Palisade State Park

This is Palisade State Park formerly known as Funk Lake. Matt's Great Grandpa built this lake and area. I will have to get the whole story from my mother in law. I can't remember all the details. I will try the best I can to remember it and then fix it later. His Great Grandpa was sent by Brigham Young to settle this land. At the time this area was owned by the Indians. Great Grandpa was an engineer and knew that there could be a way to get the water over the mountain. So, he approached the Indians to ask them to buy this property and told them of his idea to make water travel over a mountain and into this valley. The Indians just laughed at him and thought that there was no way he could accomplish this, so they would sell him this dry land and knew that he would sell it back in a matter of time, when his plan didn't work. Well, to their amazement it did work. Great Grandpa got the water to travel over the mountain and made a beautiful lake. Which today is owned by the Government as a National Park. If you are ever in Sterling and go to Palisade State Park, you will know that it once was Funk Lake and was a very dry piece of ground. I'm sure the Indians were quite surprised by this young lad, who had a crazy idea.

Funk Family Reunion Sterling, Ut

Reservoir

road to Grandpa's

The creek and creek bottom

Dad's old home, which originally was made of adobe

Sterling

Sterling

We enjoyed the family reunion. It was fun seeing where Dad was from and his old home that he grew up in and the land around it. It was so neat hearing the stories of when he was young and would play in the reservoir and how he learned to swim in the creek that ran across the road from his house and how the used to herd cattle down the creek bottom. I could just picture him with all his brothers and sisters running around down there. Sterling is a beautiful valley and I was honored to be there with Matt's parents.

The reunion was fun, meeting and seeing family members. They talked alot about Charles & Emily Funk, who are Albert's parents and Matt's Grandma and Grandpa. It was neat to hear their stories. We got a book that was put together with stories of them and memories of the Grandchildren of their Grandparent's. It is really neat. I will treasure that book forever. Charles & Emily had 13 children of which 1 died the day he was born, and 3 others died before the age of 25. Two from diseases and one form a motorcycle accident. They have 36 Grandchildren and 106 Great Grandchildren, 34+ Great, Great Grandchildren. Dad just has his Sister Ada. Dad comes from a great posterity. I'm so thankful to be a part of their family.

Dad Funk's Baptism Day

While we were waiting for the pageant to start. Dad or Grandpa Funk told us that when he got baptized, he was baptized in the Manti Temple. After he was baptized, they took him up to the very top of the temple and he climbed those stairs that went around. And he got to stand at the very top, outside and look at the whole valley. What a neat experience. I'm glad he shared that with us. I tried to take a picture of the top of the temple, it's a little blurry, he told us after it was dark, but I wanted to make sure that Colton knew this story of his wonderful Grandpa.

Manti Miracle Pageant

Last weekend was the Funk family reunion in Sterling, UT. Mom and Dad Funk had planned for us to go down a night early and see the Manti Pageant. We stayed in a Hotel that night, or I should say morning, we got in at about 1:00 am. We had dinner at the church house, where they have a fund raiser for the ward. They served BBQ Turkey, mashed potatoes, green beans, roll, salad, and dessert. The turkey was so juicy, tender and very yummy. Then we headed over to the pageant, Matt & I dropped Mom and Dad Funk off, so they wouldn't have too far to walk and to find us a place. We ended up having a very nice gentleman let us park between his two driveways. So, we were only about two blocks away. That was so nice of him and his family. The temple is so gorgeous. Then we waited for it to get dark and watch the pageant. Before hand, some of the cast walked around talking to people and doing some missionary work. Colton & I got our picture taken with a Nephite. He was really nice. What an absolutely beautiful experience. I had never seen the pageant before. I was so excited to see it and it was well worth the anticipation. The Manti Temple is probably my second favorite, Logan being my first. It is so beautiful. Elder L. Tom Perry, gave the invocation, it was so nice to hear his voice and then the National Anthem was sung. The spirit was so strong through that number, it gave me the chills and I teared up. I am so grateful for this beautiful country that we have been blessed with. I'm grateful that we have the freedom of religion so that we may worship, they way that we want and that we have the only true gospel. The Gospel of Jesus Christ. I'm thankful for my membership in the church and for my knowledge of who I am and where I'm going and the plan Heavenly Father has in store for all of us. I'm thankful for the Prophet Joseph Smith, for all he endured for the truthfulness of the gospel. I'm thankful for the Saints and for our Forefathers, who instituted the great nation and fought for our freedoms. I'm thankful to the men and woman who serve our country today, for their sacrifice and diligence in trying to keep our nation free. The pageant was very beautiful, the setting was gorgeous, there at the foot of the temple with the beautiful star filled sky above us. It is definitely something I hope to attend again. The only drawback was there are a lot of mosquitoes, I remembered repellent, thankfully, but still got eaten up. But it was so worth it. Here are a few pictures that I snagged that night.

