Summer Daze

Um, yeah, summer days, huh? So what's up with the jackets?!? Well, this is summer in Monterey, where it is perpetually 60 degrees. I couldn't believe I was actually sending my kids to swimming lessons in an outdoor pool when it was so cold. But alas, we survived, had some fun even, and then . . .

. . . escaped to Utah! Oh, wait though, hold on, before I get into that, let's talk about Kate's birthday party. Here is a picture of her being obstinate when I asked her to smile for me and she didn't feel like it. So I decided to take the picture anyway to have for the future to remind her what a trying child she was and how much she owes me. :) Anyway . . .

. . . Kate actually did have a very fun double birthday party at the park with her friend, Ali, who shares her same birthday. A playground, cupcakes, balloons, and presents, what could be better?

Okay, so back to Utah. I was totally worried that being acclimated to Monterey weather, and also being 7 1/2 months pregnant, that I was going to absolutely melt in the desert heat. But you know what? It was awesome! No humidity is the best. First we headed up to the mountains for a week with Chris' parents. It was just the sort of rest and relaxation we needed: shooting with his dad and brother (okay, so to Chris, that's relaxing), seeing Toy Story 3, feeding the horses, taking rides on the cool new four wheeler, sitting on the porch, feeding the chipmunks (and killing the potguts - again, another Chris pastime), playing in the sandbox with cousins, organizing my mother-in-law's pantry (that's my preggo nesting mode in full gear), taking nature walks and watching movies. Lotsa good summer fun.

We also took a day trip to the Provo River Falls. It was beautiful with all of the Spring Runoff still going. We also found a couple of Geocaches up the canyon for our very own treasure hunt. Good times. My girls love posing for pictures. Can you tell?

After a quick stop in the valley to get a haircut and go to the temple, it was off to the Southern part of the state for a week at Lake Powell. Oh yeah, it was hot now (close to 100 every day), but you could always just jump in the lake or wet your shirt down to cool off, so no big deal. Aly went down the slide off the back of the houseboat 101 times! That girl is a fish! She jumped off the top of the houseboat with Chris a few times, tried to ski, knee boarded, went tubing, kayaked with her dad, and drove the boat. She definitely made the most of the trip and the lake.

Analise also loved swimming by playing mermaids and sharks in the water with her cousin, Camren, and her aunt Jessica. She also liked playing in the sand, tubing, and even went off the houseboat slide herself. She also loved boat rides and would frequently take a nap on the boat after wearing herself out in the lake.

Kate liked jetskiing, tubing (see her giving the thumbs up on the picture below), swimming (while holding on to mom or dad - see the picture of Kate and I riding the noodle "horsey" at the bottom), and playing in the sand and the water where she could touch. She had an unfortunate incident the first day there where she wandered out a little too deep and ended up floating on her back - thank goodness for life jackets! Anyway, that kind of scared her a little bit and she kept talking about how she was going to drown the rest of the trip, but she warmed back up to the water by the end, and I think she'll be just fine.

Chris had a blast playing with the girls, waterskiied, and kayaked around the bay in some mega exercise feat. He and I went on a jetski ride up a canyon and found this neat 1/2 mile hike that led to these awesome rock formations. We brought everybody back the next day so they could come see it as well. Nature is so awe inspiring. I loved it. Another highlight for me was the cloudless night of endless stars - georgeous. I love the stars at Lake Powell.

Well anyway, I hope you are all making the most of your summer. We've done our part!