Fun Family Day

We had a family day in Richfield on a long weekend Friday. We went to Jorgensen's ATV, which we always go to, but this time Dallen got to ride the little carrousel and we went bowling. I think it was the first time Travis and I have even gone bowling together. Dallen carried his ball to the lane each time and played all 10 frames. He even beat us! I didn't think he'd last the entire game but he definitely enjoyed it. I didn't know bowling could be so much fun!

After nappie time in the car, we went to the pumpkin patch. It was late in the evening and it was freezing so the only picture I got was us on the hayride. Dallen LOVED the hayride and giggled the entire way, but wasn't a fan of hiking around through the patch. It was still pretty vine-y and so Travis and I found the big ones and headed back. Dallen also got to go on a little tractor train ride which he was fascinated by as well. I love going to the pumpkin patch! So glad he enjoyed some of it too.

Home again Home

My summer trip home this year was one of the best. Dallen is finally at a good age where I can leave him with the family, and where he'll play with others instead of insisting of being my siamese twin. We were there for a full 6 days and had time to do lots of fun activities, lots of down time and time for me to do things I wanted to on my own. Everyone came home to be together as well: Jess, Sarah, Joe, and Jordan. Here are the highlights:

 

Great Grandma Judy's was the first place we went. All of the great-grand kids had a wonderful time playing with trains, coloring, snacking, and finding the kitties. That evening my good friends Kym-me and Trisha came to mom's with their kids. It was great to see them and their kids, but not the best way to catch up. It was a little crazy.

 

One of the fun things we wanted to do with the little kids was to take them swimming. So while the girls were in school, Jess, Sarah and I took the 5 cousins to the Apex indoor swimming pool/playground. They of course loved it and I enjoyed seeing all of them having a great time. We took Sophie and Jacob down the big water slide which was a blast doing something adventurous with the little ones. After nap time we took the kiddos to the park which is always a hit.

Another activity we wanted to do was go to the temple together with the adults and do family names. I had never been to the temple with Joe or Jordan and I don't think I've been much with Sarah either, not to mention mom and dad. So it was a great experience. Sarah, Joe and Jordan did a few baptisms and confirmations. Then we all did initiatories which was the highlight of the experience for me. It had been a very very long time since I'd done initiatories and I thoroughly enjoyed the words spoken there. We all did a session together and got to see the new temple video which was amazing. Then we did a lot of sealings and ended up in the temple from about 2-7:30pm. It was kind of weird kneeling across from Jordan at the alter, but I would rather it be my brother if not Travis. I definitely missed him in the sealing room. The long wonderful temple day was followed up by a nice dinner courtesy of Dad. Just a great experience for all of us. 

Friday was a day for me. I took Dallen with me to run some errands and then left him with the family while I got a pedicure, acupuncture, saw City of Bones-a movie I've really been wanting to see since it's based off of one of my favorite book series, The Mortal Instruments, and then went and played sand volleyball with Sarah, Joe and his friends. It was such a great day; one I hadn't had in a long long time.

Saturday was The family day. The whole family went to a Rockies game in downtown Denver. I don't really remember watching the game at all, but instead was busy feeding Dallen, chasing Dallen, wrestling Dallen and arguing with him. I think I eventually just gave him the ipad to watch because I couldn't take it anymore-ha! It was fun to be there with everyone though.

Being at church together was wonderful too. We got to hear Dad's and Jessica's testimonies and Dad gave me a much needed private blessing as well. I had a good talk with Mom and Jess and it was just a good uplifting day for the soul. That evening was game night and we laughed and laughed playing our favorite family game-Telestrations.

 

It was nice to not have to leave on Sunday or on a Monday. So instead of just hanging around on Monday, we took the kids to the Butterfly Pavilion and to a splash pad afterwards. Dallen enjoyed looking at the tanks of fish and bees and even was curious about that big spider everyone was taking turns holding-yuck! The butterfly area was a super humid and hot greenhouse and because the butterflies wouldn't sit still, it was hard for Dallen to really focus on them. So he just ran around instead. The splash pad was definitely a hit and the kids just didn't want to leave but they were beyond tired. We ended the day with a family BBQ on the back patio. It was seriously the best trip home. Can't wait til next time!

