more details about that.

But, when it came time to take Kelsie to the airport to fly home, I decided to go home, too. I really needed the break from Logan, to get out and be somewhere else. Mostly, I think that I was a little homesick, and I wanted to see my family. Being a thousand miles away is really, really hard sometimes.

So, I flew to Seattle with Kelsie, and I got to stay there for a little over a week. It was a fabulous. And, I have to note the perk of my job. I didn't even have to tell my boss I was leaving....I can work from anywhere.

While I was home, mostly I just relaxed and hung out with my family. It was just what I needed. We went on a little "hike" to a hill overlooking Forks.

Bryce, Mom, and I went out to Rialto beach, so that I could see my ocean. We ate some lunch at Three Rivers, which I always love. I was, however, a little disappointed that they had expanded their serving area to include a Twilight-themed nook. Oh well, such is Forks these days. I suppose I am going to have to get over my thorough dislike of Twilight and learn to put up with it.

The three of us also hiked out to Norwegian Memorial Beach the next day. This has always been one of my favorite beaches. It is kind of a local-only beach, as you have travel a maze of logging roads to get out there and then hike out through the forest. It was a great day to be on the beach, hardly any wind and the sun soon came out. It was a plus that we only saw a few other people. No overcrowding like at Rialto, Second Beach, and La Push these days.

I love the green forests and the tide pools of the coast.

We also climbed up over the headland rocks and got a fantastic view of the area.

 

While home, I also got to see the destruction that had run rampant in my backyard. Someone had decided that it was time to log there, and just in the little strip behind the house... Rude! Anyways, most of my childhood playground is still there, although it was sad to see that my animal cemetary had disappeared. No real worries, though... there is still a lot of gorgeous forest back there.

Importantly, I also got to see my cat. :-D

Now, I am awaiting Christmas when I go home to visit again.

My Memorial weekend adventure

Sometimes I wonder how I let myself get talked into these things....and then I remember who my Dad is and how these sorts of adventures are pretty much mandatory in our family. He had been pestering me for weeks to get me to come climb Mount St. Helens with the family on Saturday. I finally gave in and committed the night before I had to leave, haha. And, even then, I think the only reason that I said yes was that my Mom and Kelsie were coming. I figured I could keep up with them. ;)

On Friday morning, I loaded my packed bags into my tiny little car and headed out. I first made a stop in Newton to pick up my second cousin and her uncle and then we set out on our 12 hour drive to Washington. I know that I could have done the drive on my own, but it is still nice to know that there's someone there to help if problems arise. So, I invited the two of them along. After my cousin Jared lamed out! and my cousin Alan couldn't come. :(

With only a 15 minute stop in Boise, ID for a quick lunch at KFC and a 5 minute fuel stop in Hermiston, OR we reached Woodland, WA. Here we found out that the troop from Forks hadn't even reached Aberdeen yet, so we found a nice sit-down resturant and relaxed for awhile....and by relaxed, I mean that I almost fell asleep on the table, lol.

We reached Cougar that night around nine, where we picked up our climbing permits and registered for the hike, with only minutes to spare before the resort closed for the night. We waited in the car, for at least another hour for Dad and the rest of them to show up. The constant rain had me a little leary that the next day would not be enjoyable. We did finally make it to Marble Mountain Sno-Park where, thankfully, us girls got to sleep in the trailer.

Saturday morning, the rain had slowed a little, but there was still a constant drizzle. Dad was sure it would stop but I had heard THAT one before, so we donned our rain jackets and loaded backpacks and set out on the trail around nine that morning. The group consisted of Dad, Mom, Bryce, Kelsie, Brian Weekes and his daughter Erin, Kelsie's BFF Rachel, my cousin Ashley and her uncle Alan, and Me. Oh, and Woofy. He was the best trooper of us all. :)

We were soon in snow, and shortly after that we were out on the actual mountain side. We followed the trail marking posts up very rocky ridges. I found that hopping up and through the rocks expended far less of my energy than trudging through the slushy snow with everyone else.

As a group, we had to stop and take lots of "snack and water" breaks, although I'm sure it was mostly because half of us just weren't in shape for that kind of hike. The weather up on that mountain changes in a blink of an eye. At times, I wished I was in shorts and a t-shirt, and at other times I wanted to bundle up as gusts of cold winds battered us.

We were soon out of the rocks and on to the snow covered mountain face. It was here that I had to stop looking up ahead of me. Just concentrate on putting one foot in front of the other. The muscles in my legs started pulling, and every step required more effort than the last.

When we reached about 7,000 feet in elevation, the steepest part of the mountain loomed ahead of us, and the snow started to get hard and wind blown, as we were above the clouds at this point. The Weekes had turned around already, and Alan said he wanted to leave and do the Ape Caves instead. Can you believe that? The Ape Caves, when there was an awesome mountain to summit?! Sorry, but we were just to close not to make it to the top. Dad said we only had an hour to get there, so we continued on. We made it up the steep rise, and the crater rim was in view.

Poor little Kelsie and a pooped out Woofy gave out at this point, so they stayed with Mom and Dad there. The rest of us continued on the last half hour up. Rachel, Ashley, and Alan started booking it up the mountain. Where those two girls' energy came from, I'll never know. Bryce and I were left behind. We'd take about ten steps and then break. I could hear Bryce singing over the wind "Just put one foot in front of the other..." You know, that song from the stop-motion Christmas movie "Santa Claus is Comin To Town". Personally, in my mind I was thinking about Frodo on Mt. Doom. Yes, I am a nerd. "This will be the death of the hobbits!" But, hey, if he could do it, so could I, lol. :)

We summitted Mount St. Helens at about 5:10, reaching the 8,281ft crater rim, after over a 5,600 ft elevation gain climb. We couldn't look into the crater because of the very large, and dangerous, overhanging cornices, but I made it to the top! A quick picture and down we went. Bryce had packed his skis up to the top, but unfortunately for him, his legs kept cramping and he couldn't use them to go down. :(

The best part of the hike? Sliding down! Mt. St. Helens doesn't have crevasses to have to avoid, so sliding away we went. We made it down to the treeline in just a couple of hours. I did have to help Woofy on some of the really steep sections. He did not enjoy being carried as we slipped down the mountain side, lol. We didn't make it back to camp until shortly after it got dark. Every muscle in my body was yelling at me for a comfortable bed. But, after a yummy spaghetti dinner, we still had to drive to Moose's house. She wasn't even there, but the shower and bed was much appreciated. :)

A twelve hour drive on Sunday, and I was safetly back in Logan.