Fish Lake

We used to go to Fish Lake lots when I was a kid, but I haven't been since Chanel and I went back in 2012!  This year I decided it was time to go back, so I talked Chanel and my family into going.  And I'm glad that I did, it was beautiful!

Most of us drove in Friday, early enough to set up our tents before dinnertime.  We got all set up and ate some delicious salad before Bailey and I decided to go out fishing!

We brought our friends with us though we only had two poles, and we took turns catching lots of little fish!  Nothing really worth keeping, but it was fun to keep catching so many.  We ended up bringing two back to camp just to cook up for fun.

Chanel isn't really into that fishing life - she studied some Russian!

After dark we went back to camp to cook some treats over the fire, and soon enough grandma and grandpa were able to show up with their new trailer!  We all stayed up looking at the amazing stars for a while, and snuggling with cute baby Ayla, but were then off to bed.

The next morning started off with some fishing in a boat that Uncle Rob rented!  I seriously love boats!  It was the perfect temperature outside for some fishing, so we puttered around the lake looking for some fish to catch.  Seiji caught the only fish of the day, but it was sure fun to be out trying!

It got a little warm after a while, so we headed back to camp for lunch.  We sat around and enjoyed nature for a while, and my grandpa tried to teach Bailey how to carve a chain.  But then it started to rain!

It pretty much rained the rest of the day!  So we napped a little, watched a movie, and took a drive to the lodge to eat some pie.  You can't go to Fish Lake without stopping for some pie!  The rain eventually let up a bit, and we all braved the wind to build a campfire and cook some fish, hot dogs, and treats.  Luckily that night our tent held up very well, and we slept cozy in our dry tent.

This morning we woke up to rain on the outside of our tent, but the sky was so blue!  We knew it would be a sunny day so we ate breakfast, packed up, and headed over to Johnson's Reservoir to play for a while.

 

We did some fishing but didn't catch anything worth keeping.  Mostly what was fun was riding in the kayaks!

The water was super cold!  Not as cold as Fish Lake, but still pretty chilly.  Nonetheless, I couldn't miss this opportunity to swim in a lake (one of my favorite activities) so I jumped in!

We hung around the reservoir for a while, then headed back to camp where we finished packing up before we left.  It was just a little weekend trip, but it was lots of fun!  I do love camping!

The Second Half of July

Life is still work, work, work!  Looking forward to weekend adventures gets me through the long days.  There's not much time for fun during the weekdays, but sometimes we manage!

Bailey convinced my mom and I to go see "Hillary's America" with him just because he was curious.  It was truly something.  It was a "history of the Democratic party", but seemed more like a whole buttload of over-the-top biased opinion to us.  The "facts" that they used to try to prove that Democrats are evil were not applicable at all.  Not that we really like Hillary, but we could easily see through the crap in front of us.  It was quite ridiculous.  At the end the three of us just busted up laughing while everyone (as in, the only other family in the theater) was applauding and yelling "GO TRUMP".

A lot of my time is spent craving pickles (no, I'm not pregnant), and a lot of Bailey's time is spent trying to get the jars open for me.

Sometimes when I'm grumpy he brings me what I call a "pickle in a sleeping bag".  He puts a pickle in a paper towel just so my hands don't get all wet, but who can't smile at such a cute and delicious little fellow?! Oh, and that handsome guy in the blue.  Marriage is awesome.

Speaking of how awesome marriage is, we got to attend the wedding of our dear cousin Shawn and his adorable bride!  I wish we got a picture with them!  But really, we are so happy and excited for them to join the married people club.

Fishing With Grandpa Bud

Sometimes I really just have to get away for the weekend.  Luckily, I married a man with a grandpa who lives in Huntington, a small little town in Emery County.  We visited Huntington last year for a day trip, and I decided it was the cutest and most peaceful little town ever!  So of course this year we had to plan a whole weekend to spend there.

It was a bit of a drive, so we set off right after work and dinner.  We checked our garden before we left and grabbed whatever tomatoes were red to eat as our road trip snacks!

