Vancouver--Part 4

When we were planning our trip, one of the things the kids really wanted to do was go on "Fly Over Canada." It's like "Soarin" at Disneyland, but even better. It was awesome! And we found a really great restaurant for dinner right across the street (after wandering around the city for way too long trying to find somewhere to go for dinner). It was late and the kids were starving, but they were so good! And, I was finally able to get a picture of all three kids smiling with their braces (Josh was pretty reluctant to smile for a braces picture up until this point).

Vancouver--Part 3: Pierced Ears!

Since we were going to be celebrating Megan's birthday while we were gone (her 8th birthday which means pierced ears, among other more important things), we decided to get her ears pierced a week early while we were in the city. (Nate wanted to take her to a tattoo parlor but I said no. I checked to make sure there was a Claire's before we left Utah). She was so excited and so brave!

Vancouver--Part 2

Stanley Park lets you ride along the water on the outside of the park and through a forest in the middle of the park. We saw tide pools along the perimeter and a lake covered with lily pads in the middle. It was a little smoky, thanks to recent wildfires in the area, but still beautiful!

Vancouver--Part 1

At the beginning of August we took a much anticipated trip to Canada. We flew into Seattle and drove up to Vancouver, British Columbia. We stopped along the way for dinner at a fabulous Mexican place that Nate had been to before and loved. Our first stop the next day was to Stanley Park where we rented bikes. We followed the path around the park and stopped along the way to explore.

Bangs, Gymnastics and Babysitting

Lia wanted to cut bangs for forever, so I told her I'd take her to get them cut if she paid for it (I had just taken her to get her hair cut a few weeks before she decided it was time for the bangs...otherwise I would not have been such a scrooge). She went to a girl in our ward who's in beauty school and was just as excited about going to her as she was about the bangs. They turned out really cute and it was fun to see her be so excited about them. That same week Megan had gymnastics camp at BYU with Lucy. She loves it every year and this year she was even more excited to go after taking gymnastics all year. And lastly, we got to babysit Katie's kids which my kids were thrilled about. They were so cute and were fun to have over. 

Hanging out with the Cooks

Our old neighbors and friends the Cooks came into town at the end of July. Ainsley spent the night and then we went to Tibble Fork Reservoir with them the next day. We loved having them as neighbors and it was fun to see them again.

End of July

Nate went to scout camp with the deacons (his third ward camping trip of the summer) and had a great week. He loves working with the young men. While he was gone, the kids and I went slip and sliding at Kristen's. Then I made the mistake of taking Nate with me to the store late one night (actually he offered to go with me, which was very nice of him) where he found this awesome He-Man shirt which he now wears every time he goes swimming. Next, Tiffany talked me into running the Deseret News 10k again. We weren't as fast as the last time we did it, but we did it and it was great to run with Tiffany again. Ashley ran it too, but she left us in the dust after about 10 seconds. Then Nate took Josh mountain biking. He LOVES it and loves going with Nate. And lastly, I found Josh reading to Patrick and was able to get a picture. He is so great with his little cousins.