Hitting a few "musts" in SLC

Nate's Mom had the best idea for something fun to do with the kids. We went to the downtown library in Salt Lake City. It is such a great place to go! So much fun. The kids checked out two big bags full of books!
Riding in the glass elevator was fun too, of course.

One of our favorite places to go eat in SLC is The Bakery. It has a longer name, but we just call it "the bakery." That's a lot easier, don't you think? We had sandwiches, dessert and just enjoyed reminiscing. Nate used to eat there almost every day (it was really close to his work building there). The waitresses still remember him! Hey, can you blame them? He's pretty charming, in my humble opinion.
The kids were a little disappointed there weren't any "porcupines" or "mice" to eat, but mini-cupcakes cheered them up rather quickly!

We HAD to go to Farmer's Market on Saturday (before heading up to Snowbird). We enjoyed strolling through the park, checking out the fresh, local produce, the pastries, and all the stands that were selling unique, handmade jewelry, clothes, and other knick-knacks of all kinds.
We bought and enjoyed fresh cherries and the girls each picked out a souvenir (parasols). It brought back great memories of when we lived there (we'd try to go to Farmer's Market every Saturday while it was open).

Days of '47 Rodeo

We (our fam, Nate's parents & brother Thabo, Nate's sister, Brittany & hubby Jac, along with their cute kids Emery, Ethan & Preston) all got to go to the "Days of '47 Rodeo" together in Ogden, Utah on Pioneer Day (July 24th).

Our kids were still tired from our travels the day before. The drive to Ogden helped them a bit. See what I mean?
This is not something we see everyday (well, not usually anyway).

We found a spot in the bleachers where we could all sit together. It was quite hot until the sun went down! But not humid, at least. Then, we were rewarded with COOLER weather when the sun went down. That was nice!

Things started off with several parachuters coming in for a landing right in the middle of the rodeo ring. I thought the American flag hanging from one of them was impressive! When he landed, there were guys there to catch it so it didn't touch the ground at all! The kids enjoyed watching the show and being with their family. We all did!

It was a long show! We actually ended up leaving a little early because the kids had had enough! But, hey...we beat the crowds! Thank you Mom & Dad for a great time!

Pioneer Day in Utah

Nate's Aunt Kathy & Uncle Todd and Aunt Stephanie & Uncle David live just up the street from his parents. Their neighborhood had a Pioneer Day celebration on the morning of July 24th. We all went and had such fun! There were snow cones, face painting, games, water fun, a fire truck, music, a watermelon eating contest, and lots of other activities. Want to know the best part? Seeing more family! It was so great to see all of them!

The kids had the best time!

{isn't that the cutest zebra, and cheetah that you've ever seen?}

Our Utah trip (uh, the first of MANY posts)

In July, we were fortunate enough to get to travel to Utah to visit with Nate's family. We had such a wonderful time, of course!

We booked a morning flight, but not too early. The problem with that was that our original flight was canceled, and we got "bumped" to another flight (a much EARLIER flight). We had to get up at 4:00 that morning...yikes! But, it was an adventure! And, it included donuts at the airport. Mmmmm! ;)

We relaxed at Nate's parents for a while, hoping to get the kids to rest. They were too excited though. Then, we were off to see Nate's grandparents. What happened on the way there?

{Yep, they all passed out. Even Julia!}
Nate's brother, Thabo, didn't fall asleep though. :)

We had a wonderful visit with Grandma and Grandpa Tanner! We talked, sat outside and let the kids play while we talked some more and enjoyed their beautiful garden.

The kids had a great time playing.
An important part of visiting G'ma & G'pa Tanner, is getting to play in the "toy drawer." It's definitely a tradition that has been in place for years (they are great-grandparents, after all). Nate remembers playing in it when he was a kid!

See what I mean about beautiful garden? Check out that view you have, just sitting in their backyard!

We love you Grandma and Grandpa! Thank you for a lovely day!

You know, growing up, I never had a grandpa. Mine both passed away long before I was born. When I married Nate, his grandparents treated me as one of their own from day one (even before we were married actually). They are such sweet people and I'm so fortunate to have them in my life. I'm so glad to have another grandma (a sweet, wonderful grandma), and to finally know what it's like to have a grandpa...especially one like Grandpa Tanner. He's an incredible person!

Summer is a time...

...for visiting with family.

My Mom, brother, and sister all came out for the family reunion in June. We, of course, had opportunities to visit with each other and nearby family as well. It was so nice to have them here! Thanks for making the trip, my loved ones! I wish my Dad could've come too. Maybe one of these times, eh Dad? Grandma too!

My sister stayed a couple extra days after the reunion to visit. We, of course, had to keep our tradition (of every time we see each other) and go out for sushi. It was yummy as ever!

Kara, you don't look too happy? Okay, sorry I snapped your picture while you were trying to eat (and then posted it on my blog - teehee).

After one of Julia's swim meets, we went to the nearby town center, walked around, ate pizza and ice cream, and enjoyed the fun of the fountain. Simon started trying to take his shirt off to swim in it! It was so cute! It was also quite cute when he climbed up and sat on the bench, all by himself.

But really, what beats this? CUTE, CUTE, CUTE!
I love those kids of mine!

Mom, Andrew and I got to visit with Aunt Myrtle (and our cousins Austin, Conner and Brandi were there too). It was a lot of fun to visit, play, and catch up. We also made the trip to see my Aunt Laura. She was doing well and we had a really nice visit.

