Heber Valley Campout with the Youth

I had the opportunity to go to Heber Valley Camp with the youth in our ward the day after getting back from our vacation. 

I pretty much had everything ready before we left for our trip so that I wasn't stressing out after we got back.  Tony and I did decide to buy a couple more warmer sleeping bags because we weren't sure how warm the cabins were going to be, and we didn't want any of us to get cold at night.

We packed up all our supplies into our van and then met everyone at the church.  We were able to add a couple more things into our van and three more kids.  Then four cars full of kids and leaders drove up to Heber.  

I was a little nervous driving to Heber in my van with the snow on the ground.  But I didn't have any problems driving up there and parking in the lot.  The missionaries met us there and we loaded all of our stuff and people into their trailers and snow vehicles.  

We unloaded everything into our cabins and got all settled in.  We then got all ready to go sledding.  We found a nice hill that many went down, but not me.  It had a big bump on it, and I didn't want to break myself.  I walked over to where the sledders were coming down so I could take pictures.  I thought I was out of the way of the sledders but ended up getting plowed down by the bishop when he came down the hill.  Luckily neither of us got hurt too bad.  I only ended up with a super cool bruise on the leg.  

We then everyone moved to the road, and we got the snow all packed down. I was able to figure out how I could go down best for me.  It sure was fun. I would either start on my tummy and then go down on my knees on the sled or start on my knees and then use the handles to stir.  

We then prepared dinner.  Walking tacos for everyone.  The bishop had most things prepared from his house, so we just had to put it all out and warm up the meat.  We brought camping chairs to sit in and we had a lovely, covered patio area with a kitchen area and a bathroom around the corner that was heated.  

After dinner, we went sledding some more.  Tyler and Megan did a lot of sledding and seemed to really like it.  Josh liked to bury himself in the snow.  He did do a little sledding after dinner but then ran into a tree and didn't want to sled anymore. I had fun sledding until I started crashing into the side of the road.  One time the bishop crashed into me after I crashed into the side of the road, and I hit my head pretty hard.  I only went a couple more times before deciding that I should probably stop before I really hurt myself.

As people had enough of sledding, they moved into the cabins or warmed up around the fire.  The dudes did a great job keeping the fire going and it was nice hanging out around the fire.

After a decent night's sleep, we all got up and got ready.  The boys made breakfast for everyone.  Pancakes, bacon, and eggs.  After eating we had more time to go sledding.  Tyler did more sledding, but Josh, Megan, and I did not.  Megan and I mostly hung out in our cabin and Josh buried himself in the snow again.

About 10:00 am we all started cleaning up the cabins and the common areas.  The missionaries then picked us up and we had a prayer before they took us back to our cars.  It had snowed a bunch, so it was hard to get out of the parking lot.  A missionary came and helped Opie, and I drive our cars out of the parking lot.  It was a little scary driving down the mountain, but I did it and was proud of myself.  

We then had pizza in Heber City in the Little Caesars parking lot before driving back to the church.  We got all unloaded and went back home.  It was a fun time, and we were all glad that we went.

Tyler's Mission Call - Paraguay Asunción North Mission

After we got back from our trip, I baked a big sheet of brownies and a pan of peanut butter rice crispy treats to take to the church with us.

Tyler invited all the kids from seminar council to come and see him open up his call.  I invited our local family members and a few families from my ward to also come and support.

We were able to also create a Zoom meeting for those who were not able to come in person.  We had family and a few of Tyler's friends all on zoom.  Tony set up a large TV in the Relief Society room so that we could see them all.  

Tyler then told everyone about how he got his call on Monday and waited all week to open it in front of his friends and family.  He then read his call and was very excited to read Paraguay, Asuncion North Mission.  Starting July 28th and leaving for the Mexico MTC August 6th.

We were all very excited for Tyler and I am glad that he was able to open his call the way he wanted to open it.  We then let everyone have the treats that we brought.  Tyler then stayed and hung out at the church with his friends while the rest of us all went home.  It was a great evening, and we are very proud of Tyler and his decision to serve the Lord.

California Family Vacation: Day 9 & 10 - Going Home

Saturday morning, we got up and had breakfast before we packed up our stuff and loaded the van.  We then drove to Cedar City where we stayed the night.  We got lucky with the traffic going out of town and didn't have any slowdowns.  

We checked into our hotel and got all settled in.  Tony, Margie, and I then went to Walmart to pick up a few things.  After shopping we decided to just order pizza and eat it in our hotel rooms.  It was the perfect way to spend our last night of our vacation relaxing in our rooms. 

The next morning, we had a crummy breakfast and left for home.  We had no problem driving home.  Allie wanted a picture of her sitting in the bicycle rack at the gas station.  We all had such a good time on this trip, and we are very thankful to Lloyd and Margie for taking us these trips.  Many awesome memories are always made.

California Family Vacation: Day 8 - Disneyland

 

California Family Vacation: Day 7 - Break Day

This Thursday was our day off.  We let the kids sleep as long as they wanted to before getting dressed and eating breakfast.  We're not great at sleeping in, but it was a little later than we had been waking up.  

This day was very wet and rainy all day.  We decided to drive to the Disney Store Outlet.  I am glad that we did because Allie found all the souvenirs that she wanted, and they were all cheaper than in the parks.  She was a very happy little girl.  

After shopping we went to lunch at a new taco place in Anaheim.  It was pretty good.  We then went back to the hotel so that the kids could work on some homework.  After a few hours, we then took Allie and Megan down to the pool.  Tony and I enjoyed the hot tube while they swam.  It was still raining off and on, but it wasn't too bad since the pool is in the middle of the buildings so it's somewhat protected.

We then showered and hung out in our room some more.  We decided to just pick up Panda Express for dinner and eat in the room.  Allie was very happy about that.  We spent the rest of the night resting up for another fun day in the park.

California Family Vacation: Day 6 - Rainy Disneyland

This is the day we went to Disneyland in the rain.  We were well prepared with ponchos, rain jackets, and waterproof shoes.