Summer Vacation!

Before we left Texas we had a Disney movie night with our friends and I thought Ava looked so cute sitting there with the other girls. 

We left our house around 10 on Tuesday morning and started the LONG drive to Utah. Ava was so good in the car, I couldn't believe it! She just watched movies on her iPad and took a long nap. We split the 21 hours between 2 days and just drove and drove and drove. That night we stayed in a hotel barely in Colorado and the next morning we let Ava get a little energy out:

Then we drove to Denver and stopped at the temple, where Ava got out some more energy. 

After, Brent wanted to drive and look at Columbine High School. I was a little creeped. Then we started the second half of our drive to Utah. It was such a pretty drive going through the mountains outside of Denver, but the driving was pretty scary! Here is Brent concentrating hard:

Crazy road by the river:

We were sooooo incredibly happy to make it in to Utah and see our familiar mountains! We made it to my parent's house at about 7 pm on Wednesday. 

I haven't kept as good of track of what we've been doing in Utah. I have been going to work a few times a week and Brent has been teaching film on Mondays and Wednesdays. It's so fun to be around family! 

Fun doing our nails:

Playing around with this funny app:

Loving my parent's beautiful backyard and the mountains:

Dinner at the Cowleys:

When we had been here not quite a week we went to St. George for the annual Braithwaite vacation. We stay in my grandma's condos, go swimming, go to Tuachan, and just play. I love it. 

The day we got there was my dad's birthday and Ava thought it was so funny to make the french fry a candle and have grandpa "blow it out." 

 

Ava's funny static hair at a park- we were laughing so hard! The park was right by my grandma's condo and had such unique toys.

We went with Cher's family to climb around the red rocks and through a slot canyon. There was no way I was going to climb through the slot! Brent went through part way.

 Fun at the condo with cousins:

Walking Main Street in Santa Clara (mine and Brent's tradition because I think it's the cutest town ever):

We tried to go on a hike to see petroglyphs but we got there too late and it was too hot, so at least we got to see indian stuff in the area:

At Brent's favorite restaurant, the Pasta Factory, Ava was trying to take over my date!

Brent and I saw Beauty and the Beast at Tuachan:

One day we drove from St. George to Pine Valley, and we got a tour of this old chapel:

Andrew and Brittany and their kids were in St. George for part of the time and Ken and Sara were too, but I don't have any pictures!

Back in South Jordan we've been having tons of fun. Ava has been swimming a lot, both in the backyard and at the rec center. She is starting to be a pretty good swimmer already. Ava absolutely LOVES the water.

With my best friend's little girl, these two played so cute together and have been best friends since birth :)

 At the Taylorsville firework show with my cousins:

Ava and her cousin Boston:

We went on a picnic up a canyon in Bountiful with my family and it was fun to be all together:

We took a few family pictures:

These two love birds and their little admirer :)

Girl cousins!

Ava is having a lot of fun getting attention from grandmas and grandpas, and playing with her cousins, but she also has been homesick for our home in Texas. One of the first nights we got here she took my hand and pulled me to the door. She said she wanted to go. When I asked her where she wanted to go, she said "Utah." (She's a little confused between Utah and Texas). Poor thing! Luckily we have been so busy with lots of fun activities that I think she's having a great summer despite the little bit of homesickness. 

Playing Tourists

We had a week and a half in between our Nauvoo trip and our drive out to Utah. On the days when I didn't have to work, we played tourists in Dallas and Fort Worth, which is fun since during the school year we were always busy with work and school. We also got some fun time in at our neighborhood pool/splash pad.

At home, Ava's choice of activity this week has been matching cups to their corresponding coaster. We are working on learning colors, but she mostly thinks everything is blue, which is the first one I taught her a long time ago.  Here's a video:

The first time Ava lined up her cups on the coasters she shouted out "awesome!!" Brent and I started cracking up. We think she learned it from Preston on our trip :)

She has been saying it non-stop. Here's a video because I love the way she says it:

On Tuesday we went to Dallas. Being the frugal person that I am, I had researched what free things there are to do in Dallas, and we had a great day! First we went to a park that is built on a freeway over-pass. It is right downtown, and reminds me a bit of Central Park because of the high-rises around it.

We happened to get there right in time for toddler time and Ava had a lot of fun dancing, and singing.

 They also had these cool blocks out to build and climb on. As you can see from Ava's cheeks, it was getting very very hot.

We next went to the Museum of Art, and it had so many cool things in it. I was very impressed, especially since admission is free! The main artist I wanted to see was Monet, and they had several from him.

Oh man, I love Monet.

They also had lots of other famous artists' work there. Here is a Picasso:

They also had some incredibly old art work and sculptures from the Greeks, like from several hundred years before Christ. It was a great museum and I felt very cultured :) After, we went back to the park so that Ava could play in the splash pad. It was so hot and felt so nice!

On Wednesday I worked and then that evening we had the missionaries and Rita over for dinner. Just in case Rita moves during the summer when we're gone, I got a picture with her.

On Thursday we met my friend Kirsten in Fort Worth. She used to work at HJ and has a boy a little younger than Ava. First we went to the stockyards and saw the cattle drive:

Next, we went to the Japanese botanical gardens. They were so beautiful!

 Ava and her friend liked feeding the koi:

This place will make you feel like an awesome photographer.

After the gardens we went out to BBQ with our friends. Kirsten and I always have tons to talk about, so it was really fun to catch up with her.

On Friday I worked, and then that night we took our friend Chris out to dinner. Saturday was a full day of preparing for our upcoming trip. Doing the yard, cleaning the house, etc. That evening Brent had his film friends and a professor over for dinner and movie clips. We thought it would be fun to do homemade pizzas, where everyone could make their own. It was fun and delicious, but it was a ton of work, and the oven heated up our house a lot!

Today we're having our last Disney night for a while, and then we are packing up and heading out to Utah, either tomorrow or Tuesday. We can't wait to see everyone in Utah!