Pioneer Day Weekend

Friday & Saturday, July 24th-25th--Elise and Brady woke up Friday morning to the Days of '47 Parade on the TV. They watched it for a while and asked many questions about various themes of the many floats. It was a great time to tell them about our rich pioneer heritage and the LDS church and it's beginnings in the Salt Lake Valley. Friday evening Nate and I hosted a BBQ for my extended family. Alishia and her family were able to come as well as Aunt Maureen and her family. We had set up tables and our pop-up awning outside but it was pretty hot so we ate inside and then all came out and soaked in the kiddie pool while we waited for the sun to go down. It was great to visit and laugh as we cooled our feet. I went overboard with fireworks (again) but it made for a great show. The neighbors also came over and let off their fireworks. We laughed again and sang pioneer-themed songs from the Primary Songbook. I took pictures that evening but they didn't turn out for some reason.

On Saturday morning we got up pretty early to make it to Nate's brother, Dustin's, house in Salt Lake. He and his wife, Crystal, hosted a breakfast and then swimming at their community pool. Dustin and Crystal put on a delicious spread of food for the whole family. It was great to chat while we ate. Then it was time to head over to the pool. The kids and Nate had a great time swimming. I was too tired to swim and, once again, didn't want to get my hair wet as we had errands to run (if you only understood my hair before you roll those eyes, people!). Elise was looking like she was ready to take her water wings off and try swimming without them. I had to her come over to the 3 feet deep side of the pool and she took the wings off and started pushing off and, eventually, she got it. I was jumping up and down, screaming cheers for her. She figured it out on her own, without lessons. It was very exciting! And just like so many other things, including riding on two wheels, it had to be in her own time, on her own terms. I was very proud! After that she was swimming all over the pool without the water wings. I made sure Nate was staying close to her. She found a pink weighted ring she would throw and then dive down in to get it. What a character!

After we left Dustin and Crytal's we traveled to RC Willey where I FINALLY was able to get a new dryer. They had great deals on washer and dryer combos so we got both. I'll be excited to get them on Wednesday and it'll be SO nice not to have a load of laundry take 5-8 hours to dry anymore. Yippee!

Boating at Deer Creek Reservoir.......Again!

Thursday, July 23rd--Another fun boating experience! This time Nate was able to come with us and he absolutely enjoyed it! We met up with my aunt, Maureen, her daughter, Catherine, and my other cousin, Cindy, at the resort on Deer Creek Reservoir. Today was incredibly hot so we put the shade thingy (sorry, don't know the real name) over the boat and it helped tremendously. The water was perfect! Not once did the waves get so high that we had to come in, which apparently never happens. Usually, by around 2:00 the waves are high enough that all the boats have to come in. First, Maureen took the boat out a ways and everyone jumped in to swim and cool off for a bit. Elise and Brady were a little scared at first but once they were in the water they seemed to enjoy it. I didn't go in because I didn't want to get my hair wet (yeah, a little vain and pathetic but we had errands and a date night before we would go home that night).

The first on the tube were Cindy, Elise and Nate. They had a great time. I could tell Elise was much more relaxed this time around. We noticed the tube was losing air very slowly, which would make getting off and on a little more of a challenge, but it held out for as long as we used it that day. Nate had a great time! Next it was Catherine, Brady and I. Because of the holiday weekend, there were many more boats out so we ran into wakes quite a bit more which made things pretty crazy on the tube. At one point I thought we were going to fly off (crud, my hair! ha ha) but I gripped the handles tight and made sure Brady was secure as well. After we were back on the boat it was time for Maureen to do some crazy drivin' while Cindy and Nate rode on the tube. It was hilarious to watch them jump and splash and then, finally, fly off the tube! Something we didn't think could happen with this particular tube. It was so funny! Cindy hurt her back a little but bounced back quickly. As she was resting, Catherine and Nate got back on for another crazy ride. Nate decided to sit in the middle in fear he would surely fly off again with the weight being disproportionate. The faces the two of them made are priceless! They both managed to stay on, just barely. Next was Nate, Elise and I. Once again, plenty of wakes and at one point I accidently elbowed Elise in the arm while, at the same time, Nate accidentally elbowed her in the head. We fully expected her to scream bloody murder either while still on the tube or right after she got back on the boat but she never did---is she growing out of her "drama queen" phase? Please, yes! She was brave and she said it didn't hurt all that much. Phew!

