It's that time of year...

It's Utah time! And boy was Jack anxious for us to all come to him since for the past year he's been coming to us every 10 days or so since starting his job in UT. He looked forward to coming home from work to find us all there rather than an empty room and we looked forward to seeing him for a couple weeks straight. We were also very excited to bring Nova with us and see how good of a traveler he'd be. Well as our departure date drew closer and Nova's weight continued to increase I grew more and more skeptical on how good this trip would go with him. I had already exchanged the approved Delta carrier for a larger one, hoping that the one size up would still squish under the seat and not catch the eyes of the flight attendants. Between getting through security and then waiting for the flight to board, Nova was already feeling anxious and looking scared. Then once the engines started, he was crying and as we tried to comfort him, the next thing Sage and I knew, he was in our lap and we were hiding him under a blanket. It became clear to me that we were the only ones that had paid to travel with their dog. I learned that most claim their pets to be "service" or "comfort" dogs and avoid not only the expense of bringing their pet but also the hassle of trying to keep them contained in their carrier the full duration of the flight which is what we were expected to do. In the end the $250 we paid was worth it to have Nova with us but I'd be lying if I wasn't already trying to figure out what excuse I could use to claim we needed a "comfort" dog for traveling...Surely Sage has something stressful in her life that would allow me to claim she needed a "comfort" dog...haha!




Someone was excited to see Nova!



One of the first stops Jack and the boys make when in Utah is to the BYU bookstore. It's like a magnetic force between the bookstore and Jack's wallet. Add Ty to the equation and it's impossible for either of them to leave without something they must have. ha! Such a beautiful campus with the backdrop of the mountains.



Celebrating Grandpa...and America! I love the tradition Jack started of golfing on the morning of the 4th at Soldier Hollow. While not everyone can always make it, the ones that do always have a great time! Unfortunately the only bummer about this year's trip was that we arrived at the clubhouse just a tad too late for Ty to indulge in his favorite stack of pancakes but we didn't let that stop us from enjoying a nice lunch! Unfortunately Gary, Kelly and the boys didn't make it up since they'd be spending time with us in Lake Powell the following week but Grandpa still felt the love.




Leave it to Sean to arrive wearing this...haha! Poor Amy...such a good sport being seen with him in that!



Ted invited us to his cabin at Brian Head for the weekend which is always fun. Unfortunately there was a power outage that had taken place shortly before we arrived and ended up lasting through the whole weekend so we cut our visit short staying just one night. That didn't stop us from still enjoying ourselves. While the boys enjoyed a mountain bike adventure down a mountain, Sage, Nova, and I enjoyed a hike up one!



While in Brian Head, Jack decided to surprise me with a slingshot he had rented. We had talked about buying one when we lived in Ohio but at that time they required a motorcycle license to drive one which we were not looking to spend the time doing. Apparently in Utah you don't need a motor cycle license so he took the opportunity to rent one to see how much we liked it. With the exception of Sage and I turning off the engine at a look out point to take a photo of the view and panicking once we realized we didn't know the trick for how to start it back up, it was a blast. I can definitely see Jack and I cruising around in one of these during retirement assuming we live somewhere as scenic and nice as Utah or Florida! It may not be something I'd feel comfortable in driving down the I15 or I4 but put us on a mountain road or alongside a beach and it would be awesome!




A shout out to Ted and Kristina for always being so welcoming and sharing their beautiful cabin with us!



Next it was time to head down to Lake Powell for a few days! It had probably been over 5 years since the last time we had been but how nice it was of Rick and Eydie to again invite the Knudsen gang all down to enjoy their new houseboat. Even though half of Ty's face is cut off in this photo, I sure love seeing the joy in his face as we drove down to Powell and he hung out the top of the jeep.



It's hard to pick the best photos to tell the story of our time in Lake Powell but here are a sampling!












While the trip was fantastic, there were definitely a few bumps and bruises including Grandma falling out of her bed the first night and ending up with a black eye for the duration of the trip! We were just thankful there was no permanent damage to her already delicate eyes. Then Jack's went to get up and his back gave out on him causing him to spend the second half of the trip being very careful, and on the one night when Rick wasn't on the boat a severe windstorm came through and caused one of the anchors to fail which then caused another line to snap. Next thing we knew the boat was being pushed back and forth against the beach turning sideways and almost feeling like it could tip over. Scary at times but also a bit of a fun adventure. I don't think Eydie would agree with the fun adventure part though. lol!

Next it was back to Provo but not before me asking for a stop at Horseshoe Bend to take in one amazing view. Thankfully Ty was willing to explore it a bit with me since Connor was good just seeing it and then heading back to the car to hang out with Jack whose back was still giving him a bit of trouble. Sage missed it since she was in another car but I found it to be beautiful and I'm glad i saw it!



On another day we took a day trip up to Brigham City to visit Gary, Kelly and the boys! Sage sure loves hanging out in the pool with Boston and wishes he lived closer as he'd make a great swim buddy for her in Florida. Sean was returning with the boys from Idaho so stopped by also!





In between these adventures there were trips up the canyon, an afternoon with cousin Ellie, dinner with friends Jack had recruited from FL to work with him in UT, introducing Nova to the mountains of Sundance and the waters of Bridle Veil Falls, and just being together! And....a new found favorite bubble tea place! So thankful to have found this place. Oh how we love our bubble tea!










But all of this wouldn't be possible without feeling so welcome in our home away from home! Thanks mom and dad for another great time! As you can see Nova wasn't very excited about the trip home...