This weekend we fell in love with Vermont! It is so beautiful! We drove up to Sharon and camped at "Camp Joseph" (the church's campsite right next to
Joseph Smith's birth place.). If you haven't been to Sharon before, we would recommend staying the night at the camp. You can stay in cabins or bring a tent, but DON"T FORGET THE BUG SPRAY!! And don't forget your baby pack. It's the cool thing to do.
The camp site is only a 5 min, or so, walk from the birthplace memorial. Since we were one of the only groups at the memorial we got A LOT of personal attention. We got a tour of the Smith/Mac property in a golf cart. Luckily we didn't die because "It looks like the breaks are out" and we could have fallen into the "clear water." We also got the full length version of the indoor tour, even though we didn't hear a word of it for fear our kids were going to nock down the Jospeh Smith statues or get burnt in the fake fire place. :)
The grounds are so beautiful, both at the monument and the campsite. Mckinlay and Marcus had a lot of fun playing in the dirt. I tried so hard to get a picture of the two of them with their dirty faces, but no luck.
I couldn't get both of them to look at the camera. But I did get this sweet shot:
Looks like we really do have a
budding romance on our hands.
We all had fun eating tin foil dinners, roasted corn (thanks for the butter Laura!) and bread sticks, roasted apples, smores...and the men made a fabulous breakfast! Kind of funny that we all the best homemade breakfast we have had in a long time, and we had it while camping. I played my first game of horseshoes and realized I'm not too bad at it! I got 2 ringers! I think Ty was so proud to have found a sport that I don't really stink at.
This is one of my favorite pictures from the weekend.
On our "way home" (actually it was an hour in the wrong direction, but well worth it) we stopped at the Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Factory. They give tours of the plant and free ice cream samples.
We of course stopped at the "scoop shop" and then visited the "flavor graveyard." It's the final resting place of all the retired flavors. Some only last 3 weeks on the market. Our votes for top three worst were:
1) Sugar Plum - Plum ice cream with a caramel swirl
2) Peanut Butter and Jelly - Peanut butter ice cream with peanut butter bits and jelly swirls
3) Sweet Potato Pie - Ginger ice cream with a fudge swirl
(I know I can't believe I posted this picture either. Talk about gross!)
Contrary to popular belief, our trip to Sharon wasn't an excuse to go to Ben & Jerry's. It just worked out nicely to see them both in one trip. :)
Mckinlay, was a champ traveler and was perfectly content to plug her ears on the car trip home. Apparently she didn't like the book we were listening to.
Thanks Spragues and Christophers for making the trip so fun! Next time we need to be sure to get a picture of all of us!
My baby brother graduated from high school today. He always said that I had to be at his graduation no matter what because he sat through both of mine.
I would give anything to sit through your boring graduation today Tyler! I love you and I'm so proud of you!
The camp site is only a 5 min, or so, walk from the birthplace memorial. Since we were one of the only groups at the memorial we got A LOT of personal attention. We got a tour of the Smith/Mac property in a golf cart. Luckily we didn't die because "It looks like the breaks are out" and we could have fallen into the "clear water." We also got the full length version of the indoor tour, even though we didn't hear a word of it for fear our kids were going to nock down the Jospeh Smith statues or get burnt in the fake fire place. :)
The grounds are so beautiful, both at the monument and the campsite. Mckinlay and Marcus had a lot of fun playing in the dirt. I tried so hard to get a picture of the two of them with their dirty faces, but no luck.
I couldn't get both of them to look at the camera. But I did get this sweet shot:
Looks like we really do have a budding romance on our hands.
On our "way home" (actually it was an hour in the wrong direction, but well worth it) we stopped at the Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Factory. They give tours of the plant and free ice cream samples. 
We of course stopped at the "scoop shop" and then visited the "flavor graveyard." It's the final resting place of all the retired flavors. Some only last 3 weeks on the market. Our votes for top three worst were:
2) Peanut Butter and Jelly - Peanut butter ice cream with peanut butter bits and jelly swirls
3) Sweet Potato Pie - Ginger ice cream with a fudge swirl
(I know I can't believe I posted this picture either. Talk about gross!)
Mckinlay, was a champ traveler and was perfectly content to plug her ears on the car trip home. Apparently she didn't like the book we were listening to.
Thanks Spragues and Christophers for making the trip so fun! Next time we need to be sure to get a picture of all of us!
but two bags are always better than one, right?
This is one of my favorite pictures of my mom for several reasons:
Happy Mother's Day Mommy! Thanks for being my best friend.
Grandma Tutu came to Hawaii to babysit Brennan and I while my parents went on a vacation with Grandma and Grandpa Hallstrom. Tutu use to always tell me how cute she thought it was that B and I were such good friends. We would sit on the couch and snuggle while we watched TV. Tutu would also tell me that when she would take me out in my stroller I would smile and say "hi" to everyone we passed. People would stop and talk to me and tell her how cute I was. I love that story because that is exactly what happens when I take Mckinlay out. I always think of Tutu when that happens.
Grandma snuck me brown sugar when we'd make cookies. She made paper dolls with me. We played Old Maid. She watched us swim. She gave us strawberry soda and orangsicles. She wore a black and white mumu. She brought her own butter to McDonalds. She got her hair done once a week. She was an amazing cook. Even her Eggo waffles somehow tasted better then ours at home. She wore TABU. She was a fabulous teacher. We ate clam chowder at Makai Market. And then we went to See's for a "piece." She let me help her with her Relief Society handouts. She typed on a typewriter. She hummed all the time. She read books covered in brown paper. She drove a "Cadi." She had lovely, distinct handwriting. She let me dial on her rotary phone. She wore fake lashes. We played in her playhouse. She loved Lawrence Welk. She never told me she knew I played with her makeup. She liked to count the stars on my bedroom ceiling. She would have really liked Ty. I can't get through a verse of "God Be With You 'Til We Meet Again" without crying. Not a day goes by that I don't think of her. 
I love you Grandma!
Our little Senorita practiced her moves on her "stage" all day long...
and we went to 3 stores to get the right cut of meat for our fiesta. Thanks Alli for the fabulous fajita recipe!
Unfortunately the library didn't have a very good selection of Cinco de Mayo music (we ended up with a children's "party" CD with songs about pinatas), so I considered heading downstairs and asking to borrow a CD. We expected big things from our downstairs neighbors. The ranchero music started around 2:00, but unfortunately they must have gone elsewhere to celebrate that evening because by the time we started our festivities, they were silent. Odd, because on any given day you can hear the steady beat of their music coming up through the floor. Mckinlay even dances to it from time to time. And you gotta love the occasional (or not so occasional) "Ei-ei-ei-ei." I guess I should have asked to borrow their music since they obviously weren't. Oh well, we still have next year.
