St. George 2016!

Once again we were delighted to find ourselves in St. George this summer, although this year our numbers were greater! We moved the date up a bit so Amanda's kids (who attend a year round school), could come along with us. Also Tyler and Gina and Layton came, and my dad! (Joshua was working, so he didn't come...and neither did Amanda's oldest, Taylor).

Here are a few pics that we took from the dam on the way to St. George:

The only evidence that Amanda, Amy and I were all together...we're so cool in our shades.

 Beau, Jacob and Hayden. Something about this picture...I love it!

The kids were so happy to be out of the car...Marianne especially loves spending every second with her cousins! I think she even rode with Amy on the way up so she could be with Luke...and Jacob rode in Amanda's car with Preston or Hayden

We had a great week, the majority of which was spent (as the pictures attest to) SWIMMING! 

I tried to get a picture of each kid...

Bekah's big muscles; she's utilizing her birthday gift: a snorkel!

Jacob is showing off how deep he had gotten into the pool...it may have been a bit chilly the first time. Jacob would say that his favorite part of the trip was waking up early every morning and exploring the city with Grandpa. My dad would leave before seven each day, stop at Maverick for breakfast and let Jacob pick anything he wanted. Then they'd drive all over the city and find cool things to see. He came home full and happy each morning!

 Amanda is super fun in the pool! She plays keep away, volleyball, and gives shoulder rides and back rides to anyone who is willing!

I can identify Beau here only by his minion swimshorts! He was so much braver this trip - look at that flip!

Mikey is ALWAYS daring! He's quite an acrobatic kid!

Preston specialized in diving (although I think he was doing a cannonball in this pic)

Marianne made huge strides in swimming this trip! She even got brave enough to take off her life jacket and swim across the short end of the pool. She loved that she could stand on the steps and make little dives to get things she dropped.

I think this picture was taken at the beginning of the week...by the end we were all much tanner!

Miss Madison! She really loved swimming underwater.

Sarah and Bekah were sweetly instrumental in helping Marianne get over her fear of jumping into the pool.

Amy and Leo! He didn't love the water a ton, but sitting on the side and playing with his mom was okay.

Hayden was a champion splasher!

As always Luke came through with coolness points! He's the funnest kid to get action diving shots of!

Layton loved the water!

Especially with Mom! I found this barely used polka dot swim suit at the thrift store but the torso was just a little too short for me...so I gave it to Gina and it was stunning on her!

I lucked out one afternoon and got to have some one on one baby time while everyone else went out. They loved playing with blocks and reading books. Leo is a momma's boy so I was especially happy that he was not sad with me.

We did pull everyone away from the pool (and their phones/tablets) once for a hike. We took this picture as we headed away from the house for my brother James because it was his birthday!

Sarah especially loved all of the pictures.

Aren't Marianne's pants snazzy? She found them at DI. Bekah was worried about her getting lost, so she took really good care of her.

This trip to St. George was Bekah's first trip to the temple as well! St. George Temple will always have a special place in her heart.

We took a picture similar to this one the first time we all went to St. George. It is extremely unnerving to have that many children sitting on the edge of a rather long drop!

 Tyler with his number one buddy Layton, and with his too-big-for-carrying-around nephew Beau!

My Uncle Leon and Aunt Jeanette came by to play and swim one afternoon. Leon and my Dad were loads of fun in the pool, as each of the flipping, splashing kids they launched can attest to!

Leon and Jeanette watch their granddaughter daily for their daughter, my cousin Melanie. She happens to be less than a year younger than Marianne, so they had a great time playing together!

I think my mom especially loved having both of her grandbabies together!

I'm grateful for family trips and adventures! We stopped in Jacob Lake on the way home for lunch, and cookies of course! Look how grown up all of these kids are getting, all lined up in birth order...Joshua would go between Preston and Hayden. (And notice how Tyler is trying to sneak a bite of Marianne's cookie?! He didn't get away with it!)