10.09.2018

Our Favorite Place

 We love the mountains in Utah, especially in the fall. I'm convinced there isn't a prettier place than Big Cottonwood Canyon. Every since our first fall camping trip there 3 years ago, we've tried to make it back each fall to enjoy the beauty. Early one Saturday morning we packed up the kids and headed to Silver Lake, which is seriously so beautiful!
 The drive itself is amazing. Then the "hike" (it's more of a walk) around the lake was just beautiful, peaceful and just good for the soul. Our kids loved it there. Davis ran around the whole thing, his little legs were just pumping away the whole time.
 The colors were so vibrant and the setting is just amazing. We'd had kind of a stressful week prior, and this was just the fix we needed. As we were driving back down the canyon, Ben mentioned that this is his favorite place in Utah. This is saying a lot for Ben, because he's always hesitant to ever pick a favorite anything. I have to agree, this place is my favorite.







September

September started off with a bang with Aunt Heidi coming to town! So much of those first two weeks were filled with hanging with aunt Heid (and her cute friends from Boston) as much as possible! The main event was Heidi running the Big Cottonwood Half Marathon. We came out to support her! Hudson was ready to be a "commentator" and was using his lanyard as a microphone. You could hear his talking into it saying things like "this is an exciting race! The runners are coming through now. No sign of Aunt Heidi yet!" 
These kids were the cutest cheering section ever. Luckily we timed it pretty well and didn't have to wait too long before she crossed the finish line because their attention span was pretty short. Davis, however, loved clapping for anyone and everyone he saw! It was darling. It was so exciting to see Heidi pass us on her way the finish line- she was looking great with a smile on her face! 
 We had a fun labor day party at my parents house, after spending the whole morning organizing our toy room! The boys helped do the corn, very enthusiastically I might add. Such great helpers!

 Soccer season is in full swing. Ben is Chase's coach, and this year Chase is the very youngest kid in the whole league. Some of the kids he's playing against are almost two whole years older than him, which has been frustrating. But we keep encouraging him that you get better by playing better players. Mostly it's going okay! Games are mostly at 1:00, which is super hard with nap time. Sometimes I skip the game so Davis can nap, and sometimes we take him and he takes a short catnap in the stroller. This was one of those days. This nap didn't last very long, but it sure was cute!


 On 9/11 we took the boys to see the memorial in Kaysville. It was kind of cool to be there on the actual anniversary. I got to show them the picture and memorial to my old neighbor who died that day in one of the planes. Both boys are very interested in Patriots Day (I guess that's what we are calling it now) and I think we've instilled in them a respect for that awful day and how it changed the world we live in. I got kind of emotional this year, as I watched a few different tributes on the news and on social media. I kind of can't believe that my kid's whole lives are in a post 9/11 world. The devastation of that day means more to me now that I'm a mother than it even did then.


We had a fun Saturday evening filled with events- first an open house for my cousin Ella (who got married last summer in Colorado) which we stopped by. Then on to a multi-cultural celebration in the ward in Salt Lake where my parents are serving their mission. The only picture I took all night was of Davis because he looked so darn cute.
The kids had another random Monday off school mid-month, so we made it a whole day of fun! We started off at the museum and it was a blast. All three boys are so into it these days and we had so much fun together. We ended up playing in the move-it section upstairs for a good while, doing yoga together and trying new tricks on the mats. I love seeing the boys be creative and learning and exploring!


We finished the day with mini-golf at Cherry (Scary) Hill! Chase has been wanting to go golfing FOREVER, and we finally made it happen! Ray, Diane and Nathan also joined us. It was a darling, fun night. Davis wanted to be part of the fun and even helped Ben hit a hole in one! The other boys had a great time, even if Hudson did get fed up a few times and just picked up his ball and threw it in the appropriate hole.
We played at Will and Kate's one evening (it was Will's birthday and we stopped by to give him a present). The weather was dreamy so we stayed and played outside for awhile. These two babies were too cute sharing this car. They mostly took turns pushing each other in it, but eventually Davis just hopped right in with Anna. I'm pretty sure we have pictures of Will and Ella doing the same thing from 30 years ago! 

Just a thought from an experience I had this month. I had this certain family in my neighborhood on my mind at the first of the week. I knew they were going through some hard times, she has some health problems they can't figure out. They are pretty shy and I'm not sure people know them very well (I really don't know them very well). On Wednesday morning I woke up and I just knew I needed to take them dinner. I texted her and let her know that I was bringing it and she was thankful. I was feeling really overwhelmed though. Taking them dinner meant I definitely needed to go to the store first, along with some other errands and so many other things to do that day. I just wasn't sure how I was going to get it all done and started mentally figuring out which things could be moved to another day. I said a prayer while driving around in the car, asking Heavenly Father to help me get it all done. I felt like it was inspiration that this family needed dinner, but I needed some divine help. I felt peaceful and felt like it was all going to be fine. The rest of the day went so smoothly. I got everything done that I needed to and dinner delivered to them on time. I know Heavenly Father helped expand my time (and probably blessed me with extra green lights and no lines at the grocery store) so that I could serve this family.