Of course we stopped at a gas station and bought some candy to snack on as well.

We arrived around 10:30pm and were greeted with a complete dinner!  We were still full from the dinner we ate at home, but we will never say no to second dinner.  Grandparents are so cute!  We sat down to eat with Bailey's cousins Deryka and Harley, as well as Grandpa Bud and his adorable wife Lana.  They then took us out to their camping trailer where we would stay, which I thought was super fun.  All of a sudden, my phone started to buzz to remind me to take my medication... which I had left at home!  Bailey and I panicked for a little bit but decided I would survive until morning... when we drove all the way back home to get my medication.

We got up early enough that we were able to make it home and back to Huntington before Deryka was even awake!  I was super frustrated at first that I forgot my medication, but by the end of our second drive to Huntington we were laughing and enjoying the time we got to spend just hanging out with each other.  We even stopped by a sports shop to buy some hats.  You know, I've never been able to rock a hat but I think I'm pretty close with this fishing hat.

We got back to Huntington in time to eat breakfast with everyone.  Grandpa Bud fried some eggs in bacon grease, which was pretty delicious!  We sat outside on the porch for a little while, because that's what you do in small towns, then headed off to the lakes for some serious fishing.

Huntington is surrounded by beautiful lakes and forests!  I loved looking out the window as we drove through the canyon.  I also got a good nap in, which was nice after having woken up so early!

We didn't get much luck at the first lake we went to.  Harley caught a bunch of minnows, Lana felt a bite, but the only fish we caught was this tiny little guy.

Grandpa proposed that we try a different lake and we were all for it!  We jumped back in the car, went to a different lake, and not long after we cast our lines into the water I got this nice guy.

We were truly in the middle of a fish hotspot, I'm sure they were having some sort of party because we just felt bite after bite!  This was the first fish I've ever caught by myself, because nobody had ever told me until then how to set the hook in when you feel bites.  Once I learned that little trick, I caught several!  We all did!

We got back to Grandpa Bud's house around 11:30 that night, and the boys got to work filleting the fish and cooking it up for a late dinner.  It was delicious!  After showering the fish smell off of us, we were off to bed.

I guess I only got one picture of the next day, but day two of fishing did not yield much success.  We didn't stay at the first lake very long because we weren't getting any bites or anything.  So we headed off to another lake where we caught a few little fish guys, but nothing worth keeping.  It was so beautiful there though!  There were so many blue dragonflies flying around, I've never seen so many in my life!  It was pretty magical until a snake showed up.

After that lake we said goodbye to Lana, Bud, and Deryka, and Bailey, Harley, and I headed back home to our Utah county!  Though it was just a weekend away, it was very therapeutic for me.  You have to take it slow while you are in a small town like Huntington, and you especially have to take it slow when you're fishing!  I move too quick for my own good when it comes to my daily life, so a visit with Grandpa Bud was just what I needed.

The First Half of July

You know, if I really thought about it and spent some time pondering, I could probably come up with a decent post title every now and then.  But you know, I don't know if blog titles are worth the energy to me.  Thinking that hard may put me on bed rest for the remainder of the day, so we will just stick with boring, straight-forward titles for now.

It is so fun being part of two families!  Bailey's family put together a big family reunion, and though I didn't know a good portion of the people there, it was still tons of fun.

Not that I know all the people at my own family reunions anyway.

We love Steel Days!  Even though carnivals are gross, we make an exception for this one every year.  We eat corn dogs and go on rides that make us regret those corn dogs!

I never though I'd see the day that Bailey becomes a Pokemon trainer!  While we drive, he has me watch for Pokemon, then when I see one he pulls over and catches it.  It is seriously ridiculous but I'll admit, pretty cute.

Don't worry, we really were parked!

My cousin Dawson thought he needed some pants hemmed so I went over to his house to help him out.  He put them on so I could decide how much to cut off and... they fit perfectly!  Haha word of advice: try on your pants before you ask someone to hem them for you!  It was hilarious though, and it gave Bailey and I an excuse to hang out with our cool cousins.  The evening included riding Kelci's new horse and Dawson's dirt bike!

