Grand Canyon
Day 2: Wednesday 10

We came to a really cool slot canyon, where we were able to hike through it and our guided Wiley and Joel played the guitar and told us stores.

Kelsi and Aubrey doing some Ninja moves

 

Walking through the slot canyon

We came to a spot where the Little Colorado River met with the Colorado River, though there was a big difference! The Little Colorado River was bright blue and really warm. We were able to go down what they call the gauntlet which basically felt like an amazing water park. We all made a huge train which didn’t really turn out to great but it was hilarious. Dan lost his hat but was able to find it which was impressive! I was floating by when Kelsi said, “wait for me”. She belly flopped into the water and got high centered on a rock, I couldn’t stop laughing.

 We lost half the train, Dan lost his hat but was able to find it!

 You would sink into the mud and felt like the matrix

River Rafting the Grand Canyon: July 9-14
Day 1: Tuesday 9

We had a great scenic drive from St. George to Marble Canyon Arizona. We stopped at some Indian dwellings in the rocks which were pretty cool, especially since we were the only ones there. We all stayed in the Marble Canyon Lodge that night which was a little ghetto and part of it had burned down but it was an adventure.

Exploring the rock dwellings

The burned down restaurant at the lodge

We got up early and met at the beginning point. We organized all our things and got our instructions then we headed out on the river. It was awesome because they allowed the whole Bishop clan to share one boat and the other travelers to take the second boat. I wasn’t ready for the freezing water but it was awesome! We hit some pretty good waves and had a blast getting to know each other better. We went to a place called Redwall cavern, it was a vast chamber carved by the river with awesome sand. Dan even tried a little bit of bouldering.

Let the adventure begin!

 

 

Redwall Cavern, pretty impressive we got almost everyone in it

First War Wound, Aubrey got kicked by Papa Brent

The view everyday 

We stopped for the night and made camp. It was hot so we didn’t need anything to sleep with. The best was watching everyone take a bath in the freezing 50 degree water though it definitely did help. I just didn’t brush my hair all week and kept it in braids every day. Nights were some of my favorite times, we had delicious meals, everyone gathered around, people playing the guitar, sleeping under the amazing stars in the Grand Canyon. That can’t be beat!

Dan eating some delicious food before dinner

 

One of many nights sleeping on the beach

A good start to July

July 1

We wanted start out July right and to get some good use out of our bikes so Dan and I went to the bottom of Tony Grove and rode our bikes up. It’s about 7 miles one way, though it is extremely steep and it took us about 50 minutes to get to the top, sore and dripping in sweat but it was so rewarding, and going down was beautiful (not to mention super-fast!) We have really loved our bikes!

July 2

The next day we went boating with the family. Dan has been cursed and every time we have tried boating the boat breaks (including in Lake Powell). This time was a success! The weather was amazing and we had plenty of time to wakeboard, ski, knee board and of course….banana! Which is definitely the best part! I have missed boating so much! Sadly our truck’s fan belt broke and it took about 4 hours to get back to Logan (normally a 30 minute drive) since it kept over-heating and we didn’t get back until past midnight, but it was well worth it.

July 3

We couldn’t stop there and on Wednesday we went to the Oakley Rode to celebrate the 4^th of July! I have been a few times and it has always been such a blast. The best part is we get to go to the cabin after.

St. George: 4th of July

The night of the 4^th of July we drove to St. George, we went to watch fireworks then we did fireworks at the house. Bruce bought a huge firework and it was probably the best one I have ever seen! It was so nice having so much time in St. George.We were able to spend all of Friday-Monday. We went biking and hiking along with swimming for hours a day, I was even able to get little Olivia to like swimming.We also took the kids to Despicable Me 2. Dan went shooting while I hung out with the girls. Monday we didn't have to leave for the Grand Canyon until 6 p.m. that night so we did a good bike ride, then hiked a canyon called Yankee-Doodle. Afterwards we swam again before we headed out.

Taislee in her adorable 4th of July outfit, ready for fireworks!

Playing with Fireworks that night

Playing at the Pool! McCoy and Angela

Rique showing off his moves

Canyoneering Yankee Doodle

Having fun in June

Back in April at the Make-A-Wish Gala my mom won some registrations into the Color Me Rad race at the auction. Granted, it's not much actually running though it turned out to be a lot of fun. Anything to stay active!

The big weekend of June! Every summer the whole family gets together and we do what is called "The Bishop Birthday Bash". We rotate through names and get that person a birthday present. This year my parents rented out the pool for it. We even recently started the “no thank you” gifts where you bring something weird or funny and we do a white elephant exchange. Before the bash we all went to Brent and Jamie's to sleep over so we could hike Timpanogos Cave the next morning. I haven't been there in years and Dan has never been so it was a really fun adventure, though it was steeper than I remember.

