A Utah Family Travel Writer's Adventures with Altitude
What used to be my favorite day of the year is now my least. No neighborhood parades, trunk-or-treats, carnivals or school parties and only the battlecry, “Mom, NO ONE dresses up anymore.”
Middle school: the death of the dream.
Mario and Princess Peach during happy neighborhood parade in 2010.
I can’t believe I’ve gotten so far behind on posting here…I still haven’t published all the fun details of our end-of-summer family reunion to Bear Lake!
October was a whirlwind and I can’t believe Halloween is next week. Usually, our month is chock-full of trunk-or-treats, parties, pumpkin patches and corn mazes but we haven’t done anything here besides Jamie’s pumpkin party and two weigh-offs (which are a bit of a letdown compared to Colorado). There aren’t many seasonal opportunities in our new area and the kids just aren’t as into it all as they were when they were little. Cue the mourning. Hadley doesn’t even want to go trick-or-treating this year but I hope to convince them both to hit Park City’s Main Street because they do a fun event after school on Halloween.
A few updates:
Our ward (congregation) is like our extended family and we’ve been blessed with a great one in Midway. A couple of weeks ago, our stake (organized from a group of contiguous wards) was split into two stakes and two new wards were added in our little town (yes, it’s growing that much here!) Everyone’s boundaries were realigned and we were so relieved to stay with all of our friends!
We spent a glorious fall break in California last week!! We’re still paying off all our car problems from last summer but when I was invited to spend a few days at the ocean by their visitor’s bureau, we jumped at the chance to go on the cheap. And then Jamie’s car (our only functioning vehicle) broke down in Vegas while en route (just another reason to hate that place) so we have even more expenses. It’s starting to feel like we’ll never catch up and it’s tough to not feel disheartened by this.. But I would like to actually have grass someday, maybe even a finished basement, dental work done for the kids and oh, I don’t know, how about a car that works? I’d really hoped to go home to Canada for Christmas but my Pilot is totally out of commission (it’s sitting in our garage until we can afford to replace it) and there’s no way Jamie’s Camry can endure the winter driving conditions to Canada. I try to remind myself it’s only been a year since our move and these things take time. And patience. But right now, I have too much time and zero patience!
Fall has been glorious so that has meant a lot of hikes with friends and family. I had a magazine assignment with AAA EnCompass Magazine. Once that wrapped and I found out I didn’t get that BYU job, I tried to spend as much time in the outdoors as possible. Free therapy!
Having two middle schoolers is no joke. OK, more like one 13-year-old girl. Bode is still easy but I have no doubt once the hormones kick in, he will have struggles of his own. We’ve been battling boyfriends, grades, cell phone obsessions and so much more with The Girl. During our trip to California, we put a kibosh on screentime and it was glorious to just be together and gave me hope there there is still a human inside that teenager. Somewhere.
Bode wrapped his short soccer season. We’re so pleased he still wants to play rec vs. selling our souls to competitive. He’s the superstar on his team, which (in my opinion) is a lot better than being an average player in an ultra-competitive league and being required to travel all the time without guaranteed playtime. I’m quite happy as a mediocre soccer mom! He scored four goals on his last game, a great way to end the season.
I’m not in a super great place right now and am frustrated by my lack of direction, my persisting knee problems and how out of shape I am because I can’t exercise without pain. I still have all my work out of Denver but I’m ready to move on and nothing is coming together here (and our finances aren’t helping my frustration). I’m not the kind of person who waits for things to happen but that’s what I’m being required to do.
My BFF Lori’s son got married a couple of weeks ago and I had an awesome chat with her sister, Leslie. She is one whose life hasn’t worked out how she planned but has made a tremendous go of it. “I’ve found that the answers don’t always come when or how you want them to,” she said and then made a very insightful comment: “However, I can promise you that when you pray for Peace, He will always grant you that, even if answers aren’t coming.”
Peace Out. Here’s to getting caught up and life figured out.
XO
On October 8, we celebrated our 1-year anniversary for moving into our house. It was also Canadian Thanksgiving so nothing says “Happy Thanksgiving/1-Year Housewarming quite like our favorite dish from our local Mexican restaurant: The mighty Molcajete.
