Growing up in Manti, Ut, Joe and his brothers participated in the Manti pageant almost every year, playing a range of parts from Nephite warrior, to handcart pioneer, to John Taylor, to Robert (one of the main characters). They practically have the entire pageant memorized, word for word. This year was special, because Joe's dad was called be one of the pageant directors. And on top of that, they asked if he and his sons would sing the National Anthem on one of the nights. This is no small feat, seeing that his sons don't all live in Manti anymore....none of them do. There's one in Oklahoma, one in Arizona, one in St. George, and one in Magna, UT. And of course we were in Texas. But everyone knew that this was important to their dad, so everyone made the effort to be there that night. So back at the end of June, Joe and I, and two other brothers, flew in on Friday night; the pageant was on Saturday night; and we all flew back on Sunday morning. This was made possible for us by our good friends the Haderlies, who so graciously watched our kids for us. The anthem is not actually done live....none of the pageant is. They record the music and dialogue before-hand. The Liddell gang went to the local radio station and made their recording there, and then handed it over to the sound guys at the pageant. It all went very well, and it was fun to be a part of. Please to enjoy.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Things I Miss About Texas
Dang it, I missed two days for my goal. 5 out of 7 days is 71%, and that's like a C-. That will really bring my GPA down. Oh, I'm sorry, I'm getting distracted because I've been spending so much time finishing up two classes I was taking. That's partly why I missed a day - because I was studying, and then taking a final on Friday (it was a killer). And I missed Thursday because I was an escort for my sister who went to the temple for the first time, and that was a family day. So today is the last day of my week of posting, and I've got to finish things off right. This post is dedicated to the home that we have just left behind, and all that we loved about it.
1. FRIENDS - First and foremost, I will miss my friends. I made some wonderful friends in Texas, who I'm already missing a lot. I hope they know how much they mean to me, because it's hard to explain. If I hadn't had the friends that I did, there would be nothing to put on this post, because I would have hated Texas without them. Thank you my friends. I love you!
2. THE TEXAS SPIRIT - This kind of has two meanings. First, Texans really do have a lot of pride in their state. It's kind of funny, but I also think it's great. They have a pledge to the Texas flag that they say in schools along with the Pledge of Allegience. They fly the Texas flag everywhere, and everywhere you see the Texas Lone Star on people's houses. Don't mess with Texas, and Everything is bigger in Texas are two phrases you hear often. The second meaning of the Texas spirit, is how friendly everyone is. Being part of the South, you definitely see the Southern charm in Texas.
3. DRIVING - speaking of friendly, I think Texas drivers are very friendly. It is the best state I have ever driven in. What I'll miss the most are the wide shoulders on all the roads, and if you want to pass someone, they pull over and drive on the shoulder. And when someone passes you, you always get a thank you wave, or they'll flip on the hazard light for a second as a way to say thank you. Nowhere but Texas.
4. SAN ANTONIO and AUSTIN - two great cities that we loved in Texas. Austin for the State Capitol building, the Botanical Gardens, and the Bats. San Antonio for the River Walk, the Alamo, the Temple, the Zoo, Friends who live there, and Sea World. Right before we left Texas, we got to take one last trip to Sea World, thanks to the Here's to the Heroes program - free tickets for military.
5. WIND FARMS - I love driving down the highway and seeing windmills as far as the eye can see. It's amazing how big those things are close up.
6. WILD FLOWERS - Texas doesn't have much to offer in the way of the four seasons, except for spring. Every spring there are wild flowers everywhere, all colors. It's really beautiful to see.
7. WIDE OPEN SKIES - As you all should know, I prefer majestic mountains over the flat plains of Texas. But every once in a while you get these amazing veiws of clouds and sunsets and yes, flat plains. It is really beautiful.
8. RAIN - Texas has great thunderstorms. I have never heard thunder so loud, and so continuous in my life - completely amazing. I also loved how the end of our driveway flooded every time it rained. My kids loved playing in it on a warm summer day.
9. OUR HOUSE - See previous post for more details on this one. Needless to say, we made this house our home, and we will miss it.
10. SAN ANGELO - San Angelo was a great little town, and their were things that were uniquely it's own. Christmas lights along the Concho River, old Murals around down town, Historic Fort Concho, Eggemeyer's General Store, etc. It really is a wonderful place, and if it wasn't in the middle of nowhere, and if it wasn't humid, I could maybe live there forever.
Goodbye San Angelo. Goodbye Texas.
1. FRIENDS - First and foremost, I will miss my friends. I made some wonderful friends in Texas, who I'm already missing a lot. I hope they know how much they mean to me, because it's hard to explain. If I hadn't had the friends that I did, there would be nothing to put on this post, because I would have hated Texas without them. Thank you my friends. I love you!
