Living With Grandma and Grandpa

For the past few weeks we have been living with my parents while we wait for our new house to be finished so we can close. It has taken a lot longer than we anticipated because of some major mistakes by the builder and his subcontractors (installing the wrong granite, not knowing that the front yard landscaping had to be put in before a certificate of occupancy could be issued, etc). So, needless to say when we do finally move in, we will be ready!

 However, we have been so blessed to be able to stay with my parents and have been having a great time.  Chloe and Abby love playing with their grandparents. Most mornings instead of coming and snuggling with us in bed, they go straight to Grandma and Grandpa. The kids hardly ask me to do anything for them anymore either, they just go straight to my parents!

So, we have just been spending our days playing with grandparents, sliding on the slides and driving the toy car all over the place. Chloe had become quite a good driver and can even park it in its correct spot in the garage. The kids will be sad when we finally move into our new house, but I think having all their toys back might make up for it. =) The best part of all of this though is how close Chloe and Abby have become. Since they don't have any friends to play with my parents neighborhood, they have been forced to only play with each other and have just become the best of friends. It is pretty dang sweet!

Whiskeytown Lake 2012

A few weeks ago -- okay, so it was back in July and I am now just getting around to blogging about it -- we headed to Northern California for a week long camping trip with my family. People may think we are crazy for driving 12 hours to go camping in a tent, but we think is a great way to relax and just enjoy a much needed rest. We spent the days lounging in the lake, playing games, canoeing, hiking in the creeks, eating and playing! We even panned for gold one day.

Both Chloe and Abby had a great time. It only took about 30 seconds each morning for both of them to be covered in dirt from head to toe and about the same amount of time for me to give up wanting to have clean kids. =) I literally don't think that our kids have ever been more dirty.

 Aaron enjoyed just relaxing and even had the time to read a book! I would often find him laying in the tent or sitting in his chair reading. I was so glad that he was able to just relax and really have a nice break from everything. We loved our previous vacation to Southern California a few weeks earlier, but it was so busy and jam packed that it made having nothing scheduled to do at Whiskeytown that much more enjoyable.  We had such a great time that we decided to stay an extra day and when we left we could have stayed longer...now that is a good indication of a great vacation.

We didn't see any bears this trip, but one found our car and decided to take a peak inside. We found slobber and scratches on the driver side door and window one day near the end of the trip. We were sure glad that we didn't have any food in the car!

Of all the places we never thought we would live...

Of all the places we never thought we would live (following college), Provo is probably near the top of the list...at least out of cities in Utah. However, sometimes a house finds you rather than the other way around. We signed the contract this morning and will hopefully close by the end of the month.

South Fork Park

One of our other family traditions for the fourth is to take a family picnic in the canyon at South Fork park.  This year we had to change the plans for it a few times due to rainy weather, but the day we finally went the weather was perfect.

Camryn, Chloe, Abby, Gracie

 Chloe

 Abby

 This park is one of our favorites because a creek runs through it and there is a nice shallow place for the kids to play in.  It was Abby's first time playing in a creek and she loved it.  I couldn't get her out of it- despite the freezing temperature. Chloe loved it too and they had fun floating their boats down the stream.

Eating dinner

 Ethan and Abby

 Emma, Jackie, Abby, Ethan, Elissa

 Owen and Chloe

 Me and Aaron

 We ended the night with a pinata and everyone had their pockets full of goodies by the time we knocked it down. Everyone had a great time and we were all bummed when it got dark and we had to head home. 

 Go get it!!!

 

4th of July

This fourth of July was probably one of the most enjoyable ones we have had in years.  As per tradition, all of Aaron's family came into town for the week of the fourth and so the week was full of family events.  

We started the fourth off by going to the parade in Provo with all of the girls' cousins. We set up a shade tent this year and it made the parade so much more pleasant because we weren't all baking in the sun.  We even got clever this year and brought our own candy to throw to the kids since they don't throw much anymore at the parade. The kids loved it!

All  the cousins

 Go BYU!

 Daddy and Abby

 My sweet girls

 After the parade, we headed to the Searles for the rest of the day. Usually we have tons of games, activities, crafts, decorations, etc and it is so much work!  This year, we got smart and cut majority of that stuff out and we were able to just enjoy the day hanging out with family.  

 Maddie, Ashley, Chloe and Gracie

 All the cousins... well most of them =)

 Showing off their look from the "bomb hunt"

 Paula, Heather, Robin, Alison, Me, Barbara Ann

 Matt, Bob, Mike, Aaron, Travis

 Abby and Conner playing with the ice

 We ended the day with our own little firework show and then put our exhausted kids in the car and headed home. I don't think Chloe woke up until 10:30 the next morning!

Bell Tower Concert

A few weeks ago, I met up with some of my family at the BYU bell towers for a bell concert.  It was fun just to just have an excuse to hang out with family and it was a bonus that there was some music in the background.  Chloe was playing the waterfalls and stream and by the end of the night was wet from the waist down. Abby enjoyed just trying on her sunglasses and playing with her cousin Kiara. 

Then after the concert, we headed over to the creamery for some delicious BYU creamery ice cream. (Aaron was out doing visits for Elders Quorum so he wasn't able to join us.)

Chloe and Grandma

 Chloe and Great Grandpa

 Chloe and Great Grandma 

 Me and Amber

Abby

Adult Slip-n-Slide...Our Kind of Fun!

A couple weeks back, Aaron and his counselors planned an Elder's Quorum activity that featured, among other things, an adult-sized slip-n-slide. It was so much fun, but also a little intimidating at first. I mean, it has been along time since I have run full speed and jumped onto a slip-n-slide. To help make it more slippery, we poured tons of dish soap all over it. This also made it more fun for the kids to play on...and got them squeaky clean at the same time. All the guys had a competition to see who could make it the farthest. Aaron made it to the end of the 100 foot slide and even went off of it a few times!

In addition to the slip-n-slide (and BBQ, of course), there were four wheeler rides, pony rides and paddle boats! It was an awesome activity and everyone had a great time. A special thanks to the Hutchings for letting us use their property.