Tea Party Camp

Kate had no interest in working at Woodgrain this summer but I told her she had to earn some money.  So she worked several days for Grandma and make this plan to do a Tea Party Camp.  She planed out crafts, food and games.  I got pretty involved but it ended up being a lot of fun for all of us.

On the first day the girls decorated their own tea cups with acrylic markers and 

made their own fabulous hats (my favorite part).

On the second day they made cream cheese mints (this got pretty messy when they tried mixing the food coloring in by hand), paint brush cookies, and trifle.

The third day they dressed up and got to eat all they yummy food.  I made petite fours for the first time and they were quite delicious.  We also had mini scones, fruit kabobs and cucumber sandwiches.

The last day was Payton's birthday so we added a candle to her plate.

We had so much fun that we decided to do it again the next week but we condensed it into two days.  Sammie came, as well as a 4 year old, 5 year old, two 6 year olds and several older girls Lily's age.  I was so proud of all of Kate's hard work and planning.

Girls Camp

Greg and I were asked to go up to girls camp Firday night to help with the faith walk. So we only have pictures from that night - Emily loved her first year at camp.

For the faith walk the kids had to carry rocks up a step hill then walk blindfolded holding a string crossing the hillside.

Leaders were there to help the whole way.

By the time it was dark the girls had to follow a well lit path to the tree of life - a tree we spend hours covering in lights and other decore that Heather Walker dreamed up to create this beautiful glowing picture.  It was pretty spectacular.

 

Party with Yorgasons and Rush Reunion

The girls and I hopped in the van and booked it down to Cedar City to play with the Yorgasons.  We arrived Tuesday night and didn't leave the house until Friday morning.  The kids had so much fun just being together and enjoying the magic of Teresa's house that we never left.  

The $20 baby pool that Violet scoffed at created hours of fun so much fun that Emily got absolutely fried.

We should have put on sunscreen but never imagined they would stay out in that pool as long as they did.

The fun seemed never ending as Emily and Cecily made clay creations and took three attempts to make marshmallows.  Meanwhile, Kate, Addy and Violet watched a ton of Psych and did some painting in the garage.  The little girls also did some painting - some of Dahlia's work got a little out of hand and Teresa's driveway may be stained blue for years to come.

They also did each others make-up, Rush's dragon was impressive.

We also had the privilege of enjoying fried Oreos in three flavors - so so yummy.

While we enjoyed our time with cousins Greg and Andrew flew down to Mesquite and took Papa to his last round of chemo.

Friday morning we got to say hi to Papa at Aunt Mel's house then hit the road with our boys.

On the way to the Park City we stoped at Cove Fort and enjoyed the fort and enjoyed the framed hair art.

Then we stopped in Filmore to see the old state house that my Great Grandma Dame, Mary Alice, help save.

The basement walls were lined with photos and we found 15 or so relatives.

We found a photo of the Beaston choir that Mary Alice sang in.

Our last stop was a visit to Grandma Lula.  At 99 we are greatful for any visit we can get.  She didn't remember us individually but knew I was her grandchild.  We tried talking but it was hard to keep a conversation going.  Then Greg had the brilliant idea to have us sing to her - It made her so happy.  She would sing along with us and tell me when I started songs too low.  It was a wonderful visit.

We arrived at Parkinsons and started chopping veggies and making carameled popcorn in preparation for the runion meals the next day.  Grandma Nani and the Yorgasons were at the reunion still so we worked until they arrived and then all hands were on deck.  Even Andrew joined in to make the carameled popcorn.

The next morning we started early for an epic day at Aunt Sue's house.  Slip and slide, horse rides, scrolling, lavender crafts, spike ball, games, family stories and delicious food.

Then cousin Kyi put on an amazing fireworks display complete with music.  

It was a bit too loud for Kate so she and I watched from the car.

During the fireworks the little kids cased their favorite friend, Andrew, with their glow sticks wacking him when they caught him.  Apparently, glow sticks can give welts - 😂

The next morning was Dahlia and I's birthdays so we enjoyed some yummy pancakes and presents.

This is just a great shot of Andrew's tan lines- Don kept asking him if he wanted to take his socks off.

Kate can't get enough of these two - she hated saying goodbye.

Violet sent me home with this very special birthday gift- that girl cracks me up.

McCall with My Littles

Our week in McCall came a little early this year.  It was 52 degrees when we arrived - a bit cool to swim but lovely to escape the heat of the valley.  Kate stayed behind to go to Evan Hansen with Lyla so I got to enjoy McCall with just my littles.

We had a blast doing puzzles, reading, picking out movies and meals without debate and just chilling.

Wouldn't be McCall without toaster strudels (a tradition started by the Iversons), but the strawberry and whipped cream was a new addition.

The girls spent so much time on the beach.  I got to sit in the sun or shade, read and enjoy the beauty.  It was kind of cold but that didn't stop the girls from getting into the lake.

While we were playing in the sand Kate and Greg went to Dear Evan Hansen with Tom, Lyla, a friend of hers and Annabelle.  Kate loved it and has even added the songs to her playlist after all her years of complaining about the music Natali played she has succumbed.

The next day after work Greg headed up to the condo with Andrew and Kate in toe. We pulled out Kubb so Andrew and Kate could crush Greg, Emily, Lily and I.

The next morning we went on an epic hike.  The trail was muddy here and there but the 7 miles were worth it we saw all sorts of animal prints in the mud and no human prints.

Cougar, bear, bobcat, wolf not to mention the usual elk, and deer.

For the last 1/2 mile we left Kate with a grumpy Lily and hustled to the end of the trail into a beautiful valley.  So beautiful.

All the hikers deserved some  food from My Father's Place and ice cream from Ice Cream Alley.

Lily may have got double ice cream with the kids cone with her kids meal.

The next morning we played a lot of pickle ball then Emily and I took a walk on the trails behind the condo.  We may have taken a few too many turns away from the condo so we had to do some bushwhacking to get us on the right path but it was a fun adventure.

Lily made a foot bath for Greg and we worked together to creative this fabulous sandcastle complete with mermaid.

As usual I loved every minute of our week at the condo, only wished we could stay longer.