Our Utah Trip

Well, we got all moved in to our new place, and then took off on a trip to Utah 5 days later! We left on Thursday night (June 28th) a little later than we had planned...but isn't that how it always goes? We drove to Mesquite and spent the night, well actually morning since we didn't get into our room until after 3am! Then we woke up and were back on the road on Friday by 10am. So we made it to Lehi by the afternoon and overall the boys did really well. Needless to say Brad and I were exhausted after the drive, but we were grateful to have made it safely. When we arrived we were very pleased to find out that we would be having Cafe Rio for dinner! (that is a MUST for us when we go to Utah...) All the cousins played together and then we went to bed.

Saturday morning we drove up to Layton, and went swimming at the Layton Surf & Swim with my brother Joe, his wife Lisa, their boys Taylor & Hunter, my sister Sonya, my brother John, my Mom and my sister Heather's kids: Cameron, Hannah, Emma and Brynna. Those waves were so cool and Jakob and Joshy loved it. All the kids had a blast. After that we went back to my mom's house (a.k.a. Joe & Lisa's) for a BBQ. That was really fun to be together with everyone...Heather & Curtis made it up to Layton in time for dinner and some visiting. (They just moved into a new house! I guess moving is the cool thing to do these days!) :) After dinner we had a scare when Hunter (2 yrs old) was nowhere to be found. Everyone was frantically searching and about 20-30 minutes later my little brother John found him up on the mountain...that little RASCAL! Every terrible and horrifying thought was going through my head while we were looking...and I admit I was panicked. I just kept praying that he was alright and that we'd find him safe and sound -- as I'm sure everyone else who was looking for him was doing too! Thank goodness he was fine and we all were so relieved when we saw him again!

Monday (July 2) we went up to the Bingham Copper Mine. I went there almost 10 years ago and was amazed at what I saw...so now that I have 2 little boys who love dump trucks and anything to do with digging/construction I knew they would love it. It was really fun and Jakob still says that was his favorite part of our trip! I guess we'll be going back there again next time we venture up to Utah! That afternoon we went down to BYU to go bowling. (It was nice to be in the A/C !!!!) The kids had fun and so did the adults...I can't remember my score but I know it was around 115 or 120. I was proud of myself! Joshy was pretty funny to watch because he would put his ball on the ramp, push it and then run away. He didn't even care to watch how many pins were knocked down! Jakob on the other hand was pretty aware of the fact that the more pins knocked down the better...so he was more into it.

Tuesday (July 3) I went to the Mt. Timpanogos Temple with Joann, Sara and Evaly. We had a really cool experience meeting a girl who had recently returned from her mission to Croatia and knows a family that we know. It was so awesome talking to her and hearing about her feelings and experiences over there. That particular family is special to us because not only did Brad baptize Lidija, but she is a relative! I loved being in Slovenia and I love the people there...I love hearing about them and how valiant they are! Later that afternoon we went to the Dinosaur Museum at Thanksgiving Point. This is a favorite activity of alot of the grandkids/cousins and so it was one of the required activities for our trip. One of the other required activities was fishing... So, Uncle Curtis was nice enough to teach Jakob how to fish. I think Jakob loved it and was so thrilled to catch his first fish! (Even if it was TINY!) Thanks Curtis! Jakob told me that we can't fish in California because there's no water. That crazy kid! So, we'll have to take him fishing down here sometime and show him the water!

Wednesday (July 4) we woke up bright and early to go see the hot air balloons launch in Provo. We got there just in time...however Brad and Heather (or should I say the chauffers) weren't lucky enough to see the launch. They were circling around looking for parking. It all happened so fast and I think we were done within 20 minutes. The kids loved it and especially loved the Piggy Balloon. I personally would love to go on a ride someday...but we'll see if that ever happens! The 4th of July happens to be my nephew Cameron's birthday! So we all met at the Scerra Pool to celebrate and have fun swimming. Jakob and Joshy were in heaven, they loved it! Then that night we had a BBQ and lit fireworks. It was fun but I was pooped and ended up taking Josh inside to go to bed. So we didn't get to see the grand finale. Oh well...there's always next year! (Or Big Bang Friday at the Angels' games!)

Thursday (July 5) morning we went over to my sister Heather's new house in Lindon. They just moved in, but have been remodeling it for months. Since I never saw what it looked like to begin with, I can't really appreciate all the work that went into it, but I was VERY impressed with how nice everything was and am proud of my sister for all of her hard work! It was good to visit with her and my mom again and to let the kids play together for a while too. That afternoon was the official start of the Hanson Reunion. We went to the Temple and then to dinner at Los Hermanos (in Lindon) that night. It was fun to see everyone and to eat some yummy food. Then later that night we went to see Transformers...at 10:20pm. Not a good idea for me...I was so tired and couldn't stay awake. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't boring at all, I was just exhausted!

Friday (july 6) I went to visit my good friend Carrie who I used to work with at Continental. I hadn't seen her in quite a long time...so it was great to visit and let our boys play together. I hope we can visit again soon! That afternoon we went to the Veterans Memorial Pool in Provo. That was great...another really cheap ($3) pool that the kids love. My sister in law, Maria has a waterproof digital camera that she took pictures on...so I hope to get copies soon! That night we went to Rock Canyon Park for a BBQ with all of the Hansons...it was SO hot and we were all so drained from a day out in the sun. THe kids did have fun playing with water balloons and attempting to have a balloon toss. Jakob didn't quite understand that you're supposed to throw it softly underhand to your partner...not pitch it to them! Oh well, they had fun and it's always great to spend time with family.

Saturday (july 7) we met at a church building for the reunion and had lunch while the kids played volleyball (or something like it) and ran around acting crazy. It was fun to visit a little bit and to see all the kids together. Then we went home for naps and came back that evening for dinner and more visiting. That was really nice too and I thought it was especially nice to hear John (Bruce's cousin?) read some of his poetry. I need to get my hands on the one about a visit from Santa. When/if I do, I will post it. I loved it! Well that was the end of the reunion and I guess we'll be having another one in 2 years??? We'll see. It didn't seem like as many people were there this year...so who knows.

Our plan was to drive home on Sunday (July 8) but when we heard about I-15 being closed because of wild fires we decided not to chance it. So we waited to drive home until Monday morning and had a nice easy, relaxed drive home. We had a lot of fun seeing everyone and are very grateful to Brad's parents for a comfortable place to stay while we were there!!! Now I'm just wondering when the next Mortensen reunion is??????