Cress Creek

On Friday, the 25th, I took Tom up to Cress Creek for a little hike. I'm really not much of a hiker, but this trail I can handle. It is short and sweet, and super beautiful! It's called Cress Creek because of all the wild watercress that grows in it. The creek's water is lukewarm all year round because it comes from a natural spring up on the mountain.

Me holding some watercress

From the top we had an amazing view of the valley below, and of the sun casting its light upon the river.




The weather here has been absolutely perfect lately. It's just a shame that all the bugs have realized this too, and are out and about. Already I have numerous mosquito bites. I forgot how much I dislike them!

On the way up we saw this abandoned stroller and thought that someone had left their baby inside!

Psych! It was only a water jug (thank goodness)!



We had such a good time!

Camping and Fishing

This past weekend my mom, Colter, Tom, and I went on a camping/fishing trip. This is something I missed out on last summer since I was in Washington, D.C., so I was really excited to go. I can't even remember the last time I went fishing and forgot how much fun it could be!



We went and camped at Warm River near Mesa Falls. The weather forecast predicted rain showers, but to our pleasant surprise it didn't rain at all! Aside from it being occasionally windy and a little chilly, the weather was great.

Tom is such a manly wood-chopper. :)

I woke up Saturday morning bright and early (5 a.m.!!!) and was ready to go. I couldn't believe that I felt that great so early in the morning, but it turned out to be a good thing that we were up early. We were down at the river before 7 a.m. so there weren't very many other people out fishing yet.

I was not too thrilled that my mom had the camera out right after we woke up.

Right off the bat we had great success at fishing. Within just a few hours I had hooked four fish! Two got away, but I am ok with that. (It makes me feel bad to kill them.) But we decided to keep the other two.


Tom also caught two fish that morning. We took them back to camp and Tom taught me how to gut a fish. When I was younger, I had always wanted to learn because I thought that it would impress the boys and prove that I wasn't a sissy girl. Well, I got my chance and it really wasn't that bad. I would much rather gut fish than rip the worms in half and put them on the fishing hook. Yuck, I hate that part. It's so gross, but Tom made me do it.

After we returned to camp and ate a delicious breakfast, we went back to the river for round two of fishing. It was pretty windy and there were more people out, so we didn't have as much luck this time. Tom caught a few little ones but threw them back in, and I didn't get so much as a nibble.
But Colter caught a fish later that afternoon and we were so excited for him! He would have been really disappointed if we had left without him having caught a fish.



We got to enjoy the fresh air, watch the sunset over the Falls, and eat amazing dutch oven food. It doesn't get any better than that! I can't remember the last time I was that happy. . . I just couldn't stop smiling! :)


After all the fun we returned home to much needed hot showers and inviting beds.

Banana Bread

As many of you may know, I have completely mastered the art of baking the perfect loaf of banana bread. (And some of you may have been fortunate enough to sample said bread.)

It all started a few years ago with my roommate, Brooke. She decided to make up her own recipe for banana bread and then made it quite often. I was given her recipe and made it a few times, but decided to make a few personal adjustments . . . and voila! My own breed of banana bread was born and has been a source of pleasure to many people ever since.

It has become my trademark of sorts. If there is a birthday, holiday, party, potluck, etc. you can expect banana bread from Kimberly. I think some of my friends get tired of it. Presents are supposed to be a surprise, but you always know what you're going to get from me.

Well, today I made a total of eleven loaves of bread. Can you believe it? Six big ones and five little ones. This was by far my biggest batch yet. For some reason we had tons of old bananas at my house . . . and what else are you going to do with old, spotted bananas?

Just the other day I was thinking - Wouldn't it be great if I could make a living by selling my banana bread?! If I could make a viable salary off of teaching aerobics and selling banana bread for the rest of my life I would be one happy clam! But, since that's not likely, I have continued searching for a more traditional job, and even had an interview this morning so keep your fingers crossed for me! But seriously, how much would you be willing to pay for a loaf of banana bread? I would like to know.

P.S. Have you noticed how many of my blog posts are dedicated to food? That should tell you something about me. :)