Friday, January 4, 2008

Happy New Year!

We are still up Utah County visiting the Grandparents. Christmas was great for the Murdock Family (I am sure Alina will post details when we get back to the homestead in Moab). We got to see lots of family including Toady and Ashli from Belize.

We skied (and yes, snowmobiled, although I won't admit it) up to the Castle Peak Yurt in the Western Uintas for a night and got dumped on with some amazingly dry and light snow, but since a snowmobiler was killed by an avalanche two days before in the same area, we stayed off of anything steep and just toured and explored the area around the yurt. We all had a great time, no details will be provided on topics of discussion at the Yurt. What's said at the Yurt, stays at the Yurt, at least I hope.



Alina skiing out of the Uintas



Alina and myself at the Castle Peak Yurt, I am not sure when the last time was that we actually went on a trip together without kids.

We also got some good skiing in the Wasatch, mostly in the vicinity of Mill D North Fork. Creed, Toad and myself skied a bunch of different shots in very good conditions. Living in Belize did not affect Todds ability to ski as you can see in the photo. You rock Todd! He was a little slower on the uptrack though.

I also took the boys up to Heber Valley to see where Joseph Stacy Murdock is buried and see where their roots are. Prenetta's name is on the left side of the monument, which for you non-Murdocks is the Native American wife (Shoshone or Ute) that our lineage comes from. We also got to see Tom Tabby's (a young Ute Indian) grave, where Joseph buried him with a Christian burial and then Tom's Father slit the throat of the boy's favorite horse and burned them both according to Ute custom. The best of both worlds.

4 comments:

Julie Castellon said...

Brian: what an amazing blog! Hurray for getting away with Alina, I'll bet it has been years. And an extra Hurrah for teaching your kids about their roots. Make them proud of their Native American blood. I am proud of mine even though my aunt had to dig it out of a dying relative about a girl who disappeared from the wagon train coming to SLC... then later showed up again, pregnant. Everyone tried to pretend away the fact that she had a brown baby. Craziness!

Anyway, back to you... love the pictures and stories of your journeys. You live in such a great place. : )

me said...

I didn't know you guys went to the Heber Cemetery. That is were my mom's dad has been buried when he died when my mom was a little girl. We would go up there every year on Memorial Day to visit his grave when I was a kid and then we would go to the city park for a picnic. It's crazy that I have been going there forever and then find out that my wife's family is there as well. We would always go to the big pine tree where Tom Tabby's is buried with his horse and read the story about it. Hatee has been up there a few times at Prenetta's grave so it's a cool place. We always would see your Grandpa and Grandma up there to when we would go. Of course as a kid a probably ran into them but never new who they where. It's a small world!

Kerry Ross Boren said...

I am doing research on Pernetta and Pick Murdock. My father (Edward Boren) and uncle (Roy Boren)knew Pick Murdock when they were boys. I have some family photos of the Murdocks, and one of Pick. There is some confusion over relationships with Pick and Pernetta. I would love to share notes with you folks.

Kerry Ross Boren
oboranauthor@hotmail.com

Kerry Ross Boren

Kerry Ross Boren said...

I am doing research on Pernetta and Pick Murdock. My father (Edward Boren) and uncle (Roy Boren) knew Pick when they were boys. I also knew Marvel Lay Murdock very well, whose husband was a grandson of Joseph Stacy Murdock. I have a lot of stories about Pick but I am lacking some details on his origins. I would love to compare notes with you folks.

Kerry Ross Boren
obornauthor@hotmail.com