The Rutledge Family

Final Day in D.C.

2011-05-26T18:48:00.000-07:00

Today we got all the kids packed and their rooms cleaned. Then off to our Nation's Capitol, which was very cool. We weren't able to have a tour by the intern, but it was still pretty good. After that we were able to walk down one of the tunnels to the National Library. They had many exhibits but best of all we were able to go onto the 2nd story and look down into the library which was very cool. I love all the indention's in the marble stairs from the millions of people who walk on them.

We then were off to the airport for our very long flight home. We were supposed to not have a stop in San Diego but since they could squeeze us onto another flight they did. So instead of getting home at 9:30 pm it moved it to 12:30. Oh well!!!

All in all we had an amazing trip and wouldn't have changed it a bit.

Ahh Day 4 of our DC Trip

2011-05-25T20:06:00.000-07:00

Well today my little legs are hurting just a tad. The kids seem to be enjoying themselves, and are really getting into the whole history part of the trip. I am quite glad that they all are really good friends and we haven't had any problems with any of them.

Today we started out going to Mount Vernon "George and Martha Washington's' Plantation. This is Bob and I's 3rd time going and I had never gone down to the river which was so very cool. I love that it is still a working plantation. This time we were able to walk around the property alot more which was cool.

Then off to the Newsmusum which was very cool. It had an outside deck on the top story that you could view all of Pensynvilia Ave. Inside there were exhibits of all kinds of news and how and when it started including papers.

Day 3 of our D.C. Trip

2011-05-20T13:44:00.000-07:00

Off to a great start today with a trip to Arlington National Cemetery. We were able to see the change of guards at the tomb of the Unknown Solider. We were told they have about 26 burials a day, and we were able to see the persecution of one where he/she had full honors with the band, horse and carriage and the empty horse with the boot turned around. They also did the 21 cannon blast.

Then we went to the Holocaust Museum which had a new section with stopping the germicide that is going on today in Sudan and other places. We were able to hear from a survivor from the Holocaust and that was extra special.

We also went to Einstein Statue, US Air force Memorial, September 11th Memorial and the White House.

Day 2 of our Washington Adventure

2011-05-17T22:00:00.000-07:00

Well today was one of many long and fun filled packed days. We left our hotel in Gettysburg and started the day with the Smithsonian's. We managed to hit 4 of them, the Air and Space, the Arts, the Castle, and the National. In the middle of the National Mall you can take fun pictures of the Washington Monument and the Capitol.

Then off we went the the Washington Monument where we were able to go all the way to the top. We were actually able to see the D.C. Temple which Kate thought was cool and showed it off to all her friends.

We then went to the National Cathedral and had an amazing tour. We were so lucky when the organist came in to practice for that evenings service. It was so amazing to hear him play and the way it carried thru the Cathedral was so amazing. It was very interesting that everything was so different when it came to the architecture. It actually drove Bob crazy that nothing was built or sculpted the same. Oh well

We finished out the day with the Lincoln Memoral, Korean Memorial, and Vietnam Memorial.

Sunday Night/Monday Morning Airport Experience

2011-05-16T07:40:00.000-07:00

Well we made it to the San Fransisco Airport and got all the kids unloaded from the bus with about 3 hours to spare. We spent about 1 1/2 hrs in a little corner waiting for our group to be called. We then were able to go upstair get a bite to eat "a bar was the only thing open" and then at 11:57 take our 1st flight to Wesiconson. Then we got off the plane ate some more and borded another plane to Baltimore. On the 1st flight no one was really sitting by anyone they knew which kept the kids pretty quite, since they were scared half to death. Our 2nd flight Bob and I were able to sit together and Kate sat with her friends.

My D.C trip with a bunch of 8th graders

2011-05-15T20:33:00.000-07:00

Ok per a suggestion from my amazing mother I am journaling/ blogging our trip to Washington DC. So at this point we are on a bus going to the San Francisco airport. I've been listening to a audio book but haven't heard all that much cuz I can hear Kate's voice over every other 14 year old on this bus. Yea the teacher Mike just told them to lower their voices. Ha ha it just went up even louder. Anyway our flight leaves at 11:58 tonight. I am hoping to get some good pictures and hope you enjoy the ride.

Easter Sunday

2011-04-30T21:05:00.000-07:00

Oh how I love Easter Sunday. It is a very relaxing day at home with the kids and all the traditions that both Bob and I family's have had as we were kids. I also love it when our own children add a little of their own traditions. As they get older it really becomes our own Easter and not the one I grew up in. I can say that our girls really know the true meaning of Easter and their love for our Savior Jesus Christ.

Bob's Egg Coloring Techniques

Easter 2011

2011-04-30T19:06:00.000-07:00

Our Cute Little Family

Liv Hunting for Eggs

Sonoma Hanging out with her Cousins

Easter Saturday was at Bob's parents house. We had lunch and several activities like coloring eggs, egg toss, launching rockets and of course the Easter Egg Hunt. Luckily we had beautiful weather for the whole day.

Kat and Natalie looking for Eggs in the Big Kid area.

Bob and Gabbie just hanging out.

Karen and Leah looking for falling rockets

Olivia's Gold Rush Play

2011-04-29T20:34:00.000-07:00

Olivia's 4th grade class put on a very cute play about the California Gold Rush. It was very cute!

AHH The Ocean!

2011-04-01T20:02:00.000-07:00

For those of you who know Bob and I this is our favorite place to be with our kids or with out them.

Last month Bob and I were able to do a quick get away. We have a great friend from work who owns a beach house right on the Ocean in Cambria which is about 10 miles south of Hertz Castle. We had an amazing time just relaxing, seeing the local sights, and taking a drive down to Moro Bay, and enjoying all the local restaurants. I love little towns and is one of Cambria those cute little towns on the Central California Coast. You could almost drive right by it and not even see all the great shops. I loved all the little antique stores, I had to help myself from purchasing a beautiful baby white Christing Gown which was probably made in the 1930's. Its a good thing it had a little stain or else I would have come home with it. It would have looked beautiful on my wall.

Thanks Jim and Vicki for the amazing gift of your home away from home!

Sonoma's Drawing Video "Fireflies"

2011-02-27T20:52:00.000-08:00

Sonoma made this video of our family to one of my favorite songs. Love It!!!

