We hiked up to see the Rocky Mouth Falls in Sandy and found lots of fun stuff along the way. Some friends and some family came with us. It was a party.
There were a few ropes leading from the first falls to the second, so the kids could climb up and down.
Lullaby caught a grasshopper for Declan, but then he didn't want it.
Then to see Great Grandma and Great Grandpa Berg for some fruit picking. They had blackberries, apricots, apples and plums ready. Yum!
The kids got some old clothes from Auntie Steph and her kids. It was like Christmas for them digging through the clothes, thanks Steph!
Friends over for a Lego video game.
Paul ordered the kids some hiking backpacks and tents and every other camping thing he could think of. Most came all at the same time.
My hair started to fade really nicely.
Pickleball with friends at Patriot Park. So fun, even in the heat.
First day of school! 2020 was a weird year and masks were mandated because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The kids still wanted to try out public school, and it was nice to have a shortened day, every day, to ease them back into public schooling. This was Lullaby's first year ever going to public school. So fun! Matix started 6th, Hawk 5th, Lulli 3rd, and Solace 1st.
Paul rode with them down that first day. The school is so close they can ride or walk, which is very nice.
Then I drove down to make sure they got to the right places. Solace was SO excited! He even saw some neighborhood friends there.
Lullaby was apprehensive but happy.
Hawk was calm as ever, he had planned for this day for a week.
Matix was more nervous than I would have guessed, but asked for a hug and kiss before I left, so not too cool for school.
Hawken with his best friend Jonny.
Solace with his friend Jace who lives across the street.
When it was time to get home, Swishy and I waited outside. It was a long wait. It's a lot harder going UP hill, than down.
Here they come! Tired and hot with a million fun stories to tell me.
Date day with my favorite guy. We almost bought a $3,000 light fixture by accident, but we DID buy some treats and headed home.
We traded in our perfect for Hawaii van, to get a perfect for Utah SUV.
This boy always has a book in his hands. He is a voracious reader.
Friends over for a cereal snack after school. Yum!
Birthday flowers, so pretty!
Went to the park with our friends, the Harmers. So fun!
Picture of the kids arriving at school, FIRST, then what the bike rack looked like later that day. Can you tell that most kids here bring themselves to school?
Twisted Sugar date with a new friend, Heidi. She's pretty great.
Soda pop shops are really popular here. Our church even did a joke one for a Relief Society activity. So silly, and fun.
Hawken still loves to do his schoolwork in weird places. Why not?
We invited the Hunts over to celebrate Amy doing well on one of her hardest tests. I made her some cookies and we watched some Mandolorian on the big screen in the theater room.
We took Mason with us for a fun day at Splash Summit. We had season passes there and used it a lot!
Naps during the day rarely happen in this house anymore, but on especially busy, sun filled days like this, naps are a must. Sweet thing.
We finished reading "The One and Only Ivan" and found out he was a real gorilla that lived in Georgia at the zoo when we lived there so many years ago! Wow! So fun to go back through the blog and see some pictures of the real guy!
Walking to and from school with friends seems so dreamy to me. What a lovely childhood memory these kids will have.
We bought a little pop up tent trailer and Paul got right to work fixing it up and making it work more functionally for us.
Lullaby asked for a dress for her birthday and got to design it with the help of Grandma Kim's little dress up paper dolls. She had so much fun with that project!
Swishy's first backpacking trip went pretty well! We weren't sure he'd like it, but he did. It was a lot colder up in the mountains.
The hike wasn't too long, but it was long enough that it started getting dark and we had to hike with headlamps and flashlights! Wow!
We found our spot and set up camp. Building tents in the dark is harder than in the light, but we did it. The kids all had a treat, and we went to bed.
It was a very cold night and I was freezing, but the lovely morning made it worth it. Paul and I sleep in a two man tent, while the kids sleep in a four man.
Breakfast on the rocks for this guy.
Hawks favorite thing about camping is building a fire. He LOVES it.
Then s'mores after breakfast. Why not?
Wall Lake was stunning! We couldn't get over the views!
Even though the air was pretty cold, and the water was even colder, these weirdos wanted to get in.
Lullaby thought about getting in, but cliff jumping didn't appeal to her that day. So she gathered flowers and I made her a crown.
Paul wanted to get in on the photoshoot, so he did some of his own poses. Ha haha.
Swishy and I attempted a nap, which didn't work, and then we packed up and headed back down the mountain. The three oldest each carried their own food, water, sleeping bag, towel, clothes, and lights. Solace carried his own food and water. We were very happy with their hard work and effort!
On the way down the mountain, we scouted out another spot we want to try sometime.
Ethan got an electric scooter and buzzed up to our house to show the kids. They thought it was really cool.
Out with the old and in with the new light!
Whiskey and Snow Baby love each other now. So sweet.
Mowing the lawn with a push mower is no ones favorite thing to do. But the kids are good to do hard things.
Dinner with some of the kids friends who told me I must be a chef. Well... Thank you!
The playroom is becoming just a Lego room, and everyone is happy about it.
Whiskey snuggling with Solace in bed, so sweet. His bedtime is 30 minutes before the big boys, so he doesn't mind the company.
More work on the popup tent trailer.
Lunch with an old Hawaii friend, Kara, who lives in Utah now too. So fun to catch up, although we are all sad we don't live in Hawaii.
Checking out the hot springs down the road from us. This is what our town was named after. They were really HOT!
We followed the river leaking from pond to Utah Lake and the kids played in the mud for a while.
New hair, although I really loved the rainbow...
Blue hair was just what I wanted. Yes please.
We went for a little weekend adventure to visit the hot springs in Meadow Utah. We brought the pop up tent trailer and Swishy and had the best time. We had it mostly to ourselves and "camped" right next to one of the pools. We got there at night and swam a little bit, but were so happy to wake up to the view in the morning. We had no idea!
This was our set up, which worked perfectly.
The pool was hot enough and the air was cold enough that we could see steam rising from it. Lovely!
Sometimes Paul wins for best morning hair.
S'mores for breakfast, of course.
Then we ventured around to find the other pools. What a great experience! The kids found treasures of coins, rings, beads and even a bullet!
After a while, we weren't the only ones there, but everyone was very friendly.
