This past weekend we decided to go to Utah! We (more like I) really wanted to meet baby R a lot sooner than over the July 4th weekend! So we went and we had a blast, but we also had some ups and downs. We planned on Friday to run a creek over by Orangeville, Utah. It was called straight creek canyon and it was low water, but runnable. So Friday we got to straight creek canyon at 12 and then we waited for Donny for another 2 and 1/2 hours! It was long, but he had some car problems so no worries. We finally got on the river and started down. The route was beautiful and the water was so clear and blue! It came out of the Joe's Reservoir which was stunning. Unfortunately, I fell out 3 times because there were so many rocks and if we did hit a rock (which was a lot) it was not slick. Instead it was like sand paper and since I was in the front it just threw me out of the kayak. So the third time it happend I had had enough and I got out and walked along the road the last mile (more liked jogged so I could keep up with Colby and Donny). We did get some fun video of me falling out! Colby did fall out once a really rocky rapid and the whole kayak seemed to flip. Colby and Donny finished and since I was out of the kayak it was a lot easier for Colby to control and he did great the whole time especially on the big rapids which I am so thankful I was not in the kayak! But despite falling out it was still fun and Donny and Alyssa gave me the videos of it so scroll down if you want to see. We did not have good footage of the second time when Colby and I both fell out, but we have the first and the third time that I fell out. now I will say that the third time was really weird because before we started going down we got stuck on a rock right at the top so that did not help us in the least. Thanks Donny for bringing the gear and the cameras!
Now we get to the craziest part of the trip! After the river we packed up the cars to go to Payson. Donny wanted to try a new way, but we decided that we did not have enough gas to go his way. So we went a different way that the map showed us, but when we split Donny took the map because it was his. So we thought driving to Ephraim would be the quickest for us and it looked like it too on the map so off we went! We hit a dirt road really quick and I started to become anxious because we still did not have a lot of gas. After driving for about an hour and seeing no one, but the deep forest we came to a clearing and a ridge. We thought for sure we could go over the ridge and hopefully see a city on the other side, but to my dismay we hit snow that blocked the road!! It blocked the road for about 50 yards and then it was clear the rest of the way! By this time I was freaking out! I did not want to be stranded with hardly any food and no gas for my weekend getaway. And we had no cell service and no one knew we were there!! It was a terrible feeling! We saw a sign that said Ephraim's tunnel that went around the snow so we followed this very muddy road and it only led us to a steep hill that big four-wheel trucks get up or down depending which way you were coming from. I decided to get out of the car at this point to walk up the hill to see if we could see anything on the other side. But once I reached the top it was just more hills and trees for as far as I could see. It was another pit fall feeling. My stomach sank and I ran down the hill depressed. But right when I lost hope I heard this horn. I turned around and looked up the hill and a truck pulling a camping trailer and car trailing behind was there. I could not believe this tender mercy of the Lord. He really was watching over us. After talking to the family for a bit and they being very kind and giving us a enough gas to get back from where we came from I was so grateful! We also learned that Ephraim from that point was still another hour away and that they were trying to reach Joe's Reservoir the place where we came from. I still think it was a gracious tender mercy of the Lord for our paths to cross right at the exact moment we needed it. I wish I could tell this story out loud with everyone with me because my words are not doing it justice. But anyways, we then both went our separate ways and we finally made it to Payson around 11:30pm. It was a lot later than I had wanted, but better than spending the night in the forest with nothing and not knowing when we would leave.
That was the crazy down part of the weekend, but it got a lot better when I finally met baby R! He is so sweet and good. He is very patient, calm and observant. He likes to look around and he looked a lot at our faces he is just so cute! I know Donny likes to hold him a lot too and I am thankful he let me hog baby R for a couple of days.
The next day, Saturday, Colby did some school stuff at BYU and I ran some errands. Then we met up and went to seven peaks. It was so much fun! It seemed like there were lots of people and there were, but the lines were not horrible and the rides were so worth it. We soaked up the sun without getting sunburns and had a snow cone afterwards. It was a good day.
