Vacation Part 2

Our vacation adventure continued with so many ordinary events that made for extraordinary memories, especially for little A.

THE 4th OF JULY: Family Reunion Day 1

The Tank

Since the 4th of July is just about my favorite holiday I thought I'd add a couple of more tank photos since the Hellcat tank was such a huge hit in the Provo parade. Tree Climbing

Aunt A and Uncle C took A to a Freedom Festival Celebration activity and, of course, A's favorite thing was the tree we sat under to eat lunch. This was really A's first attempt at seriously climbing a tree. I think he saw his cousins and the others kids giving it a go. It was almost like this tree was made for climbing; get a load of the huge knots on the lower trunk.

Great Grandma's House

I think the thing that makes the 4th of July so special to me is that we always spent it as a family and had some great traditions. Any of the family that is in town for the holiday always ends up at my Grandma's house (my dad's mom). She's 93 and, with the help of her children and grandchildren, always hosts a fantastic afternoon of lazy summer activity. She lives in a farm house on the west side of Provo that used to belong to the foreman of the sugar beet factory and farms that in days on gone by dominated the area. My dad was raised in that house. I get my red hair from Grandma. Someday I hope I can grow up to be like her, full of wit and wisdom and a jar full of apricot jam for every person who walks through her door.

This old tire swing has been at Grandma's house for as long as I can remember and I'm sure much longer. From it you have a spectacular view of the Wasatch Mountain, Mount Timpanoogos, and Y mountain, all defining places for my grandparents. As a girl I spent countless hours with my cousins in this swing and even had my engagement photos taken here.


The Great American Meal: KFC and A&W

We have always had the 4th of July tradition of eating fried chicken and getting a gallon of ice cold A&W rootbeer right from the tap at the restaurant (it even comes in gallon jugs). This year was no different. I love this tradition and fully intend to keep it up in my own family. Only once as a little girl do I remember not being able to hold it down. Though I think it was more the effects of a long day in the sun rather than the food choice. I remember that year because I was so sick I slept through the fireworks and wore my too-small Strawberry Shortcake PJs because I was so hot and sunburned. Here is mom and son enjoying the tradition and below is A with his cousin ED sharing a little extra.

FAMILY REUNION DAY 2

Oakcrest Girls Camp Adventure

My sister's responsibilities at church include a regional assignment to help with a local girls' camp facility. She made arrangements for us to spend the day there as part of our family reunion. We went on the zip line, did archery, did a ropes course and just enjoyed being together. J got this great idea that he could take A on the zip line, which scared my whole family to death. It turned out well, A liked it so much, we figured out a way to tighten the harness so he could actually do it himself. He loved it. See the video below.

Following the leader. A wanted to be where the big boy cousins were and did the whole ropes course, with help!

TEMPLE VISITS

One of the things we told A about was how many temples we would see while we were visiting Utah. Grandma and Grandpa C have a spectacular view of the Timpanoogos Temple right out their front window. We also saw the Salt Lake, Provo, Jordan River, and the unfinished Draper and Ocher Mountain temples. Six temples within a half hour drive! It was great.

ONE LAST DAY WITH COUSINS

On our last day in Utah we went to the Bean Museum on the BYU campus. It is full of hundreds of stuffed animals. It is a really fun place to go. Grandpa and a few cousins met us there and we had fun seeing everything from Polar bears to zebras, to alligators to enormous fish. Grandpa asked A which animal he liked and wanted his picture taken in front of. He chose this grizzly bear. Afterwards we got ice cream cones at the BYU creamery. You can't go all the way from NY to Utah and not get a cone at the Creamery.

This is one last shot of A playing in his cousins' castle. He had so much fun being with everyone and enjoying their company. We look forward to another get together soon.