Every person has fond memories of their childhood growing up, it always seems so much more magical, big, and adventurous when you are so small. Now I am sure that most people would not consider a race track the most appropriate place to raise a child. But honestly that is where I learned the best and most valuable lessons in life. Don't smoke, you will cough and cough and cough and cough.....plus the stench is sure to keep you in exile with all the other smokers. Don't drink, it makes walking, talking, eating, and just breathing so much more difficult and life so much more challenging. Don't gamble......we'll if so in moderation...because chances are in the end the house always wins. Racing horses was my families passion, it was in our blood, and it consumed every weekend of our summers for over 12 years. My grandpa Prince was the one that made the magic happen. He bought the beautiful horses, he drove us to Wyoming Downs, he paid for the hotel lodging, and the ice cream I pleaded for on a daily basis. I became fondly known as the track rat, scurring around not wanting to miss out on a moment of anything going on. You could find me reading disney books in our horses stalls, searching under the bleachers for a winning ticket that someone accidentally dropped, or scanning the racing form on my grandpa's lap insisting that the "pretty one" was going to win. After my grandpa passed away, it just wasn't the same. My mom and brother and I occasionally made trips up to Wyoming Downs, hoping to recapture the feeling; hearing the pounding of hooves down the home stretch, feeling your heart racing as fast as the horses, and hearing the laughter of my grandfathers voice. But it just never was the same. Regarless however.....deep inside me, horse racing is still in my blood and I love every minute of it. Due to the economy or just simply the changing of times, horse racing has slowly lost its popularity and this past year Wyoming Downs closed its doors to racing. But lucky for me, adventure was closer than Wyoming, in fact it is less than 20 minutes away. My grandpa Peterson is also an avide horse man that has trained and raced horses since he was a boy.
My dad joins in on the fun but hasn't picked back up on the hobby; although I have tried to pursuade him into going into a partnership with me on a race horse, I've got a few tricks up my sleeve that may change his mind some day. As it just so happens one of my grandpa's newest horses has been showing some promise right from the start. So Timber and I adventured out to watch Chunk tear up the race track. He is anything but what his name suggests, lean and muscled and ready to run. It was nice being able to spend the day at the track with my dad and my lil pup, not quiet the same....it will never be the same. But that is the beauty of change, you enjoy the moment....and then wait anxiously for the next chapter in your life...the next passion.
I know that I may be 23 year old, have a college degree, work as a nurse in an intensive care unit.....but deep down inside I am still a little girl dreaming of being a princess. I may not appear very girlie; blood splattered at work, muddy and dirt covered at home, and sweaty from hiking for five hours to an amazing panoramic view. But given the chance I would take lace, pink, curles, and yes even a dress. Every little girl dreams of being a princess, and while I don't have any little ones of my own to spoil yet....I just couldn't resist. There was a Princess festival going on down in Lindon, Utah.....and I knew two little girls that have completely stole my heart. Sarah, and Mary; Brett's little girls. Being the newest member of the Error family I am always looking for opportunties to get to know everyone, to make some memories, and have a good time. So we girlied ourselves up, and stepped into a world of princesses and fairytales. It was so much fun watching them use their imagination and race around in wonderment. I cannot wait for the day when I can tell my little girl that she is a Princess and will always be one to me.
For the average person, when they hear the words "Family Reunion", a cringe of pain and distaste quickly appears across their face. The thoughts of a family reunion are filled with silly "getting to know you games", screaming children, jabbering old people going on about the times back in their day, and some of the most interesting food you could ever imagine. Our family reunion involved every one of these things, all of which I loved, and so much more. Apparently you have never reunioned with the Errors before because the games are filled with laughter bringing you to the brink of tears, screaming children that I love with all my heart, storeis that are timeless and you could listen to over and over again, as for the food.......yeah it held up its end of the bargain and was about as weird as it gets....but edible. Marc and I raced home from work friday evening to quickly pack up the montero( we have now mastered this art...bikes...port-a-pet...duffle bags, grocerys, fishing gear,....oh and we're in there somewhere as well. A sweet treat of ice cream made the ride more bearable to Capitol Reef...still we arrived at about 10pm exhausted. Linda and Mike were kind enough to share their luxury delux cabin ( pretty much a mobile home cut in half with a raised ceiling for a loft...but hey I'm not complaining). That night was the first night since April when we weren't sweating through our dreams. Waking up to a cool breeze was like heaven. The next morning we loaded up Brett and Chris's kids and headed off for a hiking adventure. Since my friend Rachel left for her mission last fall I haven't lived up to my past hiking addiction....and I was in desperate need of a hike that would kick my butt and remind me how much I love conquering a mountain.
We decided on Cassidy's Arch, named after the infamous Butch Cassidy. It was fun to joke with the neices and nephew as we hiked where we thought Butch had buried his gold and treasures and where we ourselves would hide our "booty".....Marc was thinking about a different booty:) The hike was amazing and I was so impressed with my little tykes and how awesome they were. Of course there was some whinning involved but they did it and were so proud of themselves. I hope our kids like hiking, regardless I am dragging them up to some of the most serene and magestic places in the world....I just know they will fall in love with the outdoors. Exhausted is an understatement as to how we felt afterwards, so a nap was definitely on the menu.
That evening was the traditional dutch oven family dinner. And that is where we discovered some very interesting and quiet questionable dishes. One of Marc's cousins had gone fishing and caught some trout to share at the dinner. I was so excited to eat some fresh caught fish. Marc laughed the whole time as I slowly but patiently picked out all the teenie, tiny bones. Note to self......do not eat trout when you are starving. After dinner Marc and I took Timber out for her own little adventure. Sense dogs are not allowed in the National parks we had to leave her at the cabin all day. But no matter, we found an awesome bike trail that we walked up right as the sun was setting. It was beautiful, with the pink stained sky casting shadows on the red rock. I hope heavens canvas is this magical.
Zion's National Park still holds my heart in high regard, but Capitol Reef was pretty special as well. To tire out our crazy pooche we decided to work on her retrieving skills. It was quiet entertaining as Marc went from throwing a stick up a huge hill, to across a flat meadow dotted with boulders the size of my montero's tires. Timber unfortunaltey had a head on collision with one and came limping back with the stick. But like most fetch crazy dogs the minute that Marc picked up the stick she was ready to go regardless. It was so much fun for us to watch her running around and having a blast. I can only imagine that this is about 1/3 of how amazing it is going to be to have children to share our adventures and dreams with.
The next day was sunday and unfortunately we needed to return to the real world and back to the land where cell phones have service. But before heading back home we needed one more dose of fun. With our helmets strapped on and Timber's leash securely fastened we headed up the road and soon onto the dirt bike road we had walked up the evening before. Once out of range of the highway we turned Timber loose and she ran along side of us.
Coming to the mountain side we hid our bikes in the brush and then began climbing the mountain...literally straight up the side of it, tackling boulders, loose gravel, narrow passages, and slick rock. The three of us worked together, keeping an eye on each others feet...and we conquered to the top. With Marc at my side, I truely feel like there is nothing that I can't do. We can climb the mountains in our life.....and even laugh along the way.
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