Shantel's Birthday Week + Timpanogos Hike

I had a really wonderful birthday week this year. I'm having a hard time remembering how old I am, but Caleb turned 6 this year, so that means that I'm turning 36. 

I love being in my 30's. I feel like my 30th birthday was a significant event, not because of the age # but because in the month before I turned 30 I made myself a bucket list of things that I wanted to do. It sparked something inside of me and I have been more willing to try new things, more invested in doing things that bring me joy, and more willing to ask for things/time that helps make my life fun, fulfilling, and well-rounded. A person that I follow on Instagram talks about how she wants her daughters to have happy, well-rounded, fulfilled lives, and she models that for them. I don't want my kids to grow up and hate being an adult because it's monotonous and filled with responsibility and no fun. I want them to enjoy their lives as parents, as spouses, and as individual people. 

I'm incredibly grateful to David who supports me in doing things for myself and for being the #1 person that I want to do things with.  My birthday week was filled with some great things and I feel like my cup is filled up to the brim with love and adventure. 

Some highlights of my week: 

-My sweet friend Amy had an extra ticket to the play "Catch Me if You Can" at the Hale Center Theater Sandy and invited me. I'd never been to the Jewel Box Theater (not the Round Theater) and thoroughly enjoyed the performance! 

-Dani and I have been hiking the Timpanogos Cave Trail each week this summer and have talked about how cool it would be to hike to the Timpanogos Peak. We talked about how we should prepare by increasing our hiking distance etc.. However, that was easier said than done because although it was fairly simple to sneak away one morning a week before the kids were awake, it was much harder to try to get away for a longer hike. I did a few hikes over the summer (Bells Canyon Waterfall with David, 5 miles, and Mt. Raymond Summit with Ali, 8 miles), but wasn't sure that we were prepared for the Timpanogos Hike. Dani was so encouraging and so even though I was nervous - we set the date. We had a few different date options, but I loved the idea of doing it on the day before my birthday as part of my birthday celebrations. David was so supportive and he stayed home from work to care for the kids so I could go on this grand birthday adventure. Spoiler: We made it to the top! 

It was only a few years ago that I told myself that I didn't think hiking Timpanogos was something that I could ever do. It just seemed so far out of my physical ability and I couldn't imagine every having the time or endurance that it would take to make it to the top. I'm SO proud of my mind and body for overcoming something that seemed impossible and for adding this incredible hike to my list of accomplishments. It was wonderful to share this hike with Dani. You know you really like someone when you can spend 13 hours hiking with them and still feel like you want to hang out with them the next day, too. 

We hiked to the Timpanogos Summit via the Timpooneke Trail. It was 14.2 miles with an elevation gain of 4,471 feet. It takes people an average of 10 hours to complete, but it took us longer. We are slower hikers in general (we knew this going in and wanted to enjoy the trail so we weren't worried about it) and the saddle/summit took us much longer, about 3 hours from the saddle & back. We also stopped for lunch and snacks along the way. We started hiking at 7:30 a.m. (neither of us had been on the trail before so we didn't want to go in the dark), and got back to the car right after the sun had set at 8:30. 

https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/utah/mt-timpanogos-timpooneke-trail

We learned that Dani has an incredible fear of heights and I am SO proud of her for pushing through and making it to the top! Everything we read online was like "The saddle looks worse than it is", but no - that's a lie. The saddle was terrifying! Sheer dropoffs, scrambling up the side of a rocky cliff, eek. But we made it and I'm so proud of us. 

My favorite song right now is called "The Mountain Song" by Tophouse

the Chorus goes:

Why do people climb mountains?

Is it just to reach the top and see the view?

Well I tell you something

Every rock and every river

Every sore and every splinter

I would climb every mountain with you

It talks about how "the toil and the struggle showed its worth" and I just really like it. We climbed to the top of this mountain, but there are lots of mountains in life and the toil and the struggle help us grow stronger. Every fall and every stumble help remind us to stop and see the wonder of the world around us. 

David was my biggest cheerleader. I didn't have service for most of the way - but once we got close to the top, I hit service again. And there was David, showing his love and support with screenshots of my GPS location on the map! 

"I'm tracking you! Good progress! Keep going, you can do it!" 

"You are close to the top. You are awesome! You are going to make it!" 

[Final Chorus]
Why, do people climb mountains?
Is it just to reach the top and see the view?
Well I, tell you something
Every rock and every river
Every sore and every splinter
In the summer, in the winter
When it's warm and when we shiver
When our feet are full of blisters
When it's sweet and when it's bitter
I’d climb every mountain with you

Jenna took the kids for the weekend and David and I were able to go on a Birthday Date: Hale Center Theater Orem's production of "Clue" and a new donut shop (so yummy!).

Sunday we had a birthday party and opened a few gifts and it was so wonderful to be surrounded by my kids and husband and to celebrate another year of this incredible life I get to live. 

Things I am grateful for this week: 

-for the friendships that I've developed in my adult life.

-for a loving and supportive husband. 

-for my children who bring such joy and humility to my life

-for a sister who regularly welcomes my children into her home for a "cousin weekend" so that David and I can have a date weekend

-for my body and health that allow me to work and move and accomplish and enjoy so much

I'm grateful for a beautiful life and fun experiences that give me balance and perspective. 

I had a wonderful birthday week and a wonderful year.

Looking forward to 36!