My mom is no longer able to travel and my dad has been her full-time caregiver for quite some time. My brother Jade, his boys and his new bride moved back home while Jade looks for a job so there was a small window of opportunity for Dad to come visit. My sister-in-law Jane helped in the evenings after work and I’m super grateful to everyone who pitched in because we had a really wonderful visit. My dad spends so much of his life taking care of everyone else so it was nice to give him a break.
The great thing about my dad is he’s super low-maintenance and we both love the outdoors so he was easily entertained. The colors were peaking in the mountains so he witnessed some serious fall splendor.
Day 1
Arrival, tour of Midway and drive up Memorial Hill.
Day 2
The weather forecast was iffy for the first several days so when we saw a window of opportunity, we took it to bike Provo Canyon Parkway to Bridal Veil Falls. Some of my favorite memories with Dad are of biking Calgary’s extensive network of bike paths so it was fun to share with him one of mine. That night, he treated us to dinner at Tucanos Brazilian Grill in Orem. 
Day 3
The Pumpkin Party!!!!!!!!!!
Day 4
The pumpkin weigh-off. Jamie took us to dinner at Tarahumara Mexican Restaurant to celebrate. And yes, that’s a giant pear. Pumpkins aren’t the only things that can be grown BIG!
Day 5
Church and SNOW?! This put a damper on our plans to see the Kokanee salmon run that afternoon but believe me when I say it worked out for the best.
Day 6
This was my favorite day! Due to our weather delay, we decided to drive up to Strawberry Reservoir on Monday to catch a glimpse of the Kokanee salmon run. If we had gone at any other time, we would have seen some of the salmon in the Strawberry River next to the visitor center (pretty cool) but because we went at this exact time, we got an in-depth look at the process in the Catch House (really cool).
There are only two mornings open for the public to access their fish trap station and it was FASCINATING to see the hundreds of bright red fish. We piggy-backed on an elementary school’s tour and listened as DWR biologists talked about the peculiar life cycle of the fish and how the Kokanee usually spawn when they are four years old and die quickly thereafter. As the fish instinctively swim up the river, they are caught in the trapping station and the male and females are separated until they’re ready to spawn. Since the females are going to die anyway, they are cut open and the eggs are squeezed out. They then take the males and squeeze the milt out of their bellies and fertilize the eggs. In the wild, the average female has 1,200 eggs but only two survive in the wild. Through this process, there is a 98 percent survival rate that helps guarantee the survival species in Strawberry Reservoir.
eggs
One of Dad’s must-do activities was a leisurely soak in the Homestead Carter, a geothermal spring hidden in a 55-foot tall beehive-shaped limestone rock formation so the kids joined us after school.
To top off the day, we participated in the final Monday Midway Cruiser Cruise of the season. Every Monday night May through September, people in our quirky town gather for a casual bike ride on the beautiful country roads. For the final ride of the season, organizers christened it “The Bike Prom” and it was so fun to see all the awesome costumes. Jamie called me a flamingo but Hadley’s friend Zoe said I looked like a 1980s princess with this ugly outfit I found at the local thrift store.
Day 7
For Dad’s final full day, we did the Park City tour! We drove up Guardsman Pass with the oaks and maples positively on fire, cutting over to Park City where we strolled along the Poison Creek Trail past Shoe Tree Park and cutting over to historic Main Street. We had a late lunch at Cafe Zupas before heading back to Midway.
I love love love showing off our beautiful cut of paradise and I’m so grateful my dad was able to catch a glimpse.
I’ll admit I wasn’t too thrilled that Jamie wanted to go ahead with the pumpkin party this year. Our backyard doesn’t have any grass so I knew if it rained, it would turn into one big mud pit. But he persisted because he put a lot of effort into this season despite the MANY obstacles he has endured (winds, deer, cold nights) and was somehow able to crank out two of his biggest pumpkins (after his legendary 1,200-pound Stanley, of course).
We nervously watched the weather forecast all week and it wasn’t good. Rain. Then snow. Then back to rain again. I was convinced the whole thing would be a bust mere hours before the soiree. We decided to set up all the food in the garage and people could choose to eat inside to stay warm and dry. The weather miraculously cleared an hour before the party (apparently God is a pumpkin lover?) and we were left with a cool, brisk night.
We weren’t sure what kind of a turnout we would get for the party so invited everyone we knew and lo, they did come–we estimated about 75 people! It was a fun night but part of the problem with having the food in one place and the pumpkins in another is I didn’t get to have a stitch of food…nor was I around to refill plates and drinks. I definitely failed at my hostess duties because all the action was in the backyard.
