Normal is no fun

What do dirty towels, algae, recumbent bikes, bison, a pony, Smith's Grocery store, Paris, and a trolley all have in common? My family's recent visit, of course!

A small portion of the ol' clan descended on my tiny apartment in the peaceful village of Springville on Friday, March 31st. My apartment, my neighbor, and my neighborhood will never be the same again.

I wasn't quite sure how we'd all do crowded in my humble digs, but I was eager for the company and craziness that would result. As with previous visitors (Amy and Lisa & children), I was very excited about their coming to see me in Utah. I really do love it out here and want to share what I'm seeing with everyone back home. I also knew that the visit would go too quickly and that I'd feel lonely all over again when they left. Still, I was eager for their arrival.

I met them at the baggage claim of the airport. Having received a call from my niece as they disembarked from the plane, I was all ready to snap a picture of them as they got within view. However, that never happened since I was in the wrong terminal (oops!). A phone call from my mom and a short trek to the terminal next door united us in no time and set the proverbial ball rolling. After picking up a rental car (van), we caravanned (no pun intended)the hour or so distance from the SLC airport to Springville, stopping along the way at Cafe Rio (voted by City Weekly as having the Best Burrito in Utah) for some food. The evening was spent getting settled in.

After a cozy night of semi-sleep (3 loud snorers in the bunch), we embarked on a trek northward to Antelope Island on the Great Salt Lake. A threatening storm resulted in gusty winds and very dark skies, but didn't dissuade us stalwart adventures from exploring the island (Aye, matey!) from (for the most post) the safe and warm confines of the van. We learned all about the island at the visitor center (or from asking questions of those of us who bothered to read the displays!), then drove around the island to look for roaming bison (which we saw in great number) and to enjoy the scenery. It really is a beautiful island. I had no idea (although plenty of people had suggested I go there) it was such a little treasure. I plan to go back to camp and hike when the weather warms up a tad. One of the highlights of the island is the Fielding-Garr Ranch. We could only imagine what kind of mettle a person must have had to have lived in such a remote setting on such a harsh land.

Our day continued with a visit to Temple Square in Salt Lake City. The annual LDS conference was in full swing while we were there, so in addition to learning a bit about Utah and LDS history, we got a good education about modern Utah/LDS culture as well. The trip home included a stop at the dinosaur museum at Thanksgiving Point and Cabela's which was, conveniently, located right across the highway.

Sunday saw us driving again - this time south to Moab. The scenery on the way down is so pretty and so different from anything out east that we were pretty entertained by it. However, music is a must on most roadtrips I take and so it wasn't long before the entire van was rocking with us bellowing "When I grow up, I want a pony" with Kasey Chambers. I'm not sure my mom knew the words, but I think I heard her even join in on the yodeling part. Woohoo!

Moab was warm, sunny and inviting. After lunch at the Moab brewery (thanks to a gift card from work), we spent the day driving and hiking around Arches National Park. We couldn't have asked for more perfect weather nor more perfect photo ops. Unfortunately, this seemed to be the time when all of our cameras went haywire. As a result, we didn't get as many pictures as we would have liked, but we sure saw some pretty great scenery. I've been there three times now, but I'm still impressed by the beauty.

We stayed at the Cali Cochitta Bed and Breakfast (again, thanks to a gift card from work), but were too tired from our day's adventures to take advantage of any of the amenities (e.g. the hot tub!) there. We shared breakfast (a grapefruit and some sort of crepe-like thing topped with berries and cream) the next morning with a couple from Philadelphia (who were very familiar with the place I worked last summer - Riverbend Environmental Education Center) and a couple from Minnesota (I think) who were feeling the pain of having biked through Arches the day before. They ride recumbent bikes at home and filled us all in on the virtues of recumbent bikes, eagerly answering our curious questions. It was obvious that they missed their bikes - especially the seats!

The day (another beautiful sunny southern Utah one) was spent exploring areas near Moab, including Dead Horse Point State Park (pictured above) and a very small portion of Canyonlands National Park. Whew! What amazing views! Kind of scary - especially if you happen to be the mother of a very adventuresome 10 year old - but breathtaking.

We had lunch along the Green River in...well...Green River, Utah, then spent the night at a Best Western in Price. It had an indoor pool, hot tub AND we each got our own bed!! Paradise. My niece and I walked to the local Smith's Grocery Store for goodies while my sister ordered pizza. It was fun to get a chance to walk and talk with my niece and hear about all of the things going on in her life. I feel like I really got to know her better - which is cool because she's a pretty cool 10 year old. A good old fashioned pajama/pizza party - complete with really good bad-for-you snacks and pop - ensued upon our return to the hotel. We watched Animal Planet and some show about little people and hit the sack.

Tuesday, their last full day in Utah, was spent pretty leisurely. Our return drive (accompanied by Beatles music from the I Am Sam soundtrack) was fairly uneventful. We stopped in Spanish Fork for lunch, then took a brief tour of Springville. Naps, "personal space time," listening to my neighbor sing (and trying to decide if she was playing her own accompaniment or if she had "one of those background tapes"), a trip to the very dirty, very slimy, very algae-filled hot springs in Saratoga Springs, and my sister's trip to the local Laundromat to wash (among other things) the pile of dirty towels that had quickly accumulated took up most of the afternoon. At 7:00, we gathered to watch American Idol (my sister and I have both become strangely addicted to the show) and to cheer on little Paris, my niece's favorite. Afterwards, we met my friend at a very fun little local restaurant (The Art City Trolley) which is housed (at least part of it is) in an old train trolley from Pennsylvania (of all places!).

They left the next day in one of the worst wind storms I've experienced since being here (wind gusts reached up to 70mph). I went to work. In essence, "things" got back to "normal". Sadly, sometimes "normal" is no fun.