The Journey - I have lost track of what day this is!

Hello again from Westcliff Colorado... we came down to "town" to get some ice cream today, so I thought that I would fill you in.

We have been having a great time at Camp. We have met some great people- (if you are reading this Trish or Jolene, I am talking about you!) It looks like we get to come back next year, although it will be a different week, so we won't see the same people. :o(

Hannah went on a horseback ride today. She loved it, but is now sneezing!


Bekah is loving the frisbee golf and bowling and she and her friends are building a fort!


tonight is the last night of camp. We need to say goodbye to all our new friends and head out tomorrow. We are going to drive to Glennwood Springs, Colorado. We will swim in their wonderful hot springs pool and then head to Grand Junction in the evening. Then On Sunday, we head to Idaho to my folks house (10 + hours). I will catch you up then. Later! J.

July 28, 2006 | Permalink
Comments
Very cool photography even without the "people." So you finally got to witness the "strip"...was it bumper to bumper like every time we drive it? It is interesting to see all the different buildings for sure. It's been too-too hot here but finally cooled down a little today. I know, who am I to whine when you're probably cookin,' but you know us wimpy SMers. Gotta go pick up the boy from Mania. Hugs, JR

Posted by: Julie | July 31, 2006 at 08:00 PM

Package was on the porch...all's well. jr

Posted by: Julie | August 01, 2006 at 07:34 PM

The Journey Days 3 to 10 and beyond

Day 3- Well, finding internet access has been interesting! I am finally back online to update you all. I am sitting in our car outside an internet cafe that has curbside access (for free... I am not stealing it!). This is day 10 I think, but let me tell you about our adventures so far.

We left Fresno and drove to Springdale Utah, just outside the Zion National Park gate. We drove through Las Vegas... I had never been there.. the stri p is very interesting. The kids were entertained. We saw our first lightning storm in St. George Utah. (A side note for the Barnes clan.. there is a taco time in several small Utah towns! )

Day 4- We drove into Zion National Park. It is very beautiful! The highlight for the kids was catching water drips from a cliff. They collected almost a 16 oz bottle full, which we are dutifully bringing back to California.



After we spent a few hours in Zion, we drove to Ruby's Inn, Utah which is just outside the gate of Bryce Canyon National Park. It is a cute little western town (all owned by the same family) and we went swimming. We continued to see spectacular thunderstorms that evening.

Day 5- We went into Bryce Canyon NP and spent a few hours. Like the day before, the girls did the Junior Ranger program, earning a badge from each national park. Bryce Canyon is spectacular! However, the bad mom that I am, I neglected to get any pictures with people in them! We were chased out by a thunderstorm and started driving to Ouray (youRAY) Colorado. We didn't arrive until 10pm... whew what a long day!



Day 6and 7- We spent some time in wonderful Ouray. There is a natural hot springs there and we spent the day in the pool there... AGAIN, I got no pictures of people. Only of the amazing HAIL storm we encountered. Then we drove to the camp at Horn Creek, Colorado. We encountered a hail storm on the top of Monarch Pass (11,000 + feet)... that was a little interesting to say the least. So... fast forward to today, we are doing well, adjusting to the 9000 ft altitude and enjoying our time here. We have been fishing (well Tim, Bekah and I) and Hannah has connected with a group of Jr. High girls and we really don't see much of her.




there is so much more to tell (all much funnier than this) but I am not able to spend any longer on the computer... Later... J.

July 24, 2006 | Permalink
Comments
Great pictures! Looks like you are having a wonderful vacation!

Cathy

The Journey- Days 3 and 4

Day 3- The Starbucks Incident - so ok, Tim needs to get a Starbucks fix before we get on the road. We get to the drive thru Starbucks and are concerned about the height of the car with the kids bikes on top... so we miss the place to order. Now we are in line with no order placed... awkward.. so the girls tell Tim to back up to the microphone (which by the way is at the other end of a horseshoe bend in the driveway) so he puts it in reverse and starts to back up. We get just almost to where we need to be and another car pulls up to the microphone! SO, we drive back toward the pick up window, still no order placed. We get to the window and the guy is polite, but obviously amused by the "tourists". So, Tim places his order and we are conversing in the car. Hannah throws something at the back of Tim's head. He reaches around and grabs out the sticky adhesive that had been on some object she just purchased. Meanwhile, the Starbucks guy reappears, and is standing there with a drink out stretched to Tim who doesn't see the Starbucks guy because he is saying "eewww! its a booger!!!!!!!!!". The look on the Starbucks guys face is PRICELESS! I jab Tim and tell him to take his drink and we speed off... good thing we don't have to see that guy ever again! We laughed until we cried for the next 10 minutes... Doesn't take much to amuse us! Ok, so really day three is driving to our Friends in Fresno. Fresno is HOT! It was over 108 when we got to their house. We immediately got in the pool!



