Summer Hiking

We have all started our Summer of with some hikes!  It is one thing that most of us love (and Alex tolerates)!  We may not have all been able to go together, but we've all made it up into the mountains once our twice!

Brett and Colton have been trying to get out once a week because they are preparing to hike The Subway (in Zion) in a few weeks.  They have been trying to get in 5+ miles every week of different terrain, so they are ready to go!

We life in such a beautiful state!

 Alex and McKaleigh and I have tried to get out and we found a short and sweet hike to a fantastic waterfall!

 And saw this big guy on the way!

 We know how lucky we are to live close enough to the mountains to enjoy so many fantastic wonders!

Colton's Graduation Trip - Cruise Life

Colton chose a Mexican cruise for his graduation trip!  We traveled to Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan, and Puerto Vallarta and had a really great time! 

Here we are with the boat in the background and Colton laying on his bed.  Our room was just right!

 We had a really great room attendant, and he made the most amazing towel animals!  Here is Colton with one of them!  He made it a habit of posing with the towel animals each day!

 When we were at sea, Colton could be found at the ping pong tables on deck.  He even met some other kids and played ping pong with them!

 Cabo was a day for exploring!

 We went horse back riding and explored tiny villages, waterfalls and saw huge lizards!

 We spent way too much money trying out luck at BINGO, and coin pushers on the ship!

 In Mazatlan we golfed 18 holes at a beautiful golf course - boy was it hot! We encountered jack rabbits and turtles on the course - I don't think you'll find those hanging on the courses back in Utah!

 There were so many more memories that we made, and the important thing is that we made them together!  We had a great time one on one and hope it gave Colton a love for travelling, doing new things and exploring new places!

Cousins 12 Year Old Trip

Grandma Cindy and Grandpa Walt have a tradition of inviting grandchildren to spend a week with them (no parents allowed) when they turn 12 years old.  Alex was lucky enough to share this time with 2 of his other cousins (Benji and Elliot) who also turned 12 this year.  They spent a week filled with late nights, silliness, golf ball hunting, hiking and going to the temple.  Here are a few pictures of their fun filled week.

What a difference a day makes!  Look how excited these boys are at the beginning of the hike...and then...

 Here's what they looked like at the top!  They look a little worse than when they began!  Grandma and grandpa really wore them out!

 A few shots along the trail...

 In the evening hours (after the golf course closed), the boys would hit golf balls and hang out on the green.

 When it got really dark, they played laser tag and even hid in the sand traps for extra cover!

 You can't go wrong with a fire and s'mores in the evening!

 There was a portion of the day spent hunting for frogs in the water traps on the course, and it looks like the boys found success!

 And an evening watching a play at Tuachan!

 So grateful that grandma and grandpa began this tradition!  I'm sure these boys ran them ragged and caused all sorts of mischief!  (They were cutting their leg hair with grandma's scissors at one point and i'm sure they did all kinds of other crazy things!).