Big Trip Leg 1

From May 29th to June 16th this summer, my family took a mega trip out west. We planned to visit all of Jamie and my seven living Grandparents and several National parks. It was a good trip. I will post a photo chronicle of the trip in three installments. This is the first.This is how we roll! Taking a break at a city park in Colby, KS. Notice the Big Wheel strapped on the back, very cool.

We spent the night with friends, Kris and Lori Bockting in Parker, CO.

Taking an evening hike near where we camped in Sylvan Lake State Park, Colorado

Isaac and I took a nice hike in Arches National Park, Utah. We stayed at a nice campground in Moab, UT near the entrance of the park.

The wildlife museum in our hotel, Majestic View Lodge. Springdale, UT.

I have a feeling I will return here someday soon for a backpack; taking in the beauty at Zion National Park

We enjoyed a wholesome dinner and fun at this restaurant in rural California. An added bonus was that a train flew by every several minutes.

Big 12

The conference expansion talk of college sports has really become a bur in my saddle; and my beloved Mizzou seems to be front and center in the wanna-be-drama. We are like one of the five virgins who ran out of oil, luckily we have been thrown a life line and will still survive in a slimmed down Big 12 conference. As my post from last fall put it, the leadership at Mizzou and the governor of Missouri had no business talking (or failing to squall the talk) about Mizzou switching to the Big 10. Writing this down just feels good, it's like therapy, so I am going to keep going. Thanks to our leadership, we are the married woman who went to the bar with the mini skirt on and the cleavage showing. But the gentleman at the bar left and went home to our family and married one of our sisters while we were away. And now all we have to show for it is clothes that smell like cigarettes and an ATM card that was maxed out from buying shots all night long (our buyout money goes to the already fat wallet South).

As Joe Walljasper from the Columbia Daily Tribune puts it "Clearly, this is confusing..........In six months, the idea of Missouri leaving the Big 12 for the Big Ten went from possibility to probability to certainty to oops. "..................."That won’t help Missouri’s new image, perhaps best summed up by cantankerous Oklahoma State sugar daddy T. Boone Pickens: 'I want them to shut up about trying to figure out someplace to go.'"

Thank you Mr. Pickens, I hope our leadership is listening.
Of course, the past is the past and things have a way of being forgotten. Now the Big 12 will be down to 11 and 10 in the next few years. The basketball Big 12 is actually now stronger. All teams will play on each other's home court and have we arguably lost the two worst teams. There is no denying that Big 12 football without Nebraska is at a loss a little, but the championship game is gone which most are in favor of.
There are two things that I think Mizzou is capable of and should do in the final year all members of the Big 12 are present: Win the conference football and basketball championship. What you say?? Not possible? Well, basketball is probably more likely, perhaps even probable odds-wise, but how about the football team come out and beat expectations. We arguably have the best QB in the league coming back. Maybe we can run it a little in the first half so we can open up the lanes a little. We'll see. M--I--Z

My family is on day 15 of a 19 day trip. Some have said we are awesome, some have said we are crazy to take such a long trip. However full your cup runneth though, there is no denying that day 15 has been a good one. The picture above shows the Grand Tetons at sunset. This is where we are, this is where we rest. The black lava rock formations still with pristine white snow in June, and beautiful green valleys below; God spared no expense when He created the Tetons.

On the general itinerary I had camping as the plan for tonight, but a 50% chance of thunderstorms pushed us to decide to "hotel it." The boys had three hours today playing with the four young kids of one Jamie's friends from Med school this afternoon. Their family lives in Idaho Falls, ID and we also went out and visited their ranch today. And now we are at the Teton Springs Lodge and Spa in Victor, ID. It was a gem of a find and a small upgrade at check-in has us in a full condo. Not bad, not bad.