Summer Catch-Up: "The Trek"

In June, Adam and I had the opportunity to be a "Ma and Pa" on our very first Pioneer Trek.  We had no idea what to expect, but we had an adventurous spirit.  Here is our family.  We LOVED them!  They were so much fun to be around and such hard workers.  Even though some of the trials were tough (and muddy) they were such good sports.  I just can't say enough about these great kids!

Top row L to R:  Logan "Thomas" Wrigley, Olivia "Elsie" Earl, Maddie "Sarah" Gubler, Adam "Pa Webb", Karin "Ma Webb", Tyson "Reddick" Brough.

Bottom row L to R: Travis "Zendell" Griffin, Cole "Andrew" Dillard, MyKyla "Karoline" Scholzen, McKenzie "Sabina" Smith.

Day Two:  We had a new addition to our family, Baby Charlotte.  Thank goodness the kids kept a close watch on her because I kept forgetting that I had a baby!

The Women's Pull.  It was pretty steep and sandy for a bit, but then it ended much sooner than we thought it would.  Our girls did great!

After the Women's Pull, we went through some muddy sections.  I pulled off to take pictures and ended up feeling really bad that everyone else got so muddy besides me.

So on the last day, I made Adam pull off so I could go through the muddy section with the family.  We were right by Utah Lake so there were some washed out trails that we had to plow through.  Nothing like mud between your toes!

Here we are with our "real" daughter Whitney.  She was in a different family than us, but we met up at the end for a family picture.  Whitney's family was apparently not as "fun" as ours, but she was able to have a good experience as well.

The bus ride home was an absolute nightmare, there are not words enough to describe it.  The bus kept breaking down and would only go 50 mph on the downhills.  Uphills were less than 20 mph.  Luckily, Adam pulled out some tricks to entertain everyone.

I tried to sleep, but a slow, hot bus is not the best place to doze off.  But apparently I did for a little while.

 

Yes, this a real seat from our bus.  Unbelievable!

But even with the bus ride home (which actually ended really fun once we had the kids attention listening to our dating and engagement stories), we had an amazing experience.  It was a lot of work to be a Ma and Pa, but completely worth it.  We learned so much about our own pioneer heritage and got just a small glimpse of what they had to go through.  I am forever grateful to the pioneers who had the faith and courage to cross the plains and pass their testimonies on to their posterity.  Sign us up for the next Trek in four years!