Colby and I have been missing in action for quite sometime (since halloween) that I have decided I should finally update our blog! Yeah! Once again, I am a terrible blogger and have not gotten into the whole thing, but I am trying and it is a nice way to stay in touch with friends and family. Colby and I are now in Colorado for the summer for Colby's paid internship which is so nice! I have not been home for a full and whole Colorado summer since I started school in Idaho in 2010! It has been nice being back and there are no wild fires Hooray! The weather has been perfect not to hot or cold which is how I am been acclimated my whole life! If it gets above 75 degrees I want to die it is too hot for me. We are currently living with my parents for the summer which means Colby has an hour commute and if there is traffic, then it is about an hour and half; however, we did try to find somewhere in Denver to live, but no one wanted to give us a 4 month lease. So here we are and we love it! Colby said that he is so use to the drive that it does not bother him anymore and he gets to listen to whatever music, talk show, or anything he likes since I am not in the car :) For me, I have been helping my parents out with my siblings and working as a nanny here and there (look below for a funny video of my little sister). I also will probably get a job with an in home senior health assistant a couple times a week. So I have been keeping busy too!
Colby and I can't wait for all the summer plans this summer! Colby gets every third Friday off so we are coming for the Hazard Reunion and we are both so excited! We missed the first one in California and can't wait for this July to see everyone especially the new babe, baby R Hazard! For memorial weekend we went to South Dakota with my family to see Mount Rush-more, Crazy Horse, Reptile Gardens, Black Bear Country, the Needles, Custer State Park, Devils Tower (in Wyoming), the cosmos, Mammoth sites, and had fun swimming! I will post some pictures because it was so much fun! Also, this June I am leaving after Colby's birthday to see my sister in Boston and helping her move to Las Vegas! I am so happy she is moving back to the west she has not been this close to us for 6 years and we are so happy! I am going to drive across the country with her and then hopefully see there new built home soon. I am excited that when Colby and I go back to Utah she will only be 5 hours away about the same to Rexburg so we will be making trips down there for sure. I am sad that my other sister won't be in Rexburg anymore after this summer because they are moving to Texas, but I am so happy that we still have tons of Colby's family there because we love seeing them and I love Rexburg! We are so excited to see everyone soon and are sorry that we will miss Kl and Taylor before we get there, but we wish them the best of luck in Washington D.C and hopefully we will see them soon!
This huge guy was crossing the road and I am glad we were in a even bigger truck! He looked mad...hehe
Oh no! The snake has them!
Carsten is super happy and amazed because this huge tortoise is moving, but Jonathan looks concerned...
Just chillin in Black Bear Country
Jonathan wanted a turn to carry Carsten so we let him try haha
Oh, and a quick update on my sister Felicia. For those of you who do not know she is serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She will be serving and teaching others the gospel of Jesus Christ for 18 months in the Temple Square, SLC, Utah mission! She will also study sign language so she may teach those who are deaf in their own language. She has been in the MTC for since April 24th and will go into the mission field from the MTC on June 12th! She is doing well aside from some minor medical issues, but is fine! She had her 21st birthday on May 20th and she wrote to us about it was one of the best birthdays she ever had!
We decided to pack the kids up and ship them right to Filly!
Felicia is 21 years old!
Felicia and the other sign language missionaries
Also, Sierra, I want you to update your blog! If I can do it then you can too! :)
Talk to you all till next time...which hopefully is not another 7 months! Oh and below is a funny video of my little sister Katie being a goof!
Hello again. I, Colby, am writing this time, at least for the moment. The first snowfall of the season arrived on Friday, leaving about five inches of beauty all around us. I made snow ice-cream three times already, and look forward to many more bowls of this cheap and delicious treat. I am still trying to get MyKel and Fili into it, but they just aren't catching on. I have been spoon-feeding it to MyKel as she blow dries her hair, cleans, etc.
It has been pretty cold here lately (19 degrees F right now), but we still haven't used our heater at all. Our original goal was to not use it until November 1st, but our new goal is to make it until Thanksgiving, when we will have family here (we don't want to scare them away!) We live in a basement apartment so it is pretty well insulated, and we think we are getting some of our warmth from our upstairs neighbors.
