To break up the monotony of deployment, we took another extended Utah vacation in May/June. People always ask why I go home after 4 weeks, instead of staying all summer. There are a few. First, Hyrum's car needs to be driven regularly or it will die. Second, the USPS only holds your mail for 30 days before you have to start forwarding it. And lastly, my body can't handle that much good food for more than 30 days. (And quite honestly, I do well with a normal schedule and being alone/having my own space.) But for the time we get to be in Utah, we love it! (Both being in Utah and being in Colorado have their advantages and disadvantages, and I wouldn't say one is preferable to another.)
My dad saved us by flying to Denver and helping us with the drive back to Farmington. It was miraculously not painful. I was free to turn around and get the kids what they needed, and they only melted down with 30 minutes left in the drive.
And as soon as they walked in the house you'd think I'd injected sugar straight into their bloodstream. They were no longer nap-deprived and tired, but instead were running around like crazy kids exploring Disneyland. The next day they re-discovered the play room under the stairs and played 'school.' Tiago kept telling the girls to stay sitting in these chairs, and he'd write letters on the white board.
They were desperate to go in the hot tub (but Grandma was still on her European vacation, and I'm too lazy for that kind of activity) so instead they got to play in the big bathtub. (Siena was
determined to wear her 'bathing soop".) My dad was eating a fudgesicle and told Tiago he could have the last bite. Well, he forgot, and Tiago randomly started screaming hysterically. He had been watching my dad carefully, and when he saw the whole fudgesicle eaten he was devastated. Luckily, my dad just stepped into the garage and brought another one back, and instead of one bite, Tiago got the whole thing. That was a solid hour of entertainment!
My mom recently added this sandbox to their backyard. The whole time we were staying there Tiago had a great time going in the backyard to play and help Grandma with the flowers and garden. He declared peas to be "his favorite"--quite shocking for a kid who really doesn't eat vegetables.
We had a fun visit with Hyrum's parents and brother. I didn't take many pictures, but the kids ran around the backyard for quite a long time playing with the soccer ball and sprinklers, and anything else they could find. (Like a toy grill.)
Courtney came over bright and early one morning, and was kind of enough to entertain the kids while I laid in bed. (Not asleep, but also not being bothered by toddlers.)
Don't worry, we feed this kid... occasionally.
The first weekend we were there was Memorial Day. My parents, Courtney, and Peter went up to Preston, ID on Friday night to visit my Grandpa. Jenna and I went up with the kids Saturday morning. We stopped for shaved ice on the way there, and we caved and stopped on the way home, too. (Only about 5 hours later.) Peer pressure.
We sat on the back porch and chatted (watching the kids dance, and letting Peter entertain the kids with all his energy.) Then we went out to eat, and let Mom take us on a tour of her old stomping grounds. We saw the house she grew up in, her high school (tiny) and the dirt road/hill that she ran off in a tractor when she was a little girl. Then we went to the cemetery in Clarkston with my grandpa and several aunts to visit family graves. Because I missed my Grandma's funeral last summer, it was the first time I saw her grave. (Unless you count that time about a decade ago when they were showing off their recently purchased--but so far unused--headstone.) At the end of the day, it had been a lot of driving, but a good time. (And my kids were so spoiled with attention. Tiago cried at the shaved ice place because he didn't want to share a cookie, so Jenna went and let him pick out his own. Lucky kids!!)
On Monday, Doug came to visit with his kids (Laurel was out of town.) We visited the cemetery in Bountiful where Grandpa Hatch is buried then had a cook out.
We met up with Amie to eat at the local food trucks. We took our grilled cheese and mongolian bowl (and belgian waffle) across the street to a grassy area and had a really pleaseant evening. The weather was perfect and the kids cooperated. (Well, Tiago slept literally the entire time in the stroller.) The girls couldn't care less about the food, they spent the entire time chasing each other around and laughing. You really have to enjoy those peaceful moments where they're getting along, because it doesn't happen very often. The funniest was when they saw a swingset in the backyard next to us, and started walking towards it. I called them back, they looked at me, held each others' hands, and then marched defiantly together towards the swing set. Fortunately, they did come back. But I can only imagine what the home owners would think if they saw two half-naked identical twin toddlers playing in their backyard. (Topless because they were wearing white and eating messy food.)
Tiago got a much needed haircut!
