Utah Family Reunions

After Sam's wedding, we all left early the next morning and caravanned back to Utah. We had Spencer in the van with us and Mason and Taylor took turns riding with us too. It sure made for some fun conversations--mostly about girls, dating, and sports. It just never gets old driving into Utah Valley after being in Arizona for a while. Everything looks so green and lush. It's almost magical! Being away just makes me appreciate our home so much more!

 First, the Bennions had an extended family reunion for two days. After that, we gathered at our house. There were 17 of us in our house, but it never felt too full. We did so many fun things: early morning runs, an afternoon at a family history center, playing in the canyon, fireworks at the golf course, and an afternoon at the Alpine Slide at the Olympic Circle.

 For July 4th, we spent the day in Provo. It started with the Freedom Festival parade. Then we gathered at Grandma and Grandpa Bennion's house for lunch and a water fight.

That evening we had another fun water balloon fight in our back yard. All the adults and even Grandma and Grandpa Andersen got in on that one!

 

We had some pretty intense days full of lots of fun and very little rest. The kids slept on the floor so we could have their beds. They were so tired every night that they never resisted going to bed. One night I checked on the kids and I found Grace sleeping like this: 

 And, apparently, Grace wasn't the only one exhausted from all the fun!