vacay!

I braved the car ride with the kids & went on vacation to Utah. I know...we're unoriginal Mormons, but it's always a fun place to visit & even more fun when you go with family. I was stressed about driving that far without another adult in the car, but a friend let me borrow her mini TV that plugs into the cigarette lighter, which was a livesaver! Joe drove with me the first leg of the trip, which was the only part Kole screamed...thank goodness! I also waited to switch Kole to forward facing until the drive. There was some whining & screaming, but for the most part I'd say my kids are angels.

We went with Kevin's parents & Joe & Barb & their crew. Someone mentioned that it is weird for me to go with Kevin's family, but I really don't think it is. I've been part of their family for over 9 years & I'm truly happy a bad situation doesn't mean that I lose half of my extended family. We spent the first night with Pete, Kimber & their kids. I wish they lived closer...can't you see how awesome they are? The next day we stopped at my alma mater. Apparently they have some free museums I never knew about. Joe & Barb were astonished about how few fun things I knew about. How pathetic...all I ever did was study! What a waste of college years;) Here we are in the art museum with a covert picture...I guess you're not allowed to take pics..ooops. The first day we were in Snowbird we did the alpine slide, bounce houses & tram. Kaleb really wanted to ride the bull, but you have to be 7 & we didn't have all day passes to do everything. He was really upset, but at the end of the day a nice girl let him sit on it & pretend to ride. She even blew up the mat she had already deflated just for him! Funny how he gets fixated on things & what a big deal they are. I guess I get the same way about food :) I'm still dreaming about Great Harvest bread! Anyone who goes to Utah has to do Temple Square. We snuck away for lunch with a friend & I'm such a dork I didn't take a single picture :( Temple square has alot of fun things & it's so inspiring to be around so much history..especially history of saints who I really admire. Of course, we weren't exactly reverent. Nope, not reverent at all :) I figure the gospel is all about families, which equals children & children are noisy. It's all part of the plan, even in sacred places. Maybe I'm off, but I think kids are cute even when they drive you crazy. It's a tradition to go to the dinosuar museum & it's always fun. Kaleb was still scared of the dark walkway that has little lights that look like stars. And the cave like tunnels. Poor kid has an over-active imagination. Kole loved both places & butt-scooted through both so much he almost got run over. A few days in Barb got a nasty cold & Bryce got a stomach bug so we stayed in the mountains the last 2 days. I was kind of wanting to spend more time swimming & exploring. We also got to do a treasure hunt & built a fort. Koley wanted to look pretty & wore mascara for the first time. Hopefully the last time (it was waterproof & hard to wash off!). The slides were closed, but Koley wanted a turn. He loved it.


We headed out a day early & stopped at a friend's house. They have chickens & horses & Kaleb got to gather eggs. He wasn't as excited about it as I thought he'd be. He seemed more interested that the chickens ate their own egg when one cracked. Gross!
Of course I forgot to get a pic of Lindsey & I, but I did get one of our boys. They might not remember, but they've been friends since before they were born. Baby Kaleb is on the left & Baby Hunter is on the right. I think Kaleb was 2 weeks & Hunter was a few days. I forget how spacey babies look...this pic makes me laugh. I couldn't resist delaying our return by spending half the day in Vegas. We did typical tourist (with kids) stuff & ate at Serendipity's, which I always thought I'd have to go to New York to try. Frozen hot chocolate = yummy. Kaleb was really excited to meet Mario & Luigi. Kole was really excited to see the fish. The lions & M&M movie weren't as big a hit as I thought they'd be & weren't worth walking so far to get to, especially because it was sweltering out. It was nice to break up the drive & I think Vegas is fun, even if my mother thinks I'm evil ;) Now we're home & school starts in a few days! I am getting excited for some structure & maybe even time to clean the house. Or craft. Or re-decorate every room. Whatever. For now I'll just try to catch up on laudry!