July 20, 2014

This is a gift from Elder and Sister Kennedy.  He carved a Elk antler

and then with a wood burning kit put the image of a bird on

it.  The bird is a curlew and we have them here on the ranch.

Elder Kennedy knew we both love this bird.

The missionaries here are so talented and we are so lucky

they like us and give us the fruit of their labors.

It pays to surround yourself with great people.

He gave this to Jeff because he was feeling bad for

Jeff and his troubles lately.  He wanted to show him

his love for him.  Can you see what I mean?

It worked, Jeff was very touched and felt great love in return.

Jeff is doing much better. We got into a Doctor in Provo

that really went out of his way to help us.  They did a MRI

and now know what the problem is and we are in the 

process of treating it with drugs hoping not to have to

use surgery.  He was able to go on trek this week

with us.  He doesn't  walk but he can drive the support 

vehicles and Ranger, that means he is with us and part of

the group.  That was a good bonus.

This week was a special one for us.  It was the Holiday North Stake

and some of the Trekkers looked so familiar to us!  My nephew Eric 

and his wife Maylene and their son Travis were on the trail with

us.  How fun to be with them each day and enjoy the chance

to visit and laugh together.

This was at the end of the Trek and look how happy they are.

Notice the pizza boxes under my feet.  I was the official box

smasher, a job I can do well.  They had pizza delivered to

the Ranch gate, I believe it was over 60 pizza's.

One of the experiences they had the kids do was to see

what it was like to walk the trail without the use of their feet. 

They quickly decided that would not be the best option.

When we think of the pains and hardships these pioneers suffered

we are all humbled by their determination.

A new experience for us on Trek, we had one of the Support

Brothers bring his Kite.  It was a fancy two handled type and 

boy could it dive and swoop down.  He was a great guy and

let us all have a try.  What a tough kite, in spite of all our

crashes it didn't break!  Another bonus, no trees to catch

the kite strings on, and lots of WIND.

Another first, a trek dog!  On Wednesday night, the first

night this dog wandered into their camp.  She was super friendly

and she decided to spend the week with the Holiday North Stake.

She would walk out front on the trail, always leading.  She loved

all the attention and the kids took turns tying their neckerchiefs

around her neck.  She was also fed WAY TO MUCH FOOD.

So on the third night we took her back to the Depot to get

her away from the food fest.

We took measures to find her owner.  She has a nice 

collar around her neck so we know she has a family.  

She is also pregnant with babies.  We had several of

the Trekkers offer to take her home and even her puppies.

Side note:  Notice the SHORT HAIR.  I won't have to have

a hair cut again for a long time!  It works good under my hat

but I look kinda naked, or hairless.

She thinks she belongs to all the missionaries.  Whoever is

out she is with them. We did find her owner on Saturday night.

They have not yet come to pick her up.  What's up with that?

She belongs to a ranch that is just East of us.

The kids named her Jack and then realized he was a she

and then they named her Jackie.  So that is what we

call her, and yes, she comes to that name.

We took her back out on Saturday and she was on the trail again.

When the carts stopped she would climb into the Ranger with Jeff

and when the carts started back up she would run to the front and

lead the way.  She chased off cows and antelope.  She truly

made this a trek memory we won't forget.

Another first for us, they brought a buffalo to help them tell the story

of Ephraim Hanks.  It was huge and the youth and their 

leaders all loved looking at it.  A man from their Stake had 

killed it last year.  He brought it up in his car so they could

use it.  Now that is going the extra mile.

We have now finished five treks and have three more

to go.  We are enjoying the experience and the many

different ways each group do the same things.

Tonight we drove to Roy Utah to go to a Trek

fireside.  It was fun to see our new friends and

to remember together the fun we had.  They gave

us a DVD filled with pictures and we were happy to

celebrate their Trek with them.  Like they

say, "Thanks for the Memories".

July 13, 2014

This has been a tough week.  Jeff has a accident and now

he has some real pain in his hip and leg.  He is seeing a doctor and 

a chiropractor.  He had x-ray's and they found no broken

bones so they both determined it is nerve damage.  We are hoping

it is just bruised and inflamed and with time it will heal.  The

down side of this is he can sit with no pain but if he stands or walks 

it is difficult to bare.  He is pretty discouraged and could use your

prayers in his behalf.  Our assignment was changed this week

and I went with the Pratt's and their smaller Stake.  Jeff was

able to rest and when he could he helped drive people out to 

where we were.  Sitting isn't a problem, it is just the walking.

