Lunch with the Blake Cousins

Richard has lots of cousins in the Provo - Salt Lake areas. He let them know we were coming up and that we would love to see them. We were glad that there were so many that were able to get together. Richard got to see a couple aunts and uncles, Marilyn and Randy, and Keith and Ann. We also got to play with Matthew, Julie, Mindy, Tami, Cindy and some spouses, a fiance and lots of kids.

Sam was the photographer that day and was playing with my zoom lens so there were not a lot of normal pictures to choose from. I do have lots of very candid shots, some biting into sandwiches etc. I did not include any of the really embarrassing shots.

Honestly, the only people I can remember names for are the aunts and uncles, first cousins and very few of the the kids.

I think this one is Sam.

This little guy was so adorable. I enjoyed watching him run around.

A cute shot of Tami.
We realized the day before that Tami's husband works with Steve Craig. Small Provo world.

Sara

More four square fun

Uncle Randy being silly

I think this was one of the only pictures I took at the picnic.

Ahh, how sweet!

It was wonderful to get to know Richard's cousins a little better and to enjoy the beautiful Provo weather.

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.

Tuesday at Temple Square

Tuesday, after Memorial Day, we spent the better part of the day at Temple Square. I never get tired of going to Temple Square, and neither do the kids. The feelings of the Spirit there are such a powerful witness of God's love for us. I am always grateful for the opportunity to share my testimony of the temple and being sealed for time and all eternity with my children.

It was kind of a rainy day so Laney and Zanna started the morning off this way. They were super cute but it didn't last long. Susanna was really struggling with not having a regular schedule.

This one was not of anything in particular, other than I just like to have a few shots of all my kids. I am always amazed at what they look like all together. Sometimes 9 kids in a photo doesn't look like as many as it sounds like, and other times it looks like a herd.

Not a great shot, but I wanted proof that I was on the trip too.

Josh got this shot of the Temple. I thought it was a pretty one.

At one point I looked over at the kids and they were all staring up at Jesus. It was such a sweet moment. I tried to catch it on film with out telling them to pose, so Laney had turned around before I got it. Still a great moment though.

Drew at the scene of the wreck

When we were at Temple Square 4 years ago, a sweet old man, one of the grounds keepers, offered to give Drew a ride in his little golf cart truck. He put Drew up on his lap, excited to give this sweet little boy an exciting ride. Drew suddenly jumped out of his lap grabbed the steering wheel and floored the gas. The man was shock and disoriented. In the meantime, Drew popped the little truck up over this huge granite curb and ran it through the flowers into this lamp post. When they hit the post, Drew's face slammed into the steering wheel and he got a big, bloody, fat lip. The poor old man was so rattled as he ran for paper towels to stop the bleeding. I'm pretty sure he would never again be so quick to give rides to sweet looking little boys.

Susanna would not keep her shoes on and she demanded to push the stroller. She could barely reach the handle and it was fairly cold out for her little tootsies.

I though this was sweet. Josh took a picture of Zanna's foot print.

The new temple model in the visitors center was so cool. There are cut away portions of the side walls so you can see where the rooms are in the temple. The display had just opened 4 days before we visited, so we were excited that we were able to see it. It was beautiful and fascinating to see the placement of the different rooms.

On the temple steps


I always like to do head shots of the kids in the temple gardens. With the stormy skies the lighting was great. They aren't amazing, but I love the one of Laney. There are a few forced looking smiles and Zanna would not cooperate at all. She was still in her stroller. Oh well.

After Temple Square we toured the Conference Center. We have done it before, but the kids love it, and I love for them to feel a connection with the leaders of our church. It is fun to walk where they walk and see the thousands of empty seats that are filled during conference time. We sat and listen to the organist for awhile too. Such an amazing building.

It was a great day and I am glad we get to go visit there every couple of years.

Bytheway, We Had A Fabulous Time!!!!

Ok, BAD pun, GREAT visit!

We went on our first two week family vacation beginning Memorial weekend. It was packed full of excitement. The first week we spent in Salt Lake City seeing some of the sights and swimming at the hotel, but mostly we played with our friends John, Kim, Ashley, Andrew, Natalie, Matthew, Timothy and Bethany. They gave us the "Royal Treatment" and filled every free second we had with tons of fun and food. It amazed me how well the kids got along with each other; there were minimal squabbles. It was also fun to see how the kids mixed with each other. Their kids are all the same ages as our kids, except for Sam and Josh, but Josh and Ashley found they had a lot in common and Sam had fun hang out with the grown ups and running around with the little guys.

The week with Kim and John had some of the worst moments of our trip too. Those moments were when we would tell the kids that it was time to head back to the hotel or worst of all when we said we were leaving Salt Lake. They were DEVASTATED! They said we should have consulted with them before booking their time elsewhere.

We went to church with them Sunday morning. I think we just about doubled their primary. Then we went back to the hotel for lunch and a Celestial nap. After that, it was back to the Bytheways for "quiet" (ha, ha) play time (well at least we tried) and yummy Hawaiian Haystacks. Daniel fell in love with Kim, really, really in love. We could hardly keep him from being in her arms all week. Then we talked and talked while the kids played and played Curses, dress-up, piano, roller-coaster, etc., until a couple of our kids fell asleep, it was around 11pm when we headed back to the hotel.

