Fun and Crazy July and August

24th of July Parade attenders at the Nauvoo Cafe

It's been a wild and wacky summer of traveling and visiting.  I flew to Salt Lake City on July 23rd and started my vacation off with a bang the next morning.  It was Saturday and the 24th of July.  In SLC that is a state holiday.  I had never attend the huge parade in SLC and was very excited to be there.  We attended the sunrise service at the tabernacle on Temple Square prior to the parade. (Mom, Mike, Rosy, Cassidy, Whitley, Brook and Grandma Darlene.)  We had a wonderful day.  Try as  I might -- I couldn't get many good pictures of Mom.

                                             Watching the parade

A view of the Salt Lake Temple out the window of the Joseph Smith Building.

Mom and I then went to the mountains the next Monday and Tuesday with Mike and Rosy's family.  What a great family they are!  The girls were making quilts (the younger girls in the photo above) and it was here that I got to see Anne of Green Gables for the first time.  That's right I had never seen it before.  Remember --

 I raised all boys.  I am now on a mission to get my own set of the DVDs.                                                        

On Thursday we picked up Lauren in Lehi to head to the family reunion in Idaho.  This is where we stopped to eat                                                                                                                                     

                                                    

That's right Maddox.  My Neider grandparents started taking us to Maddox when we were kids and we love the chance to have a fun meal here in Brigham City.                                                                        

Lauren and Grandma Neider under the Maddox sign.

In Idaho we stayed with both Mark and Renee and Kenny and Margo.  We were treated royally and Lauren had such a good time getting to know the Idaho Neiders.  We watched more of Anne of Green Gables and Lauren was hooked too.

                             Girl cousins and Mom at the reunion.  Ann, Doreen, Mom, LaRae, Andrea

Everyone should be so lucky to have such a great family.  Many were missing (Cousin Joy is on a mission in LA currently)  Boy do I love these girls and boy did we have fun as kids.                                                    

                                         Lauren and Grandma by the Rexburg Temple

                                                Mom and I at Dad's grave.

Then back to Utah..............................Lauren had cheer practice so we had to take her back.  Boo Hoo!  We were sad.  We had so much fun together.  That girl is so much fun.                                                     

Next that smooth talking Darryl talked us into driving to Fresno for his newest Five Guys store opening.  He said,  "Can we go through Yosemite National Park on the way.  I have always wanted to go there."     I was scheduled to fly home, but changed my ticket to go to Fresno.  Gee, I wonder why?  Could it be that Tanner, Carsen and Emery live in Fresno?   Yes!     

We drove through western Utah, cut down through Nevada to California.  The drive was fun and getting to Yosemite was very exciting.                                                                                                                                   

So we had such a wonderful day in such a majestic setting.  Yosemite is unbelieveable and very hard to         describe.  My pictures to not do the beauty of the mountains justice.  It was breath-taking to say the least.    

These solid granite mountains are so exciting to see.  Mom and Darryl at our first stop

These skinny falls were so beautiful.  There are many.

We saw so much beauty.  I loved El Capitan and Half Dome.  Fantastic!

Then on to Fresno...................................well, coming down out of the mountains, baby Andrea got very car sick.  It might have been altitude sickness.  Not fun.  Darryl said I was freezing him out of the car.  I survived and we made it into Fresno about 8:30 to three very excited children with there noses pressed up against the window watching for us.

                   Dinner at Sweet Tomatoes -- Jeremy and Tanner

                         Tanner, Grandma Donna and Nephew Curtis

Carsen, Shelly, Emery, Andrea and Darryl

We are at Sweet Tomatoes having dinner.

Darryl and Curtis at the opening of Five Guys in Fresno

                                        Darryl talking to the food editor of the Fresno Bee Newpaper

My boy Tanner showing his muscles

                                                         Carsen trying to hide from the camera

Emmy checking out the toys in Target in her Cindrella shoes.  She won't take them off.

Tanner and Carsen trying to pick out just the right toy.

So I have covered many miles and had some great visits.  I really couldn't live without my family -- from the oldest to the youngest.  They are my life ...........................I had so much fun seeing my brothers and their wives.  They are my strength.  Just like those majestic granite mountains in Yosemite, they are solid and strong and always there to support me.                                                                   

They take care of me in so many ways.  Love you, Kenny, Mike, Mark and Darryl.  You are a joy to be with. 

Mom and I spent a total of two months together this summer.  That is a record for us.  We had some good times.  And I felt so lucky to be with Lauren again in Idaho and have so much fun.  The icing on the cake was to end up in Fresno with the CA Crowleys.  What a blast we had.  I love being with Jeremy and Shelly and their gang.  They are such a cute family.  So now back to reality in Culpeper.

The basement dwellers moved out this week to their new home......................................breaking our hearts by taking those two adorable daughters away.  I'm sure we will have to think of some reasons to visit Bristow, VA --it's about 40 minutes away.