Utah

Our summer trip to Utah.

July 14-22, 2009

A little groggy due to the hour, but still excited to be going to Grandma's. We drove to Raleigh the night before our early morning flight. It was worth it to get a direct flight to Salt Lake. Due to our previous experiences flying with kids, cutting one leg of the trip saved us a lot of trouble. It was as uneventful as it could be.

The excitement may not show here, but Alex was in his element riding a bus to the airplane. He kept saying, "I go on bus and airplane!" For weeks before he was obsessed with watching airplanes on youtube. He was prepped and ready to go.

Bubble fun at Grandma's house. Addie making sure everyone waits for the bubbles to emerge before popping them.


The day before Colin and Joy's big day, the brother's watched the kids while the sisters-in-law took Joy out for a bit of sisterly initiation, which really meant pedicures, lunch and a little wedding night talk and shopping.



The wedding dinner was held the night before. I was asked to sing a few songs and I'm sure I thoroughly embarassed Colin and Joy.



The boys had their brotherly bonding that night. Their activity of choice: guns of course (soft pellet ones). They had a raucous game in the dark and all came out unscathed, fortunately.

THE BIG DAY

July 16th, 2009

Colin and Joy for time and all eternity.

The Draper Temple.

Handsome boy. Gavin and Max.

Look at those mom-made dresses. Thanks for the inspiration, Mercedes.

In addition to going in the Bountiful temple which was just finished this year, we were able to go to the Oquirrh Mountain temple open house as a family. Because the temple hadn't been dedicated yet we were able to take the girls inside. It was a wonderful opportunity to teach the girls about what we do in temples and how special they are. They learned about Angel Moroni on top of the temple (I told them how I called him "Angel Ronimo" when I was little - they got a kick out of that). We also talked about how mom and dad were married in the temple and because of that we get to be a family forever. They learned that we do work for the dead in the temple and that it is Heavenly Father's house. It was a really beautiful experience.

Hiking to Donut Falls.

While the moms rested with the little ones before the reception the dads took the older kids on a hike to beautiful Donut Falls.

I'm not sure what the girls are doing here, but it looks like singing.

Dancing cousins at the wedding reception.

At the Lake.

Andy and his friend Joe took the whole crew out on Joe's boat. All the kids had a blast.

Our first family trip to Lagoon.

Addie and Maycie had a blast. Addie couldn't find a ride that was scary enough for her. She was too short to ride any of the roller coasters, much to her disappointment. Maycie's favorite ride was the Tidal Wave. Alex was a little more timid of the rides, but really enjoyed the cars, airplanes and boats.

Best buddies and cousins. Leiden and Gavin.

Weeeeeee!

The girls got the hang of bumper cars, but Alex got stuck in a corner the whole ride. He didn't really mind as long as he got to turn the steering wheel.

Alex's favorite ride.

Our final Utah vacation excursion. Pony rides at Gardner Village.

Howdy, partner. Max and Gavin.

Yee Haw! Addie sporting the appropriate hat.