Reunion Day 1 - Provo, UT

Good morning from south of Provo, Utah.  With this many people in the cabin, the place is bustling this morning.  Little ones everywhere all wanting their breakfast.  That means they must wake EVERYONE up, including Uncle Scott.  Now this is something I definitely approve of --- let's go gang.  They have places to go and people to see -- or at least they think so.

What a great daddy/daughter shot.

After being apart for so long -- most family members just want to connect and stay close to these little treasures to get to know them.  It is absolutely heartwarming.

But I don't WANT to get dressed.  I want to feed the baby.  (He will hate this pictures years from now.)

Scott's Dad is up with us to get things settled in and Mister catches him perfectly.  What a great man.  Gotta love him.

They have several projects going on the place as a way of helping out the people who own the property.  What a great benefit to be able to use this wonderful cabin in exchange for friendship and hard work.

Our home for the weekend.  Divine, isn't it? (This is the back patio view)

Once the boys are fed and dressed, it is time to hunt wildlife.  They are boys after all.  What do you suppose they will find?

They also have to strut their stuff of course.  I mean, after all, we need to know how tough they are.  I think that by having 4 girls and 1 boy, I may have missed out on these "boy group" things.  I certainly don't remember them much -- but then again -- I am pretty old.



Let's get this party started --- first up:  Baseball.  Kyle used to play quite a bit so he throws some pitches to the nephews.

All goes really well until it is time for Jon to bat.  He swings and sends the ball smack into my car's windshield.  It doesn't break, but the look on his face is so choice.  He whipped his head around to find me and see what my reaction would be --- pretty funny.

Bekah throws some pitches to Hyrum as well, letting him attempt to hit the ball.  It's so hard to watch the bigger boys do things and not be able to keep up.  Isn't that the way it goes with all children.  "I want to play too."

The other boys appear to have been successful in their hunt.  Jared has a little lizard on his hand and they are all three delighted with their discover.  Not all three want to hold it though.  I can't stop giggling at them.

Uncle Scott has managed to snag a few 4-wheelers for the weekend and so it is lesson time.  Bekah is so excited -- she wants to be able to drive it all by herself and she is shortly rewarded with just that opportunity.  Now THIS is a happy girl.

It does open the flood gates though and soon everyone is clamoring for lessons and rides even if it means helping out with some work as well.  Soon Cassie is called in to help with the instructions and it doesn't take long before Jon is driving as well.

It is time to feed the crew again and Mister tries to take a "girls" picture.  What's up Becca?  You are okay with a soaking wet shot but not a kitchen one?  Oh well.

No one stays inside for long.  It is way too wonderful outside.  The porch is amazing and a perfect place to contain the little ones.  It is also excellent for those visits that I treasure oh so much.  When we are only able to gather together once every year or so, everyone wants the chance to have some individual time with each one of their siblings, nieces, nephews, parents, etc.  That is what makes these times so special.


Mister takes out the horseshoes and starts another round of activity.  Keeping everyone entertained takes some preparation but is well worth it.



A few people decide on a small hike to the creek.  Is this not a beautiful place?

And a beautiful baby girl.  (My baby of course.)

Once everyone returns, Uncle Matt gives himself over for some playtime.  I think everyone looks forward to these moments.  The boys all adore him and he makes a point of spending one on one time with each one.  What could be better than that?

Aunt Cassie, on the other hand, is smitten with Zyra and doesn't miss a single opportunity to have a moment with her even if it means eating her lunch on the floor.  Isn't this precious?



I have brought a craft project for the afternoon and it is finger painting!  Woohoo.  Let's see how big of a mess we can make.  Every single on of my grands except Zyra get in on the fun and soon there are brightly colored hands everywhere.  I am oh so thankful for help from the parents.  It gets just a bit overwhelming to me but I am loving it at the same time.

The kids are wanting back in the water again so a sprinkler is set up and the squirt guns reloaded.  So glad we picked them up as a back-up supply.

Aunt Cassie has also bought bubbles in a supersize and it doesn't take long for her to find playmates.  The funniest is Hyrum who has absolutely no desire to blow the bubbles but wants to chase each and every one of them down and pop them.  It is way too cute.

