The Trip Home

The Trip of a Lifetime

August 3 - We drove to U-Haul and dropped off the trailer then for 2 1/2 hours drove free of anything behind us. We picked up a boat for Keith from Lee and Greg Lowe close to Charlotte, NC, which was really convenient and pretty much on the way. We drove about 8 more hours to Nashville, TN and stayed the night. The boat was bigger and less maneuverable than the trailer so we didn't go sightseeing in Nashville. Rats. While in Nashville, we got settled into the hotel then ran about 1/2 block and across a highway to eat supper. While we were eating a tremendous downpour came rollicking through. They said it would usually take at least 2 hours to blow over and we waited quite a while to see if it would, but finally bit the bullet and ran through 2 inch water and drenching, cold rain. We laughed the whole way and had quite a fun time of it even if it was cold and we were wishing for some of that hot East Coast rain. Our shoes were still wet the next morning but we were ok since we had other shoes.

August 5 - This day we drove through Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, and stayed the night at Topeka, Kansas. We ran to Wal Mart the next morning for a few items and saw a place where I could do my nails, so I did since. They feel really elegant. The guy even free handed some pretty decorations for my thumbnails. It was really cool.

Colorado

The Trip of a Lifetime

August 6 - Drove to Denver, Colorado through some of the most wonderful farm lands God ever made.

August 7 - Came over Loveland Pass and didn't even burn the brakes out. The timberlines up in the Colorado Rockies are beautiful. It was fun to look forward to seeing Michael (who survived on his own and loved being in charge) and sleeping in our own beds. YEA! What a fantastic, dream trip.

We traveled through 23 states over 5000 miles and loved every minute. Dennis says he still likes me, too - big bonus!

Grandma Garner

Merintha Mae Blacker Garner passed quietly away in her sleep on April 25, 2009, after suffering a massive stroke two days earlier. If anyone gets a ticket straight into heaven, she will; for a better person has never lived on this earth. She loved unconditionally. She bore widowhood (15+ years), blindness, deafness, loss of her physical body, and pain without complaining. If ever she was inclined to complain, she'd say, "Now, Merintha, count your blessings." And that would be the end of it. I love that dear woman. She has set a perfect example of how I want to be.

J J J Jayda

Miss Jayda entered the world (with assistance via petocin and forcepts) on March 9, 2009 at 21" long and 8#6oz. She got to spend 10 days in the Primary Children's Hospital taking antibiotics for bubbles in her colon. She couldn't eat until the 8th day. Cherie had been pumping faithfully and things went smoothly. The first week she was out of the hospital, she gained a little over a pound. Her mama and papa were really concerned and stayed with her every minute they could. Jayda loves to be held and would sleep as long as she was in their arms. When she was laid down, she fussed. What a doll.

Temples

Hi, check out these great snippets:
http://www.youtube.com/mormonmessages
http://www.ldschurchtemples.com/slideshow/

7 wonders

New Seven Wonders of the World
1. Chichén Itzá, Mexico
2. Christ Redeemer, Brazil
3. Colosseum, Italy
4. Taj Mahal, India
5. Great Wall of China
6. Petra, Jordan
7. Machu Picchu, Peru
SOURCE: New7Wonders Organization


Original Seven Wonders of the World
1. Great Pyramid of Giza, Egypt
2. Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Iraq
3. Statue of Zeus at Olympia, Greece
4. Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, Greece
5. Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, Turkey
6. Colossus of Rhodes, Macedonia
7. Lighthouse of Alexandria, Greece
SOURCE: History.com


Readers pick their favorite seven wonders in Utah
In order of most votes:
1. Zion National Park
2. Delicate Arch
3. tie: Bryce Canyon, Great Salt Lake, Nine Mile Canyon
6. tie: Goosenecks of the San Juan, Temple Square, Capitol Reef National Park, Salt Lake City Library, Bonneville Salt Flats.
* Others receiving votes: Rainbow Bridge, Kennecott Copper Mine, Upheaval Dome, Split Mountain, Hovenweep, Grand Gulch, Cedar Breaks, University of Utah Art Museum, Mirror Lake, Great Gallery Horseshoe Canyon, Desolation Canyon, Alpine Loop, Brighton to Lake Catherine Trail, Spooky Gulch, Jordan River Parkway, Olympic Museum and Park, Olympic Museum at University of Utah, Olympic Fountain at Gateway, Olympic Oval, Snowbird tunnel, Alta Ski Area, City Creek Canyon.

Future vacations

Go to Google Earth and see the cool vacation spots via the Utah National Park system.

The Kolob Canyons section of Zion Park is located along I-15, south of Cedar City. It includes the western-most portion of the park. A Visitor Center is conveniently located along the road leading into this area. Zion National Park

Arches National Park is a geological wonderland. Set in the high desert of southeastern Utah, it is home to the largest concentration of sandstone arches in the world, some 2,000 in all. GoUtah.com

The Capitol Reef Visitor's Center is at the junction of highways 12 and 24. Capitol Reef National Park comprises 378 square miles of colorful canyons, ridges, buttes, and monoliths.

The largest quarry of Jurassic Period dinosaur bones ever discovered is the source of 200,000-acre Dinosaur National Monument's name. On August 17, 1909, 20 miles east of Vernal, Utah, paleontologist Earl Douglass discovered a 200-foot long sandbar of sorts which was layered with prehistoric plant and animal fossils. About 350 tons of fossils, including full skeletons and remains of some dinosaur species that were previously unknown, were excavated by Douglass and his crew. A quarry was built on the site and it was designated a national monument in 1915. A year-round visitor center has been built over the quarry to protect the fossilized dinosaur bones and skeletons. Dinosaurland National Monument

Grand Canyon National Park

A powerful and inspiring landscape, the Grand Canyon overwhelms our senses through its immense size; 277 river miles (446km) long, up to 18 miles (29km) wide, and a mile (1.6km) deep.

Mesa Verde National Park

Mesa Verde National Park is a U.S. National Park and UNESCO World...Mesa Verde National Park is a U.S. National Park and UNESCO World...

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Famous for its unique geology of red rock spires and horseshoe-shaped amphitheaters, Bryce offers the visitor a "Far View" from the eastern edge of the Paunsaugunt Plateau in southern Utah.