Grotto Trail Hike

We had a fun Family Home Evening tonight. We hiked the Grotto Trail in Payson Canyon. I've been wanting to go there for a long time. We hiked it once with the Maple Dell Ward back in 2004 when I was pregnant with Rebekah. It is awesome! We had a great time. Even our tuna sandwiches tasted good. If you want to go there, it is 6.4 miles up Payson Canyon. It only takes maybe 20 minutes to hike to the Grotto, and then you can play in the water and/or under the waterfall. There was more water there than the last time. It made me want to move back to Payson. I am definitely going to plan a hike day with my siblings and their children. We just have to figure out how to get Cassidy up there. :-)

Pirates on Parade

On June 13th, we had our annual family BBQ at Janice and Lorin's for the Orem SummerFest fireworks. Usually we skip the parade, but this year Pirate Island had a float in the parade, so we had to go and watch that part. Roy rode in Matt's truck, and Elisabeth was the beautiful pirate princess up on the top of the float. (She was very happy when she saw some of us in the crowd.) Roy's dad was also in the parade with the veterans. The weather was super rainy that day. It was horrible in the afternoon, cleared up for the BBQ and parade, poured like crazy again, and then cleared up for the fireworks. There was a beautiful rainbow during our BBQ. That's twice in 3 days. Good omen!

Torri Lyn Martin

This post is WAY past due, but I just wanted to put a little something about sweet Torri who passed away on June 4, 2009. We agonized with her family for 2 months while she was sick at Primary Children's Medical Center, and I was privileged to visit her just hours before she died. We are still so sad that she had to leave us, but we know that she is happy and carefree and busy with Samuel doing lots of important work for our Heavenly Father. I truly believe that she and Samuel and the others in our family who have passed on are our personal guardian angels. Her funeral was beautiful, and yet somehow I was still a total disaster that day. I guess I was reliving my own experience, but with the added pain that I felt for Brad and Cathy. We are so blessed to have the gospel of Jesus Christ in our lives. Here is a picture of Torri with her mom , Cathy, who is my (Laura's) first cousin.

Cathy and I are the same age, and we just can't believe that we have each had to say goodbye to a child. I am sure we will help each other as we press forward. And we will rejoice together when we are reunited with our babies. I love you, Cathy! The evening after the funeral, there was a beautiful, full double rainbow. It brought such warmth to my heart as I reflected on the significance of rainbows and how they are reminders of our Heavenly Father's love for us and that He always keeps His promises. (The pictures don't do the rainbows justice; they were really magnificent.)

Happy Independence Day!

July 4, 1776