Cousin Time

We had cousins come to the farm to spend time with us and do some farm work. My brother's kids came for a few days and then my sister's kids came for a week and a half, and her boys even participated in the 4th of July program for our small town. They played out the revolutionary war and Derrick did the flag ceremony. They had fun doing the activities after like the races where they got a quarter for competing.

 This is the only picture I have from the Laub Reunion. This is Samantha and her cousin. The Laub reunion is Kevin's favorite reunion to go off-roading in the sand dunes. The kids enjoy riding horses, playing with cousins and second cousins, and riding the barrel train. There is also a program that we enjoy that has to do with family history.

KayDee and her cousin were able to go to two princess parties during the summer. They had a tea party and did fancy crafts. They definitely felt like princesses.

Ipson Reunion 2014

 So I remembered my camera this year and I took  A LOT of pictures! These are the ones of just our immediate family. We had a great time this year at the Ipson Reunion. The kids played and played and played. There were cousins, second cousins and many aunts and uncles to tease the kids. I think this was the biggest group we have had! We hiked to the caves, retrieved ice and made ice cream just like we do every year. Kevin made sure to lick the beater!
Butterflies were caught and tiny strawberries were picked and eaten. The four wheelers were well used by Derrick and hot dogs were smoked over the fire. Samantha held babies and KayDee even left some flowers for future campers. It was a great trip and we are so grateful to have these memories!

KayDee's Baptism

KayDee was baptized on July 5, 2014. She has been so excited to be baptized and when she had her interview with the Bishop, she answered the questions with confidence. The program was so great. Derrick was asked to give a talk about the Holy Ghost and did a great job writing it himself. We invited some friends to come and there was a lot of family who came too. She really loved having everyone there!
We are so excited that she decided to become a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. This so special for our family and we are so happy for her!

Erickson Reunion

 We went to the Erickson Reunion without Kevin this year since it was during first crop. The kids had an amazing time at the reservoir playing on the beach and boating. KayDee caught small fish or tadpoles with her cousins, Derrick loves rowing that raft and Samantha loved to knee board behind the boat. The kids played and played and played with all the fun stuff the resort offered. They golfed, swam, played games, decorated their reunion shirt and watched movies and ate! We did the team relay race a couple of times and had a grand finalie jumping in the pool as a big group. We are so grateful we get to have this time to spend together and make these memories.

Utah Summer Games

 Derrick and I participated in the Utah Summer Games Karate Tournament. It was a great experience and we learned a lot while we competed. We have only been in karate for 9 months and we both earned bronze in musical kata. Derrick competed in board breaking, self defense, flag sparring, kata, and musical kata. I did kata and musical kata.

KayDee is 8!

 

KayDee is 8 and we know that this is a special age. She has really grown up in the last few weeks. I was wondering if she would be ready for the choice she would make to be baptized  and if she understood it all. I have no doubts now because her words and her actions show it. She wants to be baptized and knows what it means to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. KayDee loves to dance and sing. She is a really good reader and loves books. She plays the piano and loves to play outside and is fascinated with the insects and toads we have. She loves to jump on the trampoline and ride her bike. She is really good at teaching the family night lessons when it is her turn and also playing an opening or closing song on the piano. She is a good helper and loves to try anything when I ask her to help me cook. She does her part in doing jobs around the house, which are clean the bathroom sinks, mop all the tile floor and wipe off the table. She also works on the farm by helping move sprinklers and drag hoses. KayDee still loves to create things, especially with paper. I added pictures to show her paper creations as examples. We love our KayDee and are so grateful she is part of our family!

Anniversary Campout

We made it on our traditional camp out to celebrate the weekend we met 14 years ago. We camped up by Paragonah Reservoir and Kevin's brother Milt even joined us with his girls. I didn't get any pictures of the camp itself but we remembered to get this one right after we got home. It was beautiful and so much fun!

Zion with an old Friend

Puppies, Puppies and More Puppies!

Our dog had 12 puppies! The kids adored them and loved them and then we sold them all. We loved having puppies at our house for a few weeks!

Dance Season Ends with a Bang!

 Samantha competed in St. George for both Lyrical and Jazz dance and her team won both! It was so exciting for her to be a part of it especially for her first year in dance! They made a great team!

 KayDee danced to "Hard Knock Life" from "Annie" at a basketball game.

 Here are the girls waiting to dance at the high school with their niece for the Rammette Review.

 KayDee did her Jazz dance to "Walking on Sunshine." It fit their costumes so well!