Utah

Well, we are back from our trip to Utah. We survived the 20 hour car trip and crazy, busy schedule and had lots of fun visiting both sides of the family.

Here are the kids during our LONG car trip out there. The kids did a great job on the way out. Here are some lessons we learned on the way.
1. Disney movies are LIFE SAVERS.
2. 4 year olds always need to go potty when there is no gas station in sight.
3. Wyoming feels like it is never going to end.
But over all, we survived it!

I got there about a week and a half before Tyler did, so I had some time with my family. We kept busy shopping and entertaining the kids. Here we are just hanging out at Grandma and Papa's house. That is what Isaac's hair looks like after a nap. Luke is typing a story on the computer. That kept him entertained for quite a long time.
We took the kids on the "Heber Creeper" train, which they obviously loved. We also took them swimming, to Temple Square, for a picnic up the canyon, and to the Kangaroo Zoo, which is a really cool place with a bunch of inflatable slides and toys.

The train ride and playing at the park afterward.

At Temple Square

At the Kangaroo Zoo

My mom, my sisters, Kim and Ashley, and I also went to the Salt Lake Parade of Homes and had a lot of fun together looking at 3 million dollar homes. These homes were crazy! Our favorite one had a 14 foot swimming pool with a slide, hot tub and swim up bar, a kitchen in the basement that is bigger than my kitchen, and a theater downstairs that is a bigger than my whole basement.

My sisters

The main reason why we came to Utah was because Tyler's sister Kjerstin was getting married! It was wonderful to be in the temple with our family and see it grow and we welcome Steve into our family with open arms.

Steven and Kjerstin West- Aug. 13, 2008

I love the picture of Luke and Isaac from behind. They look so sweet! While we were waiting for all the picture taking to be done at the temple Luke found a grasshopper. He carried it around for quite awhile. I don't know why it didn't jump away sooner than it did. He named it Lucky and really wanted to take it home to be his pet. I told him it had to go home to its family, and he said that he was its family. What a funny boy! By the end of the reception, Luke was exhausted! He fell asleep on my shoulder and then wiggled away from me and found a place on the grass to sleep. I felt like doing the same thing!

We were also able to see Tyler's other sister graduate from BYU. Congrats Whitney!

This is a picture of me and my friend Tera. We were college roommates, and she really helped me survive those years. While we were in Utah, her husband, Kevin, passed away after a 6 year battle with cancer. We were able to attend his funeral on the last day we were there. It was a spirit filled meeting. I was amazed at the faith and strength that Tera and Kevin showed during this struggle. My heart and prayers go out to her and Kevin's family.

This last picture pretty much sums up how we felt after the trip. It was a fun and busy vacation. We loved being able to spend so much time with our family, but it is nice to be home. Tyler left the next day on a business trip, after staying up late finishing up a final, only to come home Friday to do another final, so his crazy, busy schedule continues. The boys and I are just trying to settle back down and recover from the cold I got the last few days of our trip. That's how you know it is time to come home!