Fun at the Craigs

Thursday evening we arrived at the Craig's. Emily and I lived in the same ward as kids. She is some one that I have looked up to for years and years. Emily is SUPER smart and informed. She kills in word games. She is a leader, and she is a beautiful person. She also make DELICIOUS lasagna. I knew her husband Steve a bit from my teenage years. He works for BYU, but is also quite an artist. He is very well read and a lot of fun to talk with. We had some great gospel conversations with them.

Anyhow, we showed up at dinner time, had wonderful lasagna, and the kids partied with the Craig kids, Aaron, Isaac, Norah and Calvin (Elliot their 5th grader was gone to camp). They played Rock Band and tea party and so on. They very quickly figured out that the Craig's home is a great place to be.

This was in the evening on Friday. They have an amazing view of the city from their family room. The light was coming in the windows so beautifully I had to snap a couple of shots of Emily and Calvin.

Laney jammin' out loving to be a rock star

Emily and Steve put Richard and I up in their guest room with the two little girls. The rest of the crew was spread out all over the basement. It isn't easy to have 11 extra people in your home for two nights, but the Craigs kept everyone well fed and comfortable.

Friday we went to the Beam Museum. There are all kinds of animals to see and learn about. It is kind of like a dead zoo. Emily and the kids met us there and we spent a couple of hours exploring and learning. There were some amazing specimens. We especially loved the liger.

Tim and the Liger

Sara staring down the lion

My three little bears

After the museum, we got some pizza and went to Rock Canyon Park for lunch. Richard dropped us off and took the van to an auto shop to get the cooling system checked. The van had started to leak antifreeze the night before. Emily and I relaxed in the shady grass with the little ones while the older more adventurous kids hiked around, supposedly close by. After a while, Richard called and said that the water pump needed to be replaced ($500, ouch!) and that the van would need to stay in the shop over night. Steve picked up Richard from the shop. Emily and I began to collect kids and shuttle them home in two trips. While she ran the first group home I hiked out to find Tim, Sara, Aaron, Drew, Nate and Daniel. I found the creek they had told me they found, but no kids. After hiking up creek a bit, I found Nate and Drew on their way back. The rest of the kids were way up the creek. Eventually, I found them all happy with only a few minor cuts and scrapes. (Foot injuries seemed to be the theme of our visit with the Craigs. we had many pokes and splinters and such. No one seemed to want to wear shoes.)

This shot is from when I first spotted them in the brush along the creek.

That evening was nice and quiet. The kids watched "A Christmas Story" and the grown ups got to talk and enjoy the peace for awhile. Rich and Steve had both recently read A Rough Stone Rolling by Richard Lyman Bushman. It was great to hear Steve's perspective on the book and for the fellas to get to bounce their thoughts around with each other.

Saturday morning farewell picture

It was great to get to hang out with Emily and Steve for a couple of days. The kids all got along well and had a fabulous time. Thank you for letting us stay with you guys! We love you all.