Summer vacation continues...we can't got all the way out to Utah and not see the Soderquist family. Heading up north, we got to play in a little snow on the way.   We went to Grandpa and Grandma's pool, to the copper mine with Mom, and to Sugarhouse park with Dad and Linda.  We also got to meet with our friends at a splash park in Odgen, and see the Airspace museum.  We celebrated Mom's, Mike's and Rachy's birthdays, too!

2011 summer vacation was spent in southern Utah.  We visited the Chavez family in Kanab and did some hiking in Mike's old stomping grounds.  Then we went camping and hiking in Escalante.  And finally ended up meeting Dave and Shelly and their boys at the Grand Canyon.  A very good vacation indeed.

July's adventures

Mike took some pictures of Rachy so he could enter her in a cute baby contest, but he never entered. (I'd vote for her!) Independence Day parade in Haysville with the Barnards. The girls in the basement playing surgery on their toys. Mike and I took the young women on a high adventure canoe trip to Buffalo National River in Arkansas. It was pouring buckets of rain on us the afternoon we arrived. We set up and cooked in the rain-at least it was warm. Had this huge spider stow away in our trailer-the kids were fascinated. Good times. Our cousins, the Andersons stayed a night with us and the kids played hard.

Michael's baptism

What a day it was-first Mike's graduation and then Michael's baptism. He was so happy to have so many friends and family there. He looked so handsome with his new scriptures (thanks Grandpa and Grandma Chavez), a new suit, and a new journal from Bishop Kitchen. It was definately the highlight of the day-as it should have been. We are so pleased with Michael and the choices he makes every day.

Christmas vacation, part two

 

A long drive up north on Christmas Eve was made even longer when Michael got sick in the back seat and we had to pull over and clean up. Hannah was sick the day before and Bekah got sick on Christmas (she was none too enthusiastic about opening her stocking and always had her throw-up bowl close by). Thankfully noone else got sick the rest of the trip. We were saddened to find Brenda's grandma in the hospital, but we got to visit a few times and she is now home and recovering. A funny story was told and retold by grandpa several times: Sarah came to tattle on Rachel for pushing her so Daddy asked her if she had pushed Rachel first and she immediately replied "no, I just did this..." (recreating her choking Rachel around the neck). He thought that was hilarious. One of the highlights of our trip up to Salt Lake area was seeing the lights at Temple Square. The kids loved the lights; but the cold-not so much. The younger three were bawling for a good 20 minutes after we got in the car to drive back home. Good times. Hannah was in heaven the whole time because she got to spend lots of time with her two best cousins. Their favorite part about the entire trip was the morning we spent at the skating center with their cousins. Roller skates, scooters, laser tag, bounce houses, a cool jungle gym, pizza and video games. What's not to love? We stayed with my mom (Nana), and got to see my grandpa and grandma, my cousins, my Dad and Linda, my brother, my sister and her kids, and even my friend from high school. We had nice traveling weather, spent time with loved ones and made a lot of great memories.

Christmas Vacation, part one

 

I'm going to divide our trip into the southern and northern adventures. After traveling through the night, the first big sight the kids saw when waking up was Hoover Dam. Our visit with "Uncle Dave" was worth the trip. Their adorable twin boys are the sweetest-we all felt a little closer to Heaven after spending time with them. Next stop-St. George. We got to stay with Mike's sister and her kids, spend time with Mike's brother and see his parents. That wasn't all, oh no. We also got together with most of the Chavez relatives: Mike's Aunts, Uncles and cousins. Mike's Grandpa from Kanab even came up. It was so nice to see everyone and catch up on their lives. The kids loved hanging out with their cousins-the weather was so nice they didn't have to wear coats to go to the park or dance out on the trampoline. We had such a blast and we miss them all so much.

Photos of Oregon

 

Trip to Oregon

Mike went up to Oregon to visit his Parents and Sister. He took Rachel because they had never seen her before and she could lap ride. I dropped them off at the airport at 3:00pm on a Thursday and then took the other kids swimming. When we got home at 7:30, there were a few messages from Mike saying they couldn't take off due to weather in Denver. When he called at 10:00 I was very shocked to learn that they still had not left Wichita! The next morning I got a call from Mike in Denver and found out that they had spent the night in the airport because they couldn't get a flight that was going anywhere near Portland till SATURDAY morning. Well, rather than spend ANOTHER day and night in the airport, he had them fly him to Salt Lake where there was family that could put him up for the night (he only left with 4 diapers, mind you). So, I called all my family out in Salt Lake and they all came through at the last minute and picked him up, showed him a good time and got him off to his flight the next day. So, needless to say he was very relieved to make it to Oregon and he had a great time with his family. He did make it in time to ordain his Father to the office of High Priest on Sunday. They took him on a lovely drive to see the beautiful area, and the beach where they live. He enjoyed his Dad's dutch oven cooking and got to spend his Mom's birthday at the Greenville Aviation Museum where the Spruce Goose rests. Everyone loved spending time with Rachel too. She was a little shy at first with everyone new, but warmed up quick enough to let them see her fun side too.