Ross Lake backpacking trip

 

 

 Our last family vacation before Kayla went to college last summer was our Ross lake backpacking trip. Mike and I had dreamed of backpacking with all our kids someday. He has taken the girls several times but we had never been all together.

Max was 7 and old enough to carry his own pack and walk the whole way. We hikes straight down a hill to the boat launch and rented 2 motor boats. From there we could explore the islands and find a place to camp. We only stayed one night. It was so fun to have no outside contact with anyone.

I actually enjoyed this way more than car camping. The food was very simple and you don't bring a ton of extra stuff. Max loved exploring the woods and throwing rocks in the lake. The kids and I built an awesome fire.

We found and ate a lot of huckleberries. We had filtered water bottles that we filled in the river.

We made a lot of ready to eat foods.  It was fun trying all the different foods. Some were better than others. The jiffy pop was everyone's favorite.

Everyone got the chance to steer the boat around the lake as we explored. We saw eagles nests and waterfalls,

We had a great time being together as a family. I loved this new adventure. I think all of us want to do it again next year. We want to try and stay 2 nights next time.

20th wedding anniversary

 

In November2013 we celebrated our 20 wedding anniversary by going to Maui.
We stayed in a condo for 3 days and then the last 3 days we stayed at The Grand Wailea Hotel.

While we were at the condo, we explored many beaches. Small McKenna beach was my favorite. We also drove out to the old Lava flows. We snorkeled and sat at beaches for hours talking and laughing. Sometimes we would just sit in silence and let the beauty sink in. We tried several local restaurants. Mikes brother and his wife Jaimee have their anniversary the same week as ours. On our last day in Hawaii, we met them for dinner and hung with them for the night.

 

 The last few days we stayed at the Grande Wailea we decided to stay on the property and enjoy the beautiful hotel grounds and the awesome service. I loved being served food and drinks at the pool. We played on the water slides and in the pools. We walked the board walk and looked at all the amazing hotels on the beach. We went snorkeling and almost died when Mike took me over some shallow rocks and we got stuck in the waves.

Through the years Mike has always made it a priority to get away alone without the kids at least one time a year. This has been so good for us to be away from the our jobs and daily life to remember why we love each other and just have fun together. I can't wait for our next vacation together!

                                   

                                    

                                    

College for a weekend

In March, I spent a weekend with Kayla in her dorm room at BYU. It was so fun to visit her and see how she lives there. We ate at some of the places on campus she eats at often. We went grocery shopping. We shopped for new clothes for Kayla. We went to the MOA(museum of art) on campus. 

                                 

They have Carl Blochs religious art on display. It was beautiful to see these paintings up close. They are from museums and churches in Europe on loan this one and only time.

We stayed up way too late (4 am) every night talking with her friends and roommates. Kayla has made some really great friends. I loved being with her!

                                     


It was fun watching her interact with her friends. We went to her college ward on Sunday. I never went to BYU for college so it was fun for me to live there for 3 days.

 

 

I got to meet my new niece Kloe. She was so much fun and so happy. I loved seeing my other nieces and nephews living in Utah. It was great visiting with family and laughing and eating yummy Venezuelan food together.

 

                             

 

                            
                            

 

 The weather was beautiful the whole weekend. Most of the students were in flip flops and shorts already. It was great to be with Kayla for the weekend. We laughed a lot and I loved meeting her friends. She has grown up so much this year living on her own. I am so proud of her and the decisions she is making in her life.