Me and my Mom.
I miss her! I sure wish we lived closer to each other! Someday, I think we will. She's from Texas and wants to retire here. So, it looks promising!

We got to go out to sushi too! It's a tradition with us as well (ever since Kara and I got her to try it and like it).

At my brother's request, we got to eat at "Love and War in Texas." Yummy food! Fun atmosphere! We all had fun tying our napkins around our necks so we could look like cowboys and cowgirls! I couldn't, for the life of me, get a good picture of Andrew. He kept making faces every time. Silly, silly guy!

We look forward to when we'll get to spend time with all our family again!
Love y'all!

Fourth of July Festivities

On July 4th, friends from church invited everyone (yes, I mean EVERYONE from church) over to their house to enjoy their neighborhood 4th of July celebration. We got to do it last year and it's spectacular. BBQ grilling, with potluck side dishes & desserts, swimming, and fireworks right in their backyard (almost). It was a great evening!

The next day, we weren't quite ready to give up the celebration. We got together with some friends and had a fantastic meal of ribs (courtesy Nate on the Big Green Egg), baked potatoes (with an amazing potato topping to go on it), yummy side dishes (Lori's yummy beans), salad and homemade rolls. Of course, the kids LOVED the fantastic American flag dessert. Christine makes it every year (it's tradition in her family). The meal was so YUMMY! Everyone enjoyed it immensely!

I'm always thankful for the opportunities I have as a US citizen. Thank you to those who fight for our freedom! I saw a bumper sticker recently that read, "Home of the free, thanks to the brave." Fitting, isn't it?

Swim Team

Julia participated in our neighborhood summer league swim team again this summer. She did great and we're so proud of her! Her favorite stroke is breaststroke and it's her best too! Every week they would have a swim meet and she'd participate in the freestyle relay, freestyle, backstroke and breaststroke. She even "swam up" with the 7 & 8-year-olds sometimes in their relay when they needed her. It was always a big meet with all the summer league teams there. She got third place in breaststroke a couple of times and she was very happy about that...there are a lot of kids in those events!

She likes it and looks forward to swimming on the team again next summer. For now, we look forward to soccer!

Check her out...

Her last meet of the season. (Each time, she's in the lane where I'm standing nearby, in the bright blue shirt).

Freestyle:


Backstroke:



Breaststroke (she was in the last/fastest heat!):


Liliana can't wait to do it too! She's such a fish; I think she'll be doing it next summer!


I'm proud of my little swimmers. It just tickles me pink that they like to swim as much as I did as a kid (and as a teenager, and as a young adult, and as an adult, etc.). :)

Baseball anyone?

One night during the summer, we went over to our friends' (the Ellsworth's) house and played baseball in their culdesac. We found out Liliana has a knack for it! It was so much fun!
Of course, Simon had fun playing with cars! :)

Swimming

Want to know what we did all summer? Mostly, this...

...and enjoyed every second of it! We love to swim! We enjoyed many a day at our neighborhood pool, or, as pictured here, at our friend Stacy's pool! Thank you Stacy!

My Family Reunion (from WAY back in June)

Every summer, my mom's side of the family has a reunion in Sweetwater, TX. We like to go and see my aunts, uncles & cousins. Its fun for the kids and there is always a lot of good food!

The adults like to catch up with one another while the kids play in the dirt pile, off at the "castle" or in water (in some shape or form).

{The girls with Uncle Durwood and Aunt Lou; some of that good food I mentioned; Simon with Uncle Freddie, and another pic of him enjoyed the fish fry. }

The kids had fun on the blow-up water slide that was rented for Saturday. There are lots of ways to (try to) stay cool from the hot, Texas sun! Namely, WATER and SHADE! They even had a golf cart on hand to drive people up to the bathrooms! :) Nate and Liliana had a fun time playing cards together too!

This is the "Morrison Cook Shack." It is an RV, converted into a kitchen. Isn't that awesome?! It sure makes preparing food and such a whole lot easier!

It was so great to see everyone!

I'm particularly thankful we all got to see our cousin, Denny there that weekend. He passed away not long after the reunion. We will all miss his quiet way and sweet caring spirit. It makes me that much more appreciative of the efforts everyone goes to so that we can have our family reunion each year. Family is so important to me!

Backlog bloggin'

Way back in June there was this fantastic Sunday...

...known as
Father's Day

I made Nate breakfast in bed (a yummy baked blueberry pecan French toast with homemade blueberry syrup - recipe courtesy my gourmet friend Christine). It was delish!

Nate got to lie around in bed all morning and read/relax/nap. We got him some clothes and the girls really wanted to get him a tie. I know, I know, it seems cliche', but they really wanted to, so I let them pick one out...all by themselves. Turns out, it was a great tie. Nate loved it! Of course he also loved the cards the girls made him.

I know it doesn't seem right, but he grilled our steaks for that night (and the potatoes too). But, have I ever mentioned how much he loves to grill? It was a great day...fit for our deserving Nate, the super-dad.

Breaking Dawn

The fourth and final book in the Twilight saga came out on Saturday. I finished devouring it, little by little, yesterday. I don't want to spoil anything for anyone else who might be reading it, so all I'm going to say is that...

I loved it!



What did you think?