Park City

the view from our window

The day after we returned from Arizona the kids and I headed up to Park City for the week with my family. I had just enough time to wash all our clothes and re-pack! We stayed at the Marriott Summit Watch on Main Street, and had a great view of the lift and the arts festival.

Mom and Dad had a ton of fun things planned, and we were never bored! We did lots of swimming, made crafts with grandma, went on walks, visited the Shoe Tree {and added grandpa's shoes to the bunch}, and had fun at the Maze making sun catchers, funky hats, necklaces, and finger paintings.

We also went to the farmer's market, got some yummy melon, and saw an old friend from Thailand who gave Kensie 2 skirts and me and awesome ring from her shop!


We walked to the park and spent the day digging, swinging, climbing, somersaulting, and having squirt gun fights. Grandpa also taught Kensie how to throw a wicked spiral, and we had our own little football team with Lincoln as the center. Daddy would have been proud!

Danny and Leah came up Wednesday night {after Danny finished taking the bar exam!} and we all spent Thursday having a TON of fun at Park City Mountain Resort.

Grandma and Leah kept the little ones busy on the kiddie rides.....

...while Dad, Danny and I rode the zip line. Super fun, and not long enough!! Then we took Kensie and Lincoln on the Alpine Coaster, which quickly became the favorite ride of the day! Think Wild Mouse through the forest. Our last ride of the day was at dusk, and Kensie said "Mom, I feel like we're in Twilight"! Ha!! It did feel a bit like we were on Edward's back running through the forest....

Next came the Alpine Slide, which seemed weak after the coaster ride. Jackson and I got to the bottom to find Danny and Kensie behind us- bruised, burned, and bloodied! They hit a turn wrong and fell off. Danny, being the good uncle that he is, saved Kensie from the worst of it, though she did have a fat, bloody lip and several scrapes and burns.

We took a trip to the first aid station and they got fixed up. Kensie was scared, but at the end of the day decided to ride it again with Grandpa and conquered her fear!



We also had fun riding the {super slow} lift and doing some mini golfing. Jackson bypassed the whole hitting the ball thing and opted to just drop his ball in the hole.

One of the last things we did was the Legacy Launcher. Danny went first, and impressed us with his jumping skills {or lack of}! He did do a flip, though. Next up were Kensie and Lincoln. Kensie got so high, and tried to do a flip but was too scared. Lincoln was having fun jumping away. I told him to do a back flip and without hesitation he did one! He was a pro and did them over and over, which made Kensie mad!! He was so proud of himself.

A lift ride up the mountain by our place rounded out the perfect day {as well as dinner at Good Thymes bistro. So good!}.

Thanks for a wonderful time!!!

Until Next Season

I'll miss the Hot Tamale Train.

I'll miss the comments about botox & "handling your big woman" that only live television can provide.

I'll miss Tasty Oreo and his fan-friggin'-tastic remarks and happy (and sad) dances.

I'll miss the 5.2 second solos choreographed to Imogen Heap.

I'll miss Nap'n Tab, and Sonya's mohawk.

I'll miss Lil' C and his over the top, stay up all night thinking of, write on your hand so you don't forget comments that are always amazing and true.

I'll miss MIA! Oh, how I love you, Mia. You bring me back to my college dancing days. How I wish I could have worked with you {though I did work with some fab choreographers}.

I'll miss Cat and all her loveliness.





Until September 2nd......

{excuse me while I spend the rest of the day watching my dance videos....and crying}

John Hughes

Thank you, thank you!

I don't know how I would have survived my teenage years without you {well, your movies anyway}!

John Hughes
1950-2009

Baby Thomas

On July 24th {while we were still in Arizona} our new nephew/cousin Thomas was born {even though I specifically told them to wait until we got back}! The kids were so excited to meet their first cousin on the Young side of the family. He must be a pretty special boy because he gets fireworks on his birthday every year!

Just look at that face! Cutest ever!! He slept while we were there, and despite Spencer's efforts he would not wake up. The kids are still begging to see his eyes. They were all so quiet and soft with him. They wanted to hold him forever. It's fun to see Spencer and Andrea as a mommy & daddy! They're doing a great job.

Also while in Arizona we learned that the kids will have another cousin to hold in February! Congrats, Danny & Leah!!

Arizona

We took our annual road trip to Arizona on July 18th. The kids did really well in the car, despite the fact that we had to squish into the Pathfinder {thanks to shoddy work by Jiffy Lube on the Durango. We didn't have time to fix it, and thus took the smaller car}.

We had such a great time with Matt's family! The kids had a blast playing with their cousins, and we had fun relaxing, chatting and playing games.
Of course we did a TON of swimming, and with Matt's "one week a year" swimming lesson Lincoln learned to swim by himself. It was so funny to watch his little bum up in the air! He and cousin Ty became quite the little fish, and were swimming all over. Poor Jake couldn't join in the fun due to his big blue cast, and he was sad. Jackson wanted to be like the big boys and kept taking his floaties off. He had a few near drowning moments, and I can now see how a kid could drown in a pool full of people.



