Summer Time

"Oh, What Do You Do in the Summertime?"

Words and Music by Dorothy S. Andersen

Photography by Melissa

Oh, what do you do in the summer-time, when all the world is green?

Do you fish in a stream, or lazily dream

on the banks as the clouds go by?

Oh, what do you do in the summer-time, when all the world is green?

Do you swim in a pool, to keep yourself cool,

or swing in a tree up high?

Oh, what do you do in the summer-time, when all the world is green?

Do you march in parades, or drink lemonades,

or count all the stars in the sky?

Is that what you do?

So do I!

What are your summer plans this week?

Good-Bye Harry

We did it. We said good-bye. Somewhere around 7:30 p.m. tonight, our little family watched the last of the Harry Potter films. I brought tissues and we cheered and clapped and cried with 400 hundred other people. My most tearful moment came at the end when Harry, Ron and Hermione are shown standing together looking off into the distance. It hit me that that was it. After ten years of films, we will never see another new Harry Potter film.

Some people don't understand the hype and that's fine. Kelly and I have both read and shared the series, and Heather and Jenna have seen all the films. It's been a fun family adventure, and I know it's not for everyone. It was our babysitter, Ashely Snow, who at 13 told us her friend gave her a challenge--to read the first three chapters of book one and see if it interested her. Ashley had done that, and that's what got Kelly into them. It is a very well-written and clever series. If you're ever in the market for a new story, give it a go.

Theater Camp

My sister and nephew were supposed to be visiting this weekend and next week, but they were unable to come. Since they weren't coming, my girls decided to enroll in the Theater Camp offered by my good friends, Kathy Busby and Diane Christensen. The camp is a two-week adventure exploring all things theater and will end with a performance. They are having a great time with all of the activities. Yesterday, the kids painted shirts. Sarah and Jenna showed up in matching outfits they had planned the night before, and then they helped each other paint matching shirts that they had designed when they were planning their wardrobe.

Heather is having fun with her imagination, and we can't wait to see them perform. Kathy and Diane are outstanding directors who have a great way with the kids. We're so lucky to have this fun opportunity!

Yosemite 2011

This has got to be one of the most difficult posts in that there were so many pictures to choose from, and I wanted to express the feeling of beauty and majesty we felt with only a handful of the pictures. Our trip to Yosemite this year was just as amazing as last year. We saw the same sites, but they were all uniquely new as there was more snow this year and more snow-pack melting. The rivers were swollen and the waterfalls so swift and powerful. The sights took my breath away all over again. Kelly's brother, Kevin, and his wife, Beth, joined us on day two. It had been several years since they had been in Yosemite, and it had been later in the summer/early fall, so the water levels were down. The sights were just as powerful for them as they were for us. Here is a smattering of the pictures from our trip...

One of three deer we encountered just hanging out in the middle of the Disneyland-like crowds.

The view from our trailer door. Our campsite was amazing and situated just so that we didn't have neighbors to the left of us. It was unreal to wake up to the sound of the water every morning and fall asleep to that sound every night.

There are many cars and day-trip travelers, but those who camp bring bikes. It is so easy to get around to the little village and neighboring trails/waterfalls on a bike. I've never had such a stunning view while riding my bike as I have in the Yosemite valley.

Our first waterfall was the Lower Yosemite Fall. This is the "little" part of the two falls. Ha. The roar of this water was enough to make me nervous!

Our next hike was the Mist Trail going to Vernal Fall and then on to Nevada Fall. It was 7 miles round trip up some very steep rock, but SO worth it.

Here are the girls on the trail to Nevada Falls. You can see the steep climb as well as how large and powerful this waterfall was.

Day three with Kevin and Beth found us at Glacier Point. The entire valley is visible as well as the glaciers not visible from the valley floor. There was a ton of snow still on these glaciers (some is visible to the right of Half-Dome in this photo).

Glacier Point is over 7,000 feet and the view across to Half-Dome (above) at 8,000 feet is amazing. Below you can see the Vernal and Nevada Falls we hiked to as well as the Upper and Lower Yosemite Falls.

Vernal and Nevada Falls

Upper and Lower Yosemite Falls

The Merced River was like having a swimming pool in our backyard for five days. The girls couldn't get enough of it. Kelly joined them a few times while I, without a wet suit, could not stand the water for very long without losing feeling in my extremities. This was melted snow people!

On our last night, Kevin and Beth gave Heather her birthday presents. She got some darling clothes, a Justice gift card, and Just Dance 2 for the Wii. Heather was in Heaven!

Most evenings we sat around the campfire recuperating from our hikes and/or playing games. Both our families love to play games so we have lots of willing players. This was such a great trip that we can't help but want to make it a yearly tradition.

Floods and Campsite Closures

We're headed to Yosemite in the morning. As of June 15, news reports indicated closures in campsites along the Merced river due flooding. We are hoping to find our river-side campsite open when we arrive tomorrow afternoon. We'll call in the morning to make sure our campsite is not under water. And take a dingy.

Things we're looking forward to this week...

waterfalls

hiking

picnic lunches

bike rides

campfires

s'mores

games

starry nights

family time

Our 4th Celebration

We had a sort of quiet celebration this year. With no Stake 4th of July show taking up the majority of our morning and afternoon, we were free to focus on packing for Yosemite and relaxing. I did laundry all day, made a trip to WalMart for necessities (and some not so necessary fun things), and Kelly spent most of the day prepping the trailer and other camping essentials. We had a nice barbecue dinner with chicken and salmon burgers, corn on the cob and baked beans. Kelly and the girls found some time to play a little ATV on the Play station, and we opened our box of Pop Its, our version of fireworks in the city where they are outlawed. While throwing Pop Its everywhere, we were treated to some area fireworks that lit up the sky. We probably should have been way more celebratory, but we are out of practice! Usually we have the show and are too tired to do anything else. Next year we'll have to do something a little more exciting, although, I think today went just right for the hub as he likes chillin' out with his girls.

Stake Show

Our entire family is normally involved with the Stake 4th of July production. This time around, only Kelly was heavily involved. I stepped in to help with the little 3 to 5-year-old number, but that was all. The girls and I did not perform in our usual singing and dancing numbers, but we did invite our friends to come enjoy the show. The Moshers came on Saturday evening, and we watched the show with them. It was fun to be an audience member, but we're not getting cozy with that role. The Big Show is around the corner in the spring, and we will be back in the swing very soon.