TREK

Wow!  That is the word I think of when I think of Trek.  I was so excited to finally have the opportunity for my kids to experience Trek.  Coelton was never able to go on a Trek because our ward never did one.  And the icing on the cake is Joel and I got to go too as "Ma" and "Pa". 
We went to Trek June 22-25.  4 days, 3 nights and 30 miles.  We met at the church at 8:30am and began the drive to Nyssa Oregon at 9am.  We arrived at the trail head and I was shocked to see the never ending sage brush, cheat grass, wheat grass and that was about it.  Maybe a few rocks.  It was 94 degrees that day...the first really hot day we had all summer. 
We were assigned families, handcarts, flags and bandannas.  Our flag color and bandanna color was brown.  We were the Hammer family and had 4 boys: Cameron Bastian, Buddy Bevens, Greyson Stirling and Eric Anderson.  We had 3 girls: Sara VanDam, Sara Reaman and Cierra Pasket.  What a great group of kids!  We had a baby too, the kids named her Heratio.  Not sure on that one.
We had the most awesome family chant:
 "Oh we're the hammer family you've heard so much about.
Everybody looks at us whenever we go out.
 We're not a bit stuck up about the churchy things we do.
Everybody likes us and we hope you like us too.
As we go marching, as we push and pull the
C-A-R-T
You can hear us shouting, the Hammer family is on their way.
Push! Pull! Push! Pull!  HAMMER!

(this is to to the tune of "Oh, we're the boys from Cedar Badge)

Our cart

The first day we were met by an angry mob, but we kept on going.  We climbed some really steep hills and were all very tired when we reached camp.  We had great food on Trek, thanks to Shana Hawkins, the Stokes and Michelle Dubois.  After dinner we had a hoe down and enjoyed square dancing.  Just before Trek I taught the kids during mutual time a couple of square dances.  They had a great time. 

Hailey's Family

Our Family

Our Family

Angry Mob

Handsome Dude

Caden's family

Our trail Boss:Mike Rice and Our Trek Master: Joyce Farris

See, his 4-wheeler even says so.

Bishop Simpson marching by our family

Angry Mob: Jeff and Tresa Ball

Our family doing our chant

Ian: love his hat!

Caden's family having devotional

The cooking crew and other boss'

Day two we were woken up at 6:30am by the bugle call.  Joel was asked to bring his trumpet and play it.  He did pretty good for not having played for nearly 25 years.  We had to cook our own breakfast as a family at our own camp.  We also held morning and night devotionals as a family.  We loaded the cart and snuck a few sleeping bags in the horse trailer so we didn't have such a full load.  Funny thing was everyone else did too.   We headed out and spread out the handcarts.  We were met at noon by the Mormon Battalion.  Bro Ball had his horses and he rode in dressed like a sergeant and had a pack horse with like 40 rifles that were made special for all the boys.  They men and boys marched off 2x2 and went up the hill where Bishop Simpson gave a talk about how boys should honor womanhood.  Sister Simpson gave a talk to the women and girls on how we should honor the priesthood.  I can't imagine how the sisters felt as they watched their boys and husbands march away.  I felt unprotected and weak.
The women then pulled the handcarts up the hill alone as the boys and men watched.
All the girls and sisters going on Trek sewed our own bonnets and aprons.  We did a couple of mutual nights together.  I am glad I made big pockets on my apron.  I had so many things in my pockets.  chap stick, sun screen, a sharpie, my hymn book, my work gloves, and a spray bottle to spray down my kids with.

Later that day we were  visited by the pony express.  He delivered mail for all the kids; a letter from home.  Each child went off alone and found a quiet spot to read their letters and write in their journals.
We arrived at Chimney Rock and circled the handcarts and made camp.  After dinner we had some Ma and Pa skits.  Our group did the skit called Shorty.  It was really fun.  The kids loved it.  We also had some family competition "pioneer games".  Joel did the stick pull with Brigham Young.  It would have been a great competition, but Brigham Young just finished an IRON MAN.
Michelle Dubois then gave a campfire talk about pioneers.

Hailey

Mormon Battalian

The women

Hailey pushing

pulling that bad boy up the hill

Pony Express: Brigham Young

Hailey reading her letters

A blossomed Prickly Pear

Hailey writing in her journal

Chimney Rock

Helping Joyce with dishes

Hailey picking stickers

Shorty

Stick pull- Brigham being nice.

