Utah Trip --- In a very big nutshell

Here's our trip in a nutshell...a big one! Okay, really, you don't need to read this or even look at the millions of pictures on here...I have a problem with picking pictures to post, I think they call it "can't-pick-one-picture-itis". So, here is a recap of our trip:

Friday, July 3rd: We left our house bright and early at 5:30am and had a relatively easy trip to Utah. We got there early enough to spend plenty of time with family for the rest of the day.

Saturday, July 4th: We spend the afternoon of the 4th with my side of the family down at my Aunt Janet's house for a lunch. It was fabulous! My grandma Simmons was there as well as some aunts, uncles, and cousins....so much fun!!! It was great to join in the tradition of sloppy joes and flag cake. In the evening we hung out with Dan's best friend from growing up and his family to light off some fireworks. The kids loved them! We didn't ever go see the big ones downtown, but we still had fun.

Sunday, July 5th: We went to Dan's home ward. The rest of the day we had fun visiting with family and doing some more fireworks...the kids LOVED fireworks!!

Monday, July 6th: We decided to go check out the Dinosaur Museum at Thanksgiving Point since we had never been before. The kiddos loved it, especially the hands on parts like the water table and the brushing off fossils part. It also happened to be the museums birthday, so the kids got free crowns and face painting.

That evening we went up to our friend's Travis & Julie's timeshare in Snowbird. We enjoyed catching up with them and other friends and then swam in the pool. Carson loves swimming but is very cautious....Brynlee, on the other hand, was FEARLESS!! She jumped into the pool over and over and over again and didn't want us to catch her (she had her floaties on). She would jump and go all the way under, then bob back up just beaming...she loved it! We had a great time!

Tuesday, July 7th: We tried to take this day easy so we wouldn't wear out the kiddos too much. We pretty much just hung out with family and I got to sneak away to a few quilt shops during nap time. Which, can I tell you, they do NOT have the same crafty stuff on the east coast that they do in UTAH...it truly is the mecca of craftiness! That evening we went to The Old Spaghetti Factory for dinner and then over to Temple Square to walk around a bit. It was a nice relaxing day.Wednesday, July 8th: In the morning/afternoon, the boys (Dan, Woody, and Carson) went up in the canyon to do a little jeeping. Carson reported that he loved it and so did the older "boys". While the boys were jeeping in the mountains, the girls did a little shopping. Later that evening we went to Dan's high school friend's house, Richard. We hung out with him and his family as well as Jim and Shelley and their family. They ALL (even the wives) went to Granger High together, so they all had fun talking about the "good old days"...and I enjoyed laughing at all their stories!
Thursday, July 9th: We went back down to Provo to visit Grandma Hatch and also walk around BYU a bit. Grandma Hatch was recently in the hospital and is now in a rehab center. She actually seemed to be doing really well and was her usually self...singing and hugging! We had a great time visiting with her. After we headed to BYU to walk around the bookstore. I still LOVE BYU!!! In the evening we spent more time with family...it was great!Friday, July 10th: We decided to check out the new waterpark off of I-15 called Cowabunga Bay. We were only there for a few hours (before Dan threw out his back...that's a whole other story), but we had a blast and I think the kids really enjoyed themselves.

Later that evening we met Jolynn and her cute family halfway in between our houses. We were good friends when we both lived in Maryland. Her kids are slightly older than our kids, but they all got along fabulously. Carson really enjoyed playing with McKinley and has asked me several times since "Mom, remember McKinley???". We loved talking with Jolynn and Jeremy and wish we could see them more often....it was great seeing you guys!!!

Saturday, July 11th: I the morning, we visited again with Dan's best friend from growing up, Jim and his awesome wife Shelley and their 3 girls. We love hanging out with them and wish we lived closer! The kids got a lot great with each other!

In the evening we went over to Dan's sister Lynece's house. They had been on vacation all week, so we hadn't gotten the chance to see them yet. It was our nephew Cameron's 11th birthday, so we celebrated with him and enjoyed each other's company. The kiddos loved playing with their older cousins and all their many pets...a chihuahua, some cats, a turtle, and a rat! ***Besides all that fun, we ate at nearly EVERY SINGLE RESTAURANT IN UTAH!!! Okay, that may be exaggerating...but we hit ALL the good spots...delish!! Thanks family and friends for making it one of our best trips to date!!