Utah, Part 2: More Mountains and More Family

 The next morning, we got up at 5:15am and set off to meet Emily and Ty in Cottonwood Canyon to hike Lake Blanche.  Kate and I approach life with the same amount of FOMO, so she excitedly woke up and came along, too.  So happy to have her with us!  It was a  quick 6 miler with plenty of mosquitos, but catching up for those couple hours with these friends filled my tank.  Oh, losing people from Kaua'i is the very, very worst part of living here, especially when you get a refresh on how compatible you are as friends.

Kate sees Emily as almost another mom to her.  It is amazing how fast that relationship formed.

At the lake, getting swarmed by bugs.  This lake is much prettier than Cecret Lake.

I am feeling needy.  Please come back to our island.

Snake sighting!  This is only Kate's second time seeing one in the wild.

Next up, Provo Rec Center with Walker, Elise, and all of Emily's family.  

Zachary was so happy to hang out with Mikaela, since he missed seeing her the day before when we visited their family and he was at Lagoon.

We also visited Grandma and Grandpa Nufer.  Grandpa's dementia prevents him from even knowing who we are now, but he is still very pleasant.  He especially loved Owen.  Owen talked to him for 60 minutes straight, and did well with Grandpa's tickling and teasing.  We had prepped him for repetitive questions and some of the behavior we remembered from last trip so Owen wouldn't be confused.  When he came out of the restroom downstairs, he barged out asking Brady hopefully, "Are they still here?" and "I am having so much fun with Grandpa!  I thought it would not be fun because he has lost his mind but he is so fun!"

Grandpa, making sure we all know he is still taller that Zachary.

Later that afternoon, Kristen jumped in the heat and a dress for an hour to bond with my kids.  She is a superhero.  

Meanwhile, Zachary never moved from the couch, reading for hours straight with this heavy, cozy blanket.

Our final pit stop of the evening: ice cream.

The next morning, we went to see Erin and her children at a splash pad outside Salt Lake.  It is such a gift to have a relationship with her and her family.  The kids anxiously handed out their gifts and they were so happy Declan liked his so much.  Erin thoughtfully gifted our kids art supplies.  She is passionate about drawing and we love that she shared that with our children.

Little Mermaid:

Declan laughed and laughed with Zac, and Zachary also got the girls chasing him around.  These were three of the most meaningful hours of our trip.  I'm proud of all these kids and how well they connect.

Zachary has passed up Erin's height, too! 

So happy Zachary has a relationship with Erin and another person who loves him so deeply.

Owen asked to be sure we got a picture of him with Declan.

In the evening, we went to Tsunami sushi with the Edwards adults, swapping old stories (squirrels, camping, roller blading) and lamenting the difficulty of kids being away on missions. 

Our final Utah adventure: hiking Granite Flats to Dry Creek.  It was another early wake-up, and we loved the Kate and Walker joined.

So beautiful.  Brady and I had some serious talks in Utah about moving back, and this did nothing but stoke the fire.  We miss mountains.  We miss family.

These two trooped with us over 9 miles without complaining!  

More wildflowers.

...and "white things you blow on..."  -Shireen

Sundance came with and herded Kristen the entire time.  She's a loyal dog to her mama.

We still had a few things on our Utah list: Zupas, BYU campus, and the trampoline house.  We busted through our list, the kids stopping over for lunch while I visited with my cousin Michelle.  

Zac was incredible: beating the Ninja Warrior Course on his second attempt.  

We cruised around campus, purchasing a few treats and books from the bookstore and pointing out the library before heading back for another delicious meal at Cory and Kristen's.

Owen got in his mow with Cory and learned some more fancy trampoline tricks from the ever-patient instructor, Walker.

Kate begged for a yard just like Cory and Kristen's.

What we did NOT do was pack until 10:30pm that night, when we took over their entry way like good guests and realized there was no way to fit everything in our current bags.  Our planner selves of years ago would have died over this scenario but our roll-with-it selves had no problem begging for a loaner bag to check home.

We are happy to be home, but it took a few days to get to this point.  It is the hardest time Brady and I have had coming back to Kaua'i.  We do desperately miss the mountains.  We hope we are not doing disfavors for our kids living far away from communities of kids.  We feel integrated in our community, but watching Zachary run to outdoor games and come home exclaiming, "There were 50 kids my age!" kind of broke our hearts.  Walker lives outside, bouncing from friend's trampoline to friend's trampoline and living his best life.  I don't think living in huge communities is necessarily the answer.  After all, Scott also mentioned on this trip that a common thread he hears from youth in his ward is how lonely they feel.  Still, it is hard not to feel envy over the parks, schools, and programs for youth there.

A couple trips to the beach helped me remember that we have a spectacular situation here, too.  I work hard to give my kids social situations and there is nothing easy or convenient about any program here (sports, music, and even school all carry taxing commutes).  But every rose has its thorns and I'm going to be grateful that our rose is the coast.