Monte Cristo! Part 2

Some more fun pictures from Monte. We haven't been able to get up there in a couple weeks but hopefully we'll make it up a few more times before it gets too cold. These pictures are mostly from our bike rides around the mountain AND from the great construction work we were able to do on the cabin. I have learned so much about muding, sheet rocking, sanding, painting, etc. It is a lot of fun but seriously a lot of work. Spencer's dad is really knowledgeable and very patient with me. He is a great father in law :)

This should be a picture on a biking magazine don't you think?

My bro-in-law, Richard. This kid is my favorite. He started junior high last week!

The beginning of construction. We had to completely re-do the ceiling and we found some pretty old mice that left behind their exoskeleton. Can mice even DO that?

Spencer and his dad do most of the hard work. They are buff. And very similar. Sometimes it's scary how alike they are! Good thing I like both of them :0

A typical picture of mother and brother. Into their books...but she makes some really great food and takes great pictures :0

I love Richard's face in this picture. He is the little one holding the sander. Check out my shirt. It's my U-Kneada-Pizza Shirt from my high school job! Wow so old!

Putting up the sheet rock. We get very creative. Brooms are great to hold weight. Hey Michael is helping!

Here we are taking a break from the construction. There are so many trails surrounding the cabin that we love to go on. Christie and Ben made it up as well. This picture is so symmetrical!

And I wanted to be in it too so we could send a family picture to our brother Brandon who's on a mission in Texas!

Spencer and Ben = brother-in-laws. Ben is a really funny guy and I like him because he and Christie are obsessed with Brian Regan!

On top of Eccles

Love this guy! He teaches me how to be a better dirt biker. I have much to learn.

Short and sweet! Comments are welcomed!

California Trip--a little late!

In late July I had the great opportunity to go and visit my wonderful family in California! Spencer did not escort me this trip because he had scout camp in Wyoming for a week. So I took the opportunity to take a quick trip and boy was it worth it! I was able to spend some really great quality time with my mom, dad, brother, sister-in-law, and my adorable nieces and nephew. Everyday was special because I was with my family! It had been quite a few months since I'd been home to beautiful SONORA!

And of course, here are some pics!

Bryan, the oldest, riding his bike. This kid is incredibly talented, funny, smart, and I love him to death! We had fun eating snow cones and taking a walk together (just the two of us). I was there the day Bryan was born and I was the first one to hold him! I can't believe he's already 9!

While Bryan was riding his bike the girls and I were playing on the play ground. Well, they were playing, I was taking pics and turning them on the merry go round.

This is Lainey (the youngest--and sooo cute!)

Lillian Eva, 6 years old. The nicest little girl you'll ever meet! And the silliest.
She'll laugh hysterically if you get her going :)

The girl who's half responsible. Laura is an amazing mother. She is also training to run a marathon someday. She is an awesome runner and a very healthy eater. She and I went on a couple beautiful runs together during the week. Let me just say I love running at the ditch!

I snuck a picture.

Lainey, Kate, Julie, Lilly

Bryan "the man" Brown

It has become a tradition for me to take the girls out to ice cream when I come home. Lily makes sure I don't forget it :) This time we went to the dollar store, tried to find a charger for my phone since I left it at home!, ate some delicious ice cream at Baskin Robbins and then to the county library where we
checked out a couple of books.

Love this little girl. I don't want her to grow up!

Kate is getting soo big!

Bryan got stuck unstacking the wood. What a trooper.

Only boy in the family so he has to do a lot of the manly work.

One of my favorite things about these girls is they have such an imagination. They put on a couple of very cute puppet shows for me. So creative!

Hooray! My dad loves me so much that he came into town all the way from Nevada! We went swimming at his hotel for like 3 hours! So much fun since it was a really hot day. I love swimming with my dad because he always has made it really fun for me.

As you can "see" it was a very BRIGHT day!

Lily rockin' the motorcycle my dad just bought a couple months ago. Another reason why my dad is so awesome! He is getting married in 2 weeks!

Here is my dad and Dustin (my brother). Dustin just painted their house, repaved the front parking lot, and put new sod down this summer. As a result he has a broken foot, again! Poor guy. They went out for an evening bike ride. My dad and I went and watched the movie Inception the night before and he took me for a ride. I love riding motorcylces!

