Family Vacations

June has become such a busy month - but one that has been full of fun! In less than a week, we had two separate family vacations - one with each side of our family. The kids have loved spending so much time with their grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins.

On Friday, June 6th, we went to Park City and stayed at my aunt's condo with all of my family. Troy and Mary and all of their 4 kids were able to come from Idaho so that was extra special. They don't get to travel that much so we were so excited to have them come and the kids love playing with their cousins. My parents and Ammon also came from Idaho. On Saturday night, Peter and Joni were able to come from Logan and spend the night. It was really fun because we had been to Park City over Memorial Day weekend with Jeff, Shauna, and Kyler and so we knew what to expect at the beautiful condo and we knew what activities the kids would enjoy.

On Saturday, we went to the Park City Mountain Resort and did a few activities. Mike, Gavin, Alyssa, Troy, Tyler, Brandon, Grandma Debbie, and Ammon all did the Alpine Coaster. Grandma Debbie was sure a trooper doing that (Mary and I really didn't want to!). She was terrified. On the way down, she was applying those brakes and going really slow. I guess Ammon and Gavin were behind her and caught up to her quickly. They even bumped into her. Tyler and Gavin thought it was funny and were laughing at how Ammon crashed into Grandma and they had sore backs and necks. :)

After the excitement of the coaster, the little kids wanted to ride the little carousel and so we got them tickets. Troy's little girl, Kara, especially loved the ride and she was not happy when it was over. She was screaming and crying and trying to get back into the ride. It was so cute!

Grandpa Lynn then went and bought tickets for Troy, Ammon, and Mike to ride the zip line down the mountain. We thought he was just getting a ticket for Ammon, so it was cool that he got them for all the guys so they could go together. They rode the ski lift up together (long ride!) and called us when they got to the top so we knew when to watch for them at the bottom. All three of them got to ride together. Mike took the camcorder to record the whole ride. They had fun.

After the mountain adventures, we went to the Park City outlets. The kids were exhausted by then and so we didn't do too much shopping. We just hit a couple of stores and took turns watching kids while they slept or watched movies in the cars.

That night the kids had a blast in the hot tub at the condo. We didn't turn it on so it was really just luke warm, but they didn't know the difference and they thought it was so much fun. They were not happy when it was time to get out. The kids definitely formed some great memories during their Park City vacation!

On Sunday morning, we all headed to a great little park for the kids. The kids had fun playing and then Grandpa Lynn wanted to get some family pictures - so we found a way to prop up the cameras and we got some great pictures at the swing set. We also took some other cute pictures of all the kids as they played. It was a great way to end the vacation!



On Sunday afternoon, our family left for the next vacation - Zion National Park with the Henrie family! Mike's brother in law, Jack, had access to his uncle's cabin right in Zion's. (His uncle had sold it but the family was able to use it one last time). It was really nice. Grandma and Grandpa Henrie, Jack, Allison, baby Sarah, Brad, Suzanne, and Suzanne's friend - Carly were all there for the adventure. We got there late Sunday night and so we quickly got settled, visited, and went to bed.

On Monday, we got up early for a yummy breakfast prepared by Brad and Suzanne (pancakes and bacon) and then lunches were made and packed for the great hike. Mike, Jack, Allison, Brad, Suzanne, and Carly all were adventurous and took on the Subway Hike. Grandpa Henrie was going to go but had hurt his ankle the week before. I guess it ended up being a pretty hard hike so it was good he didn't try to go. They hiked 9 miles and were gone for well over 7 hours. I will have to have Mike post more about the hike. They were so tired when they got home and it sounded like they had quite the adventure. While they hiked, Gavin, Alyssa, and Rylan had fun playing with some of their new outdoor toys we had bought and also going on little hikes with Grandpa Henrie. It was so nice of him to take the kids. I certainly didn't want to be out in the heat!

On Tuesday we took it pretty easy. Grandma and Grandpa Henrie made delicious omelets for breakfast. Mike was so sore and tired from the hike. We did take our kids on a little hike and that was good enough for me. We weren't far from the cabin when dramatic Alyssa would proclaim "I can't walk another step....I am exhausted!" Oh brother! We hiked over to the rocks and the kids loved climbing around on them and looking for lizards. Rylan could hardly stand hiking and being contained in the Kelty pack, but once we let him out for a climb, he was in heaven. That little boy LOVES to be outside and he doesn't seem to be afraid of anything. He even loved the snake we kept finding around the cabin.

On Wednesday, we got up, ate a yummy breakfast burrito that Jack and Allison made and we packed up to head home. We borrowed the Zion's pass from Jack and Allison and we took our kids into the park to see the sites and to ride the shuttle. They had fun. The shuttle is a great idea! We went on a small hike to see the Weeping Rocks and the kids thought that was great. We didn't leave Zion's until 2 so we had a long drive home with all of those stops necessary for 3 kids!



The kids were pretty good for all the traveling we did! It was such a great kick-off to the summer to have such fun vacations with both sides of the family. The experiences we shared and the memories we formed are priceless!