Amie and I took our kids to the Farmington pool. They had a shallow area where the kids enjoyed playing, as well as a splash pad. The first week we were in Utah the kids were having so much fun they had a hard time going to bed at night; sometimes Tiago was up as late as 9:30. I'm glad that didn't last
too long. I need my kid-free evenings! [Mila in red hat, Siena in white hat]
We spent one day in Orem/Provo visiting Edna and her kids. My kids were in heaven all day playing with them. We started at the Bean Museum. It's literally been about a decade since I've been there and it felt like a completely different place. (Not to mention how much BYU campus in general has changed! I couldn't believe it. When I was a freshman, I used to walk through the parking lot between Helaman Halls and DT, and now that parking lot has a huge building in it, and the road next to it now dead ends, and DT doesn't even exist... whole new world.) Back to the museum, Tiago was particularly excited about the Polar Bears (pronounced "pollabears") and was terrified of the lions that were eating other animals. Don't blame him.
The next day we met up with some of my mission friends at the playground. All our kids were about the same age, so that was mostly pleasant. (That age tends to be kind of whiny.) From there, we went straight to Highland for Ella's birthday party. My kids are in heaven there! They played in the toy room, the basement, the swing set, the bikes, etc. Laurel had fun games and activities that they got to participate in. Tiago is finally old enough that he does well in group activities and just acts like one of the other kids, instead of a baby tagging along. (Which is in the stage my girls are in.)
That was just one fun week. On Saturday we went back to Orem for a Hatch family activity, planned by Courtney and Peter. Since we were going down anyway, I wanted to stop by BYU to explore a bit more. I was blown away by the changes-- East Campus drive is now mostly gone, and dead ends in a traffic circle. The visitor parking lot we used to park in for church is now divided in 2 by a road. And several buildings I used to walk by every day on my way to class (on the south of campus) are altogether gone, replaced by a grassy little plaza. (In the shadows of a new huge shiny plant building). We didn't have time, but it would have been nice to walk around the north part of campus, in the hopes that things would feel exactly the same and I wouldn't feel so old. It's only been 7 years since I graduated!
Future Cougar, I hope.
So the first stop of our family party was Blaster Tag. It's like laser tag, but using nerf guns. It was way more fun than I anticipated. The guns could shoot balls clear across the room, surprising someone that didn't even see who shot them. Matt, particularly, was funny to watch as he lived out a few action hero fantasies--running across the room shooting everyone in his path. (You didn't want to be in his path.) Then we went to Doug and Laurel's house for pizza. We also had a dessert contest. My PB/Chocolate cake was so rich it almost killed you (which I love) but the lightness of the strawberry pie won out. (Mine made great leftovers though!)
Once again, my kids had a blast playing with their cousins. (And playing with their cousins' stuff.) Siena's true colors shined through, with this girly ensemble that she wore for over an hour. (See the close-up of her in the family picture.) I had a great time because my kids pretty much entertained themselves, leaving me to peacefully talk to the adults -- about riveting things like whether Matt or Peter is more anti-hipster. This was the last time we'll all be together for quite some time, since Courtney and Peter are moving to Boston.
My girls regularly entertained themselves on my parents' bed. I preferred them reading instead of their normal jumping.
One Sunday we met Matt and Kayla at Temple Square. My girls walked around hand-in-hand with Kayla the whole time. It was adorable.
On two completely different occasions, Matt taught my kids the joy of canned whipped cream. He actually came over our first Sunday in Utah and made Belgian waffles. (First occasion to eat whipped cream. The second was in connection to strawberry pie... but who really needs a reason?)
My mom babysat Talia two of the weeks we were there, so these cousins had plenty of play time. And no one is a better babysitter than Grandma! They went straight from the pool (totally naked) to ice cream cones on the porch. I still can't believe my mom can watch this many kids and be totally un-phased. I certainly benefit though-- I got to go to the temple several times, and doctor's appointment, and even shopping one day when my kids were driving me particularly crazy. (Talia and my girls are the best frenemies. They love seeing each other, then can't stop bugging each other. They constantly fought for my mom's attention and wanted whichever toy the other ones had.)
We went to a splash pad in Kaysville. Siena officially hates splash pads and refuses to get wet.
Edna and her girls came to Farmington to visit us one afternoon. We ate outside, followed by really colorful cupcakes that made a big mess but washed off with the hose (kind of.)
We spent one more afternoon at Doug and Laurel's house. If the didn't live an hours drive, we probably would have been there daily. My kids had so much fun-- bubbles, slip and slide (but not water-hating Siena), trampoline, etc.
We had a girls night to celebrate (er, mourn?) Courtney's big move. The highlight of the evening was this mouth-watering steak bruschetta. I could have happily eaten two plates of it.
We played with more cousins! I don't think I took any pictures, but another day with went with both Edna and Sariah (and kids) to the pool.
The thift store near my parents house always has the best stuff! I bought Tiago's cleats there last year, but this time ended up with $10 of toys-- doesn't sound like much, but we got a toy microphone, little people house and barn, magna doodle, monster truck, and who knows what else I'm forgetting.