{sorry for the blurry video. faulty camera.}

We also watched a bunch of movies, most of which were not as good as I thought they would be {Mamma Mia, Knowing, Bride Wars} and a few that I really liked {Seven Pounds, Igor}.

After 5 days in Gilbert we headed to Snowflake for some cabin fun! Grandpa had 2 new ATV's and they were definitely the hit of the trip! The kids could not get enough of them, and neither could I! I don't know why, but driving around on those things is totally relaxing to me.

One of the favorite places to ride was the wash. We saw coyote dens, rabbits, and even a really cool looking snake that let us "play" with it for awhile!

We also discovered the water tower and the black mesa on this trip. It was such a great view up on the black mesa, and the lava rock was strangely pretty. It was a bumpy drive up there, and not that easy while holding on to Jackson with one arm and driving with the other! Kensie became quite the driver and drove all the way up without letting Alayna help {I'm sure Alayna was praying the whole way up!}.


We spent time looking for more arrowheads {which we never found} and pottery {which we did find}, hanging out around the campfire & roasting hot dogs, collecting rocks, watching movies, and eating yummy food {mmmmm, roast in the pit!}. Jackson was never without a bag of chips :)



We were totally spoiled, of course, and can't wait to go back!!

Let's Play Catch Up

And so begins the plethora of vacation posts.....

Let's begin with a trip to the cabin. We've taken two day trips to the cabin & got to test out the new raft, which the kids loved. Kensie was a natural paddler {until she decided she was done, jumped out, and headed for shore leaving me to paddle myself- the people who were fishing LOVED it when I ran into their fishing lines}. Lincoln and Jackson were ready to jump overboard a few times, too. Good times!

Grandpa also made the kids a tee pee, which they had fun eating their lunch in. We love going to the cabin, and look forward to more trips soon!

Home Again & Off Again

major vacationing in progress......



home for a day to do laundry, then off again.....



blogging resumes next week.....

Road Trip Tips

I'm in the midst of all the prep work to get ready for our annual road trip to Arizona. My kids usually do well in the car {minus a few puking incidents that will hopefully be cured with Dramamine this time around}.

They each have their own special box that I fill with treats, treasures, and boredom busters. This year I made these to add:

The License Plate Game
color in each state as you see its license plate

Road Signs
cross off, color over, etc. each sign you see

Roadside Objects
cross off, color over, etc. each thing you see

Transportation Travel
cross off, color over, etc. each vehicle you see

Slug Bug game
cross off, color over, etc. each slug bug you see

I'd love more ideas.....

So, what things do you do to keep your kids entertained on road trips???

Grandpa May's Funeral

We attended Grandpa May's funeral on July 6th. It was a wonderful service. Matt gave a beautiful tribute to his grandpa {and didn't even cry too much!}. I was very proud of him. He and his grandpa were close, and it was a hard day. Kensie, Luke, Lincoln, Liesel, Andrew, and Liz sang "Faith", Uncle Mark spoke, and Rich, Marla, Curt and I sang "Nearer, My God, To Thee".

After the services we travelled to Grantsville for the burial. I am so grateful for the blessing of eternal families, and the knowledge I have that we will see Grandpa again.

I think that Jackson has already seen Grandpa a few times. The day after he died, as we were driving home from Grandma May's, Jackson said {out of the blue} "There's Grandpa May right there" and pointed upward. I told him that Grandpa May was in heaven, but he insisted "No! Grandpa May's right there".

He did it again on our way home from Grantsville on the 4th of July, this time pointing at the train tracks next to the road. I have no doubt that his innocent little eyes were able to see what we could not. What a joy!

Independence Day

This year we spent July 4th with Matt's family in Grantsville. We met at Uncle Mark's place & headed over to the parade. And, oh my, what a parade it was! Only in Grantsville would you find a parade that consisted of John Deere's, a Walmart big rig, 20 fire engines, floats promoting every gas station in town, bands comprising 15 members, a {small} horse pulling a {large} woman, and {my favorite} the Abstinence float......"First Comes Love, Then Comes Marriage, Then Comes The Baby- Our Pride=Abstinence". Gotta love it!

The kids had fun catching candy, and Jackson and Mark bonded while watching the horse procession.




After the parade it was back to Mark's house for buffalo burgers, rides in the Rhino with April, and some saddle fun.




Next, we all piled in the camo truck for a ride to see Mark's buffalo. Boy, were they big! We couldn't get too close because they had babies, so we took photo-op's from afar and drove around to find the horses.




Mark could not wait to get Jackson on a horse. Jackson was loving it, even when he almost went for a ride and Uncle Mark had to save him! Lincoln and Kensie were excited to sit on the horse, too.




After Grantsville and a little nap we went to the Holbrook's for firework fun! All the kids were so excited, and would cheer {or boo if it was not up to their standards} after each firework.

It was a fun-filled day, and as always we loved celebrating our country's freedom as well as EIGHT years of remission for Matt! Hazzaaa!!