Vacation Chronicles

With the next 60+ pictures and subsequent text, I endeavor to test even the most avid and loyal blog reader. Since this is currently our most updated form of journaling, I do not feel the guilt I probably should posting a long-winded trip account.

We have waited seven months for this trip, with our main agenda to finalize Zachary's adoption. Two major things went wrong--the plane was 5 hours late, putting us all over the western states and taking 9 hours longer than planned, and the court lost our paperwork and almost canceled the proceedings. However, we were sworn in and able to prove the legality of this adoption with the help of our attorney and our social services worker.

Judge Claudia Laycock made all kinds of jokes, but we were too nervous to really appreciate them. Zachary was much more relaxed, spitting and playing with a plastic cup the entire time.
Much of our family was there to support us. It had been a year and a half since seeing my younger siblings, and it was our first time meeting Steve.

We went to breakfast with many of them, and then went on a race-pace shopping spree, where we learned the injustice of shopping for a baby boy and not a baby girl. We are now officially stocked up with every kind striped polo you can imagine for a 12-18 month old, as well as some cute things for the 6-12 month category (although that was quite picked over). Side note: Zac is wearing one of his new shirts today. Did anyone know Cheerios could stain??? Seriously???

Speaking of baby girls...we stopped over at Emily's for a few hours to see her new baby, Mikayla. It was shocking how small she seemed to me, even though Zachary was actually smaller at birth. As always, I came away from this trip asking myself how I managed to not capture more pictures of her children!

Friday night, we met up with Erin for a huge dinner at Cheesecake Factory. (Honestly, the portion sizes made me mad they were so big.) We loved seeing Zac interact with her, and visiting again in person. Aren't the matching greens precious?
Saturday morning, I remembered something I love about Utah more than Hawaii: the running. I went on a 13 miler to prepare for the next week's half marathon. I was blown away with how little I sweat, how brisk it was in the early am, and how stunning the sunrise was over the mountains. Kauai does not hold a candle in that category.

We went to see our nephew Bryson in a soccer game, where the temperatures were not at all brisk, and I was not impressed with how little I sweat. It was fun to see Ang as the soccer mom and Paul coaching. Fast forward six years, and we'll be there, too!
Sunday morning, we took off for the Richards' Family Reunion, where 12 of my mother's siblings gather into one house for an insane three days. There were 100 people there this year. Thankfully, many of the cousins are adults now, so the chaos is much less extreme compared to years past (I am the third oldest cousin). One thing I've been meaning to research: fire codes.

My family was in charge of the BBQ and baseball game. My mom and I tackled the raw chicken to prep for the grill. Eww.
Mom and Dad N. bought Zac this baseball outfit, and he flirted all night in it.
My cousins Brian and Emilie swapped cameras with us for the night (they have Canons) and experimented with their photography prowess.
Tuesday, I was in charge of collaborating and running the Richards' Family Olympics. I was a little worried at first that things would not come together, but thanks to tons of help and my 16 year old cousin Paul's obstacle course, it seemed to be a hit. Here we are engaging in a completely stolen idea from Scott and Natalie--a relay where you have to hit cantaloupes with a bat (it was pumpkins with S and N). I wish I had video of the obstacle course. I don't think I've ever seen such a friendly and fierce family competition.
Wednesday night was Natalie's bridal shower. I forewarned Natalie, but somehow still managed to offend others in attendance with my gift. Isn't that what sisters are supposed to give at these things???

Thursday we attended Natalie and Steve's wedding. They were also married in the Mount Timpanogos Temple, and it was a spectacular day. The ceremony was perfect, and I have never seen Natalie beam so much!

Waiting for N & S to come out...Brian and Emilie recreate their own magic.

Natalie and her bridesmaids:
A birth order picture. These are a big thing with my siblings. I think they all like to see how much taller they are than their oldest sister. Notice that all siblings at the point of puberty and beyond are taller, even with my heels.
Kevin, Scott, Emily, and I were all able to be at Natalie's sealing. We adore Grandma Richards, who matched perfectly in her royal blue dress.
My youngest sister, Anna:
Cousins Julie and Rob:

Natalie and Steve had family over for a luncheon at Mimi's Cafe. We all stood up and talked about memories we had with one or both of them. I like that idea, and think that everyone should mention a positive memory of me in the comments. Just teasing, and I really did love hearing all the stories of Steve and Natalie.

This luncheon was the most we were able to converse with G&G Nufer the entire trip!

Love the hair.
Last minute touch-ups before the evening photo shoot. This reminded me so much of Jillian's emergency zit treatment procedures the night before our wedding (except that Natalie did not have zits).

