Our Stay in Orem

It was pretty nerve wracking driving from Fernley to Orem.  We ran into rain, sleet and snow.  At one point Ken said I can't see.  The defrosters were not keeping up with the percipitation.  Gratefully,  it didn't last too long, and when we saw the sign for Elko, we were ready to get off the road.  We pulled into a KOA campground and waited out the storm.  It is the first time we've seen 32 degrees in a very long time.  The puddles were iced over in the morning, and there was a light dusting of snow on the grass.  The drive from Elko to Orem was pretty uneventful.  There is a lot of nothing out there.  The mountains are so beautiful and serene.   The salt flats are huge and the Great Salt Lake is even bigger than I thought.  We saw a boat launch/yacht club that surprised the heck out of me.  I didn't realize there was any activity on the great salt lake.

We had planned to take the kids camping that first weekend, but it was so cold and rainy thaf the trip had to be postponed.  How grateful we are for the flexibility that retirement offers us.  We did the next best thing when we got rained out...an afternoon at the movies.  I highly recommend Rio 2.  A good time was had by all.

It was really fun to spend time with Brenda, Naomi and Hailey.  Hailey just turned 6 months old and is a living doll.  Naomi is a great big sister, and she is a big help to her mom.  Brenda's English is pretty good, and we had no problem communicating.  She is a good little cook, and one of the highlights of our stay was making homemade tortillas with Brenda and her friend Emma.  Emma is from Chichacua and is an expert at making perfectly round, thin, smooth saucers of yumminess.   I had a little problem making my tortillas round (but seriously, what would be the problem with square tortillas???)  We bought a tortilla press, and I plan on perfecting my skills while we are on the road.

We had a chance to see our friends Maggie and Scott while we were in Utah, and the kids had a blast playing with their grandkids.  It was good to see all of the Richard kids.  We had a nice cook out with steak, chicken and pork that Scott and Maggie raised, along with the biggest baked white and sweet potatoes that I have ever seen.
The watermelon was especially delicious.  I think our little Joe ate about six slices.  The kids went home with full bellies and another great memory in their memory bank.  The highlight of our time in Orem was our campout with the kids.  We parked our RV in a beautiful park in Provo along the Provo River.  It was lush and green with big trees all around.  Joe wanted to know if we were camping in the woods.  The campground had a nice playground with a basketball court.  Dominic is good little hoop shooter.  The kids quickly made friends and had a great time running and climbing and jumping and riding bikes.  

The weather was perfect for a cookout, and our new little friends enjoyed baking cookies in the camper with me and Nicolette.  When it was too dark to see our hands in front of our face, we came in, got our jammies on, Ken converted the table and couch into two beds, and we watched a movie until after 11 p.m.  We thought we might have a problem getting the kids to go to sleep, but they were sleeping before we turned out the lights.

On Saturday morning Ken grilled pancakes and sausage and we had a picnic.  It was fun, but I'd like to think that one of the highlights of the weekend was the hours we spent making greeting cards, paper flowers,  and painted rocks.  It's always hard to say good bye to the kids, but we are always grateful for the time we have together and look forward to next time.

Another highlight was having Scott and Maggie over to our campsite for a barbecue.   It was so much fun preparing a meal for our friends, and sitting around for hours after the meal just talking about things important to each of us.  There is nothing like an old friend (who brings you lilacs!!!).

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We are on our way to Wyoming on Monday, May 5th.  Stay tuner for more living.