The one picture I got of all the pumpkin treats…my pumpkin cheesecake trifle.
Moving onto the guest of honor: Meet “Jumbo” the pumpkin! I loved seeing everyone’s shocked expressions as the forklift lifted that bad boy out of the patch. There’s nothing quite like your first time. At the party, my friend Kelly asked, “So, do you grow anything else?” What? Like food you can actually EAT? Silly woman.
I love our friend Jordan’s expression
My dad was able to visit for the week from Canada and he timed his trip around the Pumpkin Party. Here he is hanging out with Jamie’s dad, Duane.
I can’t tell you how wonderful it was to be with so many friends and family. One of the things I miss the most about Colorado is having our house brimming with people…I am continually frustrated we don’t have a finished backyard or basement so there’s nowhere for the kids to play. During the party, tons of them were roaming the field behind our house and afterwards, Porter, Callie and Ellie stayed to hang out.
This picture is the aftermath of a whipped cream fight. It would appear Hadley and Porter lost (or were they the winners?)
There were two different weigh-offs two weeks apart. Thanksgiving Point is the larger event where the growers bring their biggest pumpkins. Jumbo was 943.5 pounds and Jamie took fourth place. 
Two weeks later at the Hee Haw Farms weigh-off, Jamie’s weird-looking “Cujoe” somehow beat out “Jumbo” and weighed in at 965 pounds.
Hadley lost her plant early in the season and Bode’s “Ugly Duckling” pumpkin weighed 210 pounds. Both boys took fourth place.
All in all, it was a successful first growing season in Utah. Jamie is planning to install a high tunnel (similar to a greenhouse) in the corner of our lot, which should help with our weather challenges. As happy as he was with the final results, he was reminded how far he still has to go. Matt McConkie consistently dominates the competition and this year, he set yet another Utah state record: 1,974 pounds!
Jamie loves driving home from the weigh-off with his pumpkin in tow because of all the attention he gets. One man yelled out to him:
“Did you win?”
“No! I took fourth place.”
“How far were you behind first place?”
[Long pause] “1,000 pounds.”
Looks like our pumpkin boy has some catching up to do.
Fall has been one of the most gorgeous I’ve ever witnessed. I’ve been bogged down with a feature article deadline for AAA Encompass Magazine that I finished on Friday so set the goal to get outdoors and play. Here’s just a sampling of yesterday’s hike:
The rest of my plans have been grounded because now I’m sick. I don’t know how to get a simple cold because almost every time, it evolves into a nasty sinus infection. Add that to all the sad, crummy things that are going on in the world and I’m definitely feeling the weight of it all.
A few weeks ago, I caught wind of a job that is PERFECT for me. Beyond perfect. As in this-is-custom-made-perfection-and-the-reason-you-were-supposed-to-move-to-Utah good. I breezed through the first two interviews and was told by the marketing manager if I was invited back for the third interview, “It is pretty much a done deal and we want you to meet the team.”
I got the call back for the third interview and it went fabulously well! Her parting words to me were, “We want to move quickly with this. Next steps are the background check” so call me crazy, but I figured I was IN…just without the official job offer.
So, I patiently waited. And planned. And started restructuring my life for going back to work. It was three-quarter time, which was the perfect fit because it was super flexible and paid well. Financially, things are so tight and it doesn’t help that my car is basically dead so we knew we had to buy a new car.
And then I heard back today and was told they offered the job to someone else.
My reaction? Shock. Then anger and annoyance. How dare they lead me on. And now I’m just disappointed because it really was the perfect fit and I just can’t believe anyone was more qualified than I. My friend Lori consoled me that they probably hired from within and the marketing manager’s consolation to me was that “I was in it until the bitter end.”
She’s right about the bitterness part.
I’m still in mourning but it has instilled within me the resolve to find something even better and that I’m just as passionate about. I don’t want just any position to pay the bills. I want something that really lights my fire so the search is on.
Well, once I get better, of course. Now, excuse me while I go blow my nose.
I'm a Canadian-born mom of two, former Denver Post columnist, family travel writer, editor of MileHighMamas.com and 9News contributor. Expert on all things Utah, Denver, family and travel. Lover of laughter and life. Happily married to a man obsessed with growing The Great Pumpkin. Learn More