Kate's Video "Touchin on my 3OH!3"

2011-02-27T20:45:00.000-08:00

Here's a video that Kate and her best friend Katie made. For 30 Sec of video it took them a whole day. Kinda of fun.

Sutters Fort with Olivia

2011-02-27T18:17:00.000-08:00

Waggon Ride Into The Fort
The Whole Group

Olivia Being a Fur Trader

Our Pioneer Day Picture

Our Modern Day Picture

This year is our last year at Sutters Fort. We have had the opportunity to come and participate in an amazing program. Both Sonoma and Katelyn were able to go when they were in 4th grade and now it was Olivia's turn. This year since Bob and I had done it 3 other times they concerned us experienced. So we had the duties of Coordinator, Photographer and Personal Assistant to Mrs Bales. Bob also had the duty of making sure all the fires were cared for.

The experience at Sutters Fort was to recreating a 2 day 1 night day in the life of a pioneer that lived at the fort. The kids were able to ride in waggons from old down town Sacramento to the Fort which is about 6 miles. Then they were greeted by John Sutter (which was played by a boy in Olivia class). After that the Pioneers moved into their groups and went to different stations. Some of the Stations were candle making, blacksmith, making corn husk dolls, bakery, fur trappers, rope making, kitchen, and carpentry (they get to make a square stool that is branded with the Sutter Fort brand, we have 3 of them and they are very handy).

We also make all of our meals there over fires and in dutch oven. This year we had Deer, Boor, and Bear stew for dinner. I must say it was so amazing, thanks to Nathans dad TY who is the owner of a local restaurant Bootleggers. After dinner we had the Amazing Harmonica's and the kids were able to square dance and listen to some old time music.

The kids all slept in tents as Bob and I headed to the local Hyatt (I learned after we went with Sonomas class that there was no way I was tenting if I was going to be coherent the next day for clean up). During the night the kids all do Night Watch were the get the chance to walk around the fort in the dark and make sure they are not being invaded.

The following morning after a great nights sleep, we cleaned up and cleared out. It does make me sad that we most likely will be our last chance of going on this field trip, but I am so glad that we were able to especially with the talk of the State of California closing it due money issues.

The End Of Another Year

2011-02-27T17:56:00.000-08:00

We have at least 15+ pairs of Converse, are we addicted or what?

As we move into yet another year, I love to take pictures of the girls as a tribute to the year that has gone and the growth of my girls. I love to go back and see all of the pictures of them and how different they are every year. To Sonoma, Katelyn, and Olivia we are proud that you are ours. Love Mom and Dad

Sonoma's Choir Concert

2011-02-27T17:39:00.000-08:00

This year is Sonoma's 3 year of performing in the High School Choir. Since the school only does the Cabaret 1 time a year Sonoma has been lucky enough to have choir that semester. This year the main theme was Broadway. They did a couple of songs from Lion King. What an amazing production!

Christmas 2010

2011-02-27T17:12:00.000-08:00

It was a hard getting into the swing of things for Christmas. This year I didn't do the whole Black Friday shopping. Bob and I decided that the girls only got 1 Santa Gift, and that we would all pick each others names for their other gift. So really I had no shopping since most of the deals were online. But as I think back I could have done the white elephant, christmas socks, and dresses. Oh well enough about shopping. We kept it on the down low this year since Bob was still recovering from his hand surgery and I was just tired from a year and a half of 4 of mine own. All in all we did have a great time with our simple christmas.

Thanksgiving 2010

2011-02-27T16:39:00.000-08:00

This is one of my cooking day. I try to always do at least 1 thing diffrent every year. Every year that goes buy it is nice to have the girls in the kitchen more and more. I can't wait for the day when they feed Bob and I and we get to come as guests. It will be cool to see what they have on their Thanksgiving table.

Fort Bragg

2011-02-27T16:28:00.000-08:00

If you haven't noticed our favorite vacation spot is the beach, especially in Fort Bragg. We were able to take our one and only vacation in 2010 to fort bragg for 2 days. Of corse our main stopping place is glass beach were we of corse read our newest book and pick thru all the old blue, green, and brown glass washed up on shore.

Soccer Season

2011-02-27T16:06:00.000-08:00

We had an amazing summer full of soccer games. Kate was able to play 3 games the whole season due to the fact that she hurt her knee and was out for 6 weeks and then ended up with Mono and slept thru the rest of the games. I was still her assistant coach and our team did an amazing job. This was Kates last year in rec ball, but has big plans to refree to make some money.

Olivia was played with all her heart, she loved every min of it especially the half time and after game snacks. Her team was the Eagles which is the same as our High School. Her coach same taught them all the fight song and they sung it as their cheer. It was very cool.

4th of July

2011-02-07T17:59:00.000-08:00

We kept 4th of July pretty simple. We went to Bob's brother Tim's new home. We ate, swam, ate, hot tub sat, ate, and then enjoyed the hour long multi firework show in the street. Had a great time with all the cousins.

The Summer of Work!!!!!

2011-01-17T11:47:00.000-08:00

OK, so when we were kids on the first day of school usually the teacher asked you to write a paper of what you did during the summer. So what did we do???? We worked, it was like a scene from Snow White. With the dwarfs coming out of the mine, well I don't think we ever left it from May to Sept. Yes I am very grateful of the opportunity that we had to work, but our poor boat only got 2 trips out on the lake this summer.

Just a little about Easter 2010

2011-01-17T11:38:00.000-08:00

We had another busy year of 2010. I missed the most part of the beginning of the year by losing all of our amazing Easter photos. I have no idea were my camera card went so there are no pic's. Maybe I can steal some from a family member. But for now we had a great day at the Rutledge Grandparents with all the cousins. The kids did a huge Easter egg hut as usual and we of coarse had tons of food and candy. This year each family was in charge of some kind of activity. We were in charge of the gunny sack races. But we had everything from eggs being carried on a spoon, throwing bean bags, ect. We did come home with a fish in a glass jar thanks!!!!

Wow it's been along time.

2011-01-17T11:35:00.000-08:00

I really can't believe it's been since March since my last blog. Well I guess I really need to catch up on my blogging. So I have decided to start from March and go forward that way ya all know what happened in 2010. Here we go!!!

