Utah

Early in October we got the sad news that my big brother Jesse had passed away.  Because of a very generous family friend, Cannon and I were able to quickly leave for Utah and spend two weeks with my family. 

It was rough.  One of the hardest things I have ever done.  It made it harder because Ryan wasn't with me.  And Cannon got croup.  But I got through it all and I summoned inner strength that I didn't know I had.  It was one of those times that I could actually say that the Savior was my rock.  I was glad to be there with my family and support them.  And I feel humility and gratitude to everyone who blessed our lives in big and little ways.  The plane tickets were a big one, I'm not sure how we would have been able to get to Utah otherwise.  It was comforting to come back to my mom's house with a fridge full of nourishing food that friends and church members provided.  And every thoughtful expression of kindness through cards, flowers, prayers, and words, were very much appreciated.  It ALL helped in some way.

The funeral went well and I even spoke.  I hate public speaking, but for some reason I felt compelled to speak.  The Relief Society sisters in my mom's church provided a luncheon for us afterwards.  It was probably a small act of service for them, but it meant so much to me.  I was so emotionally drained and it felt so good sit down with my family and eat good food.  My dear sweet sensitive Cannon had a major meltdown at the church during the luncheon, but other than that everything else went smoothly. 

The rest of the trip was nice.  After we visited Jesse's grave with the kids I felt a lot of peace in my heart.  The weather was gorgeous, just enough cold to get the autumn feel, but lots of days were sunny and warm.  And Cannon was able to play in snow!  Something he has been wishing for.  We spent a lot of time outside, which was healing.  And we were able to celebrate Kennedi's fourth birthday! 

Jesse was buried next to our grandfather

Mimi holding my cousin Haley's baby, Dallin.  She's 90 years old!

I think this is my favorite picture because there are no words to describe the feeling of watching pure joy within your child!

Our first day in Utah was drizzly, so we drove up the canyon until the rain turned to snow!

Hiking fun!



Cannon and I drove up to Snowbird to find more snow!



I took Cannon and Kennedi to Wheeler Farm

Tractor ride

Drilling our pumpkins!

Crazy geese at Sugarhouse Park!



He LOVED to just play and roll in the grass!

He loved the skate park by Nana's house

We took a day trip to Temple Square



On Kennedi's birthday we went to the dinosaur museum at Thanksgiving Point



For Kennedi's birthday dinner the kids made their own pizzas

Here are a couple of pictures of Jesse with Cannon:

Cousin Time

Back at the end of September Kristina and her kids took a road trip down to see us!  The kids had the best time together and we did so many fun things! 

We went to Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa which I think all the kids enjoyed.  Don't let Cannon's long sleeved shirt fool you, it was still pretty hot that day.  But the snow cones helped!  The crowds were low that day so the kids could pretty much ride the rides all they wanted.  It was so nice to just go at our own pace.

The "flying bananas"

The bumper boats were a big hit!

The kids also really enjoyed being able to see and pet the animals.  There were brushes for the goats and Cole in particular really enjoyed brushing them.  Lyla was fascinated with the horses.  And they all enjoyed feeding the giraffes.  

Carousel ride 



Stingrays!

Cole felt brave that day and he and I rode the tiger roller coaster!  No pictures of that, but I could tell that he was very proud of himself!

High priority on Cannon's list was to take his cousins to Largo Central Park, his favorite park.  We can spend hours there!

And what's a trip to Florida without a day at the beach?  We went to Redington Shores and we ended up finding lots of jellyfish.  We stumbled upon the first two and Lyla sought out the other three or so.  These ones were a lot larger than other jellyfish we have found in the past.  Some of them still had their tentacles.  It was pretty cool! At Lyla's request we took home the jellyfish which stunk up the backyard.  I didn't realize how fast they evaporate, but it was fun while it lasted!



Amazingly enough we were able to fit all three car seats!

And when we weren't playing outside there was plenty to do in the house!  I found these cool hollow blocks on Craigslist and the kids enjoyed building and creating with these. 

The kids play so well together and it's sad when we have to separate them.  Cannon is already asking when he can see them again.  But we will all get to play again in February!

Preschool!