2. THE TEXAS SPIRIT - This kind of has two meanings. First, Texans really do have a lot of pride in their state. It's kind of funny, but I also think it's great. They have a pledge to the Texas flag that they say in schools along with the Pledge of Allegience. They fly the Texas flag everywhere, and everywhere you see the Texas Lone Star on people's houses. Don't mess with Texas, and Everything is bigger in Texas are two phrases you hear often. The second meaning of the Texas spirit, is how friendly everyone is. Being part of the South, you definitely see the Southern charm in Texas.
3. DRIVING - speaking of friendly, I think Texas drivers are very friendly. It is the best state I have ever driven in. What I'll miss the most are the wide shoulders on all the roads, and if you want to pass someone, they pull over and drive on the shoulder. And when someone passes you, you always get a thank you wave, or they'll flip on the hazard light for a second as a way to say thank you. Nowhere but Texas.
4. SAN ANTONIO and AUSTIN - two great cities that we loved in Texas. Austin for the State Capitol building, the Botanical Gardens, and the Bats. San Antonio for the River Walk, the Alamo, the Temple, the Zoo, Friends who live there, and Sea World. Right before we left Texas, we got to take one last trip to Sea World, thanks to the Here's to the Heroes program - free tickets for military.
5. WIND FARMS - I love driving down the highway and seeing windmills as far as the eye can see. It's amazing how big those things are close up.
6. WILD FLOWERS - Texas doesn't have much to offer in the way of the four seasons, except for spring. Every spring there are wild flowers everywhere, all colors. It's really beautiful to see.
7. WIDE OPEN SKIES - As you all should know, I prefer majestic mountains over the flat plains of Texas. But every once in a while you get these amazing veiws of clouds and sunsets and yes, flat plains. It is really beautiful.
8. RAIN - Texas has great thunderstorms. I have never heard thunder so loud, and so continuous in my life - completely amazing. I also loved how the end of our driveway flooded every time it rained. My kids loved playing in it on a warm summer day.
9. OUR HOUSE - See previous post for more details on this one. Needless to say, we made this house our home, and we will miss it.
10. SAN ANGELO - San Angelo was a great little town, and their were things that were uniquely it's own. Christmas lights along the Concho River, old Murals around down town, Historic Fort Concho, Eggemeyer's General Store, etc. It really is a wonderful place, and if it wasn't in the middle of nowhere, and if it wasn't humid, I could maybe live there forever. Goodbye San Angelo. Goodbye Texas.Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Splashin' Around
Wow, I can't believe I'm actually keeping up with this posting every day goal. Good on me:) Here's number 4.
One thing that my kids love about Utah is that they have some great swimming pools here. We always end up swimming a lot when we're here, and not just because it's too hot to do anything else outside, like in Texas. The other day, however, my sister introduced us to a whole new water experience - and it's FREE! I love the word free. It is such a beautiful word. It brings my checking account peace. Anyway, there's this "splash park" (I don't know what else to call it) close by where my parents live. It's got a little waterfall, and slow moving creek, and fountains, all man-made of course. Perfect for kids of all ages....and adults. JT thought we were going to the swimming pool when we told them to get their swimming suits on, so when we got there he said, quite dramatically, "This isn't the swimming pool!" But he was having a blast before he knew it. Here are a few pictures of our time there, with my sisters and their kids. I may have gone a little overboard with taking pictures, but....
Doesn't that look refreshing?
Where is it going to come out?
Water wedgy!
Right in the Kisser
cousin Kylie
Oh, that's cute
cousin Ava
cousin Jada
Uncle Antione with the kids
Joe trying to splash the kids
JT thinks it's funny that he's "peeing" the water
I think we'll be going back before we leave here.
One thing that my kids love about Utah is that they have some great swimming pools here. We always end up swimming a lot when we're here, and not just because it's too hot to do anything else outside, like in Texas. The other day, however, my sister introduced us to a whole new water experience - and it's FREE! I love the word free. It is such a beautiful word. It brings my checking account peace. Anyway, there's this "splash park" (I don't know what else to call it) close by where my parents live. It's got a little waterfall, and slow moving creek, and fountains, all man-made of course. Perfect for kids of all ages....and adults. JT thought we were going to the swimming pool when we told them to get their swimming suits on, so when we got there he said, quite dramatically, "This isn't the swimming pool!" But he was having a blast before he knew it. Here are a few pictures of our time there, with my sisters and their kids. I may have gone a little overboard with taking pictures, but....
Doesn't that look refreshing?
Where is it going to come out?
Water wedgy!
