Great Basin...again...

We enjoyed Great Basin so much the last time, we decided to go again. This time, we talked Heath and Kendra into going with us...they were promised great celestial views that did not end up coming to fruition. They both now consider themselves "campers" so...mission accomplished. We drug Lee and the girls with us as well...they had no choice, they were visiting and we said we were going. They didn't protest....


Here is our family by a bristlecone pine tree. They are the oldest living things known to man.



We did alot of hiking. Here are Lee and the girls on our hike up to the arch. These Comer girls are made of some tough stuff. It started raining right in the middle of the hike, but we all endured cheerfully (as you can see.)





Lee and the girls stayed for nearly 2 whole weeks while Stephen was gone on a mission trip to Haiti. We all had a great time...we miss them all dearly.

Wellsvilles...again?

Well, I decided to hike the Wellsvilles again this year...completely forgetting about the pain it caused last year. But this time I took Lee with me...we had a great time. This is a 8.5 mile hike along the steepest mountain range in North America. Very fun.



The wildflowers were gorgeous! These are some forget-me-nots we saw along the way.


Lots more Pirtle adventures to come.

Glacier 2009

I have included the year in this title because I hope to have many more posts of our family going to Glacier. So far, this is my favorite place on the earth. We spent a whole week camping and had little desire to get back home. I have TONS of pics but will only post my favorites in case anyone has an attention span similar to mine.

This is my perfect postcard picture I took on our last hike the day before we left. On the top right is the Glacier we hiked up to. Being a photographer is easy up there.




Tony and the boys at Avalanche Lake...a popular trail. Holly did the whole thing on her own.


This was on a 2 mile ranger led hike (the kids had to do several of them to earn their "Junior Ranger Badges"). The ranger was going a bit fast for Mom's pace, but we all made it and had a great time...the views were just non stop beauty. There is never a dull moment...there is always something more glorious right around the next bend or over the next mountain.

Mom and Emery met us there and they took Aub back with them for a tour of historical sites including Mt. Rushmore. Lee will bring her back. (Yes...a week and a half without my Aub has been a bit tough....she's just growing up.)



Here's all of us at St. Mary Falls.



Among wildlife highlights, we saw a moose, bear, lots of mountain goats, squirrels, ants....

I could not get my mind off of our awesome Creator the entire time we were there. Nothing that breathtaking could be done by accident. He has put it all there to show us how magnificent and powerful He is....and this place is just the tip of the iceberg (no pun intended.) He has placed it all just how He wanted it to make us seek Him. If He can do this...He is certainly able to handle my life and the problems therein. It encourages me to trust Him more.

"For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities-His eternal power and divine nature-have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse." Romans 1:20

Summer is Here!

We went camping in Great Basin National Park over Memorial Day. We had a great time! It is not a very popular park so very few people go there. Due to it's high altitude, low humidity, and low light pollution, this is supposed to be one of the best places to star gaze. We were hoping to get some star gazing in and took our telescope to no avail. It was cloudy just about all of the nights we were there. However, we did lots of hiking and checking out the area...hoping to get back there soon. Here we all are with a view of Wheeler Peak in the background.


In June, John and Jill watched the kids and Tony and I got away for the first time in a few years. We went to Snow Basin. We continue to be amazed with the beauty we get to enjoy so readily here in Utah. Here we are together...(we couldn't find anyone on the trail to take our picture.)


Then it was John and Jill's turn to get away....which meant 10 kids for me for a few days. We kept a pretty busy schedule with sports and various activities but we all had a great time. We are blessed to be so close to their family. On Friday we all went on the Crimson Trail (about a 4 mile loop.) Holly & Joshua (3&4) whined just a tad but made the whole thing. Dusty Vaughn took this beautiful picture on the trail of Indian Paintbrush (my favorite flower) per my request. I had to post it on here. He is a great photographer! Thanks, Dusty!



Then all the Pirtle and Schadegg kids sat through Aubrey's recital patiently. She did great. I know the video is dark...we have limited technology.


On Saturday Tony and I loaded nine of them up in the car and went to the Air Force Base to watch the Thunderbirds. Although he and Cameron were blown away, the rest of us were mostly hot and tired. Here is Tony, Holly, & John...also Cameron and Simeon.



As you can see, Cam is in heaven watching the Thunderbirds. Holly and Caleb are also fascinated, taking a nap on the nice, hot, cozy, concrete.



This next picture is totally unrelated. Here is Caleb taking a nap with our cat, Apollo (MY birthday present.) The cat CANNOT stand me but adores Caleb who harasses him endlessly. Anybody want a free cat?


It is only the beginning of June but summer is in full swing...My Shannon comes to visit tomorrow, Aub is currently in Orchestra camp, the boys will be going to wrestling camp, Cam just went to his first Scout camp, and Aub made one of the competitive soccer teams in town and is thrilled! More to come with all of that.

That's our family for now. Lots more coming this summer....Glacier, visitors, more camping. Pretty exciting stuff!
God is so GOOD!

Another Long Journey

We have been back for almost a month but I am just now feeling caught up enough (did I just say I was caught up?) to update my blog.

The kids and I took off the end of March on another long journey to see family. We went to AR and TX to see both sets of grandparents...and my Rachel. We all had a great time. I am horrible at taking pictures so most of them are on the way back.