They found the bubbles! I don't know what it is about bubbles but every kid goes crazy for bubbles! Isn't this picture absolutely incredible? Gosh, they are so cute!

Me and my dad the night before he left. He'll be moving to Virginia soon to be with his new wife. I'm so happy he's getting married!

The kids LOVE the motorcycle. Bryan went on a short ride with my dad around the parking area.

On Friday we celebrated Laura and Smokey's birthdays! Smokey is my step dad. We had lots of great food thanks to my mom, and really great cake thanks to Laura!

My mom and Smokey. They've been married for over a year now. So cool! I had the best time with my mom this trip. We spent almost everyday together doing something from shopping, to eating out, to walking down town and we even went and saw the movie Eclipse! It was her first time seeing it. I love spending time with my mom. She and I are best friends and I trust her with so much!

My grandparents picked me up from the airport and drove me back to the airport (they only live 15 minutes away from Oakland). I went to breakfast with my Grandpa Brown and spent some time with my g-ma.

Before I knew it my trip was over :( I was anxious to get home to Spencer though. This was our first week spent apart since we got married. It was really weird the first night but I soon got used to it. When he picked me up from the airport I ended up being like 1.5 hours late! My plane could not land because of inclement weather so we had to fly to Twin Falls, Idaho to get some more fuel! I was so mad because all I wanted to do was get home to my amazing husband. Ugh. Plus, I get claustrophobic in small planes so I was anxious to get home and out of the plane. Luckily on our way back we landed just fine and I finally was reunited with my love. It is the best feeling when you see your spouse for the first time in a long time. We went out to Texas Roadhouse to celebrate and had a wonderful time! Spencer had a wonderful time with his teachers' quorum in Wyoming. He took some awesome pictures with the underwater camera I bought him for his trip, along with some love notes and other treats :) Spencer and I will be going to California again in just two weeks for my dad's wedding! I can't wait! 

Running Update

I just wanted to share some thoughts I have felt about my running experiences so far. I am running now up to 23 miles and it is harder than I thought it was going to be. Those last few miles really wear and tear on your body and when it feels like I can not run any farther, I always can push myself to keep going. This past Tuesday I ran 13 miles up the AF canyon and back with Marci and then I ran the last 10 on my own. I felt really good when I was running in the canyon because it is absolutely gorgeous and I had a buddy to push me. When we got to her car she left and I kept running. The last 10 miles were very difficult. My feet and knees were in a lot of pain, but I kept pushing through it. I knew it wouldn't last forever. I knew it would be rewarding at the end. It is an amazing thing doing/accomplishing a goal that you have worked so hard for for several months. I never thought I would be able to train for a marathon, but here I am. Am I fast? No. Am I tired? Yes. Is it fun? Sometimes and a lot of times yes ;) While I run I have a lot of time to think about my life. I feel extremely grateful that I have a healthy body that is ABLE to run and enjoy life to its fullest. Today I went to a spin/cycle class and again I was overwhelmed at how blessed I am for my perfect, healthy body. Not saying that I have the perfect body, but it is in perfect condition.

When I was running my 23 miles I saw a girl who had a disability when she walked. She had a great big smile on her face when I passed her and I felt sorry that she couldn't have full use of her legs. I do not EVER want to take what I have for granted. I want to run, bike, hike, swim, play basketball, volleyball, tennis and never stop because it makes me feel so alive.

I have a month and a half until my marathon. I have to run one more long run of 26 miles before the big day (and I'm not looking forward to it!) I am grateful that I have pushed through with my training and have not given up. There have been times when running seemed boring, uninviting, and many times I haven't wanted to do it. But thanks to the support of my loving husband and running buddies I have been able to accomplish many great and hard things. I truly love running for the sense of accomplishment and empowerment it gives to me. I love feeling in shape and able to do things without getting very winded. Thanks for listening everyone. I hope that my marathon is somehow a motivator for you to do things that seem impossible. If you set your mind to it, you can seriously do anything!

Monte Cristo! Part 1

This summer we have spent quite a considerable amount of time at the homestead cabin. Spencer and I try to go up almost every weekend because it is so dang beautiful and we always have fun dirt biking and being in nature. The columbine flowers this time of year are in full bloom and the blue bells are ringing clear. The quaking aspens have never been fuller and the trails are all clear for riding.