Right in the Kisser
cousin Kylie
Oh, that's cute
cousin Ava
cousin Jada
Uncle Antione with the kids
Joe trying to splash the kids
JT thinks it's funny that he's "peeing" the water
I think we'll be going back before we leave here.Tuesday, August 25, 2009
The UPs and DOWNs of a Road Trip
If you are just joining us, we are on day three of my week of blogging. These are going to be out of order, because I'm waiting on some pictures that I thought I would have already - but I DON'T! So this post will be about our road trip from Texas to Utah.
We first headed to Carlsbad Caverns. None of us had ever been. I was very excited. Joe is slightly closterphobic, so he was saving his opinion for afterward. Our hotel was the closest, and only hotel right at the entrance of the park. We got there and checked into our hotel, about 15 minutes AFTER their free water park CLOSED for the night. This was our first DOWN, especially since they only let you use it the day you check in, not the day you check out. The hotel's internet was also down, so we had no computer time that night. Our room smelled like a nursing home. Breakfast was not provided, and the only restaraunt was ridiculously expensive - Ridiculous as in the owners should be shot! Those were all DOWNS.
The UP was the caverns themsleves. Amazing! My pictures do them no justice. Since we didn't have all day to spend there, we just went to "The Big Room". First you go downt this elevator about 750 feet, and then you step into this cavern that is HUGE! It is about 1 1/4 mile walk around the perimeter. Immediately JT was upset, and wanted to know if there were spiders and bats down there. That kind of got Madelyn and Alex a little nervous. It was kind of dark, so you can understand their apprehension.
But after we calmed their fears we began our walk.
Everyone seemed to be in a hurry, but I wanted to take my time.
It's not every day that you get to see things like that.
At one point I made everyone stop, and take a moment to just be amazed. I told them I was reminded of the scripture that says, All Things Denote there is a God. I don't want them always hurrying through life, and missing out on the amazing things that are right in front of them. I want them to be grateful for the opportunities they have to see new things, and explore new places.
We first headed to Carlsbad Caverns. None of us had ever been. I was very excited. Joe is slightly closterphobic, so he was saving his opinion for afterward. Our hotel was the closest, and only hotel right at the entrance of the park. We got there and checked into our hotel, about 15 minutes AFTER their free water park CLOSED for the night. This was our first DOWN, especially since they only let you use it the day you check in, not the day you check out. The hotel's internet was also down, so we had no computer time that night. Our room smelled like a nursing home. Breakfast was not provided, and the only restaraunt was ridiculously expensive - Ridiculous as in the owners should be shot! Those were all DOWNS.
The UP was the caverns themsleves. Amazing! My pictures do them no justice. Since we didn't have all day to spend there, we just went to "The Big Room". First you go downt this elevator about 750 feet, and then you step into this cavern that is HUGE! It is about 1 1/4 mile walk around the perimeter. Immediately JT was upset, and wanted to know if there were spiders and bats down there. That kind of got Madelyn and Alex a little nervous. It was kind of dark, so you can understand their apprehension.
But after we calmed their fears we began our walk.
Everyone seemed to be in a hurry, but I wanted to take my time.
It's not every day that you get to see things like that.
At one point I made everyone stop, and take a moment to just be amazed. I told them I was reminded of the scripture that says, All Things Denote there is a God. I don't want them always hurrying through life, and missing out on the amazing things that are right in front of them. I want them to be grateful for the opportunities they have to see new things, and explore new places.Next we headed out of Carlsbad, and on to Roswell. We did not get there in time enough to explore the shops in town like I had wanted to, but we did stop at the McDonald's that was shaped like a spaceship, and that was an UP for the kids.
It ended up being a good thing that we didn't stay longer in Roswell, because we drove all the way to Durango, CO, and we didn't get there until after 10pm. We found a room at the Best Western, which was an UP. The room was the opposite in every way to the one we had stayed in the previous night. There was a hot breakfast in the morning. It was lovely. We got up early and drove to Mesa Verde, and walked down the trail to the Spruce Tree House ruins, which are the most intact ruins there.
The DOWN part of this was Alex, because he is a 2 year old. If you've ever had a 2 year old, you'll understand. The trail isn't WAY dangerous, but you still want to hold a 2 year old's hand so they don't slip and fall down the hill/cliff. Well our 2 year old didn't want to hold hands (of course), so Joe put him on his shoulders, and then he just started screaming. Once we got to the ruins there are signs all around that say don't climb on the rock walls. Well our 2 year old wanted to climb on the rock walls (of course).
Needless to say, we weren't there for very long, but it was an UP anyway (and I'm not just talking about the UPHILL we had to climb to get back to the car, during which time ALL of our kids started complaining that they were hot, and why didn't we bring a water bottle). It was so interesting imagining people actually living there, and it made us think of the people in the Book of Mormon.