On day 3 once again we were woken up at 6:30am to the bugle call.  This was a difficult day as we were headed up Rocky Ridge.  For us it was a steady up hill for 4 miles.  It was HARD!  When we reached the top we ate lunch in a meadow and then these Indians rode in and started yelling at us.  The hair on my arms stood on end.  They were speaking Indian and were totally decked out in Indian attire.  They were Bro and sis Bevans and boy did they look real.  They are quite the horsemen and can really ride well.  They told us we were on sacred burial ground and we had to turn around and go back.  What!!!
So we did.  We turned the handcarts around and took them down backwards.  On the way one of the babies died and we had to bury her.  That was very touching.
We arrived in camp at the white rocks and had a testimony meeting after dinner.  During the testimony meeting we could hear coyotes haw ling.

My boys and baby

Indians!!!!

Day 4 we once again woke up to that bugle.  We were so dirty and tired and stinky!  The kids moved a little faster this day because we were going home!  We had to pack a full handcart though, so that wasn't fun.    We were walking along playing games as a family and we looked up and saw TREES!!  We started going faster and faster!  We pulled over in this grove of trees and guess what else...A RIVER.  People were jumping in!  I took off my shoes and socks and waded.  It was heaven.  We all gathered under the trees and Sister Ball started talking to us about actual pioneer families who had tragic death hit them.  Each Trek family had to play the part of one of these families.  Our family had 2 teenage sons who died of exhaustion.  As people died they had to go and lay on a big tarp.  It was crazy.  Hailey died in her family.  I didn't like seeing one of my own out there.  The stories were so sad.  We had 8 trek families, and some even lost a ma or a pa.  We all had to go to our carts and push and pull without our loved ones.  It was called a reverence walk and no one could talk for the rest of the way,, which was about 2.5 miles. Bishop Simpson told us he wanted us to think about what price are we willing to pay?  We know what the pioneers did and the price they paid, but what about us?  What are we willing to give up to reach the celestial kingdom?  I thought about the first day and how our cart was SO heavy.  The next day we lightened our load and we looked at everything that went into the cart to see if it was necessary.  We were always trying to lighten the load.  I thought of how we can fill our cart with bad TV programs, facebook, idol time wasted, video games, bad movies, too much computer time, etc.  These things weigh us down, they can prevent us from the essential things we need in our carts to get to Zion.  Sin is the heaviest thing in our cart.  When we get rid of these things our carts are easier to pull along and we are happier.
We were asked to do some research and find an ancestor who lived during the time the pioneers came across the plains.  We wrote this ancestor on a leather bracelet so we could remember them and dedicate our trek to them.  Caden and Joel chose Austin Hammer who was killed in Hauns Mill.  I chose Elizabeth Robertson who had 7 children and died in Council Bluffs.  Hailey chose a lady named Alseoun Smith Judy.  She came to Zion in 1853 when she was 10 years old and watched a boy in her company be skinned alive by Indians, because he shot and killed a squaw. 

 We finally reached Zion, which was Camp Hycliffs.  It was beautiful with green grass, toilets, showers and trees.  The best part was a water slide.  The first thing every one did was take off their shoes and socks and felt the cool grass.  It stunk pretty bad.    Then we all went down the slide in our clothes.  It was awesome!  No one brought swim suits, so the kids basically played in their PJ's.
We had a great lunch and then started to load up the cars.  The men went back the 30 miles to the trail head to get the cars and noticed that one of the suburbans had the back window bashed in and our car had a big dent in the back door.  Upon further examination it was determined that some drunk teens decided to throw rocks at our cars.  3-4 cars had damage.  I think there was like 10 cars parked out there.
We weren't allowed to bring cameras, but Brother and Sister Eastman took lots of pics and video.  We are going to have a Trek movie to watch for our pioneer day celebration.
I LOVED TREK and it CHANGED MY LIFE.

Joyce's Birthday cake

Ancestor Bracelets

My Caden and My baby in the background.  Pa Bartlett

Trees!!!  and Water!!!

Bishop and Lynette Simpson

ZION

All in All~ 30 boys and 27 girls
                 Ma and Pa Dowdle
                 Ma and Pa Pasket
                 Ma and Pa Leinegar - Hailey
                 Ma and Pa Bartlett - Caden
                 Ma and Pa Valentine
                 Ma and Pa Smart
                 Ma and Pa Bird
Trek Master-Joyce Farris
Trail Boss- Mike Rice
Bishop and Sister Simpson
Jeff and Tresa Ball- and 2 horses
Porta Potty driver and water fetcher :  Brigham Young...for reals!!   (we drank 750 gallons of water)
Matt and Kim Eastman
Cooks: Shana Hawkins and Dad.  Brother and Sister Stokes.  Michelle Dubois

This cute little pioneer couldn't come with us on Trek.  She stayed with our friends and neighbors the Wilkenson's.  She did great without us and when we picked her up on our way home,

 she said, "you guys stink."