Pioneers, Patriots, EFY & More...

Monday after Jantzen and his friend Matt arrived for EFY, Steve and I left for SL as we had appointments.  Tuesday I had my Broker Network Meeting and Steve had a dental appointment.  With one car, we did a bit of juggling and I rode on the home tour with another agent.  That afternoon we met up with Tiffany and Hilary to view the float preview for the big 24th of July Pioneer Parade.  It's always fun to see the creative floats in the air conditioned comfort of the convention hall.

Hilary had control of the boys for about five minutes and then....Well you know how it goes.

The kids seemed mildly interested in the floats.  The girls chose their favorites.  I think the adults liked the floats the best.  We could appreciate all the work and effort the various wards put into their floats--especially those with moving parts.

The kids especially liked the end of our preview when we let them stand in line to get balloon items tied by some clowns.  The boys got swords.  The girls preferred animals.  It was worth the tips.

Tiffany and Hilary and kids drove back to CV.  We attended a wedding reception for my work associate, Wendy's daughter.  Then we walked along the parkway as the sun was setting.  It was beautiful and the 100 degree heat had moderated a bit.

The next morning, Steve and I had physical checkups from our PA, Dr. Dave.  We are grateful to be healthy and eagerly await the blood test results.

I had a board lunch business meeting and an open house on one of my listings.  Then we drove back to CV to help Tiffany with the comings and goings.

Jantzen and his friend, Matt, are in Logan for EFY this week.  Tiffany has graciously filled in giving them rides during our absence.  She has also been busy getting Elsie, Korinne and Abigail to Patriot Camp each morning and then providing additional entertainment and enlightenment afterwards.  She helped with the camp as a volunteer on two different days.

The girls were overjoyed when Tiffany allowed them to make their own slime.  This stuff is all the rage and they made a ton of it throughout the rest of the week.  Everyone was having fun with the different colors of slime.

Will & June got to spend a few hours playing with the kids and joining in the slim fun while Jen had a doctor's appointment on Thursday.  They loved picking peas in the garden and eating them.  Will also picked cherry tomatoes.

Here the kids are eating the peas they picked.  A few neighbor liked the peas too.

Then I served them lunch on the patio.  I figured we might as well keep the mess outside.

When Jen returned, she loaded Will & June and headed south to meet up with her sister for a weekend camping trip to Palisade Lake.

That evening Hilary's family was very busy packing and preparing to leave for their C Family reunion early the next morning.  Tiffany had the great idea to make tinfoil dinners.  So each kids picked their ingredients to add to the hamburger patties.  We ended up backing them in the oven as Steve wasn't home to build a fire in the fire pit.  The oven worked well.  

I think for the most part everyone liked their personalized dinner.  We adults really liked the addition of the sweet potatoes to the vegetable mix.

The girls were enjoying every last minute of their time together before Korinne left for her reunion.

Friday, Steve and I had to drive to SL and back.  I had a real estate listing appointment and we had to have the nurse read our TB tests on our arms.  Of course the test was negative and our blood tests came out satisfactory.  Steve was a bit stressed when the nurse called me but not him.  It all turned out okay. We were back in CV just about the time Aaron arrived.  He came early enough to visit a bit and have some dinner.  We served the leftovers from the past few days so he finished up an extra foil dinner.  The girls had more homemade mac and cheese and of course, watermelon.

Elsie and Abigail gave us a performance of some of the things they learned in patriot camp.  We were impressed.

Aaron picked up the boys directly from their EFY institute location and they drove home late Friday night.  The girls always feel sad when they have to part.  Fortunately there will be a couple of other activities together before Tiffany and Abigail return to Texas.

Saturday morning, we attended the stake pioneer celebration breakfast.  Abigail really worked hard on the tug of war.  She has a competitive spirit.

At noon, we were in Mendon for their parade and many festivities.  It was a cute little parade and Abigail got plenty of candy and goodies.

                                    This super pooper float picked up behind the horses and ponies.

                                    Some of the small tractors did maneuvers in the street.

We ate Navajo tacos at a booth manned by our neighbors, the Kirks.  Then we watched the great race between about 6 pre-picked teams. We heard they were organized by wards.  It was a long relay race consisting of about 20 different kinds of pioneer activities.  It was amazing.  The fire trucks shot water from their hoses for 15-20 minutes.  Abigail loved it and got thoroughly soaked.  Before we left, we toured one of the post pioneer homes built in the area.  The actual cabin was moved to the back yard.  It was small with a dirt floor and was occupied by family members until 1964.  Incredible!  This home was owned by one of the Willie family from the Martin &Willie handcart company.

Monday morning we attended the local Logan pioneer parade.  Once again, Abigail did well in gathering treats.  They are generous in these local parades.

After the parade, Steve and I headed to SL.  I had to forgo eating after breakfast on pioneer day in preparation for my colonoscopy on Tuesday morning.  Missing out on food was not the hardest part, however.  It is very difficult for me to drink all of the Miralax stuff in Poweraid drinks the rest of the day and into the night.

I successfully completed my procedure Tuesday morning though and all is well.  It was rough on Steve watching me endure the prep and worrying about everything.  Fortunately it only took about an hour.  Later that morning, we attended a Parade of Homes brunch and open house out at Daybreak.  I wasn't sure if I would make it, but I did.  Thanks goodness Steve did all the driving as I was surprisingly tired most of the afternoon and slept on our trip back to CV.

 While we were gone, Tif took Korinne and Abigail to a local splash pad and a park.  The girls took at lot of pictures of each other like models.  They really have the style.  I asked them to share these photos taken in my flower beds.

I love the girls and the pretty flowers.  We are surrounded by lots of beauty and feel so blessed.