Monday, July 25, 2016

Altamont 2016

Today I got home from a 3-day trip to beautiful Altamont, Utah. Corde's grandparents live there and the only other time I have visited was when Corde and I were dating, four years ago. I didn't have the chance to appreciate it the first time I went. I was shy, awkward, and had only known Corde for a short time, so there was too much to take in at once. On Thursday evening when we showed up to Corde's grandparent's house, I couldn't get enough of the sunset and the beauty of all the open land around their home.


One thing I love about Corde's grandparents home is that they have this old house in their yard that they use for storage space. This tiny home used to house 10 children and their parents, and is probably over 100 years old. It only has two bedrooms and still has the original oven inside. How cool is that?



This little building was a shed that also belonged to the family of 12.


On friday we headed out to go fishing at yet another breathtakingly beautiful place. (I'm a little bit obsessed with Altamont and the surrounding area) I didn't do any fishing, but Corde and his grandpa, Parl, did. I hungout with Roberta, Corde's grandma. We enjoyed the view until the rain started pouring, so we ended up in the truck while the boys stayed outside. That rain was COLD and I had a fussy, sick baby. Roberta and I decided it was best to go back to their house and the boys stayed out and fished ALL DAY LONG. I got to spend most of the day sitting outside in the shade, watching Russell play, and chatting it up with Roberta. I could spend every all day every day talking to her. I love her so much. 







The next day, there was a lot going on in the tiny town to celebrate Pioneer day. We watched a parade, ate BBQ, went to an auction, enjoyed a concert, and to top the night off there were fireworks. Russell especially loved the concert. He spent a large portion of time at the front of the crowd, dancing around and leaning against the stage, observing the performers. This day will always be a sweet memory for me. Especially the feeling I had while I sat with my husband on the grass as we watched our son having a blast, dancing to the music. The sun was going down and the air was cool. I didn't have a care in the world and everything couldn't have felt more perfect. 

I went to bed that night, excited that I still had one more day to spend at grandma and grandpa's house. 






Most of the floats in the parade would throw out candy for the kids to pick up. By the end of the parade, Russell was picking up anything he could find on the ground to put into his candy bag.


On Sunday we went to a camping ground and roasted hot dogs around a camp fire. It was hot and Russell was still sick and not happy about anything, but it was still a good time. We ate our food and then went to the river so Corde could do some more fishing. Russell was happy as soon as he saw the water and had a ball throwing rocks into it for the rest of the time we were there. I loved hearing the sound of the river. It is one of my favorite things. After a couple of hours, we finally went back home and Corde and Parl left to do some more fishing. Corde had yet to catch any fish, so he was determined to get back out there and finish what he had started. While the guys were gone, Roberta and I sat outside and enjoyed the view until it was dark, and Corde and Parl arrived home. Corde finally caught a fish and he was dang proud of it. He cooked it up and ate it for dinner that night. Before he cooked it, we all sat outside and devoured root beer floats together. 














The cutest thing Russell has ever said: "Here kitty kitty kitty!"


He was a boogery mess the entire time. Cleaning his nose resulted in a lot of screams and tears.




Monday morning came and I wish I could have stayed a day or two longer. There is something so special about this place. 

McKenzie Renae Arnold