Just a Little Hike

Last year Bailey and I went on about 4 hikes a week, I swear!  We assumed this year it'd be the same, but that's just not possible with our work schedules!  Good thing I didn't get that canyon pass I asked for for my birthday, it wouldn't have gotten much use...

I've been a little sad about our lack of hiking, so we made an effort this weekend to go explore the mountains a little bit.  We took a random trailhead that we used for our bridals... but it ended up being an empty campground!  Haha!  We hiked through it anyway because it was pretty and no one was there.

Somehow we convinced mom to come with us!  Which is always fun because we like her and her car has A/C.  She's quite the adventurer, and helped us from getting lost!

I'm so proud of my hair!  It seems like it is finally growing, and I can actually do things with it these days!

I mean, how many times do you get to play tetherball while hiking?  I've never actually learned how to play before, but Bailey taught me and it was fun though a little scary.

After our hike we decided to drive out the other side of the canyon to enjoy nature/see the sights.  We stopped at Sundance because I've never actually stopped there before.  We walked around for a little bit (there were plenty of Pokemon to be caught!) and bought some dinner at one of the little cafes.  It was a beautiful evening, and a fun time spent with some of my favorite people!

Obon 2016

I just love Obon!  My family has been doing Obon ever since they came here to America, and I love carrying on the tradition with my aunts and cousins.  I've danced in the festival ever since I can remember, but I'm still not sure exactly what I'm doing (dancing is not my best subject)!  Haha!  Maybe going to more than two practices a year would help...

If you didn't know, Obon is an annual Japanese festival with the purpose of honoring our ancestors.  The Salt Lake City Buddhist Temple ("The other Salt Lake Temple" as it says on their t-shirts, haha) has done an amazing job bringing it to Utah!  When I think of summer, I think of Obon after dark, surrounded by dancers in their beautiful yukatas, the sky lit only by the colorful lanterns hanging above...

Though I will admit that probably my favorite part about Obon is dressing up for it!  My grandma has the most amazing collection of yukatas and kimonos that have been in the family for generations, and it is always an honor to wear the turquoise one (my favorite) each year!

This was Bailey's second time at the Obon festival, and once again I was able to count on him to wear the happi coat.  He doesn't dance with us, but that's okay because he looks adorable anyway!

Kylie usually dances with us, but unfortunately her foot is still recovering from a particular Tennis Tuesday...

The crowd is allowed to join in for the last few songs!  Bailey is a pro at the Tanko Bushi since I made him help me teach it to my mom's 2nd grade class this past year.

My sweet cousin Nathan!

Anyway, it was a beautiful night as Obon always is!

Camping in Fillmore

I love our yearly tradition of camping in Fillmore for the 4th of July!

My uncle Rob bought some property in Fillmore a couple of years ago and has been building a campground.  We've gone for several years now, and it is fun to see it improve every time we go!  This year there were several cabins, a pavilion, running water (including showers), a kitchen, and a rattlesnake!  Oh but they got rid of the rattlesnake before we got there, so all was okay.

Seiji, Kylie, Allison, Bailey, and I drove in Saturday morning.  We set up in our cabin and set off on a side-by-side ride!  Not many people came this year, which was super fun for us because that meant we got to do everything without waiting for turns haha.

Camping is a strange thing for the fact that you don't have to do anything.  So we sat around and chatted while we snacked for a bit, then we took off to the creek to put melons in it.  Because what else would one do to keep their melons cold?  We took the cold water opportunity to cool off and soak Kylie's hurty foot.

The rest of the day consisted of visiting random places like Rob's rope bridge and some petroglyphs rumored to be written by Nephites.  I'm not so sure about that, but they were some pretty cute symbols I guess.

Rob's family got the cutest new dog named Daisy!  She was so friendly and playful.  Bailey plotted to steal her on multiple occasions.

We only stayed for a day in a half in order to get home for our immediate family 4th of July parties.  It was a shame to miss out on the fireworks show, but we had tons of fun exploring while we were there!

The matching Nirvana shirts were not planned!