Our first stop was a Hudson reunion in Waterton. It was a very hot and sunny day - so warm that the water in Emerald Bay was actually fun to play in! Jess and Connor and I decided to climb Bear's Hump in the afternoon (so much exertion in the hot sun ended up triggering a migraine for me so I don't think I'll try climbing it in that kind of heat again). Connor scampered up the little mountain with ease, leaving his old parents in his dust. But once we finally joined him at the top, we took some celebratory photos.
Back at Emerald Bay, the kids had lots of fun playing with cousins and aunts and uncles, and spent a lot of time in the kayaks.
After the day in Waterton, we went to a church in Cardston for a dinner, a talent show, and an early birthday celebration for Grandma Cathie who turns 90 in February.
The next day, we packed up again and made the long drive to Utah, arriving at Caley and Justin's house in Eagle Mountain late Sunday evening. Her boys were excited to see their cousins again so soon (we just saw them on Canada Day weekend) and they gave us a warm welcome to their home.
On Monday, we spent the day at Seven Peaks waterpark in Provo with Caley and her kids and Bethany and her kids. Connor, Maira and Hudson had fun roaming the park and trying out different slides with their cousins and I had fun relaxing in the shade. Every other trip I've made to Utah in the summer has been super hot and sunny and this trip was no different. We took Shae to this same waterpark when she was four years old so now all our kids have been here!
On Tuesday, we met up with the same crew plus Ron and Mary-Rose at Highland Glen Park, a little man-made lake that was the perfect place to swim and cool off. The beach was a bit too rocky for playing in but we had kayaks and stand up paddleboards and the kids never tired of playing on those (the adults had fun on them too!)
That evening, we went to Seven Peaks Lehi, a little outdoor amusement park. Connor and Jess played laser tag almost the entire time. Except for when Connor joined me and Hudson and Maira on the bumper boats and helped drench me. It was three against one and I got thoroughly soaked!
Maira and Hudson enjoyed the mini golf course although only one of us made through all 18 holes without losing our ball to the water traps!
After two days of Utah sun, we were all a little burned and ready for some shade. Caley suggested going to Kangaroo Zoo, an indoor bouncy house place. The kids worked up a sweat jumping and running, and no sunblock was required - perfect! Then, we did two activities that Jess suggested because of the nostalgia factor: we went to Leatherby's for lunch and ice cream and then we went to the Nicklecade. The kids were basically in heaven.
Connor and Hudson opted for desserts off the kid's menu, which were still gigantic. But Maira insisted that despite being notorious for our family for having the smallest appetite, she could eat a full-sized dessert. So we let her order a giant sundae and I will admit she did eat more of it than I thought she would - but still not much more than half.
Jess loves pistachio ice cream so he asked for one scoop of pistachio and one scoop of raspberry and ended up with what must be the ugliest ice cream sundae any of us has ever seen! He didn't love the pistachio ice cream either as it had chunks of pineapple in it for some reason.
All set with cups of nickels at the Nickelcade:
After that, it was time to drive to Heber City where we had a hotel booked so we could go to the McMullin reunion. The hotel we stayed at had a cute little pool that the kids loved - we let them go swimming there every night before bed.
The reunion was held at a lodge just outside of Heber City. The first day everyone spent together at the lodge, visiting and playing. There was basketball, volleyball, and all kinds of water games plus board games inside.
The next day we headed over to the Jordanelle Reservoir which had a nice beach and a fun floating obstacle course that the kids played on for an hour.
It was a lot of fun to spend time getting to know relatives better and to renew old friendships. Clay and Nolene were there (they lived in Edmonton for a few years before moving far away to El Paso, Texas) and one night, Clay took Connor and Jess out target shooting with his airsoft rifle.
After saying good-bye, we headed back to our hotel for one last swim and then made the long drive back to Canada the next day. We had a lot of fun and even though we saw lots of family, there was lots we didn't get to see and so we and can't wait to go back!