Day 4- So today, the weather in Fresno is HOT... supposed to be 110 degrees. SO, I head to the pool. The kids are content to stay indoors and play hide and seek and video games. So, I have the pool to myself and I am lounging on a floating mattress. I contemplate my life. After that (which took just a few minutes... I am boring!) I decide that I LOVE where we live! However, while I am in the pool, listening to the birds, rocking on the water, I decided that if God ever wanted to move us to a place that is warm enough to have a pool (and CHEAP enough so we could afford one) that I would love that place too! We are heading out tomorrow to drive to Utah. Our destination is Springvale Utah (just outside of Zion National Park)... more later. J.

July 17, 2006 Permalink
Comments
That's classic...and since I know your family so well, I have no problem visualizing the whole incident!!! jr

Posted by: Julie July 19, 2006 at 11:46 AM

Janette-
I love your blog. Sounds like you and your family are having a wonderful adventure. Make sure you visit Zion, it is AMAZING!!! One of my favorite places in the world. I've started my own blog, check it out... mom2miles.typepad.com.
Hope to see you soon. Enjoy the rest of your trip.
Karen Ebner

Posted by: Karen July 20, 2006 at 09:37 AM

The Journey Days 1 and 2

Day One-Well, our big journey has begun. Thursday night we were up late, trying to get packed. By about 1:30 am I am not finished, so I set the alarm for 5:30 am. We needed to be out of the house by 8:30 to make our schedule work. Friday at 7:15, Tim says "oh my gosh!" which wakes me out of a very sound sleep... picture the exit scene from the movie Home Alone... "we overslept!"... mass chaos ensues. Long story short, we worked like mad, and acutally got out of town by 10:30... only 2 hours behind schedule. Tim needed to be at Bass Lake for a wedding rehersal at 4pm. We pulled into the parking lot at Bass Lake at 4:00 exactly... not bad.

We have never actually been to Bass Lake before... It is very beautiful! After the rehersal, we went to the rehersal dinner and checked into our hotel in nearby Oakhurst California... the gateway to Yosemite National park.



Day two- Saturday the 15th... we spent the day in the pool at the hotel. It was in the triple digits in Oakhurst today. The wedding was set to begin at 5:00 pm..lakeside. The heat was excruciating. The wedding guests were all fanning themselves with whatever device they could find. 15 minutes before the service, the power in the entire resort went out... no sound system.. it was still a very beautiful and meaningful wedding! The reception lasted until 11pm... we stayed almost until the bitter end.

Day 3 will involve sleeping in and then driving to Fresno to visit our friends, Jon, Dawn, Kelsey, Kirsten and Kordel. We are very excited... update to follow. J.

July 16, 2006 Permalink
Comments
Hey, ain't this bloggin' nifty? Did you get my fabulous photo I sent you? Knew you'd appreciate that...and the sound that came with it? Promise to make it more interesting next time...was just test-driving my phone. We are back from the mtns.HC survived although they were running low on water. Wedding sounded interesting...glad it went off without any "major" hitches. Take care and check in often! julie

Posted by: Julie July 17, 2006 at 11:08 AM

My Destiny...

guess that I am destined to have girly girls... me, the no makeup, jeans and t-shirt woman, has 2 girly girls!!!!

Here are two of my latest experiences with the girlyness of it all...

