July

We had a very busy July.  The first week, we sent Maya off to Brighton Beehive camp.  She loved it and is so excited to go back next year.  It has been so fun to watch her branch off this summer and do things by herself.  She has really grown up.

While Maya was at camp, the rest of us spent the week hanging out with family.  Scott and his  family were here from Massachusetts, so we had a lot of family time.  We spent a couple of days at Bear Lake.  It was a lot of fun.  We swam, kayaked, paddle boarded and hiked.  

 My parents bought this floating island and it was a hit.  The kids, and some of the adults, spent most of the day hanging out on or around the island.

 We also had a kid sized kayak that was very popular.  The kids all tried it out and did quite well.

 We also had 3 paddle boards.  We all really like to paddle board, so they got used a lot.

 All the grand kids watching a movie at Macha and Papa's

 On our way home from Bear Lake we stopped at Tony Grove in Logan Canyon.  We hiked around the lake and then had lunch.  It was really pretty, and a really nice hike.

 All the grand kids, (minus Maya), and Scott.

 Not a great picture, but this one has Papa in it.  He wasn't able to hike because he was still recovering from his back surgery.

 We also stopped in Logan for some Aggie ice cream.  We put Liam's hair back in a "man bun" while he ate his ice cream.

 We also went downtown with the cousins.  We ate at the Lion House pantry.  It was really good.

 Then we went to the Church History museum.  It was the first time we had gone since the remodel and it looked great.  There were lots of interactive displays and things for the kids to do.

 On Saturday after we picked Maya up from camp, we took her to do baptisms at the temple for the first time. It was really special because we had family names and family with us.  Kyle, myself, Maya, my Mom, Scott, Dan and Janet all came.  It was such a great experience to go to the temple with Maya.

 In the middle of July we went on another trip. The kids, my mom and I drove to Boise.  We met Kyle's parents in Ontario, and the girls went home with them to spend the week.  They had a lot of fun.  They went camping, fishing, to the beach, and to the fair.  Liam my mom and I spent the week at Nancy's.  We also had a lot of fun.

 Liam played lots of Legos.  He even got Nancy and  Jon to play with him.

 We went to the Discovery Center an couple of times.  It was fun, and we got in free with our Thanksgiving Point passes.

 We went swimming twice. Nancy has some friends with pools, and they were nice enough to let us come swim.. Liam loved the water and swam for hours.  It was so fun to watch him.

 We also went to the Botanical Gardens, once again free with our passes.  It was fun, but got really hot.  We were so glad we went in the morning.

 We also helped Nancy out with her yard work.  Liam is a great helper.

 At the end of the week, Kyle flew in and we spent a couple of days in Boise with him and the girls.  One day we went to the zoo with Kyle's parents.  It was nice to spent a day with everyone.

 This bird's name was Sophia Ann, just like our Sophia.  Sophie thought that was pretty cool. The only downside to the zoo was that is got really hot, but everyone still had a good time.

 The next day we went the the Nature Center with Nancy.  We love going here because it is free, fun, and not too far from Nancy's house.

 After we got home, the kids started swimming lessons.  My mom's friend teaches at her brothers pool, so my kids got individual lessons and got to swim(with their life jackets on) while the others were taught.  It is a great pool with a diving board, 2 diving platforms, and a slide.  The kids learned a lot.  Maya is a pretty good swimmer, and the others are coming along.

 July 27 was Sophie's 10th birthday.  She had a party with some friends.  We did crafts, a treasure hunt, and a pinata. I have learned from her friends that they really look forward the treasure hunt and pinata.  I was really glad to learn this because we do it every year and I didn't know if the kids still liked it.

 Sophie is such an awesome girl and is really growing up.  She is sweet, helpful, kind, sassy, and a little bit of a flirt.  She can be dramatic, but we'll keep her.

We had a super busy July, but it was also so much fun.  We were lucky enough to spend time with our extended family.