Utah 2012: Part 1

One good thing about living away is that you never take family time for granted. We were all so excited to be able to come to Utah for two weeks this summer and visit, and it has surpassed all our wildest expectations. Each day has been full of friends, family and fun. My mom has done an amazing job keeping everyone occupied and happy. Here is just a little taste of our good times.

Driveway Bowling

We have had hours of fun with 10 water bottles, food coloring, a bouncy ball and sidewalk chalk. Thank you pinterest!

Jace's hair has gotten so long, he decided to pull it up with one of Ellie's elastics so he could look like a real Samaurai.

Slip N Slide

Utah has been unusually hot this summer, so we are almost always ready for a cool off. The kids love anything that is a little bit crazy. We love spending every spare moment with as many cousins as possible. 

Bunches of Balls

I cannot tell you how much fun it has been to get to know our new cousins, Maddy and Beau Jr. They are both so darling, fun and sweet. I can't wait to see them all grow up together. A blow up pool with a few hundred balls makes for hours of entertainment for the little ones.  

Popsicles

Who doesn't love a good popsicle in the summer...especially a Utah favorite, Creamies! Our family favorite is the chocolate dipped mint.

Grandma and Grandpa Olsen's Pool

We have spent hours upon hours swimming at my Grandparents' pool. It has provided countless afternoons of fun. I feel so lucky that my kids have such great cousins in Ezzie and Luke. It's just a joy to watch them all play together and love each other. We've had tons of cousin time this trip and each year just gets better and better. This year, they've all turned into little fish.

The only girls. They both have such fun personalities and love getting spoiled in this family full of boys!

The NO PARENTS Vacation

When my parents suggested that they might take just the 5 big boys down to their awesome house in St. George without the parents or the babies, my boys were thrilled and serious about holding Grandma and Grandpa to the plan. From what we heard, it was the best Friday, Saturday and Sunday morning of their lives and they didn't miss us one bit, mostly because without boring parents around, the rules are in Grandma and Grandpa's hands, and they are much more fun than we are! Their two days were full of:

Water Play

These guys will be the 5 boys forever.

Cliff Jumping

Relaxing

Culture

My parents took the boys to Tuacahn to see Aladdin in the outdoor amphitheater. It was a super late showing, but everyone stayed awake and loved it.

Eating

Cartoon Watching

Animal Hunting

Hiking

Ice Cream

More Swimming

(please note the picture of my mom in the water...awesome!)

Movies in the Theater Room

Pizza and a Picture proclaiming the theme for the last few days

and S'mores!

Are they the coolest grandparents or what? I'm tired just looking at the pictures! The boys came home happy and full of memories and fun moments to tell us about. I'm not sure how they packed so much into 48 hours, but they did (including 2 nights of throw up...so sorry!). Thanks for making the weekend so special!

Pierce

When I write his name, it's usually followed by glowing sentences about his behavior and personality, but not this time. He came to Utah and immediately got a tummy ache and diahhrea. The poor boy wasn't sleeping or eating and was miserable. When he finally recovered, he was still whiny and out of sorts. After 2 weeks, he's just settling into his normal self. I'd forgotten how hard it is to travel with an almost one year old. It's hard living away because when you visit, you want people to see your children at their best, but no such luck for this guy. The only people he even kind of likes are Mitch, Beau and my dad. Mitch was brave enough to take him for me for 5 hours on Saturday so I could shop with his wife...brother of the year award or what? I say yes!  Good news...Pierce is still the cutest baby ever, even when he's grumpy. Here are some pictures to prove it. 

Summer Nights

The boys always look forward to my dad rolling in from work. Oftentimes we are outside on the front lawn enjoying the evening so we catch him before he even goes inside.

