Chapter One, in which we participate in an extreme sport

Late in the day on Saturday, after a long, weary day of driving, we entered the Valley of the Sun and were greeted by one of its famous monsoon storms. Lightning flashed, rain came down in sheets, the wind rocked our jeep. By the time we reached our driveway, it was over. It was our welcome home after our annual month-long sabbatical in Utah.

The past couple of days I've felt disoriented (and really sweaty) as I've attempted to wrap my head around reality again. In the past month I've spent a total of 10 minutes on a computer; I haven't kept up on my friend's blogs, I haven't read the news. I barely checked my email. So now it's back to dishes and laundry and trying to find ways to occupy my little ones while it's too hot to go outside.

Maybe going through my 340 pictures will help me make the mental transfer back to real life. Don't worry, I won't dump them all on you. At least not all at once.

I'll just start off with.... Go carting!

We spent the first week of July with Spouse's family in Bear Lake, Utah. Our children love to come to Bear Lake and do the same things every year: dig in the sand, play in the pool, ride in the boat and dig in the sand some more. But this year a new pastime was added to our Bear Lake traditions. Thanks to a spiffy new go-carting track, our kids got to enjoy the high-speed thrill of go-cart racing!


Buster and #1 weren't tall enough to reach their gas pedals, so the attendant propped them up with several big pillows. Even then they could barely reach! #1 was practically horizontal!

Buster with one of his favorite cousins and Grandma J.

Here is #1, with a couple of her awesome cousins, wearing the t-shirt she painted.

Come back tomorrow for more pictures from the land of green and mountains and Aggie Ice-Cream.