The Dougall Daily: Summer 2012: Week 7

Thursday, August 30, 2012

Summer 2012: Week 7

With three weeks of (wonderful) vacation to catch up on, my best bet for remembering all the great times is to give the play by play....

Warning... the following will be long, wordy posts with way too many photos.

But the alternative was to post 18 separate posts and the long posts won out.

{Monday} Still in Oregon

We enjoyed an awesome FHE with cousins.

Our family all rode bikes to the high school where we met Geoff's family for a friendly (for most of us), competitive (for Cason) game of kickball.

I guess we can chalk it up to having too much fun for photos, because no photos were taken.

Or maybe it was the fact that I was riding my 9 year old's bike and wearing my 11 year old's helmet that deterred any photos being taken. Some things ought not be documented.

{Tuesday} Packing & Departure

We hit the road at about 6:30 p.m.

Stop #1: post office

Stop #2: Rich's office to pick up the forgotten laptop cord.

Stop #3: dinner grabbed to be eaten on the road

Along the way I had the realization that I forgot to pack my swimsuit...but there was simply no going back!

We hit the road with a 12 hour drive ahead of us and high hopes that the kids would sleep through the night.

{Wednesday} Utah: Boppa & Diyah

Turns out that the kids don't really sleep in the car.

But they were quiet!

We arrived to my parents home in time for breakfast and then it was time for Rich and I to get a nap!

Thanks dad for keeping the kids entertained.

We showed some political muscle that evening by braving the lines (thanks mom) in support of Chick-fil-A

and then we hit Paces Dairy Ann for our after dinner RAINBOWS! (think slurpee meet soft serve)

Before heading home we stopped by and visited uncle David in his new residence.

Day one of vacation was complete and we had set the busy pace which we would continue to keep for the next 19 days!

{Thursday} Utah: aunt Julie & uncle Scott

We set off to Salt Lake City shortly after breakfast.

Rich had a lunch meeting (rave reviews to Mi La Cai Noodle House) and the kids and I used that time to explore the new City Creek Center. The shopping would have been more fun had I not been manhandling four kids on my own, in sweltering humidity, with two blisters on the feet of one child which left him physically incapable of walking.

Come evening Julie was all entertainment! We swam...

We ate street tacos (and burritos) at the taco trifecta on State...

and we enjoyed some seriously yummy yo-nana creations after it got too dark to continue baseball at the school grounds...

Thanks Julie and Scott!

{Friday} Utah: aunt Emily & uncle Jay

South to Provo to enjoy more time in Utah with more family.
Rich was off to another lunch appointment while the kids enjoyed swimming at Jay's parents pool.

We reconnected with Rich on BYU campus and spent the afternoon exploring the campus, shopping at the bookstore and taking a tour through Legacy Hall.

Our tour landed us out on the football practice field during practice which is nearly unheard of...thank goodness our kids had newly purchased BYU football t's to wear.

Our tour was just wrapping up with Rich recognized Chad Lewis and stopped to meet him and we captured this photo.

We ended the afternoon with some much anticipated ice cream treats from The Creamery.

That evening found us in Spanish Fork to attend Caroline Buck's baptism. I wish we had a photo of Caroline's gigantic smile that evening!
My smile was probably nearly as big at seeing our dear friends from Vegas again!

{Saturday} Utah: aunt Emily & uncle Jay Day #2
We enjoyed a beautiful morning hike with Emily and Jay up Provo Canyon to Stewart Falls.

Our afternoon was spent giving tired kids (much needed) naps and quiet time.

Our evening plans to attend an outdoor movie on campus were skipped in favor of more swimming at Jay's parents home (until after dark) and running through the yard's irrigation.