Utah

Ten days of non-stop play. This pretty much sums up our latest trip to Utah. We got into town and headed to my Uncle Rick's waterski lakes (www.lastchancelakes.com) for four days, then up to the mountains for four days, and then back to the lake one more time before we flew home. We're breaking this post into two -- one about the overall trip, and one specifically about Lybberty Days (our family reunion in the mountains).

My grandparents and aunt and uncle now have a house built on the lake which is so great because you can wake up and go water skiing at the beginning of the day and fall asleep right after you eat s'mores - all without driving! We waterskied, (yes, this we includes ME!), wakeboarded, paddle borded, swam, rode in the ATVs, jumped of the dock, drove the boat, jumped on the trampoline, played on the playground, and relaxed.

 

 

 
The St.Jeors and some of my aunts and uncles came out to the lake as well. We all piled on a paddle board, Tate held the rope, and the boat took off. Our job was to stay on the board. Poor Tate, his job was to keep our board, with all of us on it, connected to the boat! Needless to say, he spent the most time in the lake. Thanks Tate! My parents and I skied a bunch - my dad figured out he skied about 54 miles, whew, that's a lot of miles. Check out my video.

There really is no shortage of pictures to share from this trip, but here is one more of our favorites - check out Gates watching our grandpa tear it up on the waterski. Not too many kids can say their grandparents shred it at waterskiing - so stinking awesome. Seriously, does anyone else have a 70 year old grandma who slalom skis!?!?!

We also headed over to Tate and Brenna's dad's work, a firehouse at one of the ski resorts. Troy is so cool and he not only let us get in the fire trucks, he took us out for a RIDE in the fire truck AND the ATV. I got to put on the radio headset during the drive and he even shot water out of the mega-pump on top of the truck!

A few hours before we left town, we met up with the Cook/McQueen family for fun at a local spray park. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for a great visit! Really, I don't think we could have packed in any more fun if we tried! (Check back for our next post about Lybberty Days)

Graduations & Vermont

Apparently finishing school is a REALLY big deal when you get bigger and not such a big deal when you're little. My brother completed his first year of preschool, had a class party, and got a high five. My older cousins finished 8th grade and 12th grade and holly cow...Par-tay! My Nana and PopPop came into town or my cousin Francesca's 8th grade graduation, so we also scored a bonus visit from them - thanks Francesca for finishing 8th grade! LOTS of play time that included baseball, naps, walks, and painting.

 

Then we hopped in the car and headed north to Vermont for my cousin Luke's high school graduation. Luke is a rock star and got tons of awards including athlete of the year. He's headed to UMass for college where I'm sure he'll  continue being awesome. (I do own other collared shirts, but apparently my mom decided I should wear this green one to all of the graduations this year!)

Bodie and I got tons of cousin time there too. Climbing in the playhouse, riding the rope swing, soccer, basketball, visiting a car museum, oh, and I also did some napping!

432

That is the number of photos needing to be downloaded from the past three weeks of activities which included several states, two graduations, a visit from grandparents, and a family reunion. Please hold while we get the pictures organized. We'll share our adventures shortly!

Turbo Foot

He's crawling! He's not only crawling, he's zipping over, under, around, through EVERYTHING! He's already decided he's not fast enough just crawling, so mid-crawl, he uses his left foot to launch himself forward. Go Turbo Foot!

Out with School, In with the Pool

June means the end and beginning of a lot of things. First, my brother's last day of preschool is Friday. Next year he'll be a pre-K student (and the following year he'll be a kindergartener). We went to his preschool spring music performance. Thanks to me, my parents opted for the back of the room so I could roam freely so this clip is from a full gym's-length away. Bodie is wearing red shorts in the front row in the middle. He's got some impressive clapping and stomping skills.

June also means pool season! We've been enjoying the pool every day - and by enjoying I might also mean napping. And while my mom had a picture of me napping, I'd like to point out that my dad naps at the pool as much or more than I do.

June also means the start of BBQ season, something I'm quickly learning to love. We got together with our "East Coast Family" last Friday to kick off summer. The East Coast Family is a group of friends my mom has had since she lived in a house in Georgetown right after college. I'm told their parties were legendary, which I assume means "filled with old people" because they are all MUCH older than me. There are 14 kids in the group with the oldest being 14 and the youngest is currently me. Lucky us to have the best friends on the planet.

Baseball is in full swing (pun intended) around our house. Bodie's tball team, The Storm, is more than halfway through their season. He's improving each week and now has a pitch and return net in our backyard so he can practice. Don't tell Bodie, but I think my parents needed a break from tossing him the ball 2,000 times per day.

My dad and his buddies had a Home-run Derby, each trying to smash a softball over the fence. Let me tell you, these guys can hit...and catch...and throw. It was nothing like watching Bodie's team. These guys were awesome. Bodie and his friend Jack also got into the action. My contribution to the day was snacking on the baseballs...