Sunday Dinner

Sam and Andrew
(Aren't they handsome boys?!?)

Sara and Ashley

The Bytheway kids are amazing at the piano.
My kids left very inspired to practice.
Yea!!

Bethany and Susanna, little buddies

Laney the Arabian Princess
She loved all the dress-up clothes throughout the week!

Natalie, Andrew and Tim playing Curses and being hilarious.

Ashley found a beautiful bird in the yard. Unfortunately, the cat had killed it.
She and Josh buried it together.

Monday, morning the kids spent swimming at the hotel for hours. Then, it was off to Kim's sister Tiffany's house for the Memorial Day BBQ. We truly felt like family there. The whole Loveridge gang was wonderful to us. We ate lots of yummy food (Mmm sherbet, brownies with caramel and chocolates). Richard grilled the dogs with the other men folk. The kids felt like they were playing with cousins all afternoon and evening. There was fearsome competition in a game of Elimination, and Rich and many of the kids spent hours playing Four Square. The girls played dress up and tea partied in their darling, under the stairs, built in playhouse. The boys spent hours playing Wii, with out bickering amazingly. Again, everyone got along super well and it was a very relaxing day. Tiffany and her hubby Tim were excellent hosts. Thank you so much for making us part of the gang.

John and Rich chillin' at the grill

Sam was trying to kiss Laney. She was trying to escape. This is the window of the under the stairs closet turned into a playhouse. Genius!

Zanna ready to take the town

Kim and Steph

Look at my stylin' moves as I race to get the ball. I amaze myself sometimes! Ok, so mostly I was amazed that I still know how to run.

Richard playing four square like a champion father.

Wii HEAVEN!!!

Tuesday, we went to Temple square (another post), went swimming again and then took the kids to the dollar theater to see The Lightening Thief. It was a busy fun day.

Wednesday morning, we took Sam and Josh to the Salt Lake Temple to do temple baptisms while Kim watched the other 7 kids for us. It was beautiful in the baptistry. We had never seen it before. We had prepared some ancestors names for the trip, which made it all the more meaningful. We all got a bit choked up here and there, the Spirit was so strong. We are so blessed to be able to do such sacred things with our children. I am grateful that we had the opportunity to go and feel comfortable leaving the other kids in such good hands. There is never anything better to renew your soul than going to the temple together.

Then it was back to the Bytheways to visit for awhile. Their kids were still in school, so the kids only had the little ones to play with, but they managed to have tons of fun anyhow. We left for a few hours of swimming time and then went back to take Kim and John to Pei Wei's. They had never been before so it was fun to share it with them. The food was great and the company even better. It is so easy to be with them, we have tons in common and the conversation never lacks. I love to talk about gospel, parenting, funny habits, kids, food or anything with them. It really is hard to stop once we get chatting. After dinner, we headed back to their house for a quiet evening in the front lawn. Again, it was hard to leave everyone was having such a great time, but it was a school night for them and we need to pack everything up to leave the hotel in the morning.

After our yummy dinner at Pei Wei

Natalie kindly pulling around the little girls

Thursday morning, after loading everything back in the van, we headed to Liberty Park. We met up with Kim and her kids as well as her sisters Amy and Jennifer and some of their kids. The park had a splash play area that was in the form of all the local rivers, lakes and canyons. All the kids from the little ones to the teenagers had hours of fun running around splashing, hunting for each other in the bushes, and floating pine cones and sticks down the "rivers". Richard got to hang out with the ladies, since the hubbies were all at work, but he seemed to really enjoy just laying in the cool grass soaking in the beautiful weather. We talked well into the afternoon. Several of us got pretty good sunburns but the sun felt so good with the cool breeze we didn't notice it toasting us. Around 3:30, we tore the kids apart (ok, Richard had to tear me and Kim apart too) and piled in the van to head to Provo.

Peekaboo Drew

My handsome hubby!!!!

All 15 kiddos together at the end of our visit

I can't express how generous and fun the Bytheways are. I really think Kim would have adopted us all if she could have. It's funny how there are people in your life that you just know you knew before. Kim is one of those people in my life. When we see each other, it is as if no time has past between visits, never any awkwardness. She is witty, well read and such a gospel scholar. She inspires me to work to be stronger in those areas as well as to be a more fun and loving mother. She knows how to make any moment feel like a party. I need to do more of that.

The kids kept asking why the Bytheways didn't come to Aspen Grove with us, since that is where we met them. And Daniel told all of my family about his "girlfriend" Kim. He told us that he knew he couldn't marry Kim and that when he was a grown up she would be dead. I told him that she would still be around, hopefully. Then he said that he would move in next door to her when he was a grown up. So, cute! He beams when ever he hears her name.

Not the best shot of Kim and John, but you can get an idea of how Daniel spent the week. He did tell me once that he loved Kim more than me, but mostly he said he loves us the same except for when he is with Kim, he loves her more.

We can't wait to spend more time with you all and everyone misses you guys terribly. LOVE YOU!!!