HOPE

2010-03-14T14:27:00.000-07:00

Today at church there was a talk that was about Hope. It really hit home for me, with all of the trials that our family has gone thru this year with my health and our business. This talk really made me reflect on this last year and how we have been able to survive.

The principle of hope extends into the eternities, but it also can sustain us through the everyday challenges of life. "Happy is he," said the Psalmist, "that hath the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God" (Psalm 146:5). With hope, we can find joy in life. We can "have patience, and bear with . . . afflictions, with a firm hope that ye shall one day rest from all your afflictions" (Alma 34:41). We can "press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life" (2 Nephi 31:20).

As I went thru my double Mastectomy, the thing that got me thru it was Hope and of course my family. Last month I had an emergency surgery that took out my expander's because some of the permanent sutures had come loose and were ripping thru the transplant tissue and my skin. So with that they went ahead and put in my implants. I have been very blessed to have a surgeon that knows what he is doing and a very supportive husband who was able to give me a priesthood blessing. It was one of the most beautiful blessings I have ever received.

I am so grateful for the spirit of hope and the fact that we can rely on the lord to receive the blessings that come with it. To my 3 beautiful daughters my hope for you is to grow into strong women like the women that came before you. I look forward to a lifetime of HOPE.

The Girls 2009

2010-01-01T12:58:00.000-08:00

I know I sent out a Christmas card with a nice picture, so I thought I would share a couple of the girls that were pretty funny!

Hanging with the Horses

2010-01-01T12:23:00.000-08:00

Here's some cool pic's of Grandpa Van Horn doing the horse thing.

Dad and I took a day trip from the Auburn Dam Overlook down to the American River. We had a great time and the horses did great. This was the same day as a trail runner's race. So as were going down the trail runners were coming up. It was great to see the different reactions of the runners as they came upon us. Some kept going and some stopped and scooted sideways as they went by. Dad was great he would say "Keep Coming, your doing great Good Luck". It sprinkled on and and off but the temperature was warm and sunny. What a great ride, next time I'll be up to going all the way up to the town of Cool and back. Thanks Dad!!!!

New Year's Party "2010"

2009-12-31T12:43:00.000-08:00

We put together a great New Years Party. We played several games "Bunko, Uno, WII, and Apples to Apples. We had a couple of families come and bring in the New Year. We

even had our own Fireworks display (totally illegal, but alot of fun). Bob and I were very happy to enjoy our family and friends as we celebrated the New Year of 2010. We hope that we all have a great and prosperous year of 2010!!

Olivia's 9th B-day

2009-12-28T12:14:00.000-08:00

With Olivia's birthday being 2 days after Christmas we decided to wait to celebrate it until Grandpa and Grandma Van Horn came. She got a bike which she had so much fun going with Grandpa on a couple of rides with. We took her out to California Pizza for dinner and then came home for Spaghetti cake that Katelyn made.

Christmas Week

2009-12-25T11:57:00.000-08:00

The week of Christmas was full of many fun actives and great opportunities to be together as a family. From building Gingerbread houses, making cookie plates, Christmas Eve with Bob's family to having a very relaxing Christmas day letting the kids hang out and play with all there loot. I am very thankful for the girls help this year. Kate helped me do most of our shopping the day after Thanksgiving and building our Christmas Cards, Sonoma helped with all of our cookie plates, and Olivia gave us great Christmas spirit all day everyday. She would say at least 10 times a day "I can't wait for Christmas"!!!!!

School Christmas Program

2009-12-15T11:49:00.000-08:00

Olivia sang with her class in the school Christmas Program. It was very cute, even though I hate the fact that there's no parking, the gym being over crowded, and the rude people that save seats for family members that never show up. It over all was a cute program. We only get to attend maybe 2 more before we won't have anymore kids in it which makes me super sad and feeling very old. I'm sure we will find something else to replace it. Bob says that there is something to do every night in the month of December if you really want to.

Charlie Brown Christmas Tree

2009-12-10T11:21:00.000-08:00

Ok, Every year we all have the opportunity of getting a Christmas Tree. Our families biggest issue is what kind are we going to get. Some of us like the big fluffy ones and some (I) like the the Charlie Brown style. So this year as we went to pick one out we had a great comprised we went for one that was in between. For the last couple of years we have gotten our tree at a place called the Flower Garden in Loomis. Its a great place to go because they have a coffee shop and we all get ahot chocolate and play checkers for a while before we all argue about what kind of tree were getting. Bob and I figured that since we had all girls it was best not to make them walk for hours in the forest and cut one down.

That way by the time we get home they are still willing to decorate it.

Sonoma's 16th B-day

2009-12-08T11:07:00.000-08:00

Yes Sonoma is 16 years old. Wow does time fly, and how it's fun to remember the day she was born. It's amazing how a beautiful baby grew up to be such an amazing young women. This year she had 2 parties, the first was with her girl friends. They played WII from 4 pm to 1 am, ate pizza and laughed alot. Her 2nd party was a family party the next night were we had the Rutledge family's over for cake and ice cream. She had Katelyn make her 2 separate cakes for each event. The first was a red velvet twilight cake "I Run With Wolves" and the other was a chocolate and white pink, purple, and black zebra cake. We all had a great time.

Thanksgiving 2009

2009-11-28T10:53:00.000-08:00

Kate and Olivia chopping Veggies for the Stuffing

Well even I had major Surgury just a couple weeks prior to Thanksgiving I was first planning on having Pizza. But Kate decided that she was going to make the whole thing. So we armed her with ingredents and recipies and she pretty much did the whole thing. It was amazing and really good. She was able to get Olivia to help her out which was great.

Halloween

2009-10-31T10:40:00.000-07:00

Rachel and Olivia

Davin, Kate, and Mckenna

This year was the first one that we didn't have Sonoma with us. I guess she's getting to old to go with the family, so we added a couple of Kate's friend to our group. We went over to Steve and Holly's and had a great time. Olivia was a Del Oro High Cheerleader and Kate was a funky fairy.

Pumpkin Guts Fight

2009-10-30T20:50:00.000-07:00

Ok so we are carving our cute pumpkins and all the sudden there are pumpkin guts flying everywhere. It was soooo much fun!!!

