Some of Our Summer Fun

Our summer thus far has been busy, fun, and difficult all at once. Here are a few things that we have been up to:

At the end of May we went to Antelope Island one evening to try to spot some baby owls a friend had told us about. We never found them, but with the help of someone else there, we did find an adult well hidden high up in a tree. We also saw a porcupine in a tree.

There was also some cowboy poetry night going on while we were there, so Austin had fun playing briefly in the "jail" set up there.

And a lot of buffalo crossing the road in front of us as we drove out of the park. The baby ones were especially fun to see.

The setting sun was also beautiful.

A couple weeks after Emma joined us, the kids attended Patriot Camp, where they had a great time. Since we will be learning about the Revolutionary War and the founding of the United States this next year, this camp seemed like a great introduction to the subject. Both Emma and Austin eventually succeeded in completing the Patriot Challenge, which involved memorizing the first and last verses of the national anthem, the preamble to the Constitution, the Articles of the Constitution, the bill of rights, the preamble to the Declaration of Independence, and the Pledge of Allegiance. They had a great time meeting actors dressed as historical figures like Christopher Columbus, George Washington, and Thomas Jefferson. They sang songs, ate snacks, played games, and made crafts such as dipped candles and tin can lanterns. One day a fur trader came and talked to them. I was there most days too helping out with the games.

At the end of the week, the kids all sang the songs they had learned for parents.

We also went to see the air show at the Hill Airforce Base. We were frustrated that after standing in line forever there so the kids could climb the rock wall, they closed it down just as we got to the front of the line due to concerns about "high winds."  Other parts of it were fun though.

Emma decided that she wanted to do a lemonade stand on the "hottest day of the month." Not sure it happened on the hottest day, but we did help Austin and Emma get supplies and set up a stand. It did pretty well. It probably helps that our street gets a fair amount of traffic.

For Independence Day we went to the town parade where Austin and Emma happily collected lots of candy and some other junk. We went to some activities at the park, played in our new inflatable pool, had a BBQ dinner with family, and watched fireworks at Grandma Peaden's house. I have spent most Independence Days there watching fireworks, and now that she is gone, I am not sure if it will happen again after this year.

As time has gone on, things have gotten a bit rough with Emma. There are so many emotional issues she is facing, and it often isn't pretty. There are lots of difficult days, but we are trying to stay positive and hold onto the little improvements and good things that we also see.

Scott Family Reunion

At the end of June/beginning of July, we attended a family reunion with Nate's immediate family. A couple of his brothers and their families couldn't make it, but everyone else was there. We had pizza and games the first night, then met at Wymount Terrace the next day for a day of lawn games and food. We enjoyed playing some frisbee games, including a variation of Ultimate that involved actually throwing the frisbee into a goal. There was also volleyball and card games. The kids had fun running around with each other, making fruit loop necklaces, racing cups across a string with squirt guns, and blowing bubbles through water bottles and socks.

Of course we took a few family pictures too.

Including some silly ones.

That evening we had birthday cake and a piñata for a cousin's birthday.

Waiting in line for the piñata

A couple days later there we headed to Cascade Springs to walk around there with the rest of the family.

Spanish Fork Campout

Since Nate had two weeks of paternity leave, we decided to go on a camping trip during the second week with the hope that it would be a good opportunity for everyone to have fun and work together. We didn't go far...we camped in Spanish Fork next to the Reservoir there. That worked out well because we all had fun playing in the reservoir and there was also a playground. In fact, swimming is the first thing we did after setting up camp that Tuesday afternoon.

After swimming, we returned to our campsite to make Dutch Oven BBQ chicken and cheesy potatoes for dinner. Then we hiked the Escalante Cross, as recommended by my brother. Unfortunately, his distance estimates of the trail were off, and we ended up on a longer hike than intended.

We ended up at the top in time to see the sunset. The lighting was stunning that way, but it also put us back to camp for s'mores and bed pretty late.

After breakfast Wednesday morning we headed out to hike Diamond Fork Hot Springs. The last time we hiked here was about 12 years ago, and it was here that Nate first held my hand. The hiking was slow with Austin and Emma, so it ended up taking us almost all day.

Last time I was there it was dark, so it was fun this time to actually see the pools and waterfall at the end of the trail. There is even a hole under the waterfall that you can go up and stick your head through if you want.

 
Austin and Emma didn't like to get too far into the hot water, but they seemed to enjoy themselves anyway. Zipper is not usually one to like swimming much, so she waited for us patiently in the shade.

The hike was not without incident though. Emma slipped and fell almost immediately after we started back. She barely scratched her leg (there was definitely no sign of blood or anything close to it), but she refused to continue our hike back for a good long while. It took quite awhile for us to resume our return trip. Then, later on about 2/3 of the way back, Austin raced ahead of me so he could be in the front. Since he had been complaining of being tired moments before, I complimented him on his newfound energy. In response, he slowed his pace to a near standstill right in front of me. Unable to adjust my own pace that quickly, I accidentally stepped on the back of his shoe, knocking if off his foot and sending it flying in a perfect arch, all while spinning beautifully over Austin's head, over the wooden fence, and down the steep embankment toward the river below. Luckily, the shoe landed on the river bank; in other spots along the trail a river bank didn't exist. And fortunately, after some searching, we found a safe way to climb down and retrieve Austin's shoe. I was extremely grateful we hadn't lost Austin's shoe forever in the river.

After eating a very late lunch upon finishing our hike and a quick stop to get some ice from the store, we returned to camp and went for a short swim. Then we went out for dinner. We still returned to camp to have some s'mores for dessert though.

After another French toast breakfast Thursday morning, we packed up and headed home. Despite the fact that camping is always a lot of work, it was a successful trip and we had a lot of fun on it too.