Yesterday on August 19, Cannon went to his first day of preschool!  He attends Shady Creek Montessori and his teachers are Mrs. Talbott and Mrs. Hendricks.  He has been looking forward to school for awhile, but a few days before I think he was thinking about it more and he was feeling a little anxious.  He told me that he was going to be shy for his teachers.  We talked about it and read books about going to school.  On Sunday they had an open house and he got to meet his teachers and play in his classroom.  That really helped him!  Plus two friends (Mina and Zanin) from his Sunbeams church class are in his same school class.

Here he is on his first day.  And I love that he chose to wear his Texas Longhorns shirt! 

He was being such a goof!

 

 

When he came out of his class the first thing he said to me was, "Moooom, I thought I was staying for lunch.  You're supposed to eat lunch at school Mom, that's the rule."  Well then!  He was quite talkative on the car ride home and he told me bits and pieces throughout the rest of the day and during dinner. I found out that he met a girl named Charlie and a boy named Anthony.  He played, ate snack, played outside, and read a book.  He had granola bars for snack, but he wanted the granola bars with the chocolate on the front and back.  And then he suggested that we get some at Publix.  

 

 

Mina, Zanin, and Cannon.  I don't know why I even ask Cannon to "smile" for the camera!

Two days into it and he seems to really enjoy it!  I bought him a few new clothing items and he was so anxious to wear this shirt today even though it's still 1000 degrees and 1000% humidity!  Although he told me today that he was NOT hot when he played outside.  We are adjusting to this new routine.  Usually at home he is accustomed to playing for long stretches throughout the day and usually starts his day out this way.  I pick him up at noon and then we go home for lunch.  After lunch he's kind of not sure what to do with himself.  He wants to play, but I think he also feels like he needs some down time.  With some trial and error, we'll figure things out. 

North and South Carolina

Once again, Ryan had another work trip scheduled where we could all join him!  Usually he flies, but since we were only going to North Carolina, would could rent a car and the cost would be reimbursed by his work (along with gas).  Not to mention the free hotels! 

We left the morning of August 4th.  Our first stop was in Daytona.  We saw the big race track and did a potty break.  Then we headed up to Jacksonville to stop for lunch at Metro Diner which was featured on the Food Network.  We had about a 20 minute wait, but Ryan and Cannon played with their bean bag toss out on the grass.  It was perfect and allowed for Cannon to play and relax a bit.  Our food was amazing!  Honestly, it was one of the best restaurants I have ever been too!  Cannon had pancakes, Ryan had fried chicken and waffles with strawberry butter and hot sauce, and I had the Charleston shrimp and grits.   I wanted to get something different and I sure did!  Let me give you the description from their menu so you have a better idea of what I ate:

"Two fried grit cakes infused with cheddar cheese, roasted red peppers, and andouille sausage. Topped with shrimp, andouille sausage, onions, and peppers in a shrimp cream sauce. Garnished with chopped bacon and scallions." 

I tried Ryan's too, including the strawberry butter and hot sauce.  What a combination!  I had a feeling that whatever you ordered it would be divine.  If you are even in Jacksonville, FL you have to try this place!

We got gas in Jacksonville and headed on our way.  Cannon fell asleep shortly thereafter and slept for three hours which ended up being all of Georgia.  We stopped for gas and a potty break just as we crossed the border into South Carolina.  Cannon really wanted to play on these random elephants in the parking lot next door, so we did!

The next stop was Charleston, SC to a restaurant called Fuel Cantina (also featured on the Food Network).  The food was fine, not bad, but not amazing.  However the atmosphere was great!  We ate outside and it was super laid back.  There was a few couches around a fire pit and on the side there was a long strip of dirt to play bocce ball.  This was perfect for Cannon to walk around and play toss the heavy balls after being cooped up in the car all day.  And it was all shaded outside. 

And on the walk back to our car we found Cannon's street!

We got to Myrtle Beach after dark.  Cannon was just about to fall asleep in the car, but then got a second wind once we were settled in our room.  I was in bed and he was jumping across to each bed and I said, "You're not tired?"  And he said, "No mom, I need to do my exercises!"  Oh boy! 

We stayed at the Hilton Myrtle Beach Resort, which was massive!  There were a few different hotel buildings all part of the community.  We stayed in the main building, but had access to all of the pools. 

