Bear Lake

 

We went on our annual vacation to Bear Lake July 27-30th. We stayed at the Paris Springs campground again.

We got there later and cooked hot dogs over the campfire. 

I love looking at all the stars every night from camp. 

On Monday morning we drove to a beach that was farther East on the Idaho side. We wanted to find a part of the beach that was dog friendly. Unfortunately, it was too shallow to launch our wave runners. So we ended up driving back to the North side of the lake. 

It was fun having both Sienna and Paige come up with us. 

Halle found another heart shaped rock. I love that she finds these every where we go! 

Kev took Ollie out for a ride on the wave runner. He seemed to enjoy it.

Ollie just chilled most of the time in a camp chair. We enjoyed having him with us this time. He is such a good dog!

We went to dinner at Zipp's that night. I always enjoy the food and not having to cook. 

The next day Hayden and I launched the wave runners. He enjoys the freedom of riding on his own now. 

Dark clouds and wind blew in when we got there. It even sprinkled rain for awhile. Luckily, it did not last long and we were able to enjoy the rest of the day. 

The kids had fun digging and building sandcastles. 

They even dug up these little shells that they used. Sienna also rescued a butterfly from the water. We thought it was dead because it was not moving for the longest time. Then suddenly it revived and flew away. 

We were happy that Kristen, Scott, Maddi, and Jax were able to come up for the day! It was great catching up with them. 

Addy and Paige went on many tube rides while we were there. 

I took this picture of Jax out in the water. The clouds and sun rays looked beautiful. 

Sienna and the rest of the kids worked hard to make this cool sea turtle. They made it in honor of Ben Frost. He usually makes one every year. We were missing all the friends that were not able to make it up this year. 

Kristen took this cute picture of the girls. I can't believe our girls are all grown up and getting ready for college and grown up jobs now!

July highlights

 

We finally celebrated Kenna's birthday on July 7th. We had dinner, dessert, and she opened up her presents. I thought it was funny how she decorated Parker with the ribbons and wrappings. We love Kenna!

Kev, Hayden, Addy, and I went to the Grant family reunion on July 10-11th. We hadn't been back to Reid Ranch since Summer 2020. We loved this time spent catching up with family!

Ken had his birthday on July 23rd. We missed his party since we were in Oregon. I took this picture of him with Ollie earlier in the month. Our dog reminds him of his dog that he had growing up called Jocko. We are glad that his health has improved in the last year!

We did some fireworks from home on July 24th. There was an impressive amount of fireworks going off that we could see from our yard. 

Mason Castagno had his mission farewell on July 27th. He will be serving in Reno Nevada. We enjoyed hearing him speak. I hadn't been back to our old ward in a couple of years. It was fun seeing old neighbors and friends. 

We went over the the Castagno's for food afterwards. I took this picture of Parker with his childhood friends. We had a memorable afternoon with everyone!

Hayden's supreme 16

 

Hayden had a birthday hangout with his friends Mason and Brody.  I took them to race go karts at The Grid. 

The profile pics that they created made me laugh! It was fun to see them up on the wall screen. 

Parker was working that day and helped us out. He let us use his race pass and his card at the Arcade. 

Hayden was ready to start the race. He had raced once before with Kev, Parker, and his grandpa. 

It was fun watching them race around the track. The three of them were neck in neck for awhile. 

Mason came in 2nd place. Brody and Hayden were 6th and 7th. 

We took the traditional picture on the racing podium. 

They all enjoyed this motorcycle racing game together. 

Hayden and Brody tried this Jurassic Park game. 

Mason ruled at this Star Wars pin ball game. I even got to try it. I loved all the music and Star Wars sounds. 

Hayden came in first at the motorcycle race and got another free game. 

We came back to the house to have Dominos pizza. We laughed because every time Brody comes over we have pizza. They dared Hayden to poke a whole in this soda and then drink out of it. It was good hearing them laugh together. 

Hayden showed them his new Lego City Train set. They got out all the Legos and had the best time hanging out. These boys have known each other since they were babies. It brought back memories to see them enjoying the Legos. 

We put candles in a chocolate drumstick and sang happy birthday to him. His friends gave him a gift card to Little Caesars, some snacks, and a gift card. I'm glad that Hayden had such a fun night. I'm grateful that he has good friends in his life!

Oregon Coast

 

We drove to Oregon on July 18th. Halle and Hayden slept most of the ride there. It was our longest road trip to date. 

As we were driving through Oregon, a fire was blazing right next to the road. It slowed us down for awhile. 

