$2 Tuesday

Will's parents learned that in August there is $2 Tuesday at Thanksgiving Point.  My kids wanted to see a couple of different museums.  So it was a really busy day.  But really fun.  First we went to a new spot at Thanksgiving Point - the Butterfly Symposium.

They have hundreds of butterflies here just flying all over.  It was really neat to see the variety.  You had to be careful on your way out to not accidentally take a butterfly with you.

Megan spots a butterfly among the plants.

It is hard to tell but they were crawling all over these big windows.

Whitney got a butterfly to crawl onto her finger.  It stayed for a couple of minutes.  I guess Rachel and Megan both had butterflies on them too but I didn't get a picture.

Hannah, dressed in her cousin's clothes, liked seeing all the pretty flowers and water.

There were other parts of the museum that talked more about bugs.  Here the kids are pretending to be trapped in a bug jar.

Hannah looks at some of the other bugs.  Some of them were hiding and took a little extra finding.

There was a build a bug spot.  Rachel shows off her creation.

And Megan shows off hers.

And there was a room to pretend to be bug scientists, making a discovery of a new kind of bug.  It was a really neat museum.  I am glad we were able to go and learn more about bugs (although I will still squish ones I find in my house).

Temple Square

The girls decided to go to Temple Square while in Utah.  I think it is going to be closed for a couple of years for renovations so I am glad we were able to go.

The temple is so beautiful.  So are the girls in front of the temple.

We looked at some statues that are all over the square.  I liked this one that represented the pioneers and pulling handcarts.

Joseph Smith receiving the priesthood.

We went into both visitors' centers.  The girls liked seeing where in Jerusalem different moments of Christ's life took place.

It was wonderful sitting and observing the Christus statue.

In the other visitor's center we learned about the importance of eternal families.

Everyone loved seeing what the inside of the temple looks like.

Here we wait for the piano recital, which was the real reason we went to Salt Lake.  One of Grandma Keeler's students from her mission was a fabulous pianist.  He played in a quartet and it was great.  Some little ones got a little bored by the end though.

We also got a sweet treat.  Yummy!

So it was a fun evening.  More Utah adventures to come.

To Grandma's House

Will's parents came home from their mission a couple of weeks ago.  We wanted to go visit them and also see some of my siblings who live in Utah.  Grandma and Grandpa Keeler have a pretty cool house.  Nobody wanted to leave when it was time.

We love grandma and grandpa.  Thanks for letting us take over your house for a week.

The kids helped grandpa set up the sand box - one of their favorite activities.  They played in there quite happily for a long time.

Then washing off by playing in some water tubs.

Visiting grandma and grandpa also means new toys. 

Building with K'nex toys. 

Some cute kids sunbathing after spending time in the pool in the backyard.

We also got to see some cousins while staying in Utah.  The picture is a bit dark but these are our Guptil cousins who also live in Utah.

And hanging out with the Jensens eating popsicles.

Will and the kids got into a water squirting fight.  Will got drenched and all the kids thought it was hilarious.

Also in Utah we had a mini-party for Megan.  Cake, ice cream, and presents, what more could you need?  Megan was thrilled and liked telling everyone that she was almost six.

Anyway, we had a blast with Grandma and Grandpa Keeler.  We were sorry to leave but very happy for the time we had together.

Umatilla County Fair

It has been a couple of years since we have gone to the fair.  Will didn't really want to go so he agreed to watch the two youngest and the rest of us had a grand girls adventure.  It was lots of fun.

Looking at some of the booths.  This toy booth was loved.

We found one vendor with lots of shiny rocks.  I let the girls each pick one.

Showing off their rocks.  I bought one for me too.  I think it is a fun way to remember our day.

There were some cool animals to see.  Wild animals.  We saw a tiger and a lynx and some more.  I liked the Geoffrey's Cat.  It was much more active than the other animals and fun to watch.

We went in the building to admire all the artwork.  The girls were impressed that little kids could show exhibits.

Admiring the lego creations.  Whitney has decided she wants to make one next year for the fair.

We got to watch the ending of the cutest baby contest.  There were a lot of adorable babies in the running so I don't know how they picked.

This was probably everyone's favorite part - the magic show.  The kids got to come up close and participate in the show.  He mostly did entertaining card tricks and stuff. 

There was a becoming a farmer exhibit. 

Whitney gets to milk a cow.  Real water came out when you did it correctly.

Rachel and Megan out collecting eggs from the chickens.

And you can't leave the fair without eating a giant elephant ear.  We ran into one of my friend's while wandering around and she told us which booth had the best elephant ear.  It ended up being super yummy.

So good times were had by all at the fair.  Maybe I will be brave enough to take all the kids next year.

Bing Canyon

My mom was serving as a cook at her stake's youth trek.  She did it four years ago also and enjoyed it.  She invited us to come visit one of the days.  We live only about 35 minutes away from the canyon so we thought it would be doable. 

We talked to my mom for awhile and then decided to go on a "hike" while she got some treats ready for the trekkies.

It was a fairly flat and short hike.  Which was perfect for our group.  Yet we still needed walking sticks for the trip.

And stopping to play in the dirt.  Hannah loves dirt.  So does everyone else.

We found some super murky water with an old canoe.  Some of my kids thought they should explore it a bit closer but I nixed that idea.

Back in camp Whitney conquered the benches surrounding the fire pit.

We also had a yummy sack lunch.  It was a left over from the youth.  My kids were ecstatic to find goldfish crackers and brownies in their lunch.

Then we all pitched in to help make the next days lunch.  Here Megan adds apples to all the bags.

Taking a break to sing primary songs with another one of the cooks.

And bonus picture.  My parents went on an Alaskan cruise right before trek.  They brought back shirts for all the kids.  So here they are in their adorable Alaskan shirts.  Thanks Grandma and Grandpa.