MyKel has been enjoying her new calling in the primary. She teaches the Valiant 9-10 year olds. She even has some children that aren't members of the Church, so she gets to be a missionary at least once every week. I have been called as a district supervisor for home teaching, and am enjoying it. We like our new ward, and are meeting a lot of new people every week. On Friday, we had a ward talent show. I did beat-boxing and tops, the usual. It was a lot of fun and we saw a lot of great talent. Tonight we went to a baptism. The spirit was very strong and they served dinner afterwards. We had a great time eating ham and socializing with people in the ward.
MyKel has been taking piano lessons. She has only had three lessons, and is already playing out of the Hymns Made Easy book. I am very impressed with her dedication and willingness to learn.
The best news for this post is that I got an internship offer from an oil and gas company called Enerplus. It is a Canadian-based company that has offices in Calgary and Denver, so I will be in Denver next summer working as a geology intern. We are so grateful for this opportunity and know that all the interviews and prayers were worth it.
I will now summarize some of the things we remember doing over the past few weeks.
1. We made Nancy's famous pumpkin stew using the recipe book that she gave us for our wedding present. We also made salsa and potato soup from said book.
2. We carved pumpkins a week before Halloween. I carved a large pumpkin from the bottom so that MyKel could use it for her costume (see picture). By the way, MyKel got a haircut, in case you are wondering who that girl with the short hair is.
The future "pumpkin head" Try to imagine the picture rotated. The computer would not let me turn it!
Left to right of amazing pumpkin carving (Colby, MyKel, Filly, Jay)
3. Ward trunk-or-treat. MyKel got a lot of strange stares from the younger children. I don't think they had ever seen a walking jack-o-lantern.
I (MyKel) was not originally going to put the pumpkin on my head, but then I was bribed. Hence, the candy in my hand :)
4. Halloween!! We went rock climbing in Rock Canyon. Donny let us borrow some climbing gear, so we used it.
Matching Free "google" sunglasses!
5. We smashed a pinata! Tyson and Cambria came over with their kids and had dinner with us. Afterwards, we let everyone hit a pinata.
The kids are really excited about the pinata.
6. We went geode hunting with MyKel's great uncle. We found lots of geodes about 100 miles away in the west desert.
Lately we have been watching a lot of BYU's "Divine Comedy", and "Studio C," a new show on BYU TV. They have some funny videos on YouTube. If you have seen Harry Potter, you might enjoy the video below.
I decided to finally post something! We have been busy and we have not developed the habit of updating our blog. Sad thing is...it is not a priority, but I want it to be one day. I just have to get past the "I don't like writing all the time." Then again, I love reading everyone's posts, so I hope everyone else somehow thinks it will be enjoyable to read mine. However, I am beginning to think differently in the sense writing a blog should be fun and enjoyable--not a burden. It is not some paper for class that is due in a few days that I have not started. I don't always do that, but it happens more often than it should.
Anyways, Colby and I are great! We just celebrated (not really celebrated, but it was still a day to remember, especially as a newly wed) our one and a half year anniversary! October 9th, 2012. Colby surprised me with red roses. He is so sweet. I can't believe how time flies. It just seems to float right over our heads so quickly. Now back to updates! Colby and I are now at BYU in Provo. We live in Orem and get to drive to school together every day. I love spending this time with Colby. I know when we have a family and get jobs that we won't have some of these simple moments together with just us. And then when we get to school I get to see him for lunch. Colby is getting his master's in Geology and grad students get there own office area. It is quite nice. Its actually really nice for me because everyday at lunch I get to see my husband. For me, I am now getting my bachelor's degree in Human Development. I get to study family and children everyday. I love my classes and I am learning a lot about the most important thing...becoming a mom. However, I plan to get my master's in Social Work and become certified to be a play therapist for abused and neglected children. After my immediate family adopted three children through foster care I learned about play therapy and the importance that it plays for crucial development during childhood. Not only can I focus my attention of being a mom someday, but I can help other children who, unfortunately, don't get that special love and care from their parents.