The Brigham City Temple Open House

My mom does volunteer work for the church hosting services and she hooked us up with VIP tickets to see the Brigham City temple before the general public, with no lines and no crowds. It was totally worth the drive up. It was beautiful, done in a similar design as the Salt Lake and St. George temples with exceptional craftsmanship, art, and symbolism. It was so great to be able to take my kids there. I have to remember that oftentimes as a parent of 4 boys, lots of what we do or conversations we have don't seem to sink in or mean anything in the moment, but if you take time to listen and notice, it's obvious that they heard and felt what we hoped they would. There were times, as we were walking through the temple, that I wondered if they were understanding anything, but in our coversatiions following the temple, I realized they listened and felt the spirit there. The little moments of effort are worth it. My favorite moment was taking Jace and Parker by the hand individually in the sealing room and standing in front of the mirrors that extend for eternity. I told them that one day, they will find someone they love as much as dad loves me and she will love him as much as I love dad and be able to be sealed to them forever. We all really loved that moment. It was great to be able to be there with them.

We love to see the temple. We are going there someday.

Lorenzo James Park

One of the biggest motivators for getting us out here was seeing my sister's baby, Lorenzo. He is so cute and sweet and small just like a newborn should be. I've so enjoyed being able to take little moments to hold him and maybe help my sister a bit...even though she is the most capable, bounce back mom I've ever met. Her baby is only 1 month and she is off partying with us every moment of the day. I'm in awe!

Bowling!

One of our family's favorite acitivities in the cold or the heat is bowling. Always a great time for everyone.

Yogurt Stop

When my kids made their list of "must dos" in Utah, it cracked me up that 3 of those had to do with food. One of them was the Yogurt Stop...it lived up to the expectation. 

Creating a Monster

My sister's little girl, Ellie, is 2 and we all adore her. Pretty much, anyone will do anything for her affection. She is at such a fun age and is so sweet and easy going, especially compared to all the crazy boys. With only boys, nieces are the closest things I will ever get to having a girl, and to be honest it's pretty nice...all the fun, none of the pressure. Ellie loves all things pink and girly and LOVES make-up. So, since I'm the aunt that only visits twice a year, I feel fine about throwing all my feminist principles out the door and saying yes to everything Ellie asks of me. One day she wanted to put on all the make up that I put on and wanted her hair curled like mine. She ended up looking a bit like John Benet Ramsey, but we had a great time doing it and she felt so "booful."

President Monson's Birthday

My mom also got us tickets to President Monson's birthday celebration and the best part of all was that Mike figured out how to join us for the weekend! So fun to have such a handsome guy on my arm.  It was a great night full of beautiful words and music woven into a tribute to our vivacious prophet. We felt so lucky to be there. Before the birthday, we went to dinner with all the adults in the family. We love our adult time. I'm so grateful for such fun and interesting grandparents, parents, siblings and in-laws. We all truly enjoy our time together and feel such support and love from each other. I love being in this family!

Cottonwood Heights

Mike was so great and basically gave me a break all weekend. He and my dad took the kids to swim at Cottonwood Heights on Saturday. My mom and I popped in just in time to take a picture of Jace jumping off the second platform. It was so high! I think I was more nervous than he was. I love that all my boys are so brave and confident without being reckless. Growing up, I felt kind of scared to do lots of things but have gotten better as an adult, so seeing my kids approach life so fearlessly is unbelievably rewarding. Mike is a good example and even jumped off the 2nd platform with Jace. I hope my boys will always be that way. 

REAL Soccer Game

If you haven't been to a REAL game, you should go!! The family went on Saturday night and had such a great time. The stadium was full and the night was perfect. We had great seats where we could see all the action close up on the field and enjoy the serious fans and banging drums. The whole game was worth it when REAL scored and the stadium erupted with confetti, streamers and a rousing victory song. Even Pierce thought it was worth staying up for. 

What boy can resist a picture with a Wienermobile?

Family Night

Once a month my mom's family gets together for family night and we were lucky enough to be there for it. I have an awesome extended family and it was so great to see my aunts, uncles, cousins and all their kids. My boys had no idea this was a regular occurance and halfway through the night, Jace says, "Mom, this is the best family reunion ever!" I didn't have the heart to tell him that in Utah it happens once a month...he's already dying to move here!

It was a pretty great night!

We've been a productive bunch this past year. Look at all the babies!

There is still more fun to blog about, but I must get to bed! :)