Aspen Grove

Every other summer we go to Aspen Grove for a big family reunion with all of Don's family, thanks to Don's Grandma Wilma. It is up Provo Canyon by Sundance and it is beautiful! There were 110 in his family there this year. It was fun to see everyone because a lot of them we never see. It is a great vacation because there is so much to do--hiking, rock climbing, swimming, crafts, mini golf, fishing--but the best part is just being with family for a whole week! Our kids love being with cousins and second cousins that they probably wouldn't know that well if it weren't for this reunion every other year. They are put in groups by age and have SO much doing different activities during the day. Elle was in the Cub group this year and Easton was in the Kitten group. They loved it! Our brother-in-law says that when you are at Aspen Grove seeing your kids is like a deer sighting--you see them in passing and know they are ok. :) One of the nicest things for me is not having to cook or do dishes for a week! Each night we had a big family devotional and got to learn something about Grandma Wilma's life. She has had an amazing life and has done so much for so many people. She really has left such a legacy. I had no idea what a "heart breaker" she was either. :) We played all day and then stayed up really late after the kids were in bed playing Rook, which is HUGE in Don's family, and ate lots of treats! So fun!

Grandma Wilma and her husband, Don Kirk

FRONTIER NIGHT

One night is called Frontier Night and they have a whole western theme with train rides, shooting targets, lassoing, a whole cowboy village to play in, an Indian teepee with stories, etc. Elle and Easton loved it!

Jayne and Sum on the train

Cousins Mitchell, Blake, Trevor, Travis and Spencer

Elle and Easton with their feathers they got after hearing the Indian story in the teepee

Panning for gold

Snowcones...mmm

Elle loved trying out the lasso

Shooting targets

Little Jayne gives the best hugs!

Easton with his second cousin, Jonah, that he became best buddies with

It was hilarious watching these two fight! They would say, "I got you good!"

Nate is so cute with Easton. Easton says that he wants to be just like Nate because he is really good at sports!

Grandpa Don loves his little Jayne

Baby Jayne and Daddy

RANDOM FUN

Jayne loved the teeter totter! It was so cute!

Elle, Easton and Mitch making funny faces

Mini-golf was a big hit with our kids! They wanted to golf all the time!

Easton's group got to try rock climbing one day and I went and watched. I was so proud of him for trying it. He got pretty far up the wall and did great!

It was so fun for all the kids to swim with Don and show him how well they were doing with their swimming. Jayne loves the water too!

How funny are they?

HIKING

Hiking to Stewart Falls

Stewart Falls- Ken, Don, Sum, Devin, Lei, Diane and Don

The waterfall was huge!

Hiking to First Falls

Don and Sum at First Falls, on the way up to Mt. Timp

GOLF TOURNAMENT

There is always a big family golf tournament and it is so much fun! I am definitely not a golfer but it is "Best Ball" so sometimes I get lucky and have a good putt once in a while to contribute with.

My swing looks a lot different than Don's and definitely doesn't go as far. It's fun though!

Our foursome-Don, Sum, Norm, Diane

SUNDANCE

Don and I had to go to Sundance being so close to it. I love it there! This is the exact spot where we got engaged almost 10 years ago! Crazy!!!

We took a chairlift ride

ART SHACK

Trevor, Mitch, Elle, Blake painting

We got to do a class on the pottery wheel and it was so fun!

Our finished pots--Jeremy, Devin, Lei, Sum, Amy, Auralee

ROOK

We played Rook every night late into the night. Don's family has their own way of playing that their Grandpa came up with so it has taken me a while to learn all the little tricks but I love game so it is fun! This particular game, I have never laughed so hard! Natalie was my partner and Don and his sister, Auralee, were partners. I bid 100, and Don bid 105 just to make me mad. So then I bid 110, just to make him mad. So I took the bid for 110,which is really hard to make. He just laughed and said they would set us. I got the best widow every though and made it. It was so funny! We all couldn't stop laughing the whole night! Don was cracking us up!

More Rook--Tami, Diane, Glenn, Ken

Thank you Grandma Wilma for all the fun memories!

