We celebrated Independence Day by having some friends over for a BBQ the night before. We really love spending time with The Derham Family and The Dix Family. Such a great group of people!
On July 4th we enjoyed some family time throughout the day...
And then I took the older 2 girls to see fireworks at Shorline Park with our friends The Derhams and The Hopes while Devin stayed home and let Tess keep her bed time.
These kids together are just too much fun!
Two days later we headed to Utah for a vacation that we had planned prior to knowing that we would be moving soon. It couldn't have been planned better (even though at the time it didn't seem like it) but we were able to celebrate Tessly's 1st birthday with family and the closing date for our house that was chosen for us fell right during our vacation. The day that we flew in, Devin went to finalize the purchase of our home... without even having seen it yet! Two days later we got the keys and Devin and the girls saw our new home for the first time. Needless to say, we were all extremely happy and excited about this.
We were also able to attend The Payne Family Reunion which was held in Duschene, Ut. We always enjoy spending time with the Paynes and this trip was no exception (though we really missed The Maine Paynes who couldn't make it this time).
The first night we celebrated all of the July birthdays with cupcakes and French cakes...
And Shannon found this just for me... I'm pretty sure this is the only one out there!
The next day we headed out to East Carbon for a parade and festival. The kids had a blast but this is definitely as small town as you can get!
Then we headed down Memory Lane as we took the whole family to our favorite places in Price from our CEU days(13 years ago)! First up... GROGG'S!! This will forever be my favorite restaurant and is technically where Devin and I had our first date! So fun to go back here with our family!
Tess spent most of the time getting acquainted with aunts, uncles, and cousins...
After that we took the kids to the Dinosaur Park (which was the skate park in our day).
We all stayed in a large gorgeous cabin and this is where we had the most fun! We really love good quality time with this family of ours.
Tess having a conversation with Natalee...
What... your family doesn't toss tortillas?
All the ladies lined up for a shooting contest... which Grandma won!
The next day we headed to Vernal to see the Dinosaur National Monument and it was pretty awesome...
The hiking crew...
And just like that our vacation was over and we were back in Cupertino making preparations for our big move. And we tried to squeeze in as much fun as we possibly could during our last weeks in California. Our amazing friends, The Villamizars, threw us a going away BBQ and it was so sweet of them. We love this group of people! (Present: Villimizar Family, Derham Family, and Dix Family)
And especially this group of kids...
We went hiking through Castle Rock with The Derham Family and it was such a fun night. We had never been here and I am so glad that we got to experience it.
We love the Derhams!! They are such an awesome family and we enjoyed getting to know them. Their whole family were such good friends to ours!
To celebrate my birthday we decided to explore a part of California that we had never seen before. We stopped in beautiful Carmel for lunch and a walk on the beach...
Then we hiked through some of Point Lobos. Such a gorgeous place! We all loved it and I am so glad that we were able to see it before we moved.
I wanted to remember this "green area" that we spent a lot of time at during the last 2 years. Walking and riding in circles, playing soccer, and having races. It was the only "backyard" we would know during this time. Also, this picture shows my girl's personalities so well... Addie who follows the rules and stays on the path and Quincy who pushes limits and takes the path less traveled by.
We hung out in some of the cute downtowns they have in different cities...
Played at the park as often as we could...
Ate s'mores like we "city folk" do it...
And had to say goodbye to best friends. This part broke my heart! These sweet girls were blessed with such great friends and I will be forever grateful for every moment that they were able to spend with these cute girls. Addie and Quincy wanted to buy Best Friend Necklaces for their besties and they couldn't wait to give them.
Quincy and Kaylena
Addie and Sofia
Quincy and Vicki
We played at our pool for the last time
The girls got to have a special Late Night with their besties and Adriana got some great pictures of them. I love the special friendship we shared with The Villamizar family. Such a wonderful family that we were so blessed to know. I will certainly miss how close we were to them.
We even got one last beach day in. I will miss ocean so much and feel lucky to have lived so close to it for these last 2 years.
One last playdate with friends: Adalyn, Sydney, Quincy, Kaylena, and Grace
Our very last night in California we met up with friends for the last time and had a picnic in the park. The kids found this castle and spent the rest of the night putting on plays together.
Unfortunately I didn't get very good pictures of everyone! Present: Villamizar Family, Derham Family, Dix Family, Johnson Family, Savage Family, and Stoker Family. Such an amazing group of people! We have appreciated their easy friendships and awesome examples. We feel lucky to know them!
The next day we made the long drive to Utah and we were finally Home...
It has been a roller coaster of a month for us... physically and emotionally. We are going to miss so many things about California... first and foremost the people. We feel very blessed and fortunate to have had the experiences we did throughout the last 2 years. We made some amazing friends who are forever in our hearts and shared some awesome experiences as a family that have shaped us into who we are today. We are extremely grateful for this opportunity now to return to Utah and begin a new chapter with our family. We know that this is where we are supposed to be and truly believe that our Heavenly Father has helped guide our family here. We look forward to all that lies ahead for us.
No comments:
Post a Comment