Pioneer Day Family Celebration

So the 24th of July is a big state holiday in UT. Having not lived here for quite a few years it was fun to celebrate again. We had family get together down at my parents...only half the family could come but I'm not sure where the other half would have fit anyway. We had fun. We spent most of the day at Palisades State Park which has a reservoir and a "beach" where we all had some fun swimming and sunning. The kids all had a blast as you can imagine and caught little minnows, swam out to the dock, and floated on boogie boards and other such toys. After coming back, showering, and playing some games, we gorged ourselves on delicious food and homemade ice cream. We topped the night off by telling pioneer stories by the chimanea and then set off a few fireworks. I was beat after chasing Wesley around the whole day. Here are a few pics.

Emma, Aby, and Reili pose while eating the homemade ice cream.

Nathan, Amberly and Matthew swing on the porch swing.

Wesley's cute ice cream mustache.

Another cute shot of Wesley.

Crazy Cousins Sleepover

Last weekend my sister Lenore and I decided to host a cousin's sleepover at my parents condo in Bountiful. We decided to stay there Thursday night as well and have some fun together Friday before the other cousins got there. The weekend turned out to be fun for the girls, but more stressful for us than we thought (normal right?). Our first fiasco was that the air conditioner wasn't working. It wasn't too bad at night (after around midnight especially) so since we had all our stuff there we decided to stay.

Friday we decided to take our kids swimming at the Bountiful Rec Center which has a really nice pool for kids. We had a great time and it wasn't until we were leaving that I realized I couldn't find my keys (for those of you who know me this comes as no surprise....but it doesn't help that I have been traveling all over the place this summer either). It turned out that they were no where to be found, so I had to call on Sister in Law to get another's number (because of course my cell phone was in the car with all the numbers I needed). Then we waited about 1/2 an hour until she could pick us up. We got back to the condo in time for Emma and Rachel to be dropped off. Lenore stayed with the kids while I went with my sister in law to her house to call a locksmith. The locksmith had a heck of a time opening my van...he couldn't get the magic stick to work through the window and ended up having to call to get some key code to make a key and open it (good news...now I have an extra key that even turns on the motor). Luckily my keys ended up being in the back of the van (where I couldn't see them without moving some grocery bags.

I got back in time to help get our picnic stuff together and head to a nearby park for a picnic dinner and playtime. We thought if we stayed at the park long enough the kids would all be worn out enough to get some sleep that night. Just as we finished dinner and the girls had started playing, Aby (Lenore's oldest) fell off one of the playground toys and broke her arm (you could tell it was broken just above the wrist because the bones were no longer aligned). So what started out to be a fun night together ended up being me at the condo with 5 of the girl cousins and Wesley for the night and Lenore at the emergency room most of the night getting Aby's arm set (she had to wait four hours before they could set it because she had just eaten so they couldn't put her out). Well that is the long story. So the girls got to have a lot more movies and play time at the condo than anticipated...but they all had fun and were together so that is all that matters.

The girls cuddle up for a movie before bed. From right to left: Amberly, Reili, Emma, Olivia, and Rachel.

After getting matching hairdos, a morning pose: Olivia, Emma, Rachel, Amberly, Reili, Aby (with splint), and Lainey.

Hogle Zoo Fun

Ten days ago (yes it has been a while since I've been able to post), we had a fun trip to Hogle Zoo with my brother Dave's family (minus Dave because he was at work). Diane is 7 months pregnant and what a trouper to tromp through the Zoo on a hot day. We had a ton of fun together...even though it was hot.

Here is a picture of the whole gang: Diane, Wesley, Amberly, Rachel, Peter, James and Reili

Look Mom, it's a baby giraffe (it was so cute). Raarrrrrrr! says Peter.

The kids waited all day to ride the train. I think it may have been their favorite part.

Memory Keepers

My friend was doing this game on her blog and it was just so fun I thought I would try it on mine.   Here are the directions:

1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together.  It doesn't matter if you know me a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2.  Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you.  It's actually pretty funny to see the responses.  If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you.  If you don't want to play on your blog, or if you don't have a blog, I'll leave my memory of you in my comments.

Mission Companions Reunite

Sunday morning I took the kids and met my mission companion, Kerri (Cook) Young, and her family at temple square.  We walked with our kids around temple square and then went to the Church Museum of History and Art to let the kids play in the children's section.  It had been 8 years since we had seen each other (at my wedding) and we had a lot of fun reminiscing about memories of our mission.  Our children really loved playing with each other and got along so well.  Reili started crying when I told her we had to leave.  We had a good time together and hope that it won't be 8 years before we see them again.  Thanks for the great time Kerri!

Can you tell my kids didn't want their pictures taken?  From Left to right: Amberly, Reili, Wesley, Liam, Me, Kerri, Kaia, and Seraya