Colton's Dancing Song

Here is Colton's Dancing Song- He loves it!! "Shake Your Tailfeather" from the Blues Brothers Check it out- www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Ka-rGmXr7A

So, You Think You Can Dance?

I admit, I love this show. I love the talent and all the different styles of dancing, some more than others. Well, I have passed my love on to Colton. He loves to watch it, and he thinks he is one of the dancers. He has come up with quite the moves. Tonight he liked the "Jive" which he did jumps and leg lifts and also the "disco". What a great little dancer. I only wished that my camera battery was charged. I record the shows for mom so, maybe when we watch them again, he will show off his skills. That kid LOVES music and dancing. I'm really glad, music is a big part of my life.

I Promise I Feed Him

Yesterday, Colton and I had a busy day. We had an early morning apt. in Logan, and then ran some errands. You know, Sam's, Walmart, Shopko. I had taken Colton's cereal and milk. He drank all of his milk and most of his cereal. While we were at Sam's I bought some really yummy purple grapes. I hadn't eaten breakfast, so I figured I would snack on them. Well, Colton wanted them also, so I kept giving him grapes, between the two of us, we had eaten half the carton. Well, we got home and my big helper, helped me unload groceries into the house. It's so cute, Colton has to carry things into the house. Then I needed to use the bathroom, so I went into the bathroom and during that time, I guess Colton had climbed up on the table. When I came out, this is what I saw. Colton standing there with a hot dog bun sticking out of his mouth. He had eaten half of it. I just started laughing. I really wished I had my camera upstairs with me. I couldn't believe he was still hungry. So, then I fixed lunch and he ate all of that. He keeps me on my toes.

Back To Camp

Camp Maple Dell, Boy Scout Camp up Payson Canyon.

So, Matt went back to camp last night. All is good. Thankfully we didn't get any symptoms. We were truly blessed. Colton is missing his dad, this is really hard on him, but I get lots of cuddle time because of it. When Matt calls, Colton never wants to hang up or say goodbye, he starts to pitch a fit. Then at night and in the mornings, he calls for dada. Poor kid, I hope these eight weeks go fast for his sake and mine. I'm so proud of Matt for working and helping to provide for our family. We just pray that after camp, he can find a job close by. I have the greatest husband in the world. I love him so much!! And he is the greatest daddy! Love ya, honey, have a good week at camp. We will see you on Friday. This weekend is Matt's family reunion. We are going to Sterling, Ut on Saturday. Friday night we are going with Grandpa and Grandma Funk to the Manti Pageant. I am so excited, I have never been. I'm hoping Colton will be good and fall asleep in the stroller, since it's outside. I'm excited to spend time with our family this weekend. I have the best in laws ever!! I'm a pretty lucky girl. I love you all!

