the rest of summer

We had lots of fun this summer and some of it I already blogged about but here is the rest.
My dad came out for a visit the last week of july and then Rachel and I drove back to California with him.

Farm country at thanksgiving point.

We went to the zoo with my sister Amanda and her boyfriend James.

Rachel and I spent two weeks in California. We went to the Jelly belly factory and the boardwalk and my brother wrecked his car. At the end of the trip, Will flew out for the weekend because his brother was getting married then we all flew back to Utah together.

Mom came out to Utah for her last vacation the first week of september. She watched Rachel for labor day weekend So Will and I could have our own vacation. We decided to go camping and ended up in Twin Falls, Idaho. We had a good time the first couple days but it got unbearably windy Sunday so we came back a day early.

our campsite was right on the Snake river with waterfalls in the background. it was very pretty and peaceful.

We found the LDS Temple in Twin Falls and walked around enjoying the beauty of it.

There was a HUGE canyon with a bridge across it and people were actually base jumping off it. It was really cool to watch.

This is Shoshone Falls. They dam it up and use the water for electricty so in the summer its not very full but it still looked big to me.

We found an old indian ice cave and took a guided tour. It was hot outside but inside the cave it was below freezing and there was lots of water and ice built up in there.

The day before mom went home we went to the state fair and Amanda came along. Rachel loves picking out rides to go on and I just love the atmosphere.

Virtual reality game.

Phew that was a long update! did you stick with me all the way to the end?

fundraiser help

there is a family in my ward that is going through a lot of trials right now. The mom just passed away from cancer leaving a few young children, the youngest being 3 years. The dad has some sort of physical disability and can't work a lot and now they have mounds of medical and funeral bills with a very limited income. Our neighborhood is putting on a fundraiser yard and bake sale Sept. 18. They are also accepting donations to help the family pay the funeral costs on a blog that has been set up for that purpose. The donations go through paypal so its legit. I made the title of this post link to the blog. If you are able, please donate something, even $1 helps. Also, clothing and other yard sale items can be donated for the yard sale. Or just come to the yard sale at Aspen Elementary in north orem on the 18th. All the info is on the blog. Thanks for reading!

first day of school!

Today was Rachel's first day of preschool! She pretty much loved it!

teacher Konni!


Rachel and her cousin Cordell. They are school buddies!

city deals

A friend told me about this website called City Deals. Its awesome for finding discounts on local businesses. I get $10 in coupons for every friend I refer so go check it out. You should be able to click the title of the post to get the link.

Arizona

we went to Sedona for a week in June for a reunion on Will's side. This is everybody! There are 34 with one on the way and one about to get married.


Will could only stay for the weekend and Rachel and I stayed the whole week. So there are not very many pictures of him.

Rachel is finally getting a little more comefortablel with the water. Getting her that pink floatie ring really helped. She was happy to swim around by herself! Usually she clings to me for dear life.

River at grandma Gibbons house

Some of the bunch at a swimming hole in the river

Really, really loooooooooong hike in the desert. Can you tell that I am tired?

Just getting started on the hike

Rachel is holding a lizard. The boys kept catching them. Reminded me of my youth. I loved catching lizards with my friend Jen.

of course these pictures are all out of order. More river fun!

My totally awesome and beautiful sister-in-laws!

Rachel decorating her reunion shirt.

Summerfest!

Orem has a carnival every year in June and it it rains every year in June! Despite the rain, its still fun. We walked around looking at all the booths and let Rachel go on a couple rides. Then when it gets dark we come back for fireworks.





Rachel is a bunny!

She's making a pig

So cute!

They had a princess booth and Rachel got to dress up!

Daddy and Rachel on the merry-go-round

Rachel really wanted to ride the spinning strawberries and she was just a pinch too short but the guy working the ride didn't seem to care. I thought she wouldn't like all the spinning but she had fun.

Aunt Heather!

We waited about an hour to see the fireworks and it was a little chilly for June.

Rachel liked the fireworks but not how loud they were.

Walking back to the car.

This is the newest edition!

Welcome Kita! She is a 6 week old Pit Bull and so cute!