 This is the result of great minds!  They didn't have a garbage can

or a holder for the bag so they "Created" this beautiful, 

functional garbage holder.  We all agreed if they wrote,

"Duck Dynasty" on the legs it would sell like crazy.

At one point on the Trek they wanted them to experience the

trail on bare feet.  Many of the pioneers had no shoes and walked 

in the brush even in snow without shoes.  We helped them pick

a area without to many stickers and it was soft dirt.  They only

walked about a half mile, but it was a learning experience for them.

The choice to do so was theirs to make, those with medical issues

didn't take off their shoes.  No, neither did I.  I figured I 

will need to walk many more times. 

This is a game they had with two boards.  Everyone had a strap

over their shoes and they had to walk in unison it was fun to watch, they

were actually on the ground most of the time.  They had 

another fun game with knee high nylons and a fourth cup of flour

tied at the toe.  They then would WHACK each other with the

sock leaving a noticeable Flour mark where they hit.  A 

pioneer paint gun game.  I can't wait to try it with the kids at home.

Maybe I'll try it on the other Missionaries now, oh wait, I 

already did!

On Thursday night they had dancing on the prairie.  Those kids

danced for over two hours and were begging for more.  It

is always amazing how they drag themselves into camp, 

barely able to walk and a few hours later they are dancing

like crazy.  The power of music to brighten our spirits is

so wonderful.. The dark skies held back until bedtime and then

finally rained on them.  We have had four treks now and

we have had rain on everyone of those weeks!  It is nice

for the dust issue and the cool cloud cover helps when

we are trekking.  

This a a photo of the men leaving the women just before the

woman's pull.  Every week it makes me cry as I watch

them walk away and the response the men have to the 

whole experience.  The women are triumphant as they

reach the top, almost energized, the men are always in tears

and very emotional.  I'm trying to decide who feels

more here, the men or the women?

On Friday night they had a Sacrament Meeting as a group in

their camp site.  This is a picture of three Priesthood holders

washing and preparing the trays to use for the sacrament.  What

a beautiful picture this is of their reverence for the ordinance

they are preparing for.  A great memory for us.

This is me with my legs gone!  Half of Deb.

On Saturday morning they did a great experience for the youth

and really for everyone.  They called out the names

of those who had "Died" on the trail and then had them walk

away down the trail ahead of us.  It was quite a moment of

silence as we watched them leaving us behind.  Each cart

lost members from their "family",  one lost both their 

Ma and Pa.  They spoke to them about death and 

what it means and where they are when they die.  Just like

this, they go before us but are not gone, just out of our reach.

I know it effected me, I was crying, no sobbing really.

This Brother was playing his harmonica the song,

"Come, Come Ye Saints"  WOW.  I can't even begin

to explain the feelings I had as he played.  What a

blessing this mission has been to us.  We to are going through

trials and we to have to over come and go on.  The attitude we

take will determine our choices and our experiences.

One foot step at a time.

I don't know if you can see in the center of the photo is a 

handcart.  It was broken and couldn't finish the trek.  We

will get it next week and repair it but I wanted a memory

of that lone cart as we walked away.  Again a bit of

sadness.  How it must have been so difficult for the pioneers

to leave behind a loved one and move forward without them.

The pioneer stories are so filled with faith, hope,

endurance and accomplishment.  I hope one day those

same things may be said of us.

July 8, 2014 The Greene's Come to Visit

We were so lucky this last weekend.  We got a visit from the

Greene family.  We could hardly wait for them to come.

Climbing on the gate was the first of many adventures for them.

They loved the pot-gut, antelope, rabbits, eagles, ducks, cows,

and the best was the badgers!  They got to see three really close, even

had one HISS at them! One of their best  times 

was running around the Depot and getting the Swallows to  fly. It was

quite a sight, there are lots of Swallows nesting here!

 We offer as much fun as a trip to Disneyland.

This would be Jeff showing them the famous horse, Sliver.

He is a thoroughboard, his father is Stickateriat and his 

mother is Whispering Pines.  He got injured in a badger hole

so he has the bandage on his nose.  He delivers mail from

home to all the trekkers.

We took them up to ride the Bone Hollow Trail.  They even got 

to add some bones of their own, not theirs, some they found!

We went fishing, Sam is the only one who caught anything and

it was right when we first got there.   We never caught anymore.

