A memorable day for Kev

Kevin received a new calling on Sunday September 24th.  He was called to be the High Priest Group leader of our ward.  He was set apart during church and then ordained to be an Elder after church.  Kev's Dad was able to ordain him as an Elder. He also was given another blessing from Elder Reeves in our Stake Presidency.  We were also glad that my Dad, Loni, and Kayley were able to be there as well.

It was funny because Parker had gone around all day saying, "my Dad is becoming an old man today"! We don't have a big High Priest Quorum in our ward.  Kev is actually the second to youngest among the men.  Kev is looking forward to this calling after the last three years he has spent as executive secretary.  It was memorable that he was ordained on his sister Lisa's birthday.  She would have been 36 years old.  We were remembering and missing her that day.

It feels like Fall

It was Kev's Friday off and all the kids were in school so we decided to go up AF canyon.  We had a small window before Addy came home from Kindergarten.  We four wheeled above Silver Lake Flat.  There were sunflowers everywhere and it just felt like Fall.  It was nice to be able to spend some time together during the day.

One of our favorite things is when Kev makes salsa from the vegetables we grow in the garden.  We have so many tomatoes right now.  It was salsa Saturday at our house.

Mckenna and the kids made cookies for FHE.  We sometimes make the dough and just eat it that way. Pumpkin cookies are our favorite at this time of year.

Fall means BYU football at our house.  Kev loves that Mckenna, Parker, and Halle will watch the games with him now.

The girls started up dance again.  Addy is taking a Ballet/Jazz class.  Halle is taking World Dance and Hip Hop.  I love to see my girls developing their talents.

We have several family birthdays in the Fall.  We were able to go to Midway to celebrate Neiska, Gunner, and Tucker's birthdays.  They had a delicious Hawaiian style dinner.  The kids had fun running around with their cousins.

We drove to UVU one afternoon to sign Mckenna up for concurrent enrollment.  She is getting college credit for her ASL class. We were right by Krispy Kreme and decided to stop and get a donut. I tried the fall flavor of pumpkin spice.  I can't wait for the leaves to start changing!

Our annual ward campout

We had our annual ward campout on September 15-16 this year.  We camped at the Ophir campground again.  It had been raining and was really cold so many families didn't come this year.  We had fun with the families that did come and braved the cold.  Addy hanging out with her cute friends.

Halle had fun playing volleyball with the kids her age.

Hayden had a great time playing on the swing set with Rocky.  They even built a cool fort out of the unused firewood.

Mckenna was happy to have her two best friends Abby and Tessa there with her. They all shared a tent that night.  We also had another mouse experience while we were there.  Mckenna, Tessa, Abby, Mahala and I were all in the bathroom getting ready for bed.  I was using the bathroom and Mckenna was is the stall next to me.  I heard the girls start to scream MOUSE!! They know that I can't stand mice so I thought it was a joke.  Then a couple minutes later I hear Mckenna scream and I knew that it was a real scream.  I ran out of that bathroom like an Olympic sprinter! 

Halle shared a tent with her best friend Maddi. She woke up in the middle of the night with a stomach ache.  I was in our tent and didn't hear her.  I owe Kristen big time for getting up with her in the middle of the night.

We took some selfies the next morning.  It was fun hanging out with Jessie and her kids.

We took a group picture before heading out that day.  There were several families that had already left by this point.  Mckenna was happy that I let her drive home from Ophir.  She needs to get those driving minutes.  It was her first time driving on a highway and she did great.

Parker's 50/20

On Friday September 8th Parker participated in his first 50/20.  He was really excited and had made it a goal to walk the whole 50 miles.  He also was working towards getting his hiking merit badge.  I started out the event with him at the high school.  We started out at around 6:30 p.m.  The weather was great for us.  It was not too hot or cold.  Parker kept a steady pace the first several miles.  We walked next to his friends Kestyn Hyde and Ryker Frost. We also walked next to his leader Zach Hyde for the first 8 miles. I was impressed with how well this event was organized.  There were many stop stations along the way with water, snacks, and people cheering everyone on.  There was even a family giving pancakes at one of the stops.

Parker meant business and we only grabbed oranges and granola bars as we passed by.  I enjoyed having the time to look around and appreciate where we live.  I also loved having the one on one time with just Parker.  It was also really beautiful as the sun set around mile 7.  The crickets were chirping and it was really peaceful. Parker made it to mile 10 with plenty of energy and I kept up with him.

I think I was looking forward to mile 10 the most because that was my stopping point. Kev met us at a gas station nearby and walked the next 10 miles with Parker.  I drove home to be with the kids.

Kev also enjoyed having the time together with Parker. They walked along dirt roads the last few miles.  He said Parker continued to be determined and didn't want to stop.  They reached mile 20 after midnight.  Kev had to convince Parker that it was time to stop and go home.  I drove out and picked them up.  As I was driving and the miles were speeding by I realized how far Parker had really walked.  We were proud of Parker for walking 20 miles his first time! He could have kept going but after 6 hours we told him it was time to come home and get some sleep. I was impressed with Parker's determination and endurance on this scouting adventure!

Labor day weekend

We had to squeeze in one last visit to Seven Peaks before the season ended.  We went on the Saturday of Labor day weekend.  The kids invited some friends to come with them. We had to take two cars to fit everyone.  Halle, Maddi, and Kenna were with me in the Honda.  I even showed them what a Chinese fire drill is when we stopped to pick up the pizza.  They ran many laps around the car. 

Hayden had fun running around with his friend Mason.  It is nice that they are getting old enough that we don't have to worry as much.

Halle had a great time with Maddi. 

Dylan and Parker had fun together too.  They went and did some of the bigger slides.

Kev and I just chilling by the towels.  It was nice that it wasn't too crowded.

We got pizza for lunch.  Mckenna and I had fun relaxing in the wave pool.  We even linked up all our tubes at one point.

I am glad that the kids had such a fun day with their friends.  Kev and I got a taste of what it would be like to have eight kids! On Monday we had a BBQ at my Dad's house.  It was our last time swimming before they closed the pool for the winter.