After a few hours we were ready to go back to shore and have some lunch. One final thing Cindy and Nate tried were knee-boarding. It was a funny sight to see, as neither had ever done it before. Both biffed it every time and realized the knee board was probably a little too small for them. From there we headed into shore with Catherine out wake boarding. She's pretty good at it. I can tell it takes a lot of upper arm strength.

We had a wonderful time! We ate lunch at the restuarant there and then we headed into Salt Lake to drop the kids off at my sister, Alishia's house so Nate and I could end the day with a much-needed date night. We have season passes to Desert Star Theater so we went and saw the current show there. It was hilarious!

What a great day! It was long but wonderful. Maybe this will get Nate thinking about a boat of our own? Hmmmmm..........just like Disneyland, I wish!

Hooray, We Got Dad In the Kiddie Pool!

Friday, July 17th--In the evening, I filled up the kiddie pool. It was a perfect night for some water time and the kids were thrilled that daddy said he'd get in and play too. I ran my watering wand through the basketball net, which was next to the pool, and turned the water on. It created a great shower! The kids had a blast splashing daddy and he had fun doing the same. Then they sat down and threw a ball to each other. And finally, they used the "noodles" to pretend they were riding Disneyland's "Splash Mountain". Perhaps it's time for another Disneyland trip? Hmmmm..............I wish!

Nintendo DC Maniacs---Take Two!

Wednesday, July 15th--Brady and Elise's cousin, Kayla, spent a few days with us and while she was here I think the three of them spent about 75% of their time playing on their DS's. It was crazy but they totally enjoyed it. I did get them outside for a little while but it didn't take long before they were back playing. They got a kick out of being able to send messages to each other through the DS.

I figure, meh, it's summer break and at least I know where all three are without having to look very hard. Many times I would catch them underneath Brady's bed, which has a huge amount of space. They liked going under there because it was dark and it helped them to see their screens much better......or so they claimed! Crazy kids!

Boating at Deer Creek Reservoir

Thursday, July 9th--Oh what an amazingly fun day! My Aunt Maureen owns a boat and stores it at Deer Creek Reservoir in Provo Canyon. She invited the kids and I to go boating today. Also coming along was my cousins, Cindy and Carly. I knew we'd have a blast and we did! When we got there I lathered the kids and myself in sunscreen, we got our life jackets on and then all got in the boat so it could be launched. Oh, and Maureen had a HUGE tube the employees blew up for us. Maureen took us out to the middle and the first on the tube was Cindy, Elise and Carly. At first, Elise had a very nervous smile but eventually her smile was just pure enjoyment as Maureen drove the boat all around and they bumped and splashed. Next was my cousin, and Maureen's daughter, Catherine and her friend Kimmie, with Elise in the middle. Again, they had lots of fun. But then it was just Catherine and Kimmie's turn. Maureen drove really "nice" while my kids were on the tube but when only adults were on she went crazy and it was hilarious to watch those on the tube screaming and laughing as they splashed and bumped really high. The tube never flipped though...phew! It took Brady a while to decide to go on but once he did he had a really good time too---he insisted he ride with Catherine! Carly and Cindy were up next and they got flung all over the water! Then it was my turn to muster up the courage to go on. I am a total wimp, like I've mentioned before so I was really nervous. Maureen told me she'd take it easy. Once I was on and riding around I realized it was totally fun and she could have even sped up a little more. We were having so much fun and then the wind picked up and the waves started to get higher which meant we had to come in to shore. It was a bummer but it was also lunch time and we were hungry.

There is a restuarant next to the dock so we got out of our wet clothes into dry ones and sat down to eat. The food was excellent and we spent plenty of time visiting. Again, it was a truly awesome time at Deer Creek Reservoir. And we get to go back in two weeks....this time with Nate and we'll make sure there are no kids on the tube when he rides....MUUAHHHHAHHHH!

Happy Independance Day!

Saturday, July 4th--My dear neighbor friends and I planned our 3rd annual Gullane Road 4th of July party. We had fun water games, delicious smoked pork, home-made root beer, plenty of side dishes and desserts and then home-made ice cream during the fireworks. We had a pretty good turn-out and were happy to see brand new neighbors come and get to know how awesome a road they chose to live on! We didn't take many pictures this year--we were too busy having fun and visiting! It was a great party and the weather even cooperated. As always, the fireworks were great and the men enjoyed having their yearly turn of being pyro's! We are truly thankful for this country we live in and the freedoms we enjoy!