Cottenwood River COLD Swim

2009-10-15T19:48:00.000-07:00

We took a ride up to one of Bob's job's in Truckee. There is a river named Cottonwood that run along the hwy. We have passed this many times on our way up to Girls Camp. So it started with Bob getting in and not saying that it was freezing cold. He talked Sonoma into getting in and she seemed to keep his secret. He was able to get each one of the girls in and to keep his secret. So they all told me to get in and as I walked in within seconds I felt my legs getting numb by the second and as I yelled at him he found great pleasure in my discomfort. We really did have fun, and Bob was able to cross that off his list of stuff he wanted to do.

Kate's First Wedding Cake

2009-09-15T11:42:00.000-07:00

Katelyn was asked by Daniel and Ashley to make their wedding cake. Daniel used to tutor her before he went on his mission to Mexico. He got back in July and asked his sweetheart Ashley to marry him. It was such an honor for Katelyn to do this for them, she didn't like the attention that came with it. At the reception there were many of our friends from church there and they were all so impressed. As her Mom I couldn't believe how beautiful of a cake she did. It was very hard for me to step back and let do her thing. Way to go Kate!!

AHHH RELAXING

2009-09-15T11:22:00.000-07:00

Yes I am missing the relaxing part of our vacation. I am hoping that we will able to do it again.

This was a fantastic trip and I am sure that the girls will always remember it.

Playing at the Beach - Gold Beach

2009-09-15T11:03:00.000-07:00

We hit the beach everyday which was so much fun to lay out in the sun and play in the sand. We found so many shells and lots of white and black rocks that were so cool.

Since we were an a private beach we were able to find so many neat things since it wasn't picked over. It was really fun to have a beach all to yourself.

Beach Hike - Oregon

2009-09-15T10:47:00.000-07:00

Bob has noted that if there are worn out cars parked on the side of the Coastal Hwy there must be something very cool. We he was quite right, we came upon an amazing hole/cave.

It was funny as we were walking down to it I was thinking to myself wow what a great hike, but on the way back to the car I was saying ouch my calf's are on fire who's idea was this. No really it was amazing and breathtaking, Bob and the Girls thought that it was one of the coolest/scariest things we had done in a very long time.

Trip Day 3 - Animal Safari Rescue Park

2009-09-15T10:27:00.000-07:00

As we were driving up the coast we ran into this amazing Animal Safari Rescue Park. Oh my gosh Sonoma was in heaven. We had a great time being able to pet and see all kinds of animals.

This is one place I would love to go back to. Sonoma wished she could live there.

Day Trip Up The Oregen Coast

2009-09-15T10:07:00.000-07:00

On our 2nd day we started driving up the Oregon Coast. We stopped at several different places and walked around small towns. Our favorite was a small town of Bandon, which had the best Clam Chowder, Fish and Chips, and Calamari. We also found a great candy shop and bought fudge which was super yummy.

Labor Day Trip - On the Road

2009-09-15T09:35:00.000-07:00

Well at the last minute we decided to get away for the Labor Day holiday. Bob wanted to go to the beach but also go somewhere where the kids would have a great time. Since we didn't do a summer vacation and money is tight we picked Gold Beach, Oregon. It is in southern part of the state about 2 hours north of the California boarder. We left on Thursday and stayed till Monday.
This is at a small campground where we took a rest stop and to stretch.

Kate's Soccer Placement Tournament

2009-08-22T21:26:00.000-07:00

What a exciting day we had today. Katelyn's team played a 2 games today to figure out their placement for this years games. I was asked to help out with being assistant coach and over the last 2 weeks our team of 10 girls have been working extra hard to get ready for today. We did quite well, our first game we tied a team that had never lost or tied and our second game we won 1 to 0. Everyone did an amazing job, since the games were in 25 min intervals with our 2nd one being an exception at a 35 min game. It was so fun to watch Kate and her friends have a great time together and play an amazing sport. My voice is quite sore from "helping" but it was all worth it. Congrats Team Lightning!!!!

1st Day of School

2009-08-22T21:03:00.000-07:00

Well we are quite excited that school has officially started (especially mom). Sonoma is a sophomore at Del Oro High School and has quite a few computer classes and loves all of her teachers. Katelyn is a 7th grader and her teacher is Mrs. Ijames, she is excited to see all of her friends, and of coarse wear new clothes. And Olivia is a 3rd grader and in Mrs Hansens class, she will have a year of pre-california/pioneer study. This year she is excited about dressing up as a pioneer and going to the Barnhart Museum in Auburn. We hope that they have a fun and exciting year.

Canning

2009-08-22T20:46:00.000-07:00

Well since the summer is winding down and I never got to planting a garden I thought I would be a good idea and get some tomatoes canned for this winter. This past year I had only canned 15 jars and we ran out around May, so this year I canned 27 jars. I don't know why I don't can more often since it only took me and 1 1/2 hours to get everything into the jars. The best part about all of it was that Olivia came and helped me. She really enjoyed setting up everything. I am hoping to do some more in the next week or so.

Olivia getting all the jars out and putting them in the dishwasher.

What pretty tomatoes

Always having a good time!!

The 2-Million-Calorie Cupcake

2009-08-19T11:30:00.001-07:00

Check out this article. Very cool!!!!

The 2-Million-Calorie Cupcake

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Olivia's Pond Day

2009-08-11T13:45:00.000-07:00

Last week when Katelyn was house sitting for the Mitchell family Olivia and I decided to go swimming while Kate was doing chores. Here are some pic's of Olivia and her fancy moves. It was completly hilarious.

Olivia's Fabulous Swan Dive

Mormon Youth Pioneer Trek 2009

2009-08-06T21:55:00.003-07:00

Area Mormon youth re-enact the arrival of the original Mormon pioneers to the Salt Lake Valley in 1847 including, from left, Spencer Mason, Sarah Mostafie, Sonoma Rutledge, Kelsie Davey, Lane Christensen; and, back row, from left, Garrett Marsh, Rachel Roskelley and Cheryl Christensen.

