Summer Visit to Utah!!

Another visit to Utah come and gone!!
I love the Fourth of July!!  We had a great weekend!!  It's always so fun to see family and friends.  Never enough time to see everyone or do everything we want to do!  We got to take the boat out, and although it was too windy to ski, we had a blast on the tube! 

Other than visiting family and friends, some of my favorite things about visiting Utah are:

* Yours, Mine, and Ours.  A fun consignment shop in Bountiful.  I always leave with a good find or two.  This trip, my sister-in-law found an amazing necklace for $3.50....her husband bought her the same kind for Christmas for $60. 
* Cafe Rio.  Why don't they have one here?? 
* And while I'm at it, I'll mention Rumbi as well.  That's another one I'd like to bring to town.
* Down East.  Didn't make it there this trip.
* Bountiful Rec Center...really every town should have something like this.  It's awesome!
* Dick's Orange Rolls...there's not another bakery like Dick's in the whole world....go get a doughnut today...
I know there's more, but I can't think of them right now....I'll leave it for another post....
Happy Summer!!!!

Monterey!

We took off and went to Monterey last week. We've never been to Monterey and thought it would be a nice trip. Monterey is a spectacular coastal community in northern California and we had a great time. We had a chance to visit the world-class Monterey Bay Aquarium, Cannery Row, we went on the 17 Mile Drive (through Pebble Beach...Wow...beautiful,) and the kids' favorite part was playing on the beach in Carmel-by-the-Sea. On the way home, we had to stop at Six Flags and see the Fright Fest that they are putting on right now. The kids LOVED it. We had such a fun trip!
The Aquarium
Dennis the Menace Park...the kids
had a blast here...very retro!

The Train at the Park

The Beach in Carmel....the kids got a little wet

The Lone Cypress on the 17 Mile Drive

Back at the beach...

Even KK loved the beach!

Oh Boy....

Yes, M is ducking behind the B-boy...she's a nut!

We had a fabulous time in Utah this year. Nana took us on a great adventure and we got to go all over the valley and visit all kinds of great places. We went to the Planetarium, the Children's Museum, the Lion House and Temple Square, the Zoo, and the Aquarium. If you have a couple free days in Salt Lake this year, get a Salt Lake Connect Pass. We'd highly recommend it!
http://www.visitsaltlake.com/visit/activities/connect_pass/

It's Jolley Time!

South Lake Tahoe...We Really Are Blessed!

My mom and beautiful 88 year old grandmother came over for a visit and we spent the week in South Lake Tahoe. We went to a new beach everyday and visited all the "must-sees" on the South Shore. We even found some outlet stores where Grandma Edie found a pair of shoes (you know every vacation must yield a new pair of shoes...) We ate oatmeal everyday (well, almost everyday...but you know...Grandma is famous for her morning oatmeal). And we had a fabulous time. I'm grateful for the chance my kids had to spend some quality time with their Nana and Great-Grandma Edie....really, how many people get a chance at knowing their Greats so well? As Grandma Edie would say...we are just so blessed!

There really are pine trees on the beach...it's beautiful!

The kids haven't stopped talking about the sailboat....

Notice the teeth....

Grandma Edie at Emerald Bay...

The whole group at Emerald Bay...we can't get enough of this place!

Notice the teeth....Nana pulled out one of M's front teeth during our trip! It was a highlight for sure!

What a wonderful adventure...thanks Mom and Grandma for the memories!

Memorial Day Weekend: Emerald Bay State Park

Charlie and Angie made the long journey and came to visit us for Memorial Day! We've been missing them and it was so fun to have them here. Thanks, Char and Ang! We hung out, went shopping, took a tour of Sean's work and even got to spend some time with him "on-duty". And, we spent some time at "the lake" and went up to Emerald Bay for a day hike. It was beautiful!

Emerald Bay is one of the most photographed places in the world! In 1969, Emerald Bay was designated a National Natural Landmark for its brilliant panorama of mountain-building processes and glacier carved granite. The natural beauty, geology and history of this unique island make it one of the highlights of any visit to the Lake Tahoe area. The park features Vikingsholm, one of the finest examples of Scandinavian architecture in the western hemisphere. The "Tea House" on Fannette Island, the only island to be found in all of Lake Tahoe. Emerald Bay was designated an underwater state park in 1994. It is the resting place for many boats, launches and barges used in the lake before the turn of the century, during the heyday of Emerald Bay Resort and used in the construction of Vikingsholm.

This sandwich was sooooo good! Probably one of the best I've ever had!

San Fran!

We took a day trip to California over the weekend and spent some time at the Jelly Belly Factory and Six Flags...it's fun to explore and see what there is to do over here.
The kids loved Six Flags and I was surprised at how much there is to do!
WE had a fun weekend!