First we went to see my Rachel. We climbed up Sugarloaf Mountain (or hill...depending where you live) in Searcy and had a great time hanging out. Love her so much!

We spent Easter Sunday with Tony's parents and they all got new outfits from Grandmother....they never look this good when their Mom is in charge.

We spent lots of time at mom's fishing and being outside enjoying the nice, Arkansas Spring weather....it snowed at home the whole time we were there which made it all the more enjoyable. We went to a Ladies Day at mom's congregation...I left very encouraged.

On the way home we decided to stop at a little space museum in Hutchinson, KS to satisfy my astronaut to be. If you are ever there...YOU MUST STOP!!! It was amazing. Here are a few of the highlights (in my opinion, anyway.)

Here are the boys deliberating the future of space travel in what is called the "white room." It is the room that almost every Apollo astronaut entered just before getting in the spacecraft for liftoff. Cameron was thrilled to be standing in the same place Neil Armstrong actually stood at one point.

Here Aub and Cam are admiring a moon rock gathered by the actual Apollo 11 crew.

This was the highlight for Cameron....the actual command module (the thing that falls in the ocean for those not as up on your Apollo technology as I am) for the Apollo 13 mission.

Here is the hotel pool where we stayed in Hutchinson....it even has an indoor waterpark! Cameron was very serious about appearing to be on the moon.

The kids are with my mom...who helped me drive there and back. What a trooper...THANKS MOM!

We got home in time for soccer season and Dad and I are glad to be done with it. Now onto summer camps, gardening, camping, and visitors.

My garden is planted a bit early this year...praying mother nature doesn't have one more frost in store for the year.

Tony is getting the camper tuned up for lots of trips planned this summer....including a star gazing trip to Great Basin National Park in Nevada over Memorial Day. But Glacier is going to be the absolute highlight we are all looking forward to.

Philippians 2:14-15

"Do everything without complaining or arguing so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life..."

"We Are Family"

Thank-you to my tech support, Josh, for spending that "few minutes" figuring out how to put music on my blog...it makes it a bit more cheery, I think!

Lots is happening in Pirtle world right now....busy, busy, busy.

1. We are preparing for another long, long, journey to see family during just about the entire month of April. The kids are THRILLED to get to see everyone again.

2. Cameron is proud of his pinewood derby car he and (mostly) his Dad made for Scouts. It is orange, of course. It was fun to see Tony get so into this. At the Derby, you could tell which ones the kids made and which ones the Dads made....it was quite funny. Cam's was somewhere in the middle and they both did work on it.

His is the orange one in the middle.

Here he is observing...the lonely homeschooled kid :-)

He is very proud...not even acting a bit silly...these races are a VERY serious event...for those of you who aren't familiar with Scouting.

Holly was taking the event very seriously as well...here she is, as cars race and fates are determined, cleaning out her toe jam just for the occasion.

3. Science, as always, is fun. Here is the homemade bottle rocket Cam made....with no help from any adults (if you could see it closer you could tell.) We launched it in the March snow....OK, we're kind of over the snow now!

4. And last but not least...we are very proud of Aub. She wanted to race this year in the annual ski race at our ski area. Last year she won 3rd place and this year she won 2nd place. Next year she says she will get 1st. She was very proud. Here she is up on top getting ready for her turn. By the way, this is where we LIVE...we are NOT on vacation...isn't it gorgeous?

Our Family Away from Family

I just wanted to blog in tribute to those who surround us who make up for the fact that we have no biological family here in Cache Valley. God has blessed us immensely with a small but loving body of believers who are very supportive and giving.

Josh and Susan decided on Valentine's Day to surprise us and let Tony and I go out on a real date all alone while they took the kids ice skating. They are always looking for ways to show support and love for our children and, needless to say, our kids adore the two of them. Holly even wants to marry Josh someday (I'm pretty sure he'll still be taken.) Tony and I were very touched that they were willing to give up their time together on Valentine's Day and spend it with our children.

As a homeschool mother of 4 there is nothing you appreciate more than a little help in the academic department with your kids. Science is not my forte, however, I have children who now live for it. Heath and Kendra VOLUNTEERED to teach the kids science on a regular basis. They have made it so fun for the kids and they have all learned a ton. Heath and Kendra have learned also...they are sure they only want to have 2 children, NOT 4! The kids all think the two of them have the answer to any question a person could conjure up in their mind. Here are some pictures Kendra took of our journey to academic excellence:

This is one of our first lessons on static electricity. Cameron is quite proud of his accomplishment with the orange balloon.

This is Heath electricuting the girls with electricity they produced with a simple lemon.

Here are the kids testing the reentry of a rocket onto the earth with a parachute. If you could see Heath's face, you would see anticipation...he was a bit skeptical as to whether or not this was going to work. The kids are building their own devices this week to try out on a poor defenseless egg.

Here is Cameron receiving his first "Bear Scouts" award at a banquet. If you'll notice in the video...none of us are there. Tony and I had made plans for this night months before this so the Schadeggs went with him to support him. Josh and Susan were there earlier that night as well. It is truly immeasureable the blessing the Shadegg family is to us. We are grateful to have them in our life.

I am grateful that God has provided a family for His children outside our "family" as a source of love and support. These are just a few examples of how blessed we are. There are many families here who we are blessed to have in our lives.

"Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful." Colossians 3:14-15

We are grateful and we do love you all.