Scores of young people from western Nevada County pressed against heavy handcarts along country in a recent re-enactment of the arrival of the original Mormon pioneers to the Salt Lake Valley. They were among 185 young people 14 to 18 years old from the Auburn Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Assisted by 75 adults, they pulled 20 handcarts for three days over 15 miles of difficult terrain north of Chester, Calif. They joined tens of thousands of Mormon youth in similar re-enactments across the nation July 23 to 25. Pioneers led by Brigham Young arrived in what is now the Salt Lake City area July 24, 1847.Before the great Mormon migration ended with the completion of the railroad, more than 60,000 crossed the plains, mostly on foot. Even those coming with wagon companies usually walked alongside to spare the oxen and avoid the jarring ride. Many of those, coming in large numbers from Britain and Scandinavia, had already crossed the stormy Atlantic before beginning the march across the plains and over the Rockies. For them, the voyage frequently began in January and did not end until October. One-third of the local trekkers are direct descendants of original pioneers.

One of the greatest challenges on this outing was keeping the group supplied with food and water in temperatures over 85 degrees, with no water sources along the route and with no fires allowed, including cooking fires, Trek Leader Selby Bearry of Lake of the Pines said. (Selby was known to the trekkers as Captain Willy.)No injuries apart from sore feet and minor dehydration were reported.Other trek leaders included Cathy Bearry, and Program Heads Curt and Debbie Chittock from Penn Valley.The trek was divided into four companies, with five families in each company, each family responsible for pulling one wagon; 20 area couples led the families.

Local participants included Bishop Jack Emery, Shel and Gary Mullennax, Jean and Jim Richardson, Cheryl and Layne Christiansen, Nancy and Dave DeMartini, Leslie and Rich Goddard, Deb and Stan Stoneking, Kathy and Brian Stephensen, Lori and Nate Davey, Bishop Steven Glazier and Ralph and Marianne McKnight.The property was donated for the trek by the Collins Pine Company of Chester. Handcarts were rented from Deseret Farms in Chico.Activities en route included pioneer games, square dancing in the evening, and lots of music.Each person on the trek was given an identity of one of the original pioneers, and all participants were dressed in period attire. The event ended with a celebration Saturday evening at the Nevada City chapel. The youth gave some inspiring talks in church the following day.

Amber Church (Y.W. Leader) and Sonoma showing off costumes Karen made for this event.

Youth participate in Mormon handcart trek | TheUnion.com

2009-08-06T21:36:00.001-07:00

http://www.theunion.com/article/20090806/FEATURES/908069995&parentprofile=search

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Girls Camp 2009

2009-08-05T07:52:00.000-07:00

What another fantastic year at Girls Camp. We had less horses more leaders. I only rode out on two rides, and the rest of the time I organized our great team and the girls. I am happy to report that there were no accidents or problems, it was quite laid back. It was fun to have Sonoma and Kate help out as assistant leaders. They are both great horsewomen and are better then I am. Thanks to them for letting us use their horses and making sure that they were in condition to go.

I did miss Bob this year, he was not able to come and participate do to all the work frenzy and trying to get that all handled and our lives back together. I am praying that we will be able to continue in running the horse program. We are so blessed that the church allows us to do it and I can only hope that were still doing it when Olivia comes to camp in 2013. Thanks to everyone that helped out and put so much time, energy, and money into a great week with the girls.

It was so much fun to have Katelyn at camp. She had a wonderful time and I think will be another life long camper. Sonoma finished her 4th year at camp and will now move onto Big Sisters. Everyone in crafts loved her as she worked on numerous humanitarian projects.

FYI

2009-07-18T22:46:00.000-07:00

Since this blog goes mostly to my family I thought that I would put out a blog to you all an update or let you in on what's been going on (if mom hasn't told you by now). Last week I had a mammogram which had a mass of 1.5 cm on my right breast. So I went in this last Tuesday for another one and a ultra sound to make sure. So sure enough they were right about it. So I have been refered to a Surgeon and will go in and have it taken out. We feel pretty positive about the whole thing and know that everything will be fine. I know this is all a sore subject with having had Mom go thru Cancer and all but I think it's great that we have modern technology that can help prevent and or find things early enough. I will give you all an update when I am scheduled for surgery.

Thank you for all your phone calls and emails they mean alot to me and especially to Bob to know that you love and support our family.

Love you all

Karen

Dutch Oven Cooking

2009-06-30T20:47:00.000-07:00

Ok I have some catch-up to do with the whole blog thing. I'm waiting for my friend Deann to get pack from Lake Powell so that I can post the cute pic's she has from girls camp. Anyway, 2 weeks ago I was asked by Morgan in my ward to teach dutch oven cooking for our enrichment night. Of corse I said yes, but she said that it couldn't be any kind it had to be creative and something no one would think of doing. Of course I still say yes. So to the web sites, boarders books, and my own cookbook I go. I decided on doing lazana, something no one would think of. So I decided to try to figure it out the Sunday before. I wanted to make sure I did it as self reliant as I could, which means I made my own noodles. This is very fun and not that hard. So away I went, it took about 15 min of prep and it cooked for 30 min. Ahh, I'm in love but I hated the sauce. So on Tuesday I decided to do it again this time with no cook noodles and Marie Calenders cheep sauce which was on sale 2 for $4.00. Wow it was amazing, I also made a cherry chip cake cobbler and french bread. The cake was good but not the wow I wanted and the bread was amazing, and yes all cooked in a dutch oven. I also found some time to fold laundry while it was cooking. I was so efficient that I didn't notice the small grass fire I had set due to the high winds that day. Bob of course noticed and mentioned that it was a great way of getting out of weed whacking. We only charred part of the backyard and no one new the wiser.

So on Thursday night I show up 15 min early, light my coals and pull the whole thing off without a single problem. I also made cherry chocolate cake with cream cheese filling, super yummy! Everyone loved it and we all had an amazing time. Chris Mitchell loved it so much he made me make it for our families when we were in Sierriaville camping/setting-up for girls camp. My family is very tired of lazana. I also had the chance to teach the 2nd year girls how to make mountain woman breakfast and muffins/biscuits my favorite. Actually they are all my favorites, I could eat dutch oven anytime anywhere.

I hate being sick!!!

