Summer Vacation

We had been planning our summer vacation for several months and then about 4 weeks before we were supposed to leave, a friend came up to me at church and asked if I wanted to drive with her and her two kids to Utah... in three days. I COULDN'T pass that up! A chance to see my family and just hang out for a few weeks before the crazy vacationing started? Yes Please!!!

So we headed out on Wednesday, June 3. I was a little worried about being in charge of four kids 3 and under. But, her 3 year old was pretty self sufficient, and my friend has really long arms, and can reach her from the drivers seat, so she was able to give her her water and such.

We were packed in there... Two women, 4 kids, and a dog! What a story!

We drove till we couldn't drive anymore, which was half way, and then crashed in a hotel room. Unfortunately, my kids woke up way earlier than anyone would have liked. But that got us up and on the road. We made it to Utah really late (I don't remember how late... but we were all zombies) and I was so glad to be there! 

We got reacquainted with everyone (we meaning, my kids), played outside with Nana's awesome toys in her awesome back yard! Amy came over with her kids and we went on a walk. It was good to talk to her and catch up. Depending on the day/time both kids loved my mom's dog, Jazzie. 

On the weekdays we stayed with Amy, since my mom works. It was so fun to see my kids interact with their cousins!

Cambria and Shaylee are buds! They all are, but Cambria loved looking up to a girly-girl like Shaylee!

We went to the park. Corbin wasn't too excited about sharing his swing, but it makes for a cute picture!

I went to yoga class with Janelle, in the church building that Jonathan and I met each other! It was during Corbin's nap time, so about half way through I decided to take him on a walk. I went to all the rooms that had significance... It was so nostalgic! Picture a cheesy movie where they have flash-backs with the cheesy music. It was almost that good. 

We went to the museum of natural curiosity and this was the most fun my kids had. It was a little old for them (developmentally) and there were TONS of kids there. It was still fun though!

Cambria and I went to the Provo temple and walked around the temple grounds. That place holds a lot of special meaning for me too! It was crazy to walk around there and think of how far I have come since I left Provo.

a bit blurry but this captures the amount of change that happend to this boy within the three weeks I was gone. He learned how to crawl, pull himself up, and feed himself all within the time Jonathan and I were apart!

This is a crazy high rope bridge. It's at the aquarium. Cambria was super brave and walked across several times! 

petting the fish! Poor Shaylee was too short to touch anything, but she sure did try!

mom took us to the Barn at Thanksgiving point. Cambria was so brave! She wanted to touch all the animals! She litterally got about three inches away from a full size cow! And she rode a pony!

Shopping trip with the girls!!

This was a failed attempt at Cambria's first sleepover! Can you tell why? Yeah, Cambria was too excited to go to sleep. Shaylee came down several times saying that she wanted to sleep but Cambria wasn't letting her. Maybe next time she'll be old enough to understand how it works.

Any excuse to get her nails done, Amy will take it. So we went out and did our nails together! So fun!

This is the only pic I got of the three boys. Oh what fun they will have as they grow up (these boys are all born within 3 months of each other)

This is also the only pic I took of our sibling reunion. We had a first-time-ever siblings reunion and it was a BLAST! We went to Couer D'Alene Idaho and rented a cabin on a lake. Unfortunately, it was record high heat and the AC broke and the lake was gross. But we still had a blast and made some good memories.

On our way up to Alberta we stopped at the worlds largest dump truck. This is us at the tire, if that gives you any idea of how HUGE this thing is!

my boys!

In Alberta, for my Cousin Tacy's wedding! We spent a lot of time setting up, but with our family, it doesn't matter what we do, we always have a good time!

This is Cambria at the grave site of my cousin Danae, Cambria's name sake. I cried, but I don't think she quite knew what was going on, but she liked looking at her picture.

I told her before we left that she had the same name as my cousin, and her face lit up! I told her that she died, so we were going to go to the place where we can remember her. I don't think she understood but it was good for me to see her there.

I was secretly hoping that Cambria would recognize her... that she had some sort of relationship with her. Maybe she does, maybe I just can't know about it...

At the Bingham family reunion down in Idaho. These boys are 8 months apart! They are going to have a lot of fun when they grow up too!

Cambria's closest cousins her age. They were all playing on the same trailer, but I couldn't get them close enough to get  a pic. 

What a wonderful trip! We drove a lot, saw a lot of people, and renewed some awesome relationships! The only thing I would have changed about it was Cambria's stress levels. As the trip went on, the more cranky she got and the more she wanted her own space, her own toys and her own quiet... 

But all in all it was wonderful! I'm so sad that we won't be seeing several of the people we saw for a very long time. I'm already day dreaming of being able to go out soon... even though I know that isn't possible.