Bead Lake

I clocked another 10 miles with my hiking group, Inland Northwest Hikers. This time we headed up past Newport to hike beautiful Bead Lake. This was a fairly easy trail that follows the lake shore most of the way. We dipped back into the forest a few times. There was an gorgeous primitive campground about 1.5 miles in called Enchanted Campground. Put a pin in that one for the future when you need a place to take small children backpacking, perfect destination for a child. The lake was a gorgeous clear emerald green color and we did not see another hiker the whole day.

Once again, Sweet Tater was the barefoot star of the group. They all love her so much and I am grateful for such a great group of hikers that are patient and willing to stop if Tate needs to wiggle or take a quick nursing break. We hiked in about 5 miles to a nice lunch destination in a shaded grotto of cedars and then headed back, taking a quick break to let people jump in the lake if they wanted to. Of course Tate wanted to swim so we put our feet in. She is getting a little bit harder to hike with. Even though she loves being outside, she is getting to the age where she wants to run down the trail. Between being strapped in to the car seat on the way there, and then strapped into the carrier we have found that 10 miles is her happy limit. Lets face it, she is pretty heavy, so 10 miles is also mom's happy limit too.

 

Anyone interested in doing this hike? Here is a link to some more info on how to get there. 

Girls Camp at Ensign Ranch

I was so so so happy to be called as a leader for Girls Camp this summer. I was called to be the 4th Year leader, which is great because everyone knows the 4th years are the best and have the most fun. Old enough to be mature and have all the fun adventures, and young enough to still think my dance moves are funny. My partner in crime was Lisa Nelson, my new favorite pal, she is hilarious and we have a ton in common and had so much fun together.

 For the 4th year overnighter we took the girls camping at Clear Lake. We went boating, tubing, skiing, kayaking, played games, made tin foil dinners and dutch oven cobbler. It was basically raining and cold the entire time, but the girls had such a great attitude and the water was warmer than the outside temperature so we had a good time jumping off the boat and swimming. The rain let up just enough to give us time to set up camp and eat with dry clothes on. I wish that I had some pictures, but since it was raining I never felt the need to get it out of my bag. The girls had a great time though and by the time we got to Girls camp, they were all a very close knit group.

Camp was at Ensign Ranch this year. This is a church owned recreational area that stakes can only come to every 4 years or so. It is located at the base of the Cascades outside of Cle Elum in a beautiful spot in a river canyon right next to the Yakima River. There were 3 other stakes there also having girls camp, and a trek was also taking place, but the ranch is so big we never really saw or heard the other camps. The camp theme was "Anchor in Safe Harbors", and our group's symbol of safety was a Whistle. ER was an incredible place. The whole camp was so forested and shaded that it was always nice and cool. The girls camped in rustic A-frames, there was a giant slip-n-slide, rifle shooting, horseback riding, a climbing wall, canoes, a rope swing, and hiking trails. They got a daily shower! We even convinced the stake leaders to allow the 4th years to float the river, it was way too much fun. My camp experience as a youth was NOTHING like this. Once again, I did not take hardly any pictures, I was just too lazy to get the camera out of my bag, but here are a few.

I feel so fortunate to have been invited to camp. I had such a great time and the spirit was so strong there the whole time. I feel so at home in our new ward and stake. One thing I noticed was how united and loving this group was as a stake. When I was a youth there were just too many girls in our stake to bother getting to know anyone. Also, we used to camp as wards so you never got to know anyone. This group loved each other, you could feel the friendship there.

U-Pick

There is something to be said about knowing where your food comes from. One thing that we have absolutely loved about living in Washington is the abundance of fresh produce that is grown locally. We have a huge garden plot in the Cheney community garden where we have successfully grown tomatoes, green beans, peas, peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, carrots,and a variety of squash. It has been a ton of work, trying to get that garden going while at the same time renovating our house, finishing grad school, and packing and moving. But now that life has slowed down a bit we are so glad that we put in the work early on. Almost every day I load Tater Bug into the bike trailer and ride across town to the garden. We pull weeds and harvest whatever produce is ready. Tate loves exploring while I work. Then I take Tate to the park nearby and she plays while the garden is watered. It has been worth the hard work to eat fresh veggies at every meal.

In addition to our garden, our new house that we have has pear, apple, and plum trees. We also have a very productive grape vine growing on out back porch. We have enjoyed the fruit trees, but they were pretty much neglected all Spring when we were fixing up the house. We have a lot to learn about taking care of them so that next year we have a better harvest.

A few weeks back we went to Carver Farms, just north of Spokane, for some strawberry and raspberry picking.  OH MY! They let you eat as much as you want while you are in the fields, and they you pay for however much you take with you. Let me tell you, there is nothing better than a sun soaked berry. Warmed by the heat of the sun they just explode in your mouth! We went with Erik's two sisters and their families. It was such a blast in such a beautiful setting. Tate ate and ate and ate berries, she knew just how to pick the good red ones. (Subsequently she had diarrhea for days after, but I would say it was worth it!) IT has been so amazing to see Tate develop and learn about where her food is coming from. She watches me work in the garden and knows just how to help. She can pick out the veggies and fruits and knows what is good to eat in the garden, it is just amazing to watch her love for the outdoors.