Summer Fun List

Every year as the school year comes to an end, I actually start to dread the last day because once summer is here, I know it will disappear so quickly. It's almost more fun to think about all that you will do then to be disappointed in all the you didn't accomplish.
To help me feel better, I like to focus on what I DID get done


Summer Fun!
Weekend Trips to: Vernal, Wolf Creek
Day Trips to: HeeHaw farms
Summer library & movie days in the classroom
violin lessons, voice camp, summer band & orchestra
Huck Finn Days, rodeo, parade
pool, Manila Pond
Manti pageant
cousin sleepover
friend play dates
Lagoon
zoo

Summer Projects
school binders (2 years worth)
garage door fixed
camp, camp, more camp

Wolf Creek

We had such a great time on our weekend at Wolf Creek this summer (July 10-12)! We picked up Dave from work at noon, stopped to get Hadley and Zach, and got up there on Friday at 2. We were splitting the condo with the Sinemas so we got to have some time with them before they left.
The Foxes were in another condo just two stairwells away. We got to celebrate Brandon and Katelyn's birthday with a marshmallow war, pasta bar, and yummy, adorable dragon cakes. Easton and Skyler even stopped in on their way down from Logan. After dinner everyone went for a swim. It was so much fun to have time with our cousins and friends.
On the way up to Wolf Creek, we asked Maddi if she was going to go down the slide. Every year she says she will do it, but when we get there, she gets too scared. I think she has even gone up to the top of the slide, but then come back down the stairs. So this year in the car, she said, basically, "No. I am not going down the slide, and you can't make me". Right then, I reminded her, "Maddi, you rode on the Jet Star at Lagoon over and over. You can go down a tiny little slide." And she immediately agreed. When we got to the pool, she didn't need any encouraging. She went down it lots and lots of times and loved it.
After the swim, Kimee and Audrey talked Easton and Skyler into staying for a game of mafia before they had to leave. They played 3 rounds, with Kimee, Audrey and Easton each taking a turn as narrator. It was so much fun! Hadley and Zach stayed for breakfast Saturday and then had to get back home to work. We were so glad they were able to come.
Saturday, we did more swimming, playing volleyball, bug catching, and games with the Foxes. Maddi and Katilyn were inseparable. Kimee, Audrey, Blake, and Derek played a few more rounds of mafia and Apples to Apples. We even squeezed in a few games of Rummikub.
Sunday we packed up, went to the Eden ward, and headed home in time for my camp meeting:) Wishing we could stay up there forever.

the Farm

Dave's friend Cheryl from work has an awesome farm with all sorts of animals at it. We usually go visit once or twice a year. It's been on our summer list, and we finally made it out there on Thursday, July 9 The baby goats are so fun!

This time we brought Sarah with us and also met up with Maddi's teacher and her family.
It had been a stormy week, so we were hoping the rain held out. Luckily for us, it did. Right when we were getting ready to go, the rain came and the wind started blowing like crazy.  We jumped in the car to come home. There was a giant double rainbow that we could see the whole way home. It was so amazing!

4th of July!

Once again, we had a fun and family filled 4th of July! We started the day with the America's Freedom Festival parade. Jill and Duane and their three boys were able to come with us this year. The girls loved the ribbons Jill put in their hair.

After the parade, we went to Brick Oven for a really yummy lunch.

After resting for a movie and for some of us a nap, we went over to Hadley's apartment for a swim in her pool. It was so fun to have time time with our favorite grown-up cousins.

For dinner, we went to the Foxes and grilled up some yummy steaks. Maddi got her very first wasp sting. Then we watched the amazing Sinema and Fox firework show for our first time ever.

Lagoon!

Last year when we went to Lagoon, they asked us if we wanted to do the bounce back- which is come back within 10 days for only $15, a huge discount off regular price. At the time, we had no plans to come back and had a pretty full summer schedule. But Dave and I agreed that next year, we ought to try and plan in the bounce back day.

So this year as we were trying to plan our Lagoon day, we were also trying to figure in the 2nd visit within 10 days. Since they have had so many layoffs, Dave's department at work is down to the barebones. He really can't take time off when someone else has the day off. It turned out that he could only take time off during the first week of July. So we ended up planning our big Lagoon trip for two days in a row. We got a little nervous that the forecast was for 100 degree heat all week, so we packed lots of refillable water bottles and brought our garden cart so we could carry our stuff and a couple of tired kids.

Day 1

We decided that everyone should try one ride they haven't been on before. Mom and dad both finally got to go on Cliffhanger and get soaked. For some reason it seems like that ride always has a huge line or it's out of order, so we have just never gone on it.

Maddi tried Jet Star2 for the first time and loved it! 

Kimee did Colossus for the first time and Audrey did the Rocket (both blast off and re-entry). That girl is crazy and totally has her dad's genes. Kimee and Maddi and I had to be patient while they went on Wicked a few times too. 

We packed a lunch from home and planned to take an afternoon break to check in at the hotel and cool off for a bit. That planned worked perfectly.  Around 3:30 we had gone through all 7 of our water bottles twice and all the ice was gone. So we left the park, stopped at 7-11 for slurpees, checked in (cookies and apples at the front desk was a nice touch), and we were so thrilled to be in some air conditioning and a nice, clean, freshly scented room. The little girls and Dave went for a swim in the pool (they wee so thrilled the water was clear). Boy, is this hotel getting a good review from me! I was pretty seriously regretting paying as much as we did to stay two nights, but I think we ended up getting our money's worth out of it. We will most likely be back on another one of our annual trips to Lagoon.
After our little rest, we went to Chick Fil-A for dinner and went back for a 2nd round of rides:) We stayed until about 8:30 and stopped at DQ for a cool treat on the way back to the hotel.

View of the Bountiful Temple from our hotel window

Day 2- Bounce Back:

We didn't think we would be able to find enough rides to have everyone get another first, but we ended up going on the Terror Ride and the Rock-o-Twirl. Audrey and Dave when on the Air Race. We were planning to not stay as long today, but the kids were so good and loving the rides so much. We ended up doing the same thing we did yesterday. We took an afternoon break and went back to the hotel for a swim and to fill up all the water bottles with ice. Just a side note, the hotel pool was accidentally overfilled today, so it was kinda funny to swim. The 3ft was almost over Maddi's head (about a foot too high). Every move they made, tons of water sloshed out. Kinda a fun memory. Then we went to Costa Vida for dinner and headed back to the park for a few more rides.

Mostly there was Jet Star, Jet Star, & more Jet Star. I think they really liked that you got to sit in the same seat with someone to keep you safe.

We got to see Cannibal, the newest wildly crazy roller coaster, being tested, but it wasn't open yet. We were glad for that because we figured the park will be much more busy once it opens. We had so many short lines both days it was incredible. We would go on the same ride multiple times just because there was such a short wait. We love not having to go on Saturday- which is the way it was for like 20 years with Dave's work party.