Miah said it was because we let the first one go and he told 

all the other fish, "Don't eat the Worms!"  We think

she was right.  Morgan decided to try to build a forest in

the pond, as you can tell, we are lacking trees.  Maybe

we will go back there next week and there will be big

beautiful trees there!

We took them to all the special spots.  This is the Cheyenne

Social Club, No minors allowed.  We took their picture quick

before we got caught.  Inside was written a saying, 

"Due to the lack of interest, tomorrow has been canceled."

Elder Kennedy had a fun time showing the kids his collection of skulls.

Bear, wolf, antelope, mountain lion, and badger.

He let Ammon have one of his badger skulls.  Boy was

Ammon excited about that.  He is always picking up bones.

One thing about Ammon, on Saturday the day they arrived Ammon

lost a tooth so the Tooth Fairy actually visited Ammon

in Our Trailer.  That is a first for us!  The next day

Ammon found a tooth of something else, we think he

was hoping for another visit from the Fairy.

On Monday we all drove to Park City and met up with our

favorite Gib and Char.  We had a great time with them and

got to play in their neighborhood.

Sam was so excited when he finally conquered the Spider web

inflatable.  It took him a long time!  This was the result of all

that hard work.  They went on the Alpine Slide, a roller coaster,

zip line, a trampoline with training bungee's, and even a merry go round.

We had a fun time together, even Sigg was along for the fun.

Thanks for the great visit.  

Waiting

This is me waiting for the Greene's to arrive.

Waiting, Waiting, Waiting!

July 5, 2014

This week were were assigned GATE DUTY!  Yep, we got

to hang around the gate waiting to let in or let out the various groups

that were coming.  Our week started early, Monday one 

group came.  Then on Tuesday two more groups arrived, all 

leaving on Thursday, July 3rd.  They came early because

of the 4th of July.  On Monday the group was

over 460 people, WOW, they looked like a city!

Look at how tall the grass is.  All the rain we have gotten

has really let things grow tall.  It was hotter this week and 

things are starting to really dry out.  I feel bad about that,

the green was so beautiful.

Monday after we were finished on the gate Jeff and I took a 

ranger and went chopping thistle and we were headed to

bone hollow to check the bone trail markers.  We came upon 

this truck.  He is a intern working on the ranch for the summer.

He decided to drive his truck over a bridge that is designed 

to hold the weight of handcarts and ATV's, well, as

you can see, not a good idea.  His wheel was totally off

the bridge and he was stuck flat on it.  He was glad

to see us.  We helped him unload his 4-wheeler, (the one

he should have been driving instead) and he left to get

help to remove the truck.  

We went back to the Depot and reported the mess, the other 

missionaries figured they could get the truck off and were

hoping to not damage the bridge anymore.  So off we went.  

They took a big railroad tie and used that to wedge under the

wheel and a jack to lift the truck up off the bridge, then they

pulled the truck off.  He had left the keys in the truck so we

drove the truck back to the depot, called the ranch and 

they had to come claim the truck.  

The sad thing is not 30 minutes earlier two couples of 

missionaries were at the bridge putting on the side boards

so hand carts wouldn't slip off the side, I guess we didn't

figure trucks would try the bridge.  We now have two 

signs up that say "ONLY HANDCARTS AND ATV'S"

We have several really old trucks we use and we thought

we should hold the ranch truck for ransom and make them

trade us their newer truck for one of ours.  Good idea right?

We went one evening to check out a pond that is on the

property.  Elder Shields had taken his grandson there a 

couple of weeks ago and they caught some big fish.  We

are expecting the Greene's to visit and thought we'd

try it out.  Jeff's fishing line was old and broke

really easy so he didn't catch any, but we know they are

there.  We watched a muskrat swimming and diving in the

 pond that was fun.

Our job this week was to water and mow the lawn.  So

we got to use the riding mower, it took us awhile to get

it running.  Jeff took his turn.

Then quickly decided it was to bumpy for him so I got to

mow most of it.  It was a great way to mow a lot of grass.

We put out flags for the 4th of July,  Danette would be

so proud of me, decorating for the holiday's!

This would be Jeff playing with the umbrella.  Not soon after

this picture he broke the umbrella playing and spinning it.

Gate duty on a hot day.  Enjoying the good life!

