Hidden Falls Hike

I mentioned a while back that my family made a goal to hike weekly. It has been fun adventuring a bit. The kids LOVE it! Being in the mountains and in nature seems to put them in awesome moods. Like woah! That is something I can really get behind. 

Here is one of our latest adventures. Hidden Falls! Now to say this is a hike would be a little bit of a fib. But dang it is pretty and totally worth doing. That being said it is more like a nature walk. Which I am totally down with. Hidden Falls is found up in Big Cottonwood Canyon. It is a little bit hard to find. Anyone who has driven Big Cottonwood canyon is aware of that super tight S curve about 4 miles in. Right at the beginning of that curve is a little parking lot. Park there or along the road. You have to really watch for it or you will miss it! You can hear the falls from the road.

If you parked in the parking lot you will see these stairs. Go up those stairs and through the wooded area and then across the road. Yeah across the road! Needless to say you need to be extremely careful crossing that bit of road because the cars are going very fast down that patch. So be so careful. We ran across even though we didn't see any cars just in case. From that point it is pretty self explanatory. Follow the sounds of running water! 

My little adventurers at the beginning of the walk.

Nick climbing up and not being able to get down some rocks. HA!

This was their first glimpse at the falls.

It was a great little waterfall. And freezing cold! This is melted snowpack so it is very cold. So be prepared for that.

Facing the falls is a little rock face that my kids couldn't help but climb. Especially Lola. We lovingly refer to her as our little mountain goat. She just bounds up rock faces and mountains like a baby mountain goat.

To get to the falls you may have to get a little wet because you are walking up the creek to reach the falls. I was able to get up through to the falls without getting my feet wet but Nick and the kids all stepped in the creek. Make sure you wear shoes that you are okay getting wet! Be prepared for stepping in freezing cold water too. 

Getting to the falls is a little tricky. You will see these stairs to your right. Don't take them! Follow the path down to the creek. But really we want to go back and take those stairs. That path takes you to two different vista points. Maybe next time.

Of course on the way down we had to stop and enjoy the views. So beautiful! Nicco was in love with this canyon. It will be one we visit often because his reaction was awesome! He talked about how amazing it was and how he liked it so much. How it was the most beautiful place he has ever seen. It may sound weird but when he was talking about it it made my heart swell. It seemed to skip a beat. He is a tender boy and he sees the world in a different way. I will never forget his reaction. 

All in all a fun little adventure spot. It would be a great walk to do to wind down your day or get it started up the canyon. It was a great respite from the heat down in the valley! Have you been on any hikes lately? Were they family friendly? We are always on the lookout for fun family hikes! 

Happy 4th Of July

We are off enjoying this wonderful holiday with our families and friends and hope you are celebrating with those you love the most on this lovely day!

See you back Monday for a awesome new post! 

Pinterest Buster Recipe

This photo is the original pin that I repinned. Isn't it pretty? If you are looking for really nice food pictures head over to Very Culinary. That is where this pin originated from. The photos over there are foodtastic! So pretty. They show my need to practice my food photography skills. And maybe not use my iphone even though it is so convenient. Which it totally is. The recipe can be found right here.

It is a basic delicious pasta recipe! The only things I changed are using a full bag of frozen peas and I omitted the pepper flakes. I knew if the kids saw red pepper flakes in it they would have declared it too spicy and refused to even try it. I can imagine that it is even better with them though.

MMM boy! I would declare this a pinterest win. One out of two kids agree that it is delicious. At this point I call that a major victory. Plus Nick and I both loved it. Have you tried any pinterest recipes recently? Were they a hit or a bust? 

Taco Pizza!!

I love finding great recipes on pinterest! Especially when they end up being as good as they sound! My family really enjoys this recipe for taco pizza!  Especially my dear daughter Lindsay. This pan was actually made by her to take to a friend.  

Doesn't it look tasty?

Taco Pizza Serves 12

1 lb. ground beef or turkey
1 envelope taco seasoning mix
2 (8 oz.) cans crescent rolls
1 (16 oz.) can refried beans 
2-3 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup chopped tomatoes
1/4 cup sliced black olives
4 green onions, chopped

Heat oven to 375 degrees.
Brown ground beef and drain. Add taco seasoning to the ground beef according to the package directions.

Unroll crescent rolls into rectangles. Place in ungreased 11 1/2 inch x 16 1/2 inch jelly roll pan or cookie sheet. Press dough over the bottom and 1/2 inch up sides to form crust.  Bake at 375 oven for 11 to 13 minutes or just until golden brown.

  Carefully spread beans over warm crust creating a thin layer.
Top with cooked beef mixture, sprinkle with cheese followed by tomatoes, black olives and green onion.  Return to oven for 3-6 more minutes until cheese is melted.  Serve immediately.  Makes 12 main dish servings or 48 appetizers.

Quick and Easy Fourth of July t-shirts

Every year our neighborhood does a pancake breakfast and bike parade on the 4th of July. It is great neighborhood fun! Everyone dresses up and goes crazy with the bike decorating. We always wear something patriotic. So this year I decided to do a little DIY for the kids shirts. I wanted something quick and fun that Lola and I could do together. It was a fun little girls date! Check out what I came up with.

These are the finished product. I think the kids like them!

We started with a plain white tee. I should have laundered them before stamping them to get the sizing out. But I like living on the edge! It will probably effect the way they wash up though.

The other supplies:

foam star stickers

painters tape

multi-surface paint

foam paint brushes  

To make the star stamps we used the foam stickers and stuck a bunch together to make them easier to grip and stamp with. They turned out to be perfect! No need to try and get a perfect little star cut out from foam.

To make the lines I used painters tape to tape off the areas I wanted to paint. I used a little piece of tape as a guide to space the stripes a little better. We put a layer of thick butcher paper inside the shirts to avoid the paint bleeding through to the back of the shirts.

Then the painting and stamping started. We did a couple practice runs using the star stamps and away we went. It was definitely easier to cover the star stamps with paint and then stamp them down. Dipping them in the paint caused a bit of an overload of paint and uneven stamping. We also sponged the red for the stripes. It was easier to dab it on than to paint it on. The stroking caused the tape to move around and caused an uneven stripe. Make sure that you remove the tape before the paint dries completley. It gets hard to peel it off once it is dry. Let them dry completely and then put on!

 They turned out pretty cute!

Quick and easy. Lola and I finished them up in about an hour. She loved getting to make her own shirt. And I loved spending the time with her! We haven't washed them yet so I am not sure how they will wash up. I intend to wash them separately just in case they bleed. The paint is a little stiff but nothing that would stop the kids from wearing them. I am hoping that it softens up a bit. They were fun too make. And they will be perfect for celebrating the fourth!