I get overwhelmed every time I think about blogging about our Utah vacation. There was so much fun and so many pictures. I’m finally diving in!
We left early (4am) but we should have left earlier for our 6am flight. We flew out of Dulles and I forgot about the train you have to wait for and take to the gates. We only gave ourselves an hour from the time we arrived to the time our plane left. We said a very sad farewell to Seth and were on our way. They had already started boarding by the time we got to the gate so we were on the plane fast and thankfully we were all able to sit together. The three older kids all sat together on a row and had a grand time watching shows on the DVD player. Conrad and I were across the aisle. He did as well as you can expect a 16 month old to do. I was surprised he didn’t sleep at all. We took off late which made me nervous for the connection. We only had a 45 minute layover in Denver. We landed with 30 minutes and we sped to our new gate (thankfully not too far because I gate checked my stroller to Salt Lake so I wouldn’t have to wait for it). The flight from Denver to Salt Lake was nice because there was an empty seat next to me and Conrad slept most of the flight. I was so happy to see my parents once we landed. I was exhausted but it was the 24th of July in Utah which meant there was going to be a great party at the cabin. Nora had Vanessa’s kids for cousin week so she brought all of her 10 kids to the cabin plus Tom’s, John’s, and Donna’s family. Mandy and Eddie also joined us with their kids! I ate the best Dutch oven potatoes of my life (thanks Tom) and other great food. It was a long day but worth all the fun we had.
We started our trip at the cabin which was nice because life is so slow there. We usually did a major activity every day and other than that I focused on naps and an early bed time. We went swimming with my Dad at the fitness center which the kids loved. The boys loved Grandpa tossing them in the air. Lucy also made Grandpa her swimming buddy and didn’t want to venture too far from him. The kids also helped my dad put together an Ikea night stand. Who new that could be so entertaining for kids? They were complete engrossed in the process. My mom was Charlie’s diligent piano teacher while we were there and she gave him a productive lesson every day. My parents also let me run every morning I was there. Running through the hills in the chilly morning was so good for my soul.
One of the nights there, my sister Nora invited Donna and me to come to Salt Lake for a free Lower Lights concert at the Brigham Young park. We arranged babysitting and were on our way. Nora is their biggest fan and as you can tell she got really into it. They were actually a great group and I’ve enjoyed getting in to their music more. On a side note, Utah Mormons are beautiful people. I couldn’t stop staring at all the people I was around. We walked over to the fancy Harmons at City Creek after the concert and picked out some yummy desserts. Fun evening had by all!!
We met my brother Tom at Wasatch state park for a picnic, fishing, and duck feeding. They have a great set-up where you can rent polls for kids for $3 and buy duck food for 25 cents. Charlie was happy he was able to catch a fish (they stock the lake). We stayed for a lot longer than planned because we were all having such a great time. We even convinced Donna and Bevan to join us because it’s only a few minutes from their house. Lucy loved getting to know her “girl” cousins Abby and Anna.
Conrad, Kim and Baby Eli, and Charlie fishing
We invited the Thacker family to come for Sunday dinner. The kids were happy to see more family and we all enjoyed BT cake and homemade Peanut Butter ice cream made by Uncle Mike. I was lacking in my picture taking that night and only have a few. Tiffany spent the summer at Mike and Collette’s home so we were happy to visit with her as well.
I have visited Heber hundreds of times over the year but I couldn’t recall ever eating a “train burger” at the Dairy Keen. I’m going through a serious burger obsession right now so we decided to make that one of our day activities. It did not disappoint and the kids loved playing on the pretend train outside. We went to Donna’s afterward for a visit and the girls walked over to “The Barn” which is a boutique home store by her house. We all found great new additions for our homes and picked up some ice cream on the way home.
We had our annual reunion with Miranda and her boys at Donna’s home the next day (we all went to CEU together). I’m sad I never took a picture of a her but I did get a picture of our cute kids on the Dairy Keen train. After eating a delicious barbeque at Donna’s home (the girl makes a mean shish kabob) we went back to Dairy Keen for shakes. We walked across the street to a new fancy park they have in Heber. The kids were fascinated with the fake grass and the parents were trying to figure out how they were going to keep it clean. I was sad we didn’t get to spend more time with the Miranda and her boys but happy we did get some laughs in.
We traveled to Salt Lake the next day because my mom and dad had their weekly chess/piano classes and I arranged to meet up with some great friends from High School. I love when we get together because there is SOO much history and we can pick up right where we left off. There are 12 kids (Calley is due in a month) between us and Lucy is the ONLY girl. I guess that’s what we get for being so boy crazy in high school. After the visit my mom, Donna, and I went to Kohls to do some birthday shopping and my Dad watched the kids at the park across the street. After a stop at Sam’s Club we made it back to the cabin with much anticipation for our trip to Jackson Hole Wyoming for the Ackerson Family Reunion the next day!
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