Boy Scout camp closes because of swine flu June 8th, 2009 @ 3:35pm UTAH COUNTY -- Camp has been canceled for hundreds of Boy Scouts after a staff member at Camp Maple Dell was diagnosed with the swine flu. Monday was schedule to be the first day of camp for about 40 Boy Scout troops and up to 450 Boy Scouts; but before they ever left for camp, they were told to stay home. Staffers at Camp Maple Dell had just finished a week of training to get ready for the summer season, when Scout leaders were notified on Friday that a staffer who went home sick earlier in the week had tested positive for the H1N1 virus. There were about 80 other staffers at the camp last week who were possibly exposed to the virus. Leaders of the Utah National Parks Council, which operates Camp Maple Dell, had discussions with the Utah County Health Department and, on the recommendation from the health department, decided to close the camp for a week. John Gailey, spokesman for the Utah National Parks Council, said, "A camp certainly could turn into a situation where you have a lot of boys from many locations, even out of state, coming there and taking it back to their hometowns, and so we want to stop that and make sure that doesn't happen, and hopefully we have." The health department recommended the Scouts send the staff home and close up for cleaning and to make sure no one else gets sick. So far, no one else is showing symptoms. If that continues to be the case for a few more days, the staff will be considered in the clear said National Parks Council Executive Director Steve Royster. "If there was no illness to them by Wednesday, [the health department said] that they were free to return to normal activity and come back to camp on Sunday to go to work," he said. If all goes well, Camp Maple Dell should reopen to staff next Sunday and campers next Monday. Royster says all of the campers who would have stayed there this week are being taken care of. "We contacted [each troop] on Saturday and have relocated them for future weeks or in other camps." Royster says the staff member who got sick began feeling ill toward the middle of the week. He left camp early and was diagnosed by a doctor sometime on Friday. He is said to be recovering well and may be able to rejoin the staff later in the summer. Meantime, Royster says the Scouts are following the recommendations of the health department to prevent the spread of the flu. The Utah Department of Health has confirmed 713 cases of H1N1 "swine" flu in the state so far. Two people have died, although both are said to have had underlying health conditions. You can find the CDC's recommendations for preventing the spread of any flu here.

What, Swine Flu Quarantine

So, I get a phone call Saturday night about 8:30 pm from Matt telling me that he is one his way home. They had one of their staff members really sick last week and he got tested for Swine Flu and it came back positive Saturday night. So, the State Health Department shut them down for a week, to see if there were any more break outs and to quarantine the staff. So, home they went. Matt hasn't been sick and we pray that he won't be. The Health Department said if they were to get it, they would be showing symptoms by Wednesday. So, we only have a few more days. Until, then there's no kissing and lots and lots of hand washing. It is nice having him home though. Matt will know by the end of the week, rather or not the camp will be up and running again in a week. I sure hope so!!! And so does he. So, what a fun and exciting weekend. We all stayed home Quarantined from Church, under orders of the Health Department. So, I read the conference edition of the ensign and sadly rather enjoyed my pj's all day. We are all doing well and healthy so far.

Grammy Can't Catch Me...

So, this is what it is like when Grammy tries to change Colton's diaper, he gets away. And there were other photos that I can't post, that were hillarious of Grammy struggling with Colton trying to get a diaper on. He loves to be naked!! And he takes every opportunity he can get!!

Where's Colton

What's up with that tongue? He always has it out. Mostly it sticks out sideways. It reminds me of Keagan when he was a baby.

He's in his toy boxes.... He loves to sit in them, weird kid!

Here we go....

Matt is off to camp at camp Mapledale in Payson canyon. He will be able to come home on Saturday nights and go to church with us on Sundays. He will have to be back on Sunday nights for meetings. He is enjoying the staff he is working with. Colton really misses his daddy, but it's going okay. I have had some very long days with Colton whinning and pitching fits because he doesn't get his way. Although to stop him from whinning, he loves to take baths. So, I put him in the tub to take a break from the whinning. I just sit there for a bit with a happy kid. Other than that, I'm feeling pretty good. Just haven't gotten my energy back completely. Hopefully that will come. Mike, Amy and their family will be coming the end of June. We are so excited to see them. I will try to post pictures and videos later.