EAST CANYON RESORT...

All I know is that this was my type of camping for sure!!! This last weekend we had a camping trip with a bunch of Grady's friends planned but between gall bladder's being taken out, pancreas problems, and a baby born, our bigger T-Ville group dwindled down to just us and our best buddies, the Roberts. As usual, we had a great time together! At the last minute we decided to head up to East Canyon Resort where Barry and Heather have a membership and boy am I happy that we ended up there! It was awesome! For those of you who haven't been there, it is beautiful! Not to mention the nice grassy area, clean bathrooms and showers, already made fire pits, a kiddy park, shuffleboard, tennis courts, little country store, and a really nice pool and hot tub! If you're gonna camp, that's the way to do it! Now I just have to talk Grady into getting us a tent trailer or RV...putting up tents is for the birds! Luckily, the Roberts have a nice RV and we were able to put all the boys down for a nap in there, which saved us big time! What I learned this trip is that camping takes 2 days to pack and prepare for and 2 days to unpack and clean up after! It's a lot of work and while Heather and I were discussing this matter, we mentioned an Ensign article that we both had read about this very topic. I thought it would be fun to share, because I think it's such a good reminder! I truly feel that one of the most important roles of a parent is to provide a happy childhood and wonderful memories for my children. I had such a wonderful childhood growing up, and I guess if it means all the work that camping entails, I would do it a thousand times over again for my children to have the same type of happy memories! Here are just a few pictures from our fun 2 nighter camping trip!

Logan & Porter just hangin out and stuffing their faces!

What boys do best...explore and get into trouble! But at least they had fun while doing it!


Grady playing catch with the boys and the doggy!


Fun at the pool! My parents and sister (with her 4 kids) came up to join us on Saturday for lunch and to play in the pool. We had a good time with them there and are glad they came up for a visit!

The boys LOVED all the rocks around...they threw them, piled them in their chairs, ate them, hit eachother over the heads with them, and were sent to several time outs because of them! BOYS!

Barry and Heather

Grady and the boys...our last night.

Thanks to Heather and I we had the yummiest food on this trip! On our last night we had tinfoil dinners...this may not look too appetizing, but Mmm...GOOD!!!! Followed by Smore's of course!

On our way home and all tuckered out!


April 2008 Ensign
The Gift of Memories
“I love camping,” six-year-old Sara said as we returned home from a one-night camping trip. “When can we go again?”
I didn’t love camping. By the time my husband and I had prepared for every conceivable camping emergency, I was exhausted before we’d even left the house. Add to that the discomfort of sleeping bags, air mattresses, insects, and dirt—not to mention the hassle of keeping cold food cold and hot food hot, then another day of unpacking and washing when we got home—and I wondered, “Is one night away from home worth all this hassle?”
“Camping is no vacation for moms,” commiserated a friend. “I didn’t enjoy it at first. But my husband has so many wonderful memories of camping as a child that he really wanted our family to have that experience.”
One phrase from that conversation opened up my mind to the bright light of personal inspiration: “He has so many wonderful memories of his childhood.” I wasn’t just rearing children; I was preparing a future generation of parents—a generation that would need all the positive experiences I could give them to cope with an increasingly challenging world. Was it possible that children who have a happy childhood will be better parents?
The parenting puzzle of thousands of pieces came together into a whole picture for a moment. I couldn’t live my children’s lives for them, but I could give them a well of joyful memories from which they could draw throughout their lives.