Summer Highlights

School starts in 2 days,which means summer fun is over :(

Here are some of the things we did this summer.

In June we took a weekend to visit Sandpoint, Idaho. All Erica wanted to do was go horseback riding. I was reluctant, because trail rides can be boring, but we had the best ride ever!

It was the first warm weekend of the spring. The sun was shining and the horses we happy to be out exploring just as much as we were.

The view was amazing, and brought back floods of memories of riding with my dad in the Uintah Mountains when I was younger. The alpine forests have such a unique smell of fresh pine. It was a great day to relive happy memories for me. 

Erica was so happy. She is a natural with all animals. The most exiting part of the ride happened as I was waiting to dismount. My horse decided he did not want to wait for the rider and saddle to come off before rolling in the nice soft dirt of the arena. As he fell down to his knees I realized what was happening and went into auto-pilot, remembering my dad telling me "get your foot out of the stirrup." As the horse went down on his side I simply stepped off and it was actually the easiest dismount of my life.  



Joshua had robotics competition for school where they also learned about building underwater ROV's(remote operated vehicles).

His team did a great job in the few minutes they had to create a robot.

It was a fun way to get out of a day of school.

Tracy and Josh also went backpacking with the Boy Scouts to Cape Alava on the Washington coast. Tracy has an iconic story about the boy scouts taking the wrong trail (and of coarse they didn't feel it important to wait for the leaders at the fork in the trail) and the leaders hiking 9 miles in the dark and rain to finally them at 1am. A very good learning experience for all involved.

Here's Tracy and Josh at the petroglyphes on the beach.

The first weekend of July brought the STP(Seattle to Portland Bike ride).

We built a team of friends from our ward and had a great adventure together.

left to right is Dave Lee(our honored friend from Utah), Maria Smart, Cale Smart, and Chad Smart.  

(the guy in the very back looks like his jersey matches us, but he was not with our group)

Here is my self portrait.

Here we are lounging at the 100 mile mark in Centraila. Most of the riders stay here for the night, but we still had 50 miles to go. Dave's wife, Leslie(far right) met us with fresh KFC sandwiches and root beer floats! Thanks again Les!

On our way to Kelso in a great pace line.
(front to back) Chad, Jeron Walker, Tracy and Bruce Green.

This was my view for almost the entire ride, just trying to stay on the wheel of the guys in front of me.

This is Tracy as we crossed the St. John's bridge in to Portland at about 200 miles. What a perfect weekend for a bike ride!

We made it! Seattle to Portland on a bike.

(left to right) Heather, Maria, Bruce, Chad, Cale, Jeron, Dave, and Tracy.

Hawaii Vacation Part 3- (condensed version)

Since I am  such a procrastinator and it has been 4 months since we went to Hawaii, I've decided to just finish the story quick and get on with my life.

All I can say is Hawaii was the best of everything. If you want adventure, warm weather, cool weather, relaxation, sunshine, or clouds, you should definitely visit the Big Island.

Our final 5 days were spent exploring the area of Kona.

Visiting "The Place of Refuge"

learning to weave palm frons into fish, by a nice old Hawaiian guy, who likes to watch basketball.

Enjoying a whole day at the beach....boogie boarding and relaxing. Erica and Josh are going out to catch their first wave.

The color of the water was dazzling, and the sand was as soft as powdered sugar. 

Getting a sunburn.

being warm and happy !!!!

That night we had the greatest adventure ever...Manta Ray Night Diving (snorkeling in our case).

This is the boat we went on, but none of my pictures turned out. Follow this link to

Manta Ray night diving
with Neptune Charley. There is video of the Manta Rays. It is definitely a "Bucket List " item that everyone should experience.

The next day we spent the morning on a Snorkeling trip and learned a little more about Hawaiian history.

Heading out on a beautiful morning in the Zodiac to explore the coast and see some whales.

A pod of Pilot whales that we stumbled upon. Very cool!!!!!

Snorkeling at Captain Cook's Monument. Also known as the most pristine water in Hawaii. This is also the place if inspiration for Finding Nemo:)

           When we got back to the boat dock there was a sea turtle just hanging out on the boat ramp.

After snorkeling, Tracy and the girls relaxed at the condo, while Josh and I went shopping at the farmer's market. After shopping we had the best Hawaiian Ice treat invented. The secret is the scoop of vanilla ice cream in the bottom. Yum Yum!!!

On our final full day of play we started out with a visit to the Kona Temple.

We then drove to the Southern tip of the island to explore the Green Sand beach. On the way we drove over multiple different lava fields. Very harsh, dry, and windy. Reminded me of parts of Idaho.

This was our first view of Green Sand beach. It is a two mile hike, or 4-wheel drive across lava and sand dune/prairie grass. We chose to adventure here so we could go 4-wheeling again:.

Josh loved playing in the surf.

I didn't think the sand looked very green at first, but up close you can see the green colors sparkle a little better.

Thanks honey for taking me to Hawaii!!!

Driving back to the paved road. Very bumpy and dusty.

We finished of the day watching the sunset from the beach a enjoying one more chance to play in the surf.

What a beautiful way to end a perfect vacation.

Our last night out on the town. Actually only the second restaurant we visited the whole week. We went for the local scene.

As we boarded the plane I refused to say goodbye. I loved Hawaii and vow to return again. In fact I think it would be a perfect place to live someday