Even Grandpa gets in on the fun by attempting to stop the flow of bubble mix from finding its way to the ground.  What a wise and inexpensive purchase this was.  Between water guns and bubbles, we finish off the afternoon without any cries of "I'm bored."  Oh -- and add in the 4-wheelers for the older kids.  I have rarely seen Bekah off of them today.

This day is rapidly coming to a close and it is once again time to focus on food.  We are having corn on the cob tonight and Miss Elena wants to help shuck the corn.  Well alrighty then.

A movie is put in and quiet settles over the cabin.
It's time for bed but I will leave you with perhaps my favorite picture of Scott.  Enjoy and see ya tomorrow morning for more fun and memory making.

Sunrise at Grand Canyon - Bryce Canyon - Reunion Arrival

Mister crawls out of bed early in the morning to sit and watch the sun come up along with his trusty camera.  I am sure I am missing out, but this bed feels too nice and I roll over and fall back asleep.

Here is what Mister sees while I am snoozing away.  It is a reversal of last night and he watches the sun creep back down into the canyon.  It is a beautiful morning and he is in his element and able to play without worrying about taking too much time and boring me.  It would never happen, but he is always on alert when I am around and I know this is a much better moment for him.  I am so thankful for everything his dad taught him about photography -- I get to reap the benefits from it all.

A unique viewing area.

Yep, this is my Mister.  Kicking back with coffee and enjoying nature's show.  Can anyone fault him for that?

The sun is up.  Time to wake up Lady and get rolling down the road.  Still more fun to come today and we meet up with family later this afternoon for the start of the reunion.  Yay.

As we leave the Canyon, we drop down into flats in almost no time at all.  It is quite the descent.

About three hours later, we arrive at Bryce Canyon, which is evident by the start of rock formations along the highway.

As we drop down into the canyon, I realize that we have once again gained elevation without knowing it.  The walls of the canyon are deep and the most vivid array of reds and pinks that I have ever seen.

Oh -- this is just too cool.

After observing from various overlooks, I want to go down into one of the areas and see what this all looks like from below.  Let's go.

Yep, I was right.  This is incredible.  See the little path through the crevice in the picture on the right?  That is where we are going.  Well, at least that is where we are going to try and go.   I feel like the children in "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids."  Everything just keeps getting larger around me.

We don't quite make it to the bottom as I realize that I still need to hike back out and we need to get to the cabin for the reunion still.  The day is rapidly passing.  Drat.  Back up the hills we go.

This has been gorgeous to see and experience.  A memory that I will never forget.

Once we are at the top again, it is time to drive.  We take a back route through Utah, passing through Manti, which is in the middle of a huge pageant celebration and traffic around the temple is nuts.  I had wanted to stop and take a picture of it as it is a beautiful temple, but no luck.  The route takes us through many small towns and Mister is amazed that he has not seen a single bar along the way and the number of churches that dot the land is astounding.

We arrive at the cabin just in time for dinner and are so excited to meet up with everyone.  I have not been here for a couple of years, but it is just the way I remember it.  What a great setting for a family gathering.


We are the last to arrive and so our welcoming committee is in full force.  Yay!  Number one on the agenda for Mister is to meet his newest granddaughter and it doesn't take him long to have Miss Zyra in his arms.  He then moves on to Miss Elena and the bond that they have is evident.  What is it about little girls and Grandpas?

I am starving and it is time to eat.  Let's get this gang together and get the reunion started.  I mean, after all, it IS about the food right?  Before we eat though, Scott's Day, P.A., whose friend is loaning us the cabin, gives us a welcome talk and sets the rules.  Cool -- at least we are all now on the same page.  Let's eat.

Once dinner is over and kids are ready for bed, Gammy brings out a bedtime story book that she brought along and gathers her brood around her to read to them.

What a fun special moment for me and the boys.  I cannot believe how big they are all getting.  I certainly don't understand it -- I mean I am not getting any older, how is it they are?

I catch Mister and Elena playing a short time later.  Oh, I love this shot as it truly shows how much they like each other.

The kids are soon all in bed and for a brief moment, I catch most of my "big" boys together chatting.  Somewhere in there I hear Matt telling Louis that he has the "dream job" and then a ton of laughter.  This is the reason we have reunions -- moments like this.

It's been a long day -- time to get some rest.  We are sharing a room with Kyle, Rhiana, and Elena.  Guess Grandpa and I need to watch our snoring so the little one gets a chance to sleep.  Night.