One thing that has changed this summer is we have been renovating the cabin. We have spent several days re-sheet rocking the walls and the ceiling in the main living room. I have become quite the construction girl--from screwing in nails with a power drill to sanding the wall--I have definitely learned a lot and it has been quite the adventure and a fun project working with Spencer's dad and his brothers. Mama Bagley likes to sit and watch and read her book while we all work but we still love her :)

The first couple times we went up there it was still really early in the season so the roads were REALLY muddy! I'll be honest I love getting dirty! Especially when you don't care how you look (especially when camping). Spencer and I biffed it a couple times and Michael and I got our pants PRETTY dirty while riding on the back of the 3 wheeler while Spencer drove (I might add). Spencer always ends up taking me on trails that are out of my comfort zone. I have learned how to fall WITHOUT turning the throttle on full blast. It's OK to let go! I have learned that a couple times now. I never thought I would be into dirt biking--but I am so glad Spencer has taught me! It is something we can enjoy together and also with his brothers and sister.

There are always fun things to do up at Monte Cristo. One of our favorite games to play is Pictionary and Egyptian Speed. Michael has beaten me EVERY TIME so I am determined to keep practicing. We also enjoy bringing novels up to read, cooking dutch oven meals, and cleaning the inside and outside of the cabin. The time flies when you are busy and especially since we have been doing construction. Here are a couple pics from the last few times we've been up there.

This is a picture of the main cabin (the one we don't stay at but our relatives do)

Family Picture of The Bagley's

Mush, Brad, Richard, Spencer, Julie, Michael, Christie, Ben

not pictured: Brandon

MUD!!! Thanks Spencer!

Our cabin. Spencer's Grandpa built this about 40 years ago. As you can see there is a lot of work to do!

Richard and Spencer working on the 3 wheeler.

 This is a REGULAR thing to do since the 3 wheeler brakes down a lot! But it is really fun to ride :)

so it's all worth it!

We call this the PEE TREE. hehe. Or the tree of life. You choose.

I caught him staring into the sky. Isn't the lighting amazing in this picture?

Making breakfast for the boys

This is the top of Eccles Point. In the background you can see Wyoming.

 We took a picture just like this last year when Spencer and I were just barely dating.

Up next: more pictures of the cabin and reconstruction.

Luv Those Lakes!

Sometimes, and yes, most of the time, I take too many pictures. I don't really know when to stop, so I always have too much and it's difficult to choose how many pictures to post on the blog! Like in my last post I probably put too many pics of the waterfall. Let's see how many pics I put on THIS post. But to me, pictures tell a story. I love capturing the details--especially of people and scenery. I secretly want to be a professional photographer someday. I just wish I had a better camera but I still like the one we have a lot. A couple weeks ago we went camping with Christian and Stephanie Bennion up at Payson Lakes. I had never been there before and I was, again, amazed at the beauty Utah has to offer!

Our hot chicken, bacon, carrott, and potatoe dutch oven dinner.

Well, one of the benefits of having married an eagle scout is his ability to tie really crazy knots and lash together poles to put up our tent! We had the wrong poles for our tent...but my amazingly talented husband made it work! And thanks Christain for your help. To hold the tent up they tied the rope to a hanging branch. It was a small tent, but it kept the rain out at night. Whew!

The following morning

Steph and Chra made our trip so much fun. Thanks for a great breakfast...even though it took forever to cook haha. And I'm so excited Stephanie will be having a baby in January! So excited for her...

After we cleaned up camp we went to one of the Payson Lakes. The water was pretty chili but that didn't stop us. I was the first to get in and Spencer the last...but he did and we were all so proud.

You can tell the sun came out!

After we walked around the lake and explored a couple more (that weren't that cool), we went to the Grotto. And it's pronounced gr-ah-to...not gro-to like on Lord of the Rings. Froto lives in the Groto..hehe. There is a cool little waterfall at the end of the 1/4 mile hike.

Well I hope that wasn't too many pictures for you. If it was, then you shouldn't be reading my blog because pictures are what makes my blog SO AMAZING!:) ;) 

Up next, the Bagley's summer adventures at the homestead cabin at Monte Cristo!