peek-a-boo, i see you...

i promise i'm not hiding. i know it's been awhile. i also know how some of you worry when i don't write. so, i thought i'd give a quick update. over the 24th of july i went with my ward on a pioneer trek. i had a bad attitude about it at first. (mostly i didn't want to wear the pioneer skirt, and most of all the bonnet, that my mom made out of drapes when i was in young women's and we went on a mini trek.) however, i donned the apparel and my bad attitude and i got on the tour bus to wyoming for 2 1/2 days of walking. as we walked and walked and walked...just like the primary song says, my love and respect for my pioneer ancestors grew. i'd always recognized that they had done a great thing but i don't think i ever really realized HOW great. i had one of those "ah ha" moments as we pushed our handcarts. my testimony of the pioneer's sacrifice for their families, both present and future, and most of all, their God, grew and became solid. how grateful i am for the sacrifice of those who went before me. their love for me motivates me to be better and do more. although my attitude changed and my heart softened as we walked the desolate plains of wyoming, my attitude of bonnets did not change. while i recognize they are functional, i just couldn't force myself to put the bonnet on my head. much to christian's dismay, it hung around my neck the whole trek.

another big event - the sabey family reunion! (see picture above.) christian and i headed to island park for a few days of sabey family fun. meeting family always gives perspective. while i teased him about the perspective it gave me, it really was a delight. his aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents are all really good people. they are very comfortable to be around. (i assume that playing the spoon-tied-to-a-piece-of-yarn-and-weaving-it-up-and-down-each-other's-clothing game naturally lends itself to being comfortable with each other. ask me about it later...) we ate, played rook, ate, played jeopardy, ate, talked, ate, went to the first homestead in island park, and ate some more. christian's parents called to talk to everyone. they are on a mission in south africa. it was fun to watch the excitement of everyone as they got the chance to talk to president and sister sabey. the whole weekend was a good experience. on sunday we had a testimony meeting. i really appreciated the spirit i felt as his family bore testimony of families and of our Saviour. i also really appreciated having grandparents around. christian's grandpa burns and grandma elaine were an absolute delight. it was really special watching them interact with each other and with the rest of the family. there is something very calming about having grandparents around. it made me miss my grandpa reid and grandma della, and grandpa pete and grandma amy. it also made me grateful that i had the opportunity to grow up near them and have a close relationship with them. i look forward to being with them again someday. is this the part where i am supposed to say something like, "family, isn't it about time?" i think i am and i think it is. i am really looking forward to the petersen family reunion. i love spending time with my fam, both extended and immediate.

last but not least, i've been on my bike a whole lot....and i think a whole lot might be an understatement. two days ago i rode my bike 140 miles. that was a first. my friend, jessie, and i rode the first canyon of lotoja. we wanted to prepare ourselves for what is to come. we felt pretty good...until the last 20 miles. at that point, i'm not sure what didn't hurt. we knew we had to keep eating, but it was a chore. our backsides hurt, our hands hurt, our backs hurt, our toenails hurt, and jessie's lungs even hurt. i am not ready for the big 206 miles now, but i am getting close. mentally and physically, i'll be ready on sept. 12th. until then, if you can't find me, i'll probably be on my bike somewhere.