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After living in Utah for so long, and being so accustomed to celebrating the 24th of July, I thought it would be fun to celebrate it for FHE each year. Zach wanted to make handcarts, so we did – and he wanted to pull them “a long way, like the pioneers!”, so we did (if the block and a half walk to our park counts as a long way). I told the kids to load them up with something that was special to them… Emma packed her blanket and a kickboard (her latest obsession, even though it has never been to the pool) and Zach loaded his up with a blanket and a bunch of stuffed animals. The results were predictable, but interesting all the same… Emma pulled her “handcart” all the way to the park and back; Zach’s handle broke in the front yard and I carried his all the way to the park and back. He did kick it up the hill for a little bit, saying: “I think maybe the pioneers did this sometimes…” and then “oh no – it’s gettting damaged!” It was a fun adventure – I think Emma would have made the best pioneer out of the 3 of us (Nate was at a dinner for work so he missed the trek) – she smiled the whole time she was pulling. The thing that I always think about when I think of the pioneers is this: my great-great grandfather William Woodward was a part of the Willie handcart company, and kept a journal of the trek that BYU has since published online. As I searched through the entries in his journal to find some cool story to share with the kids, I kept reading about the weather and how many miles they traveled. It made me think… just walking and camping every day probably didn’t seem like anything very special to them, but when we look back at what the pioneers accomplished it is incredible. I think too often I expect big changes and grand accomplishments; but when I look back I am sure our daily plodding along will have become something much more significant.