Utah!

Cori and I committed to participating in a couple of races that ended up being on the same weekend in the same place. I got to run the Wasatch Back Ragnar with Brittany and Cori got run the Spartan Beast with a bunch of his family. Originally the plan was to treat it like a little getaway and leave the kiddos behind. But it was too good an opportunity to pass up and we decided to bring everyone along. Our Utah family outdid themselves keeping everyone happy during our stay!

The World Cup was in full swing and through the marvels of internet and mobile devices, Cori didn't miss too much. I caught him watching two games at once...

On the Saturday of our event weekend, Grace, Grant, and Eden (thanks to her Grandma Sandy running with her) got to race the fun run in Elk Ridge. After that, pretty much every mommy, daddy/auntie, uncle was competing somewhere. This left over a dozen grandkids in need of supervision. So they got parceled out along the Wasatch front. Grace and Eden stayed with Grandma Sandy and Papa Ray and the boys spent the night with Aunt Sara and Uncle Kevin. They got a trip to the Hogle Zoo and Grant got to play 'sweet games' on Kevin's Kindle without having to share. That night, Cori and I rolled up to Sara and Kev's house close to midnight, sweaty, muddy and sleep deprived. We loaded their washing machine with an entire drum-full of workout gear, drained their water heater with our showers, and slept the sleep of the dead in their guest bedroom. The next day, we and the boys went with them to Church.

Before heading back down to Elk Ridge we stopped in to hang out with Mondo and Grandpa Randy. Grant loved playing on their new pool table. We watched more soccer and munched on rice crispy treats. 

We had dinner up at Beer Can Flats one night. The location actually has a respectable State-issued name now, but this is what Cori has always called it and it is the only name I can remember... Brittany made us dutch oven dinner and dessert and we spent the evening in the company of some cousins who were traveling through on their way back to Arizona. It was so nice seeing Aunt Mary, and Heather and Jamie and their crew of kiddos are always super fun!

Brittany and Grandma Sandy bought up a bunch of passes to Seven Peaks when they were on sale earlier in the year and generously used them up taking a huge group of us out for the day. Arianne came with her boys. Aunt Mary and Co. joined us as well. We spent the whole day playing in the sun.

That night we had a late dinner back at Grandma and Grandpa's house. I love how no matter how many people are around, there is always room here for everyone- not because of the size of the space necessarily, but because of how gracious Ray and Sandy are about taking care of everyone.

Heather's daughter, Jorja, celebrated a birthday that night too.

We met Gradma and Grandpa at Payson Park one afternoon during their lunch break. This little corner of Utah has enjoyed a super beautiful summer this year. And the mountains! How we have missed them. Houston is pretty dang flat.

We had a couple of days where the kids were able to just hang out and play with their cousins while everyone else was at work. Grace could be found at any given time buried in a new book. And we drove up the hill to Britt and Cory's house just about every day to play with Ashton, Hunter, MaCaleb and Nadia. Brittany was so good to let us crash in on her for the whole week.

A nearby neighbor has a cherry tree that was absolutely bending to the ground with fruit. We spent a couple hours harvesting (and eating) and made not even the slightest dent.

The G's spent the night with Ashton and Hunter one night leaving Eden behind. She slept with Pierre, the giant teddy bear and felt quite reconciled.

They planned another fun outing for us all out at the Museum of Curiosity at Thanksgiving Point. That is a fun children's museum. We spent the whole day playing interrupted only by a brief picnic lunch break.

That night, we changed into pajamas and went up the hill to Cory and Brittany's to sleep out under the stars. We had tin foil dinners cooked in their fire pit and slept on mattresses and the trampoline on their back lawn. The view from their house is hard to beat. Grandpa Ray set up the rocket launcher before the sun went down. Notice JJ chewing on the chord. It never fails.

The next day was the 4th of July. Grandma Sandy set a fun table for us to eat dinner before heading up to BYU campus for the rest of the night. We watched a soccer game and then spread out our blankets on the soccer field to watch the fireworks from the Stadium of Fire happening down the street.

Love the star-spangled Y!

That was a late night followed by an early morning. This was not made any easier by our baby who projectile vomited all over himself, his car seat and a bit of our rental car as we were trying to abscond BYU campus. Good times! But we made it home safe and sound but for our hearts that always break a little when we leave family.