Father's Day

So, I'm obviously really behind on blogging but I couldn't pass up a post on Father's Day...
Happy Father's Day to Don!!! He really is such an amazing dad to Elle, Easton and Jayne. They all love their daddy! He takes them on bike rides, has light saber fights with them, plays games, takes them to get snow cones or frozen yogurt for a treat, and loves to have family movie night. Elle and Easton's favorite thing is when they get to play "Daddy Bear" and he growls and wrestles with them. They always have fun with dad! He attends all their school programs, dance recitals and sports games and is so supportive of all they do. He is a hands-on dad and is very involved in every aspect of their lives. He is always there to help put them to bed, read stories or sing funny songs to make them laugh. He insists on taking them to school, if he is able to, because that is his special time with them. He tries to teach them good things and protect them in every way. He is a great dad! We love you Don! Happy Father's Day to you and to both our dads too!

Don and the kids on Father's Day

All the kids made capes for their dads in Primary because he is their "super hero." Elle and Easton divided theirs in half and each took a side. Elle's had a big "S" for Super dad with hearts and Easton's had a lot of crazy pen marks. It was really cute! It was so fun seeing all the dads leaving church wearing their super hero capes.

Happy Birthday Elle!

Elle had her 7th birthday on June 20th! I cannot believe we have a 7 year old! Now I am starting to feel old. :( Time really does fly. I still vividly remember when she was born and I got to hold her for the first time. She had dark brown hair and the sweetest little face and dainty features. She was perfect! With her birth, I got to become a mom and I am forever grateful for that! We went to the hospital as 2 and left as a family of 3. Every milestone she has had and every thing we have done with her was a first for us as parents. She helped shape us into the parents that we are. I treasure all the time we had with her, just the three of us, and am so proud of who she is and what an amazing big sister she has become to Easton and Jayne. We love you Elle!

My favorite things about Elle:
-Her strong will and determination
-Her sweet little toothless grin
-Her pretty little eyes that are just like Daddy and Grandpa Cliff
-The way she looks at me and flutters her eyelashes to try to get what she wants
-Her creativity and ability to sit at the counter and do art and crafts for hours
-Her confidence and ability to figure things out on her own
-How sweet and loving she is with Jayne
-The way she helps Easton with his letters and numbers and they have "Kids Club"
-How she reads books until late in the night and thinks we don't know, even though they are all over her bed
-The sweet notes she writes when she knows I have had a hard day
-Her amazing books and art she creates
-The way she really hates losing at any game (She is very competitive)
-Her love of school and learning
-Her love of dancing and desire to always "put on a show" whether it is dancing or playing the piano or putting on a play

Elle is such a good little girl! She is so creative, imaginative, happy, independent and kind to others. She is the best big sister and brings so much to our family! Happy Birthday Elle!

FAMILY CELEBRATION

We had a birthday breakfast and invited some family over to celebrate with us. My mom, Don's parents, Don's Grandma Wilma and even cousin Riley all came. We had yummy waffles, fruit and Elle's favorite chocolate smoothie for breakfast.

Making breakfast

Easton with Riley

Jayne with stuffed puppy, Violet

Elle REALLY wanted an American Girl Doll for her birthday last year and we finally gave in this year. She was SO excited when she opened her present from us and got her doll!

She told me that if she got one, she wanted one that looked like her, so we tried to pick the right one out. She named her Ellie, then Julia, then Amy and then finally back to Julia. Who knew it could be so hard naming a doll?

Easton wanted to get Elle a present and used his own money to get a little nightgown for her doll. He was so excited to get it for her and didn't even mind that it used up all his money.

Grandma Irene got Elle a cute outfit for her doll

Grandma Diane and Grandpa Don and Grandma Wilma got her a couple of outfits too. She was so excited! She didn't know what outfit to put on first!

BALLET PARTY

Because Elle and Easton's birthdays are only 6 days apart, we decided to do a party for Elle and her friends at a Ballet Studio. Elle loves dance so it turned out really fun!

All the girls--Ellie, Elle, Lexi, Ally, Sadie, Aurora, Claire, Ava

Ring Toss

"Pin the Ribbon on the Point shoe" game

Dancing in the mirror with colorful scarves

A little ballet lesson with time on the bar

And then...the girls used their wands and said aloud three times "I wish I was a fairy" and walked upstairs to a magical room where all the flowers and butterflies were super big and they got to pretend to be fairies and wear fairy wings. It was so cute to see them all dancing around in their wings.

Elle's Ballet cake

It turned out to be really fun! It was neat to see how much fun all the kids had! Elle had a great birthday!