Canyon picnics

Sunday almost all of us drove up to the canyon where my parents had their first date. It was frigid cold, but we bundled up in coats and scarves, and wrapped ourselves in blankets. It didn't seem to bother the little kids though. We ate tin foil dinners and baked cinnamon apples like my dad used to make us when we were little. Everything tastes better in the mountains. I'm also positive Preston wore camouflage just to play hide and seek with our nieces, which they are still learning the concept of. I can't tell you how many times we fell over laughing because Liv would hide behind a tree then yell out when we got close saying, "I'm right here!" I asked my dad if this is ever how they could have imagined it, and my dad just shook his head smiling and said, no. 

We didn't stay very long. My dad couldn't handle the cold. We drove back to my parent's house and ate apple crisp cobbler and ice cream while the little kids played with the parachute my mom just bought. After tellings stories of my dad like how he would always say we were having Barbequed monkey shoulders for dinner or that he would make my brother listen to gardening tips on the radio on the way to soccer, my mom gathered us all together for some "words of advice" from my dad. The things he always wants us to remember. He said, 

1. Stay out of debt

2. Pay attention to your health. The minute something goes wrong, get it checked out and taken care of.

3. Stay close to the gospel and listen to the brethren.

I think everything else we probably had to pick up along the way from him. We love these kind of Sundays.