2009-06-08T20:22:00.000-07:00

As of 1:00 a.m this morning I have felt the need to curl up in a little ball and die. Every 2 years I get sick, which is not that often. But when I do get sick its big, body aches and pains, digestive issues, fever, ect. So since my family is not sympathetic at all I figured I would cry to the world that I am sick and I feel like crap. I am hoping that this doesn't last long, since on Thursday I am teaching the Sisters in our ward how to cook dutch oven style. I am really looking forward to it. Yesterday, I made lazana, french bread, and upside down peach cake in our dutch ovens. It was super yummy. I am hoping that is turns out great on Thursday.

Olivia the Gardner

2009-04-28T20:23:00.000-07:00

Well we have finally started to work on the gardens around the property. In Dec Bob made me some planter boxes and planted some lavender, but nothing else. So Olivia decided that she would motivate me and be my Master Gardner Helper. So we planted 4 more plants added the weed cloth and spread out bark for beautiful finishing touch. And with the help of daddy got all the drip system lines in. It was so much fun to have a helper, she has inspired me to get my vegetable garden started and hopefully we can finish in the next couple of weeks.

Easter/ Spring Break

2009-04-13T20:42:00.000-07:00

At the last minute we decided to spend the last part of our spring break and Easter weekend in Ft. Bragg, CA. We stayed in Mac Kirchner, California State Park. We were able to stay in a spot we had previous stayed in which is my favorite. The first day we went to Mendocino, window shopped and ended up at the bookstore. Everyone purchased a book which is my favorite thing for the kids to do. That evening we went out to dinner to a local family owned Italian Restaurant. YUM YUM it was soooo good, they make all there own bread and there pasta even better.

Saturday we woke up late, spent the day at glass beach. For those of you that don't know what that is. There used to be a dump right on the ocean until the 1950's, the organic material deteriorated and the only thing left was the glass. With the waves going in and out it crushed the glass, smoothed it out and made beautiful glass rocks/jewels. So when I say we stayed most of the day at glass beach I mean it is a day of the girls sifting thru glass trying to find the rarest piece.

After glass beach we colored eggs, roasted hot dogs, had smores, and liv beat Bob and I at a couple games of Skippo.

Easter Morning the girls woke up to a Easter basket full of goodies, and 1/2 of there eggs eaten by a furry animal. I hoped what ever ate the eggs enjoyed them, I was looking forward to an egg salad sandwich for lunch.

The weather was beautiful and it is one of my most favorite places to vacation in.

Kate's 1st Track Meet of the Season

2009-03-18T20:19:00.000-07:00

We had a beautiful afternoon at Kate's track meet. She participated in disc throwing, shot put, high jump, and long jump. We haven't gotten her scores since they haven't been back to school yet, but she was one of the last ones on the high jump event and she compared her scores against the boys for shot put and had a higher score. We are so happy that she decided to participate, and she is really enjoying the time outdoors with her friends competing.

Sonoma's Choir Concert

2009-03-12T20:11:00.000-07:00

Wow what an amazing concert. It was fun to go to the High School and hear Sonoma sing with her classmates. The new auditorium is beautiful and the sound system is awesome. It's not what we had when were I was going to High School. Sonoma is getting ready for the Cabaret series in May and we all can't wait to see her perform. Good Job Sonoma!!!!

The Gym

2009-03-06T19:42:00.000-08:00

Over the last 3 months I have been working-out a lot. I have been doing 2 hours a day 5 days a week. I've been able to loose a lot of weight, but I'm stuck again in a slump. I have changed my workout, my eating habits, even took a couple days off. What to do, What to do. It might be the stress factor, so the only thing I can come up with to solve that is a trip to Kauai. So anyone out there that would like to help this fitness charity case please let me know if you could spread your charity upon myself, oh don't forget my trainer Bobby who has his foot in my back at 4:00 in the morning as my alarm goes off. And is quite happy to have 2 hours of quiet sleep (yes I snore).

Any tips I'm game.

Valentine's Day with Sick Kids

2009-02-15T16:56:00.001-08:00

It was a sad Valentine's day. All the girls are sick with that cold/flu. Olivia and Sonoma stayed home from school on Friday. Kate decided to go so she could go to a birthday party afterwards. So she took and picked up Olivia's Valentines. By the afternoon Bob started getting sick also and by 4:00 he was in bed sweating. Yuck!!!! He did get me a very cute card (Bob kind of cute) and a cute shirt. I got him 3 cards, I love Hoops and YoYo and so everytime I saw one I bought it. Yes I am ill and I enjoyed the cards so much more then he did. They make me laugh so hard that I almost pee my pants. I also got him a 1/2 a box of See's Candies his favorite. I had a great self date and watched Nick and Nora's Playlist on DVD all by myself (bob was asleep next to me).

I hope that everyone gets better soon, I am really tired of disinfecting my house and I have done about 12 loads of laundy in 2 days.

California State Capital

2009-01-11T19:51:00.000-08:00

We had a great afternoon visiting the California State Capital. When the girls were little we used to go to the capital grounds and feed the squirrel. So this time we not only feed the squirrel, we also went inside the capital and did the tour. It was neat to see each county's respiration of what resources where in the county. We also saw where our local lawmakers work and vote on issues of the state. What a great and relaxing day.

Olivia's Birthday and Baptism

2008-12-27T19:42:00.000-08:00

We had two events in one. What a wonderful day it has been. Olivia turned eight and on the same day was Baptised by Bob. What a great spiritual day it was and we have all been so blessed. After the Baptism we had a luncheon at our house with Birthday presents and cake. Congratulations Olivia!!!

Christmas Holiday's

2008-12-25T19:56:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Grandpa and Grandma Van Horn drove in from Utah on 24th. That evening we went over to Grandpa and Grandma Rutledge's house for there yearly Christmas Eve party. We ate, watched the kids open a present and played the elephant gift game (I think there were 47 numbers past out). We then came home just in time to miss the pajama elf delivering new P.J's to the kids.

We were then woken up around 6:30 Christmas day, to 3 anxious girls wanting to see what Santa brought them. Sonoma got a DVD camcorder (watch out U Tube), Kate got all new cake/cupcake decorating stuff, and Olivia got a Barbie Christmas. When then all sat around opening other presents eating my Mom's famous Orange Rolls and Monkey Bread YUM!

Over then next couple days we watched lots of movies, played the Wii and got plenty of horseback ridding rides in. Oh and Grandpa Van Horn got 1 Mt. Bike ride in.

