What began 20 years ago

20 Years since our first date

It began in a truck with the words "What do you wanna do?" Seems fitting that's how tonight's date went as well.

Hey, I still have that dress. And you still have that tie.

And this hat.

Here's to at least 20 more years of winging it.

Pioneer Day and Actual Pioneer Day

There are only 29 days in the whole summer break that all 6 of us are home. July 19 began a stretch of 7 of those days. Justin got home Friday evening so tired and sore but was up for some good Mapleton fun. We skipped out on the pancake breakfast this year since our kids don't really eat it and I'd rather save the $30 for ice cream.

Who's the cutest flag holder for the MYCC?

I have no idea what these llamas were for but this was my favorite float.

Marching bands and bagpipe bands are a favorite too.

Since we didn't go to breakfast, we arrived at the parade area way later than we usually do and the road was already closed. So I dropped everyone off and drove to my parent's house a half mile down Maple Street and parked in their drive way then borrowed my mom's e-trike to ride back to the parade. It was so fun. Justin rode it over to the park after the parade and then I rode it back to their house and got the car when we were done with the bounce houses and stuff.

Sarah and her friend Kylie sold concessions so I didn't get to see her much.

Erica's first turn on the bull

James took a turn too

Erica's second turn

After a couple of hours the kids were hungry and Justin and I were kind of hot and tired of listening to the bounce house generators so we talked the kids into going home. We ate lunch and went to the grocery store and when Sarah was done we picked her up and went to Macey's to get ice cream cones.

Then we went to Ira Allen park for the ping pong ball drop, concert, and fireworks.

James's smile is so big because I got hit in the head with one of those flying things he has in his hand while taking his picture.

Henry found BYU basketball player Richie Saunders (He's from Mapleton too. He actually lives like half a mile from us.)

The kids ran off a lot as they saw friends they knew or to go to the playground. I wasn't too worried until it started to get dark but I didn't lose anyone. The firework show was bonkers bananas like it always is. It's ridiculous but makes the heat and horrible cover band worth it.

Sunday was National Ice Cream Day. You better believe we celebrate this. We made homemade waffle cones. It had been so long since we've done this Erica and James had no idea what we were doing or that we had a waffle cone iron.

Sidenote but should really be a headline: James is wearing jeans! The kids were all dressed up making their movie version of the Bang! card game and James wore jeans! I had to take a picture because this may not happen again.

Actual Pioneer Day was on Thursday. Justin had to work and I talked Henry into coming to Costco with me to look at clothes. Just kidding, I never have to talk Henry to come to Costco with me.

I really like this tree so I took a picture of it so I can look it up and wonder if I can buy one and wonder where I'm going to put it in my yard.

"Mom, donutettes!"

It took a little convincing on my part that it was pronounced just donettes. I didn't buy them but we took a photo for his birthday list, just like when he was 5.

I made homemade ice cream and a Dutch oven peach cobbler and we met my sisters and their families at my parents house for a good old timey pioneer day dinner.

It was a group effort getting dinner ready and the men cooked it out by the barn and were very ingenious in using a shovel to carry it back to the deck. In fact, you could say they were pioneers.

My dad's cousin and his wife joined us for the evening. They recently moved from Moroni to Springville so that's fun having more family close by. Never met them before but still fun.
 

I don't always make peach cobbler in a Dutch oven with homemade vanilla ice cream but when I do, everyone rejoices.

All day long my brain was full of t-shirt ideas for Pioneer Day. My best idea is one that simply says "SANPETE ROOTS" I have a theory that everyone has an ancestral tie to Sanpete County so it would be a big seller. Plus when you're wearing it, strangers will be like, Oh my grandpa settled in Sanpete as a pioneer" and you'll be like, "mine too" and we'll all be friends (we're already all cousins).

Sarah leaves today for 16 days in Kenya and I'm already sad. Also coming up in the next couple of weeks: the 20th anniversary of our first date, Justin leaves for a canoe trip, Henry goes to FSY and I take the littles to motel with a mini water park. Plus school shopping, of course.

All good things in July

Saturday was a full day. We went to a park in American Fork for a family reunion of Justin's mom's family. There were so many people that showed up so it was great. My kids were concerned that they wouldn't know anyone or have anyone to play with. But they needn't have feared because Justin's cousins have a lot of kids their ages plus their own cousins came as well.

The highlight of the day for the kids was ice blocking.

Justin and I left the reunion a bit early to go to Salt Lake for a concert. We saw Manchester Orchestra (not an orchestra and not from Manchester) and Incubus.  

Who are these people standing up when everyone is sitting down?

Just my brother and his wife! I didn't know they were Manchester Orchestra fans! And I had no idea they were going to the concert. We should have figured this out sooner. And what are the chances that they were 4 rows ahead of us in this huge venue???

Fortunate for us the row ahead of us was empty so they got to move by us.

While MO (I don't know if they go by that but their name is too long to type over and over) is currently my favorite band, I'm a new fan and I don't know all their catalogue so there were some songs I didn't know and at least one I didn't like. They seemed to be playing their harder stuff to appeal the Incubus crowd while I like their less hard stuff. I was just so happy to see them in concert.

They ended their set with my most favorite song of theirs (and my favorite song right now). I never would have heard of them if it wasn't for listening to Orem High School's radio station that plays the most random stuff.

And then Incubus took the stage to play their Morning View album. Oh man, this album takes me back. I listened to it so much during college I almost felt like I should be writing a paper while I listened.

I felt so old. It was so loud. So good but so loud.

The bassist is female which was cool to see.

Sunday we had a ward treats on the street. Everyone wanted to talk to Justin about the upcoming 50 mile hike he was doing the next day with the priests. Monday morning Justin left with the priests to the base of King's Peak in the Uinta's. He didn't have service except for the top so he sent me this photo. I am so impressed by these boys. There is so much to share here but I don't know yet!

Of course Henry chose the week that Justin was gone to go to every morning football workout. I took him at 6am on Monday and walked a couple of miles until he was done than drove him home at 7:30. The rest of the days Sarah was kind enough to take him at 6 and go back to bed then I woke up at 7:15 to pick him up. 

Friday Erica finished her second round of swimming lessons this summer. We decided to sign her up for the the next class right away so she could pass off the breaststroke while it was all fresh in her mind. The breaststroke is no joke!

She totally dominated and don't let her tell you otherwise. She was the shortest in her class but she could beat anyone that put her up against in the pool. Plus she looked like she knew what she was doing and is a natural in the water. Next year she learns the 4th and final stroke, butterfly and how to do underwater turns which was Sarah's favorite.

Tonight or tomorrow Justin gets home from his hike. Tomorrow is Mapleton's Pioneer Day celebration which we are always excited for.