Family Reunion 2015

My mom sent all my sisters a text sometime in May asking if we wanted to attend a family reunion in Craig, Colorado in June.  I knew Thomas wouldn't be able to go because of school but it sounded like a fun trip to go on with Brooklyn and a great chance to see family.
Craig is about a 5 hour drive from Springville and I was pleasantly surprised how well it went with Brooklyn.  She did ask about 100 times if we were there yet and there were no tears.  Although I almost shed a few when I was pulled over 10 minutes from our destination and got a $169 speeding ticket.  The whole way there it's a two lane road.  One lane going one direction and one lane going the other.  I guess I've already gotten use to Utah driving where when the speed limit is 70mph you are passed right and left even going 10 mph over the limit.  So the speed limit had been 65 and pretty much the whole way I was going 75 then Brooklyn said she needed to poop and I got a text from my mom saying they were at the hotel so I decided to speed it about to 80.  Just a couple minutes after doing so I saw a cop pull around and put his lights on.  Shoot! He said there were lots of deer and elk in the area that's why it was 65 and he'd have to give me a ticket.
We met my mom, grandma, sister Bea, and her two boys at the hotel and shortly after met at a nearby church for dinner.
The reunion is held each year by my Great Grandma's half sister, Rayola's, family the Elgens. So most of the people I met were great aunts and distant cousins who shared the same great-great grandpa as myself. This year was special because it was the 70th wedding anniversary of Rayola and her husband .  Events included an almost 5K run, singing at the assisted living home Rayola lives in, renting out the wave pool, and a 70th anniversary reception.
The 5K run was pretty early in the morning so just my mom, Brooklyn and I made it.  My mom pushed Brooklyn in the stroller while I ran.  The route was a dirt road on the family ranch and it was so beautiful and serene.  We were cheered on at the end by some family who hadn't particpated and served breakfast.  After breakfast we took a big family picture and everyone got the chance to play with the farm toys like the digger, four wheelers, and guns. Brooklyn and I headed back to the hotel to take a nap since neither of us had slept well the night before and had an early morning.
Both nights at the hotel we tried to have the cousins all sleep together but Brooklyn ended up in bed with me both nights. It was so cute to see Brooklyn play with her cousins. That evening was a family dinner. Afterwards as we were walking to the cars we saw this deer just hanging out in someones yard. The next day we went and sang songs at the nursing home.  It was so sweet seeing Rayola's children, grandchildren, and great grands sing to her and her hubby as they held hands.  They had six children and seeing all of their posterity made me think that all the hard work of raising children can be so gratifying in moments like that. All of the relatives we met were so welcoming and kind and just overall good people. It really speaks to the influence of Rayola and her husband.
That night as we prepared for the reception the kids had a blast running around the church and playing together. They even had a room set up for the kids to play Bingo. Alex was so cute with Brooklyn. Holding her hand and helping her with her shoes.
 The reception was beautiful with great food, decorations, and company. The last day we rented out a wave pool and had such a blast! We hope to be back next year!

Art City Days 2015

I never thought I would enjoy living in a little town but Springville has won me over. It is close enough to some bigger cities that you still get the benefits of that but also enjoy small town benefits.  Like, for example, Art City Days. Each year Springville hosts Art City Days to celebrate the town.  This year was the 50th Anniversary.
Some events included a Fun-a-Rama carnival for kids at Art City Park.  For $5 kids could go in bounce houses, inflatable slides, swings, watch a magic show, ride a train, etc. The first stop for us was a inflatable tunnel kids could crawl through.  As I was waiting for Brooklyn to go through it I looked at the guy manning the station and thought he looked familiar.  Turned out he was an Elder I served with on my mission! It was fun to chat for a bit and catch up. Brooklyn really liked the magic show and when we got home wanted me to check her hair for coins because the magician had done a trick where he pulled coins out of a kids head.
 Another day we were up early and grabbed some donuts at a local bakery and headed to a park to see the hot air balloons lift off.  I didn't expect to go because it started at 6:30am but Brooklyn has all of the sudden been having accidents in her bed which wakes her up early.  I figured we'd take advantage of the early wake up call and attend the event. When the balloons would lift off they would through little balls and candy out of their basket.  If you caught a ball you got some kind of prize.  The adults were all going for the balls and the kids wanted the candy.  It was a free for all. I was happy just sitting on our blanket watching but Brooklyn was insistent on doing what the other kids were doing. I ended up getting hit in the head with hard candy and Brooklyn got knocked over by some over enthusiastic adults.  I grabbed her a few pieces of candy and for the remaining lift offs we steared clear of the madness. The pig balloon was her favorite. Lately she has really been into the show "Peppa Pig" so I'm guessing it stems from that. Because it started so early Brooklyn went in her pajamas, with rain boots (cause they are the only shoes that fit over pj's, and with bed head. She was excited to get her face painted and requested a green snake.
After the balloons I wanted to take her to the kid scooter and bike parade.  We decorated her scooter with streamers and a couple of balloons.  Unfortunately due to the early wake up she only lasted literally three minutes of scootering down the street before I threw in the towel.  Instead of going to the children's art festival like planned we turned in for an early nap.
Sometimes life can look so good through the lens of a camera but the moments in between the smiles can be rough!
On the last day there was a parade in the morning and fireworks at night.  We biked to Main Street and found a nice shady spot on the curb to watch from.  Brooklyn was the cutest waving at all the participants in the parade.  Her and Thomas collected candy.
We put Brooklyn down for a late nap that day so that she could enjoy the fireworks with us. Before going to see the fireworks we stopped by the carnival to use some tickets a neighbor gave to us. Everytime we passed the carnival that week Brooklyn had begged to go on some rides so this was her chance. She chose a little car ride and the carousel.  We headed to a park that was nearby where they were setting them off.  It was the perfect location because Brooklyn could play on the toys while we waited for show time. We enjoyed the fireworks sitting on our blankets chowing on some kettle corn from the carnival.  This particular Saturday was a pretty great day as a family.