Saturday, we undo Bekah's braids to wash her hair. She looks in the mirror and says "I like my hair down like this!" and "Let's not braid it this time" ... so, we don't braid. She goes to bed with all the moisturizers and product in her beautifully springy hair... next morning... Not so beautifully springy, just BIG! She says "Well, this isn't what I wanted!" and breaks into tears. I try putting all the product in her hair again and pull it into the cutest curly ponytail ever... she is sobbing and saying things like "It looks like I have another head!"... SO, long story short... we are making an appointment for my 8 year old to go to the salon and have her hair relaxed! Me, I would have just cut my hair short and gone with it, but she is much more concerned about what her hair looks like (I don't think at 8 I even combed my hair very much!) Granted, it is not me that has the kinky hair, so I just dial the number and make the appointment. :o)

Ok, and the other experience... Today, Hannah, who is almost 12 and going into 7th grade, invites 5 girls to go with her to Jr. High youth group at church tonight. Thank goodness only 2 can make it... the shrieks and giggles are about to send me over the edge... AND we haven't even gotten in the car yet to go! Help me! I am never going to survive all this giggling! That is it for now.. wish me luck, say a little prayer, maybe I will live to post again! J.

July 10, 2006 | Permalink

Spending Freeze...

Well, after taking several days to put away all the stuff I either: A) Took with me to CKU that needed put away B)got in my classes and give aways at CKU or C) bought in the Stores in the bay area while at CKU, I came to the conclusion that I HAVE IT ALL!!!!! Well, not ALL, but enough (for awhile... Tim, stop celebrating!) and I need to actually use what I have! I know that some of you are saying "well, duh! That is what you are supposed to do!"

I have been purchasing the latest and greatest scrapbooking products for some time now... I have enough to open a small store... but I rarely find time to scrap, and when I do, I can't find my stuff cuz there is so much!

I have therefore put myself on a spending freeze... no scrap crap (as Tim would say) purchases UNTIL I complete 25 layouts. (I have 8 down, 17 more to go)... this is so hard for me as we leave to go on vacation soon and I LOVE to check out Scrapbook stores in other places!!! Oh well, less stops to make this year! Hopefully, you will see more new layouts in the Miscellaneous Layouts gallery soon! Well, I am off to bed! J.

July 08, 2006 | Permalink
Comments
You had better get to crack-a-lacking woman! This months kit is gonna kick some serious booty, and you are gonna have to have it!

And hey thanks for the shout out on the blog over there! I shall add you to mine too!

Posted by: Jamie | July 11, 2006 at 12:46 AM

Hey, its just me... scrappinjanettey!

Hey there! Welcome to my blog... why do I have a blog? I don't know... maybe because my friend Julie got one, and I must follow? Maybe because I am a horrible, terrible, no good, very bad corespondent and I want my family to be able to check to see if I am still alive? What ever the reason, I have a blog. For even more mysterious reasons, you are READING my blog! Go figure! I promise to keep you up to date of my very interesting life (hahaha!), and post my scrapbook layouts for my mom to see. Other than that, don't expect too much from me, I got C's in English! J.

July 06, 2006 | Permalink
Comments
Hey Janette!!!

Thank you so much for sharing this page with me! You have such a beautiful family AND it was soooo great to see that pic of your parents. Did I ever tell you that I used your mom's name for a character that was in a sitcom I pitched to the Studios? It didn't get picked up, but they loved the name!

Posted by: Louise Kane | July 07, 2006 at 11:30 AM

Loved your blog and pictures!!!! Keep up the good work, Janette!!

Posted by: Peggy Hofmeister | July 07, 2006 at 11:39 AM

Hey, welcome to blogsville! I will bother you and bug you when I visit your blog and see that you haven't posted for a while...hey, what are friends for! All looks good! I'm going to go look at your stuff now, bye! julie

Posted by: Julie | July 07, 2006 at 11:41 AM

Hey Janette,
how are all of you? I was going thru my mom's email and i found your blog. I just wanted to thank you for including cameron and me in you story about us thing.talk to you soon.
Love Lauri

Posted by: Lauri Bretz | July 07, 2006 at 04:07 PM

Hi, I love your blog. I also love your scrap pages. Are they the ones that you did at the CKU scrap??

Posted by: Dixie Bousman | July 08, 2006 at 08:32 AM

Blogs are ever so much fun! Before you know it you will be addicted like me!

Posted by: Jamie | July 08, 2006 at 08:16 PM

Nettie, honey....LOVE your blog! ( although I DID notice you spelled 'correspondent' with only 1 'r'....but hey'!, I'm your mother, so bringing that to your attention is allowed!)

Posted by: Mom | July 10, 2006 at 09:14 AM