We are so thankful for the wonderful blessings we have be blessed with and the opportunity to have the Grandparents here to celebrate the life of our Savior Jesus Christ. We wish you all a Merry Christmas and a great 2009!

Christmas Picture that didn't make the cut

2008-12-24T19:18:00.000-08:00

This is the picture that was the best one that was taken, but it didn't make the cut. Reason being is that cowboys legs were cut off. Every time that I see this picture it makes me laugh. What a great afternoon of laughing and joking around. I am in love with our horse cowboy, he just puts up with anything and doesn't really make to much of a fuss. He always is very aware. When my Dad and I were out of a ride the other day he was starting to get annoyed because we weren't going home and it was getting dark. It is funny how he is aware of what is going on. I am thankful for my girls and how great they are. I love each and everyone of there personalities. I am quite thankful for the family that I have.

Christmas Ballet Program

2008-12-22T12:21:00.000-08:00

Our little Ballerina Olivia, participated in a beautiful performance with her ballet group. Her two cousins Rachel and Everann also were in the program. It was at Del Oro High School and it was a spectacular evening.

Christmas Cookie Contest

2008-12-22T12:13:00.000-08:00

This year we entered the City of Newcastle's Christmas cookie contest. Each of the girls picked there favorite cookie to bake and then typed up the recipe to post in there annual cookbook. This was so much fun, we spent many hours and ate lots of cookies prior to the contest. The cookies were tasted and voted upon by our local citizens for best cookie. There were some great entry's. YUM!

Christmas Tree Decorating

2008-12-10T19:11:00.000-08:00

I love decorating the house and our tree for Christmas. I love all the fighting over the kind of tree that we are going to get. I love pulling out all the oddments that the kids have made and gluing them back together to last another day. I love the oddments that we have purchased over the years that reminds me of when the girls were little and what our family was into that year. But I love the homade ones that family and friends have made for us. I think of all the long hours that they spent creating such a beautiful thing that hangs on my tree. My tree as you can see isn't fancy but it is a marker of love and kindness which is what Christmas is. Merry Christmas.

Sonoma's Birthday

2008-12-08T20:59:00.000-08:00

Sonoma is officially 15 years old. Wow, what a day. We enjoyed a little bit of shopping, and then we all went out to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner. It was soooo good and we had a wonderful time. We then went home and opened up presents. Can't believe how grow-up she is, 1 more year till we have another driver in our home. We asked her what kind of a car she would like and she said she would love to have a old pickup truck so that she could hook-up our small horse trailer and she and Kate could go ridding anywhere they want. Happy 15th B-day Sonoma!

Identity Theft

2008-12-04T12:13:00.000-08:00

Yes, I am a victim of Identity Theft. AHHHHH!!!! It all started when I got back from my wonderful vacation in the mountains. As I was going thru the mail there was a package from Proactive Solution. I was bewildered as I opened it thinking why am I getting this? No one in our family has acne. As I read the invoice it said that they had charged my credit card 27.78 and on the 22nd of Dec they would send out another kit and charge my card again. I was frustrated because I couldn't understand why they would go and send me stuff and assume that I wanted it. Well it gets better. I called them this morning telling them that I didn't want it. The lady was confused, she said they why did you order it. I said I didn't. She said that it was ordered on line on the 24th of Nov. So then I got worried and looked at my account on line. There were 6 other charges from some strange company for all different amounts. So I call my wonderful Bank of America, they blocked my credit card and after an hour of being transferred I was able to put in a fraud report.

So here the lesson to my story. When you get a proactive box in the mail don't wait a couple of days to realize that your getting riped off from someone else.

In the end they refunded me the money and I have a new card coming in the mail.

The Joy of the Holidays

2008-12-02T09:16:00.000-08:00

As a very stressful day ended and we were setting in for the night I noticed that our neighbor had put up there Christmas lights and the other neighbor had there tree up. As I stood there looking thru the window I felt a rush of happy. I am really looking forward to the holidays this year and the fact that the kids are getting older. It is very different to celebrate the holidays with older kids then it was when they were little. The presents are more thought out and they are interested in what I need.

This Thursday our community is putting on a Christmas cookie exchange and contest. I think it will be fun to join in. I love making Christmas cookies, but most of all my girls love to make them also. I think about when I was going up and helping my Mom make cookies. Then we would spend the evening frosting them, put them on a Christmas paper plate with colored scran wrap with a bow and label. We would then deliver them to all of our friends and neighbors. Since we live in a very small community, I think that the cookie exchange is perfect for our family.

I have also been thinking of what we will be doing for our charity project this year. This is hard since we don't have a lot of money, so that means that I have to get creative. I'm not that good of being creative but if forced I seem to do fine. And maybe that is what I need a little push to step out of my box. Hum I will have to think about that.

After Thanksgiving Camping

2008-12-01T10:03:00.000-08:00

We were able to go up to Sierraville after my shopping spree and go horse camping. It was quite fun and very cold. Sonoma and Kate are getting so big, they just ride there horses everywhere. When they need something they just throw a halter on and go bareback. It really gives Bob and I sometime alone with Olivia. She helped all weekend cut a new horse trail up at camp. All she really did was guard the snacks and sing.

The pictures are of Bob and Olivia hitting each other with sticks. Luckily Sonoma and Kate were ridding there horses down the street to the local 76 gas station for candy (first time going off the property by themselves, I was very nervous). I am so glad that Bob is still juvenile enough to tease liv.

Right before we left Olivia found a blue plastic binder holder (not sure what the true name is). But anyway it made a kazoo noise, she buzzed that thing everywhere she went. She would even talk thru it. When we got into the car Bob told her she would have to wait until we were home until she could make noise again or he would throw it out the window. Well we stopped for a potty break and the minute he got out of the car she asked if she could blow her whistle. I told her to hurry it up before dad got back. As Bob headed back to the car she squealed "he's coming"! She was doing really good for most 0f the trip until she couldn't stand it anymore and blew her whistle. Bob put it up in his visor until we got home. Then it was no stop whistling for the rest of the night.

What a fun trip. I love going up there with Bob and the girls. It is so peaceful. We are very blessed to have a place to go and have fun.

