Jenny moved to Pocatello

We are seeing more of the Allen family now!  This summer, they finished medical residency and got a job and found a house and moved...!  We are relishing more time with cousins, and sisters.

We sure love getting to see those kids more often as they grow.

A few weeks after we moved in, Jenny called and invited my kids to visit and stay at her house for a few days.  With a baby coming in a month and a house full of boxes, I jumped at the offer!  The kids had a blast.  I got a lot of work done.  And Jenny came back smiling...with a few extra grey hairs.  

 

We enjoyed gathering at the Hatch reunion this year in Tremonton.  Good food and good people.  Jenny's drive was a little over an hour and ours was an hour and 15 minutes.  It was nice to meet in the middle.     

Here are four of the brothers in law visiting at the reunion :)

Late August, Amy and I had our turn to visit Jenny in her new house.  

Cousin Ely

 My oldest sister came to town with her family!  We enjoyed the Fourth of July, Dad's birthday, hiking and some new recipes.  The men fit in a few rounds of golf. 

This photo captures some of Ely's Adorable enthusiasm and sweetness.

The company in the backyard

and in the front yard :)  It is fun to watch Ely do everything.... eat ice cream, etc....  or maybe it is watching his parents let him do the big kid stuff... cause he is really big now... just fun

This crew made it up to Timpanogos Cave! 

We visited American Fork Canyon and Millcreek while Rachel was here --two favorites.

Rachel took this one of us at the splash park outing.  She is always taking care of others.  She put me in the shade on the chair: seven months along, feeling quite pregnant that day and trying to plan the details of our move to Riverton....

  It wasn't an easy trip for Rachel to make, but we really treasure all the time we could let the cousins get to know each other. 
We are wishing for a trip to visit your neighborhood.  But until then we'll be ready to see you again next year.  

Cherries, Apricots and Plums

So far this year we have enjoyed fruit tree harvest of cherries, apricots and plums.  (from neighbors, sisters, and a random KSL listing) 
We really love the sweet cherries, but I could do without the mess that accompanies them.  

I don't think you can see in this photo how messy and sticky Tessa is.  After we got home once from picking cherries I had to clean her off with the hose before taking her inside.  She had clothes on  that were already a bit worked over from enjoying those sweet treats.  

Amy, Renee, and I pitted and froze all the cherries that we couldn't eat fresh.

I have to thank my sisters for letting me in on these great deals!!  Keep them coming!  I'm hoping we'll still have some grapes and apples before the summer is out! 
We didn't have much of a garden this year since we were in the middle of moving.  We have relied on produce co-ops like Bountiful Baskets and family members have shared peas, peppers, squash, beans, and cucumbers.  Summertime tastes good!  

Harston cousins

In June the Kentucky Harstons were in town and we had a great time!  We met baby Soren for the first time (ah, where are the pictures?!), celebrated Seth's birthday, and played a lot.  The Harston cousins stay at Grandma's house when they visit, so the kids were excited to see them when they went to bed and then each morning when they woke up. 

Sophie is the queen and adds quite a bit to the little girls elegance.

"Roughin' it" at Mirror Lake

The boys got out their BB guns quite a bit this summer.  Thanks Grandpa Clark! 

Jordan really enjoys playing with his cousin Sophie too. 

 

We love cousin Bethie!

Seth was covered with mud after helping Grandma with projects.

Messa Tessa again...

Joel Fuhrman Style Smores

Jared and the boys got to squeeze in a Grandpa campout before the time with cousins ended, at City of Rocks this year!  

 We'll miss them for another year!

House Hunting

House hunting started at the end of April.  May was nearly consumed by checking new listings, scheduling visits, and putting offers in on a few homes.
We looked mostly in the areas of Sandy, Riverton, Lehi, American Fork, Saratoga Springs, Herriman, South Jordan, and West Jordan.  We learned a lot about what we wanted and liked.  Jared is definitely more "real estate" minded.  (He had more qualifications and needs.)      
The kids enjoyed coming along in the beginning and dreaded it by the end.  I think we all did.
I found the biggest challenge to be the bidding wars.  Inventory was low and demand was high.  So everything was under contract within a day or two, unless there were major problems with the properties.

Then in the first week of June, a miracle happened.  We found a place that seemed to suit our family well and our offer was accepted!  We completed the purchase process and closed on July 6th.

We have officially been in our new home now for one month!        

Pictures will have to come at a later point.  We are still in the thick of settling in and projects.  But we are getting comfortable and we are so grateful for a house in which to create a home.  

Hikes

June was filled with bits of bunches of hikes: Dog Lake, Mary's Lake, Bell Canyon, Wild Horse Canyon, Goblin Valley, Mirror Lake, Hidden Lakes, and Timpanogos Cave.  

1st hke of the season.  Michael skinned his knee on this one.  I wanted to take a photo of all the kids' scrapes.  At one point all the cousins had real trophies.

Me too! 

The boys are exploring by the lake at bottom right.

group shot!

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Fishing with Daddy

We made this trip to Uinta National Park the day after Memorial Day when Jared had a day off of work.  We gained some elevation getting to the lakes and the temperature dropped around 20 degrees.  So we brought along boots, jackets and warm hats. 

Provo River Falls

Trial Lake

This was the first catch.  I think we brought home five 10-12 inch trout.  The smaller ones were released back to the lakes.  Jared figured out what bait worked best and the boys reeled them in. 

first Spring wildflowers peeking out at Mirror Lake

Super Scenery and a fun boardwalk for Tessa and I! 

Good fishing for the boys

We also got to enjoy some fancy fish from Flaming Gorge after a father/sons trip with Jared's Grandpa and uncles.  The boys loved camping and boating on that trip and playing (running wild) with the other young boys that were there.