Archery Hunt Weekend

The archery hunt brought a big crowd this year. Both Nick and Travis had tags, so Travis' dad came as well as Nick and Mindy, Cael, Savanna, Nick's parents, and Mindy's mom. They brought a trailer to sleep in outside our house and Mindy's mom camped out back in a tent. It was so fun having so many people! Nick, Travis and Jay all have orange four wheelers so we were quite the spectacle in our front yard.

So while the guys were out hunting, we took the kids around town to check out all the animals and get a full small town experience. We saw deer, llamas, emus, peacocks, pigs, and goats. Nick has cousins that live in town and they were the ones to take us to the piglets and goats. The kids loved it! Cael helped me in the garden as well and we sent a ton of zucchini and squash back to Vegas for everyone. Tamara helped me can homemade salsa with tomatoes she brought and all fresh ingredients. It's delicious! We did more than the usual when the Starleys came to scout or hunt so it made the visit a lot more fun. But sadly, no deer.

Kanarra Falls Hike

For a Youth activity we did a half day hike at Kanarra Falls just south of Cedar, west of Zions. My friend happened to go a couple weeks before we went and told me that I would totally be fine hiking the 3.5 mile hike with Dallen in the pack. Travis wasn't able to go because he had to work, so based on my friend's recommendation I decided to go and pack Dallen myself.

Most of the hike is in the river, wading in and out on the sides, climbing boulders and walking on rocks. The deepest spot went up to mid thigh on me! I brought my chacos to hike in which are really sturdy and keep me from slipping at all. But they have no ankle support. So all that weight with poor ankle support and no foot cushioning made my leg muscles work over time! And the youth were booking it so I was trying to keep up and hike fast. Well, I couldn't keep up and gave up on that shortly after starting out. So I hiked with a few of the leaders in the back. We still were hiking at a pretty good pace, too fast for Dallen so he didn't get out and hike at all. We took a break and he got out then and hiked around but not on the trail or in the water at all. So needless to say, it was a tough hike!

There were 2 waterfalls you could climb over, the first one being the more sturdy climb. I did it fine with the Dallen in the pack, but the second one was way sketchy looking to hike with a pack. So we hung out and waited for the youth to come back down. One of the leader's husbands offered to pack Dallen out, so I let him do the hike back. It was a whole new experience without Dallen on my back. Much more enjoyable. :) Even though I came out super sore for 2 days after and a huge blister on my foot, I'm still glad I went. It was a cool hike and look forward to doing it again when Dallen is a little older.

Team Softball!

This summer I decided to play on a city softball team. I played with a group of ladies I didn't know very well and had a blast! I wasn't sure I was even going to be able to hit or catch but I did all right! Caught a pop fly with rain plopping down in my face; hit the ball just about every time I went up to bat; and even made a couple double plays at 2nd which was my position most of the time. I'm so glad I decided to play and will definitely play every year from now on. Fun fun!

Summer Visit with Sarah, the boys and Joe

Because our family camp out was canceled because of Dad having to work, Joe decided to come down from Rexburg and visit for the weekend. Sarah was able to get away too and they came together for another summer visit! This time we headed up to the mountains most of the time to fish and hike. It was Jacob's first time fishing and he LOVED it! Travis caught a bunch and let Jacob reel them in. It was so cute. The sunset was gorgeous at Upper Kents and it was a nice evening. The next day we did the Sky Line Trail Hike. Sarah borrowed a pack from a friend for Caleb and we brought ours for Dallen. He's become such the strong hiker though that we didn't have to use it at all! He hiked the whole way. We had snacks at the tops while Travis looked for deer and elk. Jacob did great hiking too. I think it was his first real hike. He was a trooper. Sarah, Joe and I spent down time at home playing cards which I loved and hadn't done in a long time. Nerts was just calling my name ever since girls camp. We filled in other down time with taking Jacob to the park and swimming during nap time and picking veggies in the garden. It was great catching up with Joe who I hadn't seen since Christmas. Love spending time wtih the fam!