The view from our balcony

There were at least six different pools that I counted.  We did two of the pools nearest to us, including the one on the photo.  That large pool was great because it had lots of shallow areas for Cannon to walk and a big sand area in the water that you could lay in or whatever (can't see it in this pic).  Cannon's favorite pool was just down the way and it had waterslides and kids things.  Cannon usually made new friends to play with while we were swimming.  So I could just sit around and relax and watch him enjoying himself. 



Going down the waterslide!  He did this at least 100 times!

Of course we did the beach too, but Cannon was most interested in swimming.  Each night we ventured out of our hotel to get dinner.  I have to say that I'm not a fan of the rest of Myrtle Beach.  Way too many crowds and touristy stuff for me! 

We stayed at this hotel for two nights and in the afternoon on the third day we packed up and drove to Wilmington, NC.  I fell in love with Wilmington and I was sad that we didn't get to spend more time there!  We stayed at Wrightsville Beach at an off chain hotel called Blockade Runner.  The hotel room was little to be desired, but the grounds were fantastic!  We were right on the beach, plus there were large grassy areas (the good grass) for running, playing, bean bag toss, soccer, etc.  They also had a pool and a little golf area for putting.  Cannon was in his glory!  It was so relaxing and peaceful and much less touristy. 



Cannon wanted Ryan to make a shark

Cannon's idea

We finally got to do some boogie boarding!  The waves in FL are usually to small, or there are not waves.  Cannon did one by himself and he also rode on Ryan's back. 

I could have stayed here all week!  It was so gorgeous and calm!  But alas, we were on the road again the next day.  This time we headed to Charlotte to see Ryan's sister, Kristina!  Cannon was looking forward to seeing cousins for a very long time.  Several months ago he drew a map of how to get to Cole's house.  He saved it all this time and brought it along on our journey.  He referenced it and made sure we were on the right road. 

The kids were so happy to be together again!  Cannon and Cole have a special connection and time and distance have not changed that.  I was worried that they would leave Lyla out, which they did sometimes, but not as much as I thought.  Kristina's house has plenty of space for everyone and the backyard is perfect for kids!  The kids spent hours playing together, inside and outside.  And Cole and Cannon slept together each night, but they stayed up way too late talking and playing!

Playing Chutes and Ladders before bed





Being so silly



On the first night they insisted on sleeping in the tent

One day we went to Discovery Kids, which is a children's museum. 



They had fun with the dress ups and Cannon still laughs about when Cole put the monkey puppet and chased him!



Hard at work!

That night (Thursday) Ryan picked me up and I stayed in the hotel with him in downtown Charlotte.  We ate at another delicious restaurant called Basil Thai!  I think I just ordered the pad thai and Ryan had something with curry in it.  I love Asian food and this did not disappoint!  The next morning Ryan had to work, but he was back in time for lunch.  We walked to a little French restaurant and had croissant sandwiches, but the amazing thing was the salted caramel brownie!  WOW!  I think I crave those everyday!  Kristina took Cannon to Cole and Lyla's Kindermusik class.  Later on I asked Cannon about it and what they did, but he was only excited about the fact that they went to CVS afterwards and got chocolate!  He's a chocoholic just like his mama! 

Friday night we had movie night and Lyla fell asleep on me!  She was my buddy during this trip. 

And then on Saturday we took the kids swimming at their neighborhood pool.  We were there for a really long time, like five hours or something.  We packed a lunch and got ice cream there too. The kids had a blast!  I forgot to take pictures though.  Ryan and Rick went golfing in the afternoon at Rick's country club, Longview.   We ate dinner at Kristina's house and then we packed up and left that night around 9pm.  It was sad to leave, especially to have to separate the kids again.  But after all the traveling this summer I was ready to be back into our routine.

The ride home was easy, at least for Cannon and me!  He fell asleep immediately and I took that time to sleep too.  He woke up around 2:30am so we stopped for gas and let him stretch a bit and then we were on the road again.  He was back to sleep in no time.  At 5:30am Ryan woke me up to ask to switch driving.  I had no idea where we were and to my surprise we were less than two hours away from home!  Yay!  Cannon stayed asleep until about ten minutes from our house. We were all tired when we got home, but it was good to be back! 

Our summer vacation has come to an end, but what a great summer it was!  I look back with only the best of memories!