In two years we will finish our degrees and be on our next adventure...which no ones know where that is yet. Currently, Colby is interviewing for internships and waiting for a call for an internship. This is crucial for his field and we pray that everything will follow through so we can take the next big step of having a regular job with a regular income. That would be nice. :) So pray with us!
We are adjusting to Utah and enjoy it, but we really miss Rexburg and the small town feel. Sunday dinners were the best in Rexburg with Greg, Nancy, and the gang! We will always miss those times. But Utah is still fun and I will show some pictures of all the great and beautiful things we have done. However, we really enjoy having a lot of family nearby.
Also, we have a wonderful apartment and are enjoying our extra space and amenities. We welcome family and friends to stay with us whenever! We would love to have you over! Grandma and Grandpa Sager stayed with us over General Conference weekend and it was great to see them. Speaking of General Conference it was amazing and I am so happy to hear from prophets in our day and to learn "line, upon line," just a little bit at a time.
Right now, we hope you have enjoyed this little endeavor and we hope you will join us next time (whenever that will be)!
Here are some of the highlights of the year:
Colby turns 26 years old! I have a video, but I don't know how to upload it, yet.
Manti Temple Pageant.
Krystalee and Taylor at Sundance when they invited us to go mountain biking.
Colby and Donny climbed Box-Elder Peak. On the right is a bunch of smoke from a fire.
Our drive through Sundance into American Fork Canyon. We went to the Timpanogos caves
The "Heart" of Timpanogos Cave
On the way down from the caves. The colors were so beautiful!
Colby showing off his amazing super human strength!
So a lot has happened since we last updated or since Colby
has last updated. This is actually my first time writing a post. I only add the
pictures. So I am taking advantage of some of my free time to write.
First off, Colby and I graduated from BYU-Idaho on December
16th, 2011!! Colby received his B.S. in Geology, and I received an
A.S in Health and Wellness. However, Colby has one semester left here in
Rexburg that will allow him to spice up his resume! The classes and projects he
is participating in are very important and he would have to take them in Grad
school, but we decided to do it at BYU-Idaho instead because the school allowed
us too. So we thought cost wise it would be better to stay here in Rex. Grad
school is still in processing. Colby has only one more school to apply for and
then we just have to patiently wait and see what happens. We are both very
excited to see where we will be next!
Now, if you are curious about the title you are in for a
treat! I have wanted to share with family and friends just how excited our
family has been in Colorado about the new additions we have made to it! I know
it is January now; however, Christmas 2011 was a very special time of year for
the John family. The whole John family was home for the Holidays. Also, some
very important foster children joined us. But as of December 20th,
2011 our family had the ultimate Christmas gift. The three most adorable children—Johnny,
Carston, and Katie were legally and officially adopted into the John family.
Our long two-year journey with these kids was finally over and our new chapter
began! Katie came near the end of this two-year adventure, but we are all so
happy she did! She is now the sixth girl and has five older sisters who all
absolutely adore her! And now, Spencer, who originally had been the only boy, now
has two little brothers that get to look up to him. Now that the kids were
legally adopted it was just not enough to us! So on December 28th at
the Denver LDS Temple, Johnny, Carston, and Katie were sealed to our family for
time and all eternity. They are now officially part of who we are! Our family
has been so blessed these past years and especially within the last month. We
are all so happy and our family is finally COMPLETE! We are so blessed to have
the gospel in our lives and to know that we will all be together forever!
I’ve included pictures of not only the special events I just talked about, but also of some of the great times we had together! I tried adding a little movie my sister (Crystal) made, but it is not working. I will have to add it later when I figure out how it works.
Johnny copying my parents!
December 20th. My Family and the Judge after the adoption!
Jonathan Elias John (Johnny), 4 years old
Carston Jamel John, (Carston) almost 3 years old
Kathleen Elise John (Katie), 15-16 months
Certificate of Family Membership!
December 28th. Our Family after the sealing!
It was also my dads birthday on December 21st. He turned 49, but the candles on the cake were the only ones I could find. So I had be creative :) Colby and I also made his favorite cake, German Chocolate Cake. I know it is not much to look at, but we did make it from scratch and it tasted so delicious!!! So I guess that is all that matters!
Now a few more pictures of my family's new additions!
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