June 29, 2014

This week we were with the Wellington Stake.  A smaller group,

only 105 people.  We were the only missionaries assigned to the

group.  Kinda scary for them!  We didn't lose any for very

long and returned safely to the place they started.

We had rain again, we are on a roll.  Rain on two treks

and snow last week.  The rain creates problems with the 

roads and getting support vehicles in and out of areas.  

Trekkers can get around pretty good, those carts can go

lots of places big trucks can't. 

We've made some great new friends and at the end of the

week we are sad to say goodbye.  It is amazing how quickly

you get close to some people.  And don't we look

good out in the prairie.

Treks have a way of binding people together.  We all

laughed, cried, learned new things and got dirty together.

This was taken on Murphy Ridge, the dust was pretty thick.

On Wednesday it was kinda warm and dry, but Thursday 

night it rained pretty good and all that dust became slimy mud.

It started to rain just as we were teaching them to dance the

Virginia Reel.  Yep, Jeff and I teaching dance, how funny

is that?  So funny it made the clouds cry with laughter.

After four days this was their group as they came back

to where they began.  As we went thru the last gate

I asked them, "You can make a choice, do you want to

go straight back to the cars or do you want to make a

hard left turn and start on the trail again?"  You

can't believe how many yelled, "Let's do it again!"

Now, that is a great pay off for us.  When they start

they are kinda not real happy, it is a "My mother made

me come" attitude.  How wonderful that at the end

they are saying how glad they are they came and how 

they wished it wouldn't end.  My hope is that they

never forget the feelings they felt here on the 

plains of the D.L. & L. 

June 22, 2014

This week we started on Thursday June 19 with the Roy Stake.

We, and they, were glad they weren't scheduled for Wednesday

because of all the snow we got.  By Thursday things were

drying out and the weather was perfect for walking, walking and 

walking.  This is Jeff talking to them before we started.  

He is in a big chute thing, I said he looked kinda like

a King Benjamin!

One of their food trucks was a actual refrigerated vendor

truck.  It looked so funny out in the meadow, they even had

the open sign on and the menu posted on the window.

We liked eating with them.  On the side it said,

"Greek Gallery"

This is actually from another trek.  The Tremonton Stake

came and did a trek based on the experiences of the Saints

from the first Vision to Nauvoo.  They built the Kirtland Temple

and then tore it down and built the Nauvoo Temple the

next day in a new site.  Sister Nordick and I decided

to crash their party and see the Temple.  We even got

our picture taken by one the the families.  Each week

we get to see all kinds of different things.

This is our Trail Boss,Wendell Rich, aka

Captain Willie.  He and Jeff celebrating a wonderful

trek, NO ONE DIED!  A first for Captain Willie.

What a sight this was, the trekkers heading into the

herd of cattle.  Can you begin to imagine how many

fresh cow pies there were?  The calls were funny to 

listen to, "Hole in the Middle, Hole on the right, Holes everywhere.

Pie in the middle, the left the right, pies everywhere.

A whole new meaning to "FRESH PIES"

Speaking of Pies, this was waiting for them at the finish 

of the trek!  The kids were excited to eat and the cooks

were happy to NOT COOK!  Me, I got to take the leftovers

back to share with the other missionaries, or not!

This is a booklet they put together for all the trekkers

and they gave us each a copy also.  At the finish they

presented to Nordicks and us a wooden plaque.  Their

theme was "I am ready now."  We really had a great

time with them.  They were very prepared and really easy

to work with when we had to delay or change things to

get things to work.  Our motto here is, "WE are Flexible"

Yep, that is me, I would now be the reigning Missionary 

Queen of Trek, notice the buckskin gloves, the rodeo

wave, the dirt on the shoes and pants (Oh you can't see it?

Believe me it is there) and of course the ever winning

decoration of ticks climbing up your pants and sleeves!

I know, true beauty is hard to beat!

Here is Jeff photo bombing the guest speaker for the

fireside on Friday night.  He is Richard Benedick the actor

who portrayed Ephriam Hanks in the newest movie.

He was a great speaker and how fun to see him 

there, with all the others in pioneer clothes, it truly

felt like we had stepped back in time.  At the end

of the evening a Sister Kirkman played the violin.

She played "Come Come Ye Saints"  Wow, what

a beautiful memory that is in my mind.  The county

we are in and the spirit that is here was overpowering.

I truly believe the pioneers are with us and are

celebrating our victories each day as we learn to

"Walk by Faith, one step at a time."