"It's like riding a bicycle..."

I found out today there is truth behind this saying. This morning we went to REI to look at a bike for Holly. I think this was the first time I had ever seen her ride a bike (10 years is a long time), at least one not stuck in front of a tv at the YMCA. Here is a picture. She did pretty well on a test drive in the parking lot.

10 Years!

Happy Anniversary Fletcher!

Picnic

Tonight Justin met me and the kids at the park. He brought Pizza Hut for dinner. The girls and I agreed that Pizza Hut pales in comparison to Papa John’s (I’m pretty sure Jason also agreed); nevertheless, we were grateful for the greasy grubb.

We have an amazing view of Mt. Rainier from our house and the weather was perfect!

After we ate, the kids did their thing, while I started my third book this week (very unlike me, but that’s what happens when all the books you’ve placed holds on come in at the same time).

Abigail was excited to show us how much she’s improved on the bars. I was very impressed that she can do a flip while hanging on to the bar.

Jason was just excited to be outside.

Sharing

(Jason would now like to trade in all his binkies for ring pops)

More from Utah

Another highlight of our trip to Utah was spending the day on Antelope Island. Apparently we visited Antelope Island every year when I was a child, but because my memory totally stinks, it was a new adventure to me. It was really beautiful.

The Great Salt Lake was absolutely still so the mountains reflected perfectly on the water.

We walked around an old cattle ranch. It was fun to walk through the old buildings and see all the old equipment and appliances they used. Our wildlife sightings included bison, antelope, rabbits, birds and horses. Jason enjoyed playing with a large beetle we found on our hike (please send me that picture B).

Jason really wanted to go play with the bison

We let him play with this one instead


We also hiked up Buffalo Point.

The older kids reached the top of the mountain first


The kids participated in a city-sponsored Easter egg hunt on Saturday.

This is basically the extent of Jason’s egg gathering this year – not too interested


The girls also participated in the Easter Dive at the local aquatic center.

Abigail loved playing in the pool afterward with her cousins


Easter Sunday was a beautiful day. After church we had a delicious dinner at my sister’s house. The kids participated in their third Easter egg hunt. I think we hid as many eggs for our 11 kids as the city did. Most of the kids’ baskets were overflowing. Once again Jason completely missed the idea of gathering eggs... maybe next year he'll catch on.

Jason was much more interested in eating candy

Carly’s basket was heavy even without any Easter eggs.

Being the outdoorsman that he is, Jason spent the majority of the afternoon and evening playing outside under the watchful eye of his sisters and cousins. That’s one of the great things about having a big family - lots of people to play with. I seriously saw very little of my kids this past week.

A bonding moment between Jason and his cousin Griffin

My brother in Iowa made a last minute decision to come to Utah for Easter weekend so we had all six siblings together. The only family members missing were three of my nieces – we sure missed seeing them!

The kids and their loot

We broke out the Wii Fit for a little entertainment/embarrassment. The ridiculous contraption gave me a Wii Fit age of 44, three years older than my not-so-little little brother and 11 years older than my "overweight" husband... what's up with that!?!

Justin ski-jumping

The adults also played a little badminton. I can't say I'm any good, but I had a blast and I'm looking for someone to play tennis with me - anyone game?

Great action shot Justin – I think I even hit this one!

Spending Easter with family was wonderful. Of course the true reason for the holiday is to remember the sacrifice of our Savior, this is a wonderful video clip. As we tucked the girls into bed Sunday night Abigail teared up as she expressed how sad she feels every time she has to say good-bye to our family. We sure miss them! Thanks for the great time!

Thus Far...

After nearly 14 hours in the car we arrived in Utah late Friday night. Because of snow storms we took an even longer route through Portland in order to avoid having to put chains on the van. The kids did amazingly well during the long drive, they have much more patience than me. Jason didn't lose it even once (however, he did lose his lunch) - that's always fun.

Saturday morning arrived way too soon as me and my Mom took an early train to SLC to attend the first session of General Conference at the Conference Center. Neither of us had been before. It was a neat experience to hear from the leaders of our church. After a quick lunch at Z'Tejas we heading back home in time for Justin to attend the Priesthood meeting in Salt Lake. Sunday was another full day of conference, but it was enjoyable to watch it on TV, in my PJs, surrounded by family. Lots of great talks.

I can't believe we're already nearing the end of our visit. The kids can't get enough of their cousins. My younger brother and his family are living with my Mom so there's always someone for the kids to play with. We've had some fun outings this week.

We took the kids to the Dinosaur Park

After the Dinosaur Park we visited my Dad's grave.

Girls night out with my sisters (and sister-in-laws) at the Melting Pot was lots of fun and super delicious... thanks Mom!!

Another first for me was visiting the Hill Air Force Base Museum. I can't say I have much interest in history or airplanes, but I wanted my kids to see the place where my Dad enjoyed volunteering as a tour guide for many years. In a way it was sad to be there and I felt regret that I never showed any interest in something my Dad enjoyed so much. He loved showing the planes to kids and was a favorite tour guide among all that visited. Despite my disinterest in history I wish my Dad could have told us every boring detail about each and every airplane in the museum.


I hadn't been back to my childhood home in five years so we decided to drive through my old neighborhood. Things certainly have changed. The owners of the house removed most of the trees I grew up playing around and put in a huge RV pad. My Dad's flower garden (we called it his "park") has been torn out for the new pool they are putting in the backyard. The deck we watched lightening storms and the sunset over the Great Salt Lake has been removed. Strange to see. Someday I'd really like to go back inside even though I know walls have been removed and little would resemble the place I called home for over 25 years.


Today we took all the kids to see Monsters vs. Aliens at the theatre. Abigail described it as "ok"... it was entertaining, but certainly not a DVD we will purchase. This was Jason's first time at a movie theatre - he did great.Of course there's been lots of eating out, running errands, and spending time with friends and family. Good times.