We were happy to reach our Airbnb at Netarts Bay. It was the cutest beach house overlooking the bay. 

The inside was decorated with a Nautical theme. There was plenty of room for all of us to sleep, eat, and hangout. 

Kenna and Bryson arrived before us. They were hanging out on the back deck. Kenna was cross stitching. 

They gave Hayden his birthday presents. They got him a Coca-Cola pillow and a Diet Coke with his name on it. 

The next morning I hung out on the deck and read my book. 

The first beach we went to was in Seaside and a short drive from where we were staying. 

I love how the homes are built into the hillside and overlooking the beach. 

We walked through this cool tunnel at Tunnels Beach to get to another beach. 

Parker picked up this giant log as were walking along. 

Kev and Hayden climbed around on the rocks together. 

Addy decided she wanted to pick Parker up. He was surprised that she could lift him. 

Kev, Parker, and I went out on this rock looking over the water. We were able to see our first star fish from a distance. 

Halle found this heart shaped rock. She seems to find these wherever we go. 

Halle enjoyed all the time she got to hang out with Kenna and Bryson. 

That afternoon we went to the Tillamook Cheese Factory. It was cool seeing how the cheese is made, cut, and packaged. We even got some free samples. 

We all got ice cream and some fried cheese curds to share. 

I know this was the highlight of the whole trip for Kenna. To say she was excited was an understatement. She told us that they only eat Tillamook cheese at their house. She also brought a cooler to take cheese home with her. 

We drove the next day to Oregon State park and explored a the beach. 

We found this cool looking jelly fish washed up on shore. 

We stopped again at Oswald State Park. I loved all the wild flowers growing along the hill. 

We spent some time at the overlook. We even saw some seals down below. 

The next stop was the beach at Hug Pointe. The Castagno's had told us that we needed to go there. 

I loved exploring all of the the tide pools. I saw this awesome starfish. 

We also saw several small crabs. 

Kev and I hugging at Hug Pointe. 

We drove to Cannon Beach and had lunch there. Cousin Melissa told us that we had to try Pizza A Fetta. We all enjoyed lunch and then looked at some of the shops. 

The highlight was getting to see Cannon Beach. We walked out to the rock formations and took some pictures. 

Then we drove to Astoria to see the Goonies house. It was in great condition. We had fun looking at all of the details from the movie. 

We also drove to the County Jail where they filmed the prison scene. It was fun to see the Jeep Cherokee. Parker was wearing his "Goonies Never Say Die" t-shirt. 

My favorite things that we saw in Astoria was the Astoria Column. We walked up all the stairs to the top. Hayden flew a basal wood airplane from up there. 

The views from up there were beautiful. I recognize this bridge from the movie Free Willy. 

The next day we drove two hours to get to Multnomah Falls. It was an easy walk to the view point. 

Parker decided that he wanted to hike up farther to the upper part of the Falls. Bryson, Kenna, and Addy also came along. It was steep switchbacks to get to the top. I was proud of myself for making it. It wasn't as impressive from the top. 

We also went and saw some other waterfalls that were nearby. We stopped at Powell's Books in Portland. Loni had told me about it. It was the hugest bookstore I have ever seen. I bought all the kids books while we were there. 

The next morning Kenna and Bryson made their famous McGriddles. Addy had been craving them since the last time we ate them at their apartment. 

We then headed to Cape Meares. Halle climbed this tree and had her Twilight moment. 

We also went and saw the light house there. 

Kev took us to see the Octopus tree. 

We drove South to Lincoln City. Bryson's Aunt had told him about a Christmas shop there. It was the most Christmas ornaments that I have ever seen in one shop. I got a blown glass lighthouse and a starfish ornament. We also stopped at a nearby chocolate shop. 

We went to Lincoln County beach and had a picnic. We also took turns flying our kite. It was Kenna's childhood kite and we hadn't gotten in out in years. 

It is cool that there are places where you can drive on the beach. 

Kev and I got out and did some rock scrambling to get to this beautiful cove. 

Addy drove for the first time on the beach. 

That night we walked down to the restaurant below where we were staying. It is called the Schooner. 

There was a wait so Halle taught the kids a Tik Tok dance. 

Kev and Parker played cornhole. 

I ordered the crab mac n cheese and loved it. We also tried the clam chowder appetizer. Kenna let me try some of her fish and chips. I loved our Oregon Coast vacation and this time with all of our kids! It was a bucket list trip for me!