Navy loved Smokey

Brent and Jill opening presents

Ty pulling Eva in a little wagon

ANNIVERSARY EXTRAVAGANZA
June 7-10

So last year,  Dan found great tickets to California for our anniversary. This year I didn't plan on much since we've been doing so much lately but he told me one night that he had something planned. I was so excited. I love surprises, even if it was super small. It's the fact that he thought and planned something and I get to just be surprised. So I took Friday June 7 off from work because Dan's work was having a picnic in Logan so we decided to go to that first which was a lot of fun, afterwards we drove to Salt Lake where we went to an Italian Pizzeria then spent the night at the Little America. We didn't go out on the town but it was so nice to just relax and not worry about dinner, dishes, laundry etc...When we got back to Logan we spent the whole weekend in our pajamas and watched the Walking Dead in between a bike ride here and there. Monday, our official anniversary, Dan got off work early and as I showered he made a delicious steak dinner. Afterward on a whim we went for a long bike ride to a reservoir where we decided to swim since it was so hot. It turned out to be 21 miles of bike and a little bit of swimming so when we got home we were hot sweaty and tired but I couldn't have asked for a better weekend or Anniversary! I wish I would have taken more pictures from the weekend but at least we got these two :)

Dan My Man:
I know everyone always gushes about their husbands and think they are the best. Well it's no different for me. When I met Dan we had no intention of dating. We were great friends and we were both dating other people. Everyone always told us to date but the thought weirded me out. When Dan decided he wanted to date I was very hesitant because I loved our friendship so much. He waited so patiently for me to be ready and I never planned on being married at 23 but I can honestly say I wouldn't trade that decision to say yes on June 10, 2011 for anything. The past 2 years have been so much fun and the best years of my life. Dan makes me want to be a better person and believes in me more than I believe in myself. It has only been 2 years. We have so many more to go and so much more to learn but I no longer fear growing old and having life settle, now I look forward to the memories we are going to make, good, bad, hard, easy, fun, sad, and more. I can't wait for the many adventures that await us! Needless to say, I love this man.

A little bit of fun and some Canyoneering!
May 30-June 2

We bought a new nice camera which I wasn't sure if it would be worth it but we've been able to use it a lot. We were running errands on a gorgeous sunny day and noticed this little field hidden away. We decided to hurry and take some pictures, now we aren't photographers by any stretch but we had fun finally getting some pictures where we weren't completely sweaty, dirty or goofy looking.

ESCALANTE:
During the Spring, when Logan was just starting to warm up a little bit, Dan and I decided we wanted to make this summer the best one we've ever had. Filled with activities and utilizing every moment we have. So far, May kicked off our summer perfectly. We decided that we needed to do some canyoneering, so the first one of the season was Neon Canyon in Escalante, Utah. It was a long but beautiful drive and sleeping under the stars in the middle of nowhere was amazing! We did the whole hike in about 8 hours then decided to go see calf creek falls which is another 6 miles to a waterfall. We were sweaty, sunburnt, sand everywhere, blistered feet and were exhausted but it was such a great weekend. Hiking, camping, s'mores, stars, and more. I would say that round one was a great success!

 

Poor little car, flat tire the first night

 

And so it begins

 

It's hard to tell but we rappelled through that hole, it was beautiful

 

12 hours and 19 miles later we finished....until next time

MayDay!

May started off with a bang! May 4, 2013 Daniel David Flores graduated with a double bachelors and a Masters of Accounting from Utah State University. I am so proud of him, he worked full time, went to school full time and was fully supportive of all my endeavors. Most of his family, along with some of my family were able to come and it was a blast having everyone there. We had a BBQ after at a park that was connected to the local zoo which they thought was pretty fun. We even had snow cones and pulled out the slack line.We gained more than a few pounds, went swimming, played at the park, went bowling, laser tagging, arcades and a little bit of shopping. Happy Graduation to Dan My Man!

 

Hector on the slackline

 

Enrique and Rique going Fishin'

 

Jamee and Taislee

 

The cake that Laura and Priscilla made...

I was a little bummed because we missed my nieces baptism that weekend but another niece was baptized a week later so we were able to celebrate with the both of them. The baptism was at Martins Cove in Wyoming. Some of the family rented an RV and went on a road-trip.Needless to say it was an adventure, and the drive didn't seem nearly as long as it usually does. After the baptism we pulled some handcarts in style.

 

Ty loved watching Grandpa drive

 

Dan held sick little Eva

 

Josh and Kirsten 

 

Martins Cove river

Having fun in the handcarts

Well the time had come....I have always wanted to do a sprint triathlon. So we did it. We signed up for one at Sand Hollow in St. George. Well that 6 months sure went by really fast. We did train but probably not as vigorously as we should have. We were a little bit nervous but there was no turning back! May 18, 2013 Jill Bishop, Jamie Ventura, Chelsea Bishop, Staci Bishop, Kelsi Bishop, Aubrey Bishop, Madeline Foutz, Daniel Flores and I accomplished a sprint triathlon. We all did it in pretty good time and I am so proud of everyone. It was so much fun we are definitely going to do it again.

Preparing for the race!

 

Getting Nervous!

  

And off we go....

 

This picture was published in a local newspaper

 

We did it! check one off the bucket list

It was Kami's wedding and of course it fell on the same day as the sprint triathlon I had been planning for months so I did my best. Dan was so great because he loaded everything up while I hurried and showered then we drove 4 hours to make the wedding. It was crazy but it was worth it. I was able to see so many of my great friends again.

We were able to spend our last weekend of May at the cabin for Memorial Day. We had a fire, rode bikes, worked on the tree house, cleaned the cabin, hiked and went 4 wheeling. Always a blast at the cabin.

The tree house is coming together

4-wheeling time

 

Brent and Ty throwing rocks into the river