The next stop was 4 Corners. I remember as a kid going to 4 corners, and I thought it was so cool that you could be in 4 states at the same time. The kids thought so too. It was an UP.
We let each of the kids pick out an Indian-made suvenier, and I got a nice turquosie bracelet for myself.
It ended up being a good thing that we didn't stay longer in Roswell, because we drove all the way to Durango, CO, and we didn't get there until after 10pm. We found a room at the Best Western, which was an UP. The room was the opposite in every way to the one we had stayed in the previous night. There was a hot breakfast in the morning. It was lovely. We got up early and drove to Mesa Verde, and walked down the trail to the Spruce Tree House ruins, which are the most intact ruins there.
The DOWN part of this was Alex, because he is a 2 year old. If you've ever had a 2 year old, you'll understand. The trail isn't WAY dangerous, but you still want to hold a 2 year old's hand so they don't slip and fall down the hill/cliff. Well our 2 year old didn't want to hold hands (of course), so Joe put him on his shoulders, and then he just started screaming. Once we got to the ruins there are signs all around that say don't climb on the rock walls. Well our 2 year old wanted to climb on the rock walls (of course). 
Needless to say, we weren't there for very long, but it was an UP anyway (and I'm not just talking about the UPHILL we had to climb to get back to the car, during which time ALL of our kids started complaining that they were hot, and why didn't we bring a water bottle). It was so interesting imagining people actually living there, and it made us think of the people in the Book of Mormon.
The next stop was 4 Corners. I remember as a kid going to 4 corners, and I thought it was so cool that you could be in 4 states at the same time. The kids thought so too. It was an UP.
We let each of the kids pick out an Indian-made suvenier, and I got a nice turquosie bracelet for myself.Then we drove past Lake Powell, and stopped at Glen Canyon Dam. I made everyone get out of the car and go into the visitors center. There were protests at first, but it turned out to be another UP. Inside the visitors center they have a serious of photographs that show the building of the dam - it was Amazing!
Even though this dam was man-made, the water it controls is not. Again I was reminded of the scripture, "All Things Denote there is a God". When you see the beauty and the calmness of the water, and then think about the power and force it has, the life that it gives and sustains, and how essential it is to every living thing, it is no wonder that Christ is called the Living Water. I was really glad we took the time to stop there. Hmmm, maybe the above statement doesn't go so well with the picture below.
Oh well, below was the Kids favorite part of the dam - a little lizard. They made sure I took a picture of it.
Even though this dam was man-made, the water it controls is not. Again I was reminded of the scripture, "All Things Denote there is a God". When you see the beauty and the calmness of the water, and then think about the power and force it has, the life that it gives and sustains, and how essential it is to every living thing, it is no wonder that Christ is called the Living Water. I was really glad we took the time to stop there. Hmmm, maybe the above statement doesn't go so well with the picture below.
Oh well, below was the Kids favorite part of the dam - a little lizard. They made sure I took a picture of it.
On to St. George, we drove through Zion's National Park - SO BEAUTIFUL!!! I'm pretty sure that I was NOT being a safe driver, because I couldn't help looking, and looking, and looking all around be at the beauty we were driving through. UP, UP, UP. I was trying to the get the kids to look too, but they were having a hard time concentrating on the scenery because they were watching classic Micky Mouse cartoons. They informed me that the old ones are so much better than the new ones on the Disney channel. I couldn't argue with that. We got in to St. George after 10pm...again. We stayed the night with Joe's brother and his family, and most of the next day. Lots of UPs there - they're always lots of fun to be with. They cooked us Korean food, to send us off in the right way. We went to the St. George temple and walked around with the kids and went to the visitor's center. Then that evening we got to Joe's parent's house in Manti, and thus ended our rode trip.
Our kids are very good travelers, and we're really lucky. When we drove to Manti from St. George, they asked how long it would take to get to Grandma's. When we said 3 1/2 hrs, they replied, "Oh, that's not too long". We've trained them well - It's an UP to traveling.
I've discovered that sunflower seeds help me be a safer driver, because it's impossible to fall asleep while your chewing on sunflower seeds. It's a snack AND an activity - It's a snacktivity! The DOWN to this is that if you eat too many sunflower seeds, your tongue gets raw. Now add to this the lemon heads that my friends Polly gave me for our trip, and it is BAD! Note to self - do not go back and forth between seeds and lemon heads, EVER:) I still have half a bag left of each.
One time during the trip JT said, with much furvor, "Mom, you HAVE to stop the car! I have to go to the bathroom really bad! I've been plugging my privacy!" I'm sorry if that offended anyone, but I almost peed my own pants when he said that because I was laughing so hard, so I just HAD to add it. JTisms are always an UP for me:)
I feel like I'm forgetting something, but if I am, I can't remember it - hence the forgetting.
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