We took 2 days to drive to Bear Lake, where Mike's cousin was getting married. Our camera broke after the first couple pictures, so I relied on others and their cameras for the duration of the trip.
Bear Lake was beautiful, and I loved having my own family there after so many years of having Johnson reunions there. The highlight for me, though, was learning how to surf behind Mike's uncle's boat. I was in heaven!!
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| Mariah, Jessie, and Avery |
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| Sally & Avery |
We drove from Bear Lake to Grandma Jody and Grandpa Ray's (my grandparents) house, where we stayed for the Johnson half of our stay. The girls loved spending time with their great grandparents (isn't she beautiful?), and playing in their amazing backyard!
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| helping Grandma Jody get the moss out of the pond |
We spent the mornings at Grandma Orva and Grandpa Pauls, where the girls got reacquainted with some of their cousins.
The very first thing Elaine did was have her cousin, Shayne, fix her hair. Beautiful!
Probably a good thing I didn't witness these battles. Note to self: never engage Mariah in a sword fight.
Elaine kept things a bit more docile.
Grandpa Paul read "Skippy John Jones" to the grandkids.
Sally wanted to "hold the baby."
Almost every afternoon, we headed to my aunt's house to swim. I was again convinced of my need for daily pool access. The girls started out a bit timid, but were little fish after just a few days!
I know she's cut off and blurry, but how could I not post that face? She's headed up the slide.
Sal spent a lot of time playing with the golf balls that periodically come over the fence.
Playing with Uncle David.
This is my favorite, taken right before she landed on her cousins. (No one was hurt or sad.)
Elaine's first time down the slide by herself.
She liked it.
Conked out on the way home to Grandma Shaunna and Grandpa Jim's, where we stayed for the second half of our trip.
We took a morning trip up Provo Canyon to South Fork. I have so many fond memories of that park. One of my favorite places in the world.
Mariah wanted to "hike up the mountain," so away we went, just the 2 of us. She was a trooper, and getting back down the steep hill was a great exercise for her in trusting me.
She saw this butterfly and needed a picture.
We met up with Hirschis for lunch, and the girls did a little toe dipping in the freezing river. (They take after their mother. If there's water, we must go in.)
As soon as we got to Grandma Shaunna's, the girls picked up where they left off months before--playing with Grandma and Cami.
After a couple days of being at Georges', I went with my parents to my cousin's wedding in California. I had an amazing 5-day break from motherhood (not that I don't love my kids) and got to be the resident chef for the wedding guests. Loved it!
My mom and aunt (whose daughter was getting married) and another aunt (not pictured) spent hours and hours re-organizing my aunt's kitchen. I love seeing my mom with her sisters.
The wedding was in the Oakland Temple. Beautiful! From the grounds, you can see the Golden Gate Bridge. There's a plaque there about the Ship Brooklyn. I learned that some of my ancestors (Julius and Octavia Austin and their children) were on it when it sailed into San Francisco.
While I took a little vacation, my children were in very good hands. Mariah commented when I told them I was leaving for 5 days, "I wish you and Daddy were going to California. Then we'd REALLY have fun!"
I took some pics of Mike's brother's awesome art skills.
I watched him sketch this in minutes!
And this is how Oklahoma greeted us upon our return. (We decided to make the trip in 1 day instead of 2. Made for a long day of driving (mostly for Mike), but I think we both preferred it over the hassle of a hotel room and food for 2 days.)
