The "Great" Outdoors!

The Martin family went camping last weekend. It could've been awesome!... it wasn't.

So we've been planning this camping trip with 3 other families for weeks! We were all so excited! So we packed up and headed to West Forks - about an hour and a half away. It was soooo beautiful! We set up camp on the banks of a small river next to some huge, beautiful rock cliffs. We were excited to have spots on the sand becuase we thought it would be more comfortable to sleep on.

The moment that Dave finished putting the fly on the tent, the rain started. It was only sprinkling though so we still had fun, made lunch, and the kids had a blast playing by the river (which was very shallow and not very swift, so we weren't worried) But the rain came and went about every 20 minutes, so we found ourselves running into our tents for a while - then it would stop and we'd play outside - then it would rain again and we'd race back into our tents for shelter!

(inside the tent, waiting out the rain)

Soon, our sandy beach was a mud pit! Luckily, the rain stopped long enough to make dinner and roast some delicious marshmallos! Despite, the weather, Caroline loved the whole thing!

When the sun went down - it really started raining, and when we woke up, it rained and rained. Some of the kids were starting to get upset, but Caroline did great right up until Friday morning, she had to go to the bathroom and we walked out in the pouring rain again and she burst into to tears and cried, " I wanna go home!" So we all decided to pack it up and go home before the river water rose too high and flooded us out! The craziest part was on the drive home - it started snowing!


We still had some fun, but we were so disappointed! It would've been so great! I got a few pictures between the drizzles of rain on Thursday! We finally just finished cleaning and putting away all of our filthy camping stuff!

This is Caroline ROUGHING IT!

Sleep Tight!

Every night before we go to bed, David and I peek in on our little Sleeping Beauty and giggle at the funny positions she always seems to be in! This is what we found the other night: (I swear this is not staged!)

Yes, that is a baby doll stroller lying on top of her! The giant stuffed dog is "Franklin" - a gift from her Uncle Brad that she gets cozy with every night!

Looks comfy doesn't it?!

Dave has a college degree!!!

Dave graduated with honors from Western New Mexico University with a Bachelor's in Science on Friday! I'm so proud of him because he honestly has worked harder on his school work than anyone I know. Three years ago, he made a definate goal to refocus his studies and graduate with honors - and he did it! WAY TO GO BABE!

Make a Smilebox postcard

I've been tagged!

My sister-in-law, Brooke (who totally reminds me of the Brooke on this season's American Idol!) tagged me! So here it goes!

How to play this game. Post these rules on your blog. List 3 joys, 3 fears, 3 goals, 3 current obsessions/collections, 3 random surprising facts about yourself. Tag 5 people at the end of your post by leaving their names.

3 joys: Caroline snuggles, donuts, and Christmas
3 fears: snakes, moths (see random facts) and Hillary Clinton
3 goals: finally figure out how to make really good cinammon rolls, have an organized home, serve a mission with my husband.
3 current obsessions: again, donuts, "My First Place" on HGTV, and American Idol
3 random facts: I had to go to the hospital to have a moth removed from my inner ear. I have very crooked fingers. I love old Doris Day movies.

I tag Courtney, Jami, Alicia, Heather Hansen (I think Heather Scott's already done this one!), and Adrian. (my 4th current obsession is reading my friend's blogs!)

Birthday and Utah

Last Sunday was my birthday and my two favorite people made and decorated a cake for me!

Caroline gave me some candy and Dave got me a cordless hand-vacuum! It's funny - when I was a kid and my mom got stuff like cleaning or cooking gadgets for gifts I used to think, "That's so lame! She can't really want that stuff!" But now I'm the wife/mom and that's exactly the stuff I want!

On a sadder note, last week my Grandpa Max passed away. He was sick for a long time and we knew that it was coming. Fortunately for us, he spent the last year or so living with my parents so we got to spend more time with him than I had growing up. His funeral was in Utah, so as soon as I heard the news I started packing and headed to Tucson where I hitched a ride with my parents and my sister Karen. (which was nice because she lives in Houston and we don't get to see her as much as we'd like!) Caroline was a champ on the trip! She did so great! So we drove up on Friday, funeral was Saturday, and we drove back on Sunday! It was a whirlwind weekend, but I'm so glad I went. I've got an awesome family.

While it's always sad when someone passes away, this time, it felt different. I think knowing that he was ready to go, and that he would be reunited with his loved ones made it much easier. I think overall, just having the knowledge of the gospel and an eternal perspective, makes death less bitter for us.

By the way, I feel like crap. Allergies are raging and I think it's turned into a sinus infection. :(

Remember This Game?

Today, Candace was telling Courtney and I how great it was that Hannah loves the same old videos that she used to watch when she was a kid. As it just so happens, Caroline and I shared a similar moment today.

Every Tuesday Caroline and I go to the Toy Library at the college (yes, that's right - a TOY library. It's a room full of toys,games,videos, and books - you check out what you want and bring it back in 2 weeks! Love it!) Anyway, today we got the "Let's Go Fishing" game! I loved this game as a kid, and now it's even more fun to share it with my daughter! A true classic! Don't you love it when your kid gets excited about the same stuff that you liked as a kid? Caroline likes Carebears, My Little Ponies, and Sing-A-Long videos!

The Catwalk

Saturday, Dave surprised me with a picnic lunch and a trip to the "Catwalk". If you're not a Silver-Citian: the catwalk is about 1 hour and 20 minutes north of Silver City and it's a well-known attraction around here. In fact, when I told people this was my first time going there, they were shocked! It was built for mining purposes a long time ago, but now it's a beautiful hike along Whitewater River. The catwalk itself is a suspended metal walkway along the sides of cliffs and across the river. When you're on it, you can look down and see the river flowing beneath you!

It's a little over 2 miles round-trip, and Caroline actually did a great job walking most of the way. (That is until she had a little accident half-way...yes, one of those kind of accidents! I'll spare you the details!)

Caroline's favorite part was throwing rocks into the water!

It was so much fun! The weather was great and the scenery was so beautiful! This is one thing I love about Silver City - there are so many great outdoor things to do and see around here. I wish we had discovered this earlier!