4th of July

I didn't have any appointments the weekend of the 4th, and Kyle needed to take a test for school which he can do for free at BYU (he has to pay $60 to take them here) so we headed to Utah to surprise his family. We planned it so that we would arrive in time for our nephew Ezra's first birthday party, and it was perfect timing because we stepped into the backyard as his family was blessing the food. When they opened their eyes, we were there! We had only 2 full days, but we managed to fit a lot in. After Kyle's test and Ezra's party, the sister-in-laws went to a late showing of Eclipse. But not just the girls-some of our husbands came also, including.....are you sitting down?.....MINE! The next day we attempted to go boating but it lasted about ten minutes once we realized the water was way too choppy. Instead we went to the Lindon Aquatic Center. The boys had fun on the "flowrider" which is like surfing in a pool. Next we followed the Haskell family 4th of July tradition which is eating KFC at a park in Springville and playing softball and kickball. The boys also kept up their tradition of having a homerun derby. After THAT....we went to Stadium of Fire and saw Carrie Underwood! Andy and Amber had 4 tickets and Justin and Leslie were going to go with them but when they learned how much I love Carrie Underwood they offered the tickets to us. They are so sweet and we appreciated that so much. It was my first time at Stadium of Fire and I LOVED it. For those that don't know, Provo puts on a huge patriotic show at the BYU football stadium every year and they always feature someone famous. At the end they put off really great fireworks. One of my favorite parts was when members from each branch of the military walked onto the field and they had members in the crowd stand also. The other was the National Anthem. Right after Carrie Underwood finished singing it, 4 jets flew over the stadium really close together. I was fighting back tears almost the whole show, but that's what really got me. Then one of the pilots came on the big screen, saluted us and talked to us while he was in the air. Even if they didn't put on a concert, I would want to go every year just for the show and the fireworks. Thanks again to Justin, Leslie, Andy and Amber. It was amazing.

On Sunday we surprised my best friend Ashley, in Orangeville, which is almost 2 hours from Payson. Her husband knew I was coming but she had no idea. When we arrived she happened to be at her mom's house grabbing something. She came back home and found me sitting on her couch. We just stayed for a couple hours, but it was so great to see her and her family. I always forget to take pictures when I go there.

After that we had dinner at Andy and Amber's, and then headed up to the cabin for the night with some of the fam. We love it up there. The next morning we were able to see Kyle's best friend Benny and his new wife Tacy on our way out of town. 6 hours later we arrived in Vegas and found that it was going to be bumper to bumper traffic probably the rest of the way home, and decided to stay the night there. Ryan, Stacy and their kids happened to be staying the week in Vegas while Ryan worked and they invited us to stay the night with them at the Excalibur. It was my first night staying in Vegas so I was excited. And of course we're always up for more time with our family. It was such a fun-filled weekend. I'm hoping we can make it back again before Kyle starts student teaching. Fingers crossed that I have another weekend with no appointments-preferably Labor Day weekend when my cousin Anna gets baptized!