Black Friday

2008-12-01T09:14:00.000-08:00

Ahh, yes I am one of those Black Friday shoppers. I wasn't going to do it this year, due to the fact of low funds. But with the support of a wonderful husband, he encouraged me to go (I think it was all about saving money). Well I got up at 3:00 a.m. and hit Koals first. Wow what sales, but what a line. I stood in the check-out line for 2 hours, OUCH. Since Target is next door and I could get a cart instead of holding everything like I had to at Koals I thought that would be refreshing. After that I raced over to JC Pennys and Sears which are in the mall. Then ended up at Old Navy for the 50% off sales, I love sales at Old Navy ($10.00 jeans). I was finished by 10:00 a.m. I pretty much got all of our Christmas shopped for, but I also got Sonoma's and Olivia's birthday presents purchased. Yea for Karen the super shopper.

Thanksgiving Yum! Yum!

2008-11-28T14:41:00.000-08:00

Wow what a yummy day. I spent all day cooking, cleaning, watching movies, and eating. Can I say what a perfect day. We had so much fun hanging out as a family and cooking. We BBQed our turkey, dutch ovened our stuffing, and put our green beans in little pies like chicken pot pies. We in addition to our pumpkin and berry pies made a banna cream pie which was a huge hit. Sorry if I made you all hungry, but it was sooooo good.

My Fun Sunday Baking Afternoon. YUM!!!!

2008-11-24T19:02:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I baked. I have not baked for at least 6 months. I made chocolate marshmallow with fudge frosting cookies, then sticky buns, and last of all pumpkin muffins. Oh my, have I gained 5 pounds in the matter of 24 hrs. Bob asked what was my deal, was the you know what coming or what???? I said that it is finally cold enough to turn on my oven without having to turn on the air conditioning, which will not happen until next summer. In our less than rich status we have done away with any kind of luxury items. I also needed to prove to myself that I can still bake really good. Like I said before I made pumpkin muffins, I got a recipe off the Internet. It was very yummy, but I am going to improve it. It called for a yellow cake mix, so now I am going to make the cake from scratch. I also have a pumpkin outside that is starting to get ripe, I am going to learn how to make it into pumpkin filling. I explained this to Bob and got an amazing response, blank stare and he shook his head in disbelief. I think I can really make pumpkin muffins from scratch. Once my pumpkin is ready I will let ya all know how it all came out of if I am truly crazy.

My Cowgirls

2008-11-14T11:07:00.000-08:00

The girls had a chance to ride a mechanical bull at our local fair. It was amusing to watch the operator of the machine start it out very slow, and then he could tell it was going to take a whole lot more power to get these girls off. We asked them what they thought about it, and they both said they would rather ride there horse somewhere any day of the week. There new thing is ridding bareback to do any kind of chore or task. Sonoma gets the mail by just hopping on cowboy and ridding down to the mailbox. They go to friends houses to via there horse, they want to go to the gas station and get a treat. It's nice to know that they still love there horses and I hope it will replace the boy craze that most girls go thru. Wishful thinking.

Our Office Move Agian :(

2008-11-06T21:40:00.000-08:00

Well we have moved our office again. I hate moving, I really hate moving. Especially moving an office. I think I'm close to an expert at this. We have moved our office 6 times in the last 11 years. It doesn't matter if your going from a small office to big or from big to small. You still have to delete furniture or add furniture. The thing I hate the most is that you can never get phone, fax, and DSL lines started, hooked up, arranged when the phone company says it will. It is either turned off earlier or started later than expected. This is very frustrating. I must say that with this last move we were very blessed to have the technicians from AT&T that we had. When they realized that it wasn't going as smoothly as it should have, they brought in help and only charged me a quarter of what it would have been. So a big thanks to AT & T for helping me not have a total mental breakdown. Also a big thinks to my Blackberry, I was able to get very important e-mails so that we could get some cash flow. I guess I can't forget the 2 main people that helped move me physically. Dennis and Mike a big thank you for putting up with my OCD of where furniture goes or doesn't go. You saved my b-hind.

Halloween Night

2008-11-01T11:44:00.000-07:00

We went to Lea and Casey's for Halloween. We had a spooky potluck dinner, we brought chili with bread stick spiders. After dinner the Sonoma and Kate went off with Jessica and Natalie to trick or treat by themselves. Kate was an Elf, and Sonoma was still celebrating Homecoming with her black and gold. She complained that she didn't get candy from a couple of houses because they didn't think she was dressed up. They had a lot of fun with out parents overseeing them. Olivia and I went with the younger kids around the neighborhood, we were surprised at how many houses didn't have anyone home or didn't want kids. We did get to go thru a haunted house which was kid of scary. They did a great job and it was very fun. Bob on the other hand walked over to his brother Jim's house and drooled over his new hot rod. We all had a great time.

Kates Pumpkin Cupcakes

2008-11-01T11:36:00.000-07:00

Katelyn got a new cupcake cookbook a couple months ago and has really been working hard at creating cupcakes. She did a great job on these pumpkin cupcakes, her frosting was fantastic. I can't wait till she has a new creation, we will all weigh 300 pounds by the time she is a cupcake master.

Homecomming

2008-10-31T22:06:00.000-07:00

This past week was Homecoming week at Del Oro High School. We were able asked to participate in the the Homecoming Parade by donating our dump truck and trailer. So I asked Dennis if he would like to help out and Sonoma and I would tag along. We were given the JV Football players and they were great. Sonoma who is freshman this year, rode in the back for a little while and then came up front with Dennis, his son Alex, and myself. It was great to enjoy such a long standing tradition of driving thru our small town. There was such a large crowd cheering on our amazing school.

GO DEL ORO!!!!!!!!

Blogging????

2008-10-30T07:00:00.000-07:00

Well I thought this would be fun to do, I have several family members that blog and so I think I will join in. I really have wanted to journal our families activity's for a long time, so that when they get older they will be able to see themselves and remember what it is like to be a kid. The picture is of my 3 Monkeys, Sonoma, Katelyn, and Olivia sending Daddy a picture card. If you are wondering about the 3 Moneys name we have always called the girls monkeys, but Bob has had this statue of the 3 monkeys (hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil) And the girls match there positions. So here we go with our blog, ENJOY!!!!