Memorializing Memorial Day

As Memorial Day approached, it was no surprise what Gerald wanted to do with his day off. I explained all that here, so I won't elaborate. Suffice it to say that he wanted to go hiking in the mountains. And so we did. We actually did the same hike we did a few weeks ago, Bell's Canyon near Little Cottonwood, but this time, we went much farther up the trail. Still, only Gerald made it all the way to the waterfall. Mathew and Seth took a detour, searching out boulders to climb, and Swen became antsy after a couple hours in the backpack, so Shulamith and I turned back and took him to an area where he could get out and walk around. Turns out it was quite steep at the top and not a safe place for toddlers, so it's probably good we didn't go all the way.

The funniest part of the hike was all the questions fellow hikers had about Matt's large crash pad, which he carried on his back. "What's that? people wanted to know. A few folks he answered directly. But others received some sort of side-stepped reply such as "It's a secret!" or "It's in case I need to take a nap." Hilarious!

It was a pleasant outing for sure, strenuous enough of a climb to provide all the exercise we needed for the day. It was good to be together as a family, those of us who were able to go. For me, it was especially nice to have Matt with us. I rarely see him. I sometimes joke that I spent far more time with Matt when I lived in Montana than I do now, when he lives right here in my house. Except it's not joke. It's 100% true. You see, the last couple years I was in Montana, Shulamith and Matt were dating and then newly married, so they had to be together every walking moment. Remember those dating/honeymoon days? We all do, right? Back then, I flew to Utah once a month and stayed between 3 and 5 days, depending on what my schedule would allow. And every one of those days, I spent with BOTH Shulamith AND Matt.

Ironically, now that I actually live here, it's much different. Matt is extremely busy. He goes to school full time and works nearly full time. When he is not in class or at work, he has homework. On those rare occasions that he has a bit of free time, he needs to be with Shulamith and Swen. So no, I don't see him much. While we were hiking, Shulamith remarked, "I think this is the first time since Christmas that you've spent any time with Matt." I think she's right. Let me just say that as her mom, I am so grateful to Matt for all the effort he puts into both school and work, in order to provide for and create a future for Shulamith, Swen, and any other babies that might come along. She is blessed indeed.

A late lunch at McDonald's completed our Memorial Day family hike. Here are some pictures to "memorialize" the day: