I love Salt Lake City. I love the mountains surrounding it, I love how the numbers in addresses actually correspond to something, I love the how it seems to be filled with incredibly hot moms running about in cute clothes and kids in even cuter clothes. Okay, maybe that last one is not so much a love. But, the people I know in Utah is definitely the biggest love of all.
We went out a couple weeks ago for a fantastic trip. Here are a few (or more than a few) details of our fun filled time.
We went to This is the Place Park, one of the days. It's a great place replicating what early Salt Lake was like. The staff is all in costume, and there are lots of early saint activities for the kids, as well as a train and pony rides. There's even a little Indian Village. I've only been at Christmas (which is also awesome) for many years, but it is such a great place! Just remember if you go to the BBQ restaurant there, be prepares to wait. And then wait some more. We waited for more than 45 minutes for BBQ sandwiches and hot dogs. Sally even fell asleep! Other than that, though, the day was fantastic.
We spent no time wasted and put the kids to work plowing the fields.
While Alice ate the authentic treat of Animal Crackers.
.I don't remember what they are looking at, but it must be something cute, because they are adorable! Amy is always awesome, full of great conversation, great mommy skills (her kids and house are just wonderful), and it's all packed into a cute little body no mother of a 3 month old (now 4) should have. I'm lucky to have her as my sister.
She was so good! And they have a garden out back from which they produce all the dyes for the yarn. Super cool.
They were beat!
Look at that yawn- it's bigger than Annie herself! I was SO happy to meet this beautiful little girl. She is very sweet and tiny and perfect. She liked me some of the time, but is a perfect angel for her mama. I was glad I got to see more of her at an awesome sleepover we had! The kids played, we played too, and talked and connected and it was all kinds of great. We also ate some delicious Indian food that night. Why is it that there are no Indian restaurants in Georgia? If anyone knows of a great one, let me know pronto.
Sophie is an AMAZING big sister. And loving oldest cousin. Sally is still talking about how cool she is. I love that girl.
Playing some sweet rock band. Sally is dancing here. She also very much enjoyed singing Dear Prudence, and the dear girl got some pretty good marks!
Look at those looks of determination! Here, Mari is pictured, she seems like a lovely girl- and so gorgeous.
Cute little Carson cracks me up. He's a funny kid and has one of the greatest voices a little boy could have.
Cameron. The adorable curly haired boy that I hear is fussy, but is always super sweet when I'm around. That's it. Reason enough to go to Utah many, many times each year.
The kids made a kind of fort out of Grandpa's truck- don't worry, Dad, they were good,
Alice liked the car too! I know it's hard to see, but she looks very cute here.
One of the things on my list of things to do was visit the mountains. Now, going on a real hike is a little tricky wit kids my age, but there is a GORGEOUS trail around Secret Lake that is very family friendly, and did I mention beautiful? I love the mountains, and aside from the great people there, one of the things I miss most about Utah. I love it that the morning after we got in, Sally looked out the window, and said, "Whoah! Those mountains sure are big!" And they are. Big, terribly impressive, humbling mountains.
Look at that cute Grandpa! I LOVE my dad, and it is always so great to see him. One event that is not pictures, was a party we had with the people from his ward. He and my Mom are currently serving as missionaries in a Spanish ward. The people were great, and it is obvious they love my parents. My parents love them too- they just signed up for another 2 years! This is an amazing calling for my parents. They make real differences in these people's lives. My mom has said it's perfect for my dad, because it keeps him very busy- he likes to be busy. I'm sure it's also terribly fulfilling.
The kids all collected great little bits of nature. Sally was VERY into this.
Alice, however, did NOT want to get out of the stroller. Which was fine, because neither did Annie.
Until she saw the ducks, she was and is all about animals. She loved feeding them- they would eat right out of her hand!
This is my dear friend Erika. I was SO glad to be able to spend some time with her. She's been my friend for ages- maybe 20 years!
When we were young, we listened to a little Billy Joel. Or maybe Billy and were able to chat like old times. The picture I'm holding was taken when we were probably 13 or 14. We recreated it below...
Cool, eh?
We went to the Church history museum. It was neat- and free! We spent most of our time in the kids area, though the rest looked good also. It was a good thing we went when we did; they closed it to change it a couple days after we went.
Alice liked playing with the babies, even though some were heavy for her to even lift.
Sally was the cutest little Mary!
I tried so hard to get a picture of all three cuties in costume- this was the best I could do.
I think little Annie liked it too! Isn't she just adorable! Love that big smile.
She sure is a little angel.
Sally's walking on the strait and narrow path. Don't let go of that iron rod, Sally!
DJ, Kerry Moore, and I did some recording while we were out there. We were able to do three hymn arrangements, one of which was Be Still my Soul, that Deej arranged. It is SO beautiful He is such a talented boy. His cello playing skills are amazing, and he is such a great young man. He's great to talk to, laugh with, and just be around. I'm so glad this talented boy is my brother.
These were taken at Thanksgiving Point. We went to the farm portion, I'd never been. It was fun and the kids loved seeing all the animals, and no one lost a finger.
Look at that cute little girl. She thought those bunnies were awesome.
Alice liked them too!
So, I did not do the best picture taking this trip. Sadly, this is one of the only shots I got of my mom! But, there were lots of good times with her. I also didn't get any pictures of the ice cream social. Every year,
there is a neighborhood ice cream making party and contest. Last year, my mom was the winner with an awesome key lime pie ice cream. She should have won this year too- she did a marzipan ice cream, with real pieces of marzipan and almond cookies in it. Man, it was GOOD! We also got to play a ton. My kids adore her and her fun ways. She is among my favorite people for sure.
Alice LOVED this portion. They had lots of places to "plant" all these fruit and vegetable cards, then you could harvest them. It was a cute idea, and I thought it was kind of cool, but the kids could have spent hours in there. They enjoyed it thoroughly!
Even little Annie liked it!
I just thought this alpaca had an awesome hairdo, sometimes it would cover his eyes, and he;d look like a cartoon character.
I was happy to go see my friend Jessica and her cute boys in their new house. She is my friend from Georgia, and moved back to Utah a while back. It was great to spend a little time with her. She's awesome as always.
Look at all those cuties! We also were able to see my dear friends Becca and her boys, and Darci. I really wasn't as "on" with the camera as I have been. Lame me. It was fun to see both girls. Becca had a baby the week after I saw her. Little Grace was small, but I couldn't believe Becca had a baby in there that was old enough to live on her own. Becca's belly was tiny! She's pretty much a hot, hot mama. Darci came the night before I left and got to watch me pack. Probably not that much fun for her, but I am super glad she did! She is an important lawyer, and her life seems filled with all kinds of grown up things. I hadn't seen her for a while, and I was so glad to hang out and chat with that smart beauty for a while.
My parents and I were able to go to the new Oquirrh Mountain temple. The Atlanta temple has been closed for a year, and I've only been able to go once in that year. This was on my list of important things to do while in SLC. We were able to do sealings, and it was perfect. Seriousy, perfect. Exactly what I needed. The spirit in the temple is amazing, our sealer was awesome, and the work was meaningful. My mom was a little wary of doing sealings because kneeling is not great for her back, but I felt strongly that sealings was what I needed to do. They let her use a chair and it worked out perfectly. This was one of the highlights of the whole trip. Ding something like that with people you care so deeply about is something special.
And so, that concludes this very long post on our Utah trip. Believe it or not, there were events that got no pictures . My dad had his birthday celebration, there was an extended family party, swimming, and lots of fun. I can't wait to do it again!
Coming soon, is the Portland leg of our trip. It will be another monster post, so beware.
