Utah 2018: cow Appreciation Day

Utah 2018: Lawrence Reunion: Bees Baseball

My brother, Mark, got our family a sweet hookup with the Nuskin suite to a minor league baseball game. Burgers and Hot dogs and chili and fruit and snacks and sodas and churros and amazing box seats. Plus VIP parking and an air conditioned suite! It was pretty much the ideal setup for our crowd. I could get used to that kind of luxury very quickly! 

Favorite moments:

-my DAD dancing after every home run. Nothing tops that. 

-mark and Steven’s fortnite dance

-the triplets moving from lap to lap, scavenging snacks

-The announcer that sounded exactly like Jim Gaffigan’s “snooty rich guy” voice. 

-did I already mention free? Man, I am such a sucker for free fun. But really, when you have a large family, every little thing adds up, so opportunities to be spoiled like this are such a treat. 

We lasted until the 8th inning and headed out a bit early when all three toddlers fell apart. Even without getting to stay for fireworks, it still was a really fantastic evening. We loved being together. It was a perfect ending to our 17th anniversary. 

Utah 2018: The Homestead Crater

I have amazing pics from this adventure, but the twins are in almost every pic, so I can’t post them.  But even without the pics to prove it, swimming with my family in an actual crater was totally amazing! Mom, I am so proud of you for doing two very brave things in one day! 

Grandma Lynda and Grandpa Rob in Arkansas!

Utah 2018: Grandma Lynda’s

Utah 2018: Niece’s Breakfast with Aunt Meg

Per tradition, I took all the “big” girls out for breakfast. We were missing Mattisse, Audran, Madeline, Sofia, and little Sloane and Esme were still asleep when we left, but Claire and Avery joined the ranks of “big girls” this year. 

Pictured L-R: Ella, Reese, Avery, Me, Abby, Claire, Quincy, and Hanna. 

I let them order whatever they want, so some end up with a traditional breakfast, and others like Hanna, are girls after my own heart who go straight for dessserts. And here is Abby chugging a cup of straight syrup because why not? I only see these beautiful Willardson girls once a year, if that. I hope that when they’re older they’ll have good memories of a traditional girl cousin breakfast and when they are feeling particularly over sugared and carbo’d up, they’ll think of Auntie Meg.

Utah 2018: Daybreak Oquirrh Lake

The Daybreak planned community is wonderfully picturesque with darling color craftsman homes, flag bearing porches, sidewalks, and perfectly manicured landscaping. Every time we come, we take in the surrealist neighborhood with lavender scented air and evenly spaced tree lined streets. It’s like something out of a movie set. Very Newport Beach. The kids beg us to move here and we admire the beauty of it all, and then consider for a hot second if we could ever live in homes built so close to each other on lots measures in square feet instead of acres, of even fractions of acres.  It’s just not for us, but it is lovely and we love our visits here. We love our walks from grandma Lynda’s house down the street to the park, counsins’ houses, to church, to the lake, or to the temple. We love the not humid mountain air and the cool summer evenings. We love that we can sit or roll around on the weedless, chigger-free grass lawns. We love that the only bugs we’ve seen are bumblebees and butterflies. We love the adorable ducklings at the lake. We love racing boats in the little man made creekbeds and the zip line at the park by Auntie Jana’s.  I went for a run around the lake and found it so enjoyable to just go for a run right from the house without having to drive anywhere first-that is foreign to me, but I could get used to it! I love being back home so quickly!