OUCH!!

Monday, June 29th--And no, I don't mean when Elliot touches E.T.'s finger at the end of the movie and says "Ouch...". No, no, I mean a sunburn like no other! I had to work today so I took the kids outside for about an hour before I had to head off. I figured, eh, I wouldn't be out long enough to really need sunscreen and I turned my back to the sun. Well, my decision ended up being quite stupid. Halfway into my first massage I started feeling some serious burning on my legs. I lifted up my capris and sure enough, bright red and hot! Then halfway into my third massage my arms started burning and I lifted up my sleeve to find the same (my intention was to start to get rid of the farmers tan!). Yowsers! Come to find out, there's a UV ray scale and it was pretty high this day which means your skin burns faster than usual. Had I only known! So here is a pic of one of my legs:
.....yep, it hurt as bad as it looks.

Salt Lake City Pass--Day 3

Saturday, June 27th--This day was by far the busiest! We started the day out by watching the Lehi Parade with friends. The kids got TONS of candy and we had a great time. It was a long enough parade that by the time it was over it was lunch time. We headed to Sweet Tomato's (one of our family favs) where we ate till our stomachs were tightly loaded with delicious food. After that we headed to the aquarium in Sandy. It was, eh, okay. I expected it to be a lot bigger with many more exhibits--much like the ones in Washington. The exhibits they did have were pretty cool and the kids enjoyed watching the sting-rays in the pet tank, they wouldn't touch them though. Once we got them away from the gift shop (and believe me, that was quite the task!) we headed up to Snowbird Ski Resort to ride the tram.
Snowbird's weather was perfect, just slightly cool. There were plenty of things to see on our walk up to the tram station. At the tram station the operator loaded up the tram and then we headed up to the top of Hidden Peak. I HATED that ride! It was slow, we were high above the ground, the tram would swing and I realized there's a massive amount of people on the tram and it's hooked onto some pretty thin wires. Once we got to the top the view was quite beautiful. We could see the Salt Lake Valley on one side and then, we think, Heber Valley on the other side. The kids really loved playing in the snow but freaked me out one too many times as they got a little too close to edges where there were pretty large drop-offs. We stayed on Hidden Peak for about 30 minutes. I was thankful, kind of, to get back on the tram and head back down to Snowbird. While on the peak my legs shook the whole time. I felt like such a wimp! I hate having such a fear of heights. The tram ride back was much better and faster, I was able to relax and enjoy it. I know Nate and the kids really loved it and I was happy to see them enjoy the experience. Next time, I may just stay at the bottom and shop!
I bought the kids a Snowbird t-shirt and then we were off to the dinosaur museum at Thanksgiving Point, in Lehi. Brady and Elise were fascinated with the dinosaur bones and how tall they are. There were plenty of hands-on experiences, including playing in sand and water and creating little islands for the plastic dinasaurs. There was also an area they could "dig" for bones.

We left the dinosaur museum exhausted. What a day...what a couple of days! It was sure fun though. Something we'll love to do again. It didn't take long for Brady and Elise to fall asleep at the end of the day.

Salt Lake City Pass--Day 2

Friday, June 26th--Today I had to work so I was not able to go with Nate and the kids. He wanted to take them to the zoo and he knows I'm not a fan of the zoo so he decided this would be the best day to take them. They also went to the Museum of Natural History at the University of Utah.

As you can tell, Nate and the kids never seem to get tired of going to the zoo. On this day they were able to enjoy a show involving various birds including a bald eagle--something Elise and Brady talked about non-stop when they got home. One of the birds took a $5 dollar bill from someone and brought it up to the trainer. The person didn't realize he was actually donating that $5 dollar bill and had a look of surprise when the trainer asked if he would donate the $5. Being put on the spot like that, I would have told the guy to keep it too.

After eating lunch they headed over to the museum where they were able to enjoy various activities for children and look at several dinosaur bones.

Either this day was an eventful as the day before or the kids could only remember the bird show because I couldn't get much out of them. I'm happy the pictures seem to speak for themselves!