Another day: Trader Joe's. There were many tears shed over these mini-shopping carts. But it as all worth it for the raspberry goat cheese and mochi ice cream. (I don't shop there very regularly, so when I go it's like a big experiment just trying new fun things.)
We crashed Amie's house one afternoon because I was so bored! Her older girls are good at taking care of the little ones.
Several times when my kids were having meltdowns, my dad would distract them by looking for birds out the window. No one wanted to be left out. (And when that didn't work, he'd 'operate' on Tiago to remove all the unhappiness. It worked every time.)
These faces of Mila! She was frustrated (really frustrated!) that she couldn't fit Minnie in the barn.
more playgrounds.
We went another day to Ogden to visit Abuelo and Abuela. My kids always eat well there, because they get hot chocolate and rice. (Tiago usually has his first cup of hot chocolate gone before the food is all put on the table.) The girls got dress up clothes to Siena's delight. She loves her some fairy wings. And she couldn't stop laughing at Oscar. Sariah's kids came over, later, and Tiago played some monster game with Elliot and Lilly in the basement. When I told him it was time to leave he cried and cried. Then in the car, he told me, "I'm not Tiago. I'm just Monster Tiago." So we took home Monster Tiago instead.
My mom and I went to see Desert Star for a comedy show. I had low expectations, but it was really funny. A diamond in the rough, you might say. While we were gone, Matt and Kayla took the kids to the park and for ice cream cones at Arctic circle.
My mom took Tiago to Lagoon one day. (She has a season pass.) He had the best time. Before going, he always commented on the roller coasters when we drove by. He was convinced it was just for big kids, so when he went and saw all the rides for his size he was delighted. After, I asked him what was the most fun. He said riding in the tube and falling out and making Grandma save him. (Apparently he did that the whole time around the lazy river, on purpose.)
Tiago has an old camera he likes to play with. One day we were sitting around on the floor, and he went and set up his camera 5 feet away then came and ran next to us. "Smile guys, it's going to take a picture." (Pretend.) He then ran to look at the camera and said, "Oh no! I cut my head off!! We need to take another one!" That happened 2 or 3 more times. It's amazing what kids pick up on. (I think this comes from Easter, when I was trying to take a family picture with the nice camera. I literally cut off someone's head in a dozen tries.)
We made cupcakes to take to Matt's work in Heber, when we went there to ride the Heber Creeper train (for a dinosaur ride theme.) They were pretty 'meh' so next time I'll leave the cup cake making to my mom. I asked Matt if he wanted to go to lunch with us, but he said Subway was too far away (10 minutes) so instead we picked up food and took it to his factory. I forgot how much I love Subway!!
The train ride was great. The kids liked the train, the view was scenic, and it was short so we weren't trying to occupy the kids for too long.
On Friday night we had a partial family trip to Maddox for some spicy sirloin. It was mostly to celebrate Dad hitting a huge weight-loss goal (and Matt's birthday). Jenna and I probably hoped we were celebrated
our weight-loss achievements... but not so much. Maybe next time. Either way, here we are, showing off our svelte bodies (svelte-er).
Tiago made friends with the neighbors and spent many hours playing with them in the sand box.
On Father's Day, Tiago actually went up with the Primary kids when they sang in Sacrament meeting. I was shocked, because he's painfully shy about getting in front of people. Once he was up there, he looked SO embarrassed and didn't open his mouth one tiny bit. He'd start sinking lower and lower behind the stand, then pop back up, and repeat. In his primary class they made these fathers day surveys. I laughed so hard about what Tiago wrote down: Hyrum likes to wear his Army Uniform, knows a lot about tanks, and works hard at the Army. Most importantly, his dad always tells him "I love you." He's right! Hyrum was sad to miss out on the holiday, but was surprised to hear Siena wish him a "Happy Fathers Day!" (Prompted.) I coudn't believe she said it, either. Their speech has progressed so much lately.
A few more notes:
I got a gym membership for the month I was there. It ended up costing about the same as my membership here in Colorado, which I was happy about. Plus-- child care! :) It was harder to schedule a time, but nice to have that option to get out of the house now and then. Jenna and I went one night for a work out before going to see Wonder Woman.
The trip home was pretty painful. We stopped half-way in Rawlins, but my kids did NOT want to sleep in the hotel together. Siena climbed out her pack and play and screamed for over an hour before falling asleep in my bed. Then she woke up multiple times at night, and woke up for good at 5 am. Needless to say, I didn't get much sleep and wasn't a very happy mom the next day when we drove the rest of the way. We even stopped part way at a splash pad to play, but I mostly just wanted to get home. Nothing like home. :)
