Ever since Grandpa bought the boys fishing poles for Christmas they've been counting down until they got to use them. Well that first week in Utah Grandpa, Uncle Paul, Uncle Gary and cousins Boston and Preston all headed out on a fishing trip. As you can see everyone caught something...thank goodness!!!
Since Jack and I were going to be gone for over two weeks I tried to make life easier on Grandma by enrolling the kids in a week long climbing class that went from 9-1 each day. The kids LOVED it! And the best part was Sage got to go too. They said it was one of the best camps they had ever done!!! When I returned back into town I took the kids over to The Quarry one evening for some climbing time and was able to see why they loved it so much...
After Jack and I returned from Italy, I headed back to Utah to be with the kids. Thankfully shortly after Jack was able to fly out and join us for a week. That first weekend he was in town we headed up north to spend the night at Gary and Kelly's in Brigham City. The kids loved hanging out with the cousins. They also enjoyed making sugar cookies, swimming and seeing the new temple just up the road from Gary and Kelly's place!
On the way back to Provo we stopped in SLC to visit President and Sister Lee. Although we carve out time to see them whenever we are in Utah, this was the first time in a while that they got to see the kids. It makes me so happy to see how happy Jack gets every time he gets to spend time with these wonderful people.
Next we visited Temple Square. Ty had a very sweet experience visiting the Christus where he was touched by the spirit as he studied the statue. I love these gentle reminders that show the kids what truly is important in their life. Life can be so crazy and busy that it's just so nice to have a place to go to and find peace and comfort.
A trip to Utah isn't complete without some grass hoop or some sporting activity in Grandma and Grandpa's backyard!
It also wouldn't be a complete summer without Jack taking the boys up to Sundance for some Digglering!!! I hate those darn things as it seems that every time they go someone gets injured but he still seems to be able to talk everyone into doing them year after year. This year, Paul did decide to take up his bike instead...wise decision!!! Ty also decided this year to join the pack!
While the boys were on the mountain the rest of us enjoyed Sundance!
After talking about it for a couple years we finally made it down to Lake Powell with the Cox's. Although the Cox's would claim it was the trip from hell due to a houseboat engine failure, water logged speedboat engine, flat tire on the trailer, and Sean needing staples in his leg after trying to get the houseboat docked, we would still say we had a great time. The kids loved being pulled around on the boat, Jack loved doing the surf board, I loved boating through the canyons, and everyone loved being in the SUN!!! The jury is still out on if we'd prefer to houseboat in Powell or go on a Disney cruise but we are so glad that for our first visit we got to see and experience it with such fun people!!! It truly is a beautiful place and we are grateful to the Cox's for inviting us to tag along with them. Here were some of the highlights:
Jack very excited to get up on the surf board...He led the way and then Paul and Sean followed...
The RAFT! All I can say is be scared if Sean or Paul are at the wheel. Notice I'm not anywhere to be found in these shots...
We loved how much more daring Teagen had gotten this year on the raft. It's so fun to watch these cute kids all grow out of their fears and into such amazing young men!
Yes, indeed that is Grandma on the raft. Kudos to Jack for getting her on!
Climbing the Hill! Photos don't do this hill justice. I almost passed out climbing to the top. It was tough, not to mention our feet were all burning up on the hot sand. Note to self: Next time climb it in the evening when it's a bit cooler outside and the sand isn't as hot. Sean and Deena were the first to make it up, then Ty, and then me. Connor surprised us all by climbing up the hill in record time after we had all come down. He wanted to prove he could do it just like his brother and boy did he do it fast!!!
Some fun shots from the trip!!!
King of the raft! The boys loved to have battles on the raft to see who could get who off first...
While Jack and the kids love to be being pulled I love to sightsee around the lake. I was amazed at this canyon we came upon and how Rick was able to get the boat to the very end. It was amazing.
This looks like trouble to me in every sense!!!
Poor Sean, in this photo if you look closely you can see that his leg has blood streaming down it. At this point he knew he had hurt it but had no idea how bad it was until after the houseboat got docked and Eydie rushed him to the ER!
So that's our trip to Lake Powell in a nutshell. We all loved sleeping outside on the top of the houseboat and staring up at all the stars. It is a beautiful place and we'll always remember our first trip there!
Cousin power! Unfortunately all the cousins were never together at the same time this summer but here is a cute photo of the kids with Teagen and Chaz before they had to head back to Idaho!
The kids were really looking forward to a repeat of last summer and hanging out with their friends Wyatt and Harrison. Unfortunately Harrison and the boys just missed each other while we were in Utah but thankfully they were able to still see Wyatt. We went to the pool one day and then up to their cabin at Sundance. To think these three boys were all delivered by the same doctor back in NYC...
Guess who's a year older?!?
Bye bye to our wonderful summer in Utah...
1 comment:
Your blog posts have been so fun to read, Laurie. The Roddys definitely live life to the fullest. I love how Luxottica was all, "Would a trip to Milan seal the deal?" I think it would for anyone.
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