G&G Nufer hosted the reception in their beautiful backyard.
Kevin, Scott, and Camille (a bridesmaid who also made the wedding cake) provided all the music at the reception.
A classy M&D shot. This is better than any picture Pearson's Photography took for me 7 years ago. However, I still recommended them to Natalie, and I have high hopes for her wedding pics.

My one other picture with Emily's children. This is Lia, with a haircut she started herself!
Zac yanking on Janece's hair. He does not have enough coordination to pick up small objects, but hair he can do.Who is the only person not looking in this picture?
Nufer gals:Nufer boys:
Beautiful (Styrofoam) wedding cake:
A ridiculously gorgeous, candid shot:
Prior to take-off:
Friday, we hung out at the Ritchie's. Why spend money at amusement parks when the kiddos like the John Deere just as much?

Mid-afternoon, we went to the May Family Reunion--my father's extended family. It was held at the Heber City Girl's Camp that Brady actually helped to build.

We did a lame skit, which paled in comparison to many of the others.

Me, showing off my two weeks of Hula lessons in the skit. Yikes.

At 4am, I was up and ready to race with Kristen and Kevin (and Emilie!) at the Provo Half Marathon. It was my second round with this race, but I knew I was not in the same shape I was last time around. I fought to stay behind Kevin the first four miles of the race. Funny thing: Brady did not realize Kev and I were right next to each other at this point in the race! It is chance that we got the picture together.

Kristen, kicking my butt.

About mid-way through. Still feeling good, baby. I ended with a 1:35.33, and was thrilled to pull off 7:18s in this race. It makes it my #2 half marathon out of five. Kristen beat me by a mere nine minutes. ;) (Our times were posted at the finish, and I was surprised to see my official time listed as what I had on my watch, because I started my watch when I started running as opposed to when the horn went off. I just looked online, where my time was listed at 7:22s. I'm confessing right now, but I'm going with the 7:18s, since that's when I really started running anyway. Like my rationalization?) Sadly, this is the longest recovery time I've ever had from this distance, and I'm still dying on my short runs.

Saturday afternoon was the pinacle of our trip. We were able to take Zachary to the temple to be sealed together as a family. We dropped off Zachary at the child care section of the temple while we prepared and did all the paperwork. They brought him to us some time later in his white outfit, and he was grinning all the way down the hall. I have never felt such contentment and elation.

Here we are, glowing with the Spirit. Unfortunately, most of our pictures are overexposed, so we are really excited to see Brian's shots.

An Edwards' fam shot. I don't think this will hang on anyone's wall, but it was fun to get a picture of all of us together again after three years.
Our little, precious stud. He was such a charmer throughout the ceremony.
Sunday church services were packed! Brady blessed Zachary, Scott blessed their five week old daughter Brynlee, and M&D Edwards spoke for the missionary homecoming. It was so touching to see so many of their returned missionaries in attendance. In fact, at the luncheon afterwards, the Ritchies hosted 250 people!

We were also happy to have Erin with us again at Zac's blessing and luncheon.

VEM reunites! Julie Varney, the three of us (Edwards), and Roni and Coleman Miller (see the VEM?) were together for Zachary's sealing and blessing. It was such a pleasure to see them again, and plan our Hawaii reunion. We missed you, Aaron.
One thing about this trip that we adored was watching Zachary interact with other kids.
Monday, we spent time with the Edwards' side. We went to the Uintas, and proved the theory once again that where there is water, there will be rock-throwing.
Scott and Natalie's daughter, Maddie:Ellie trying to mimik the big boys and treck through the water:
Individual family shots. Scott and Natalie:
Ritchies:

Mom, with Zac:Us: Cory and Kristen: MIA on these pics.

A picture demonstrating several things: Costco is pretty much the same everywhere, the Edwards' boys share the same sense of fashion, and Scott/Brady look very similar.
We were happy to remember that Utah has beautiful flowers, too. (They also have horseflies, which I discovered after a nice bite that still has my hand swollen two days later!)
We followed up with a trip to Kamas Pools. We loved the zippy waterslide, warm temperatures inside, and the diving boards. Kristen, Ryan and I even dove off the high dive! One of us belly-flopped. (I'll give you a hint: it was not a girl.) Zachary was happier in the water than at any other point during the trip!

That night, we settled in for pizza and Olympics coverage, and also listened to M&D's mission stories.

We had a rough go of it getting home, and were lucky to get on the plane! While we had comments like, "I didn't even know there was a baby behind me," and "What a good, happy baby," on the way out to Utah, we heard comments like, "Does your baby need a binkey or a bottle?," and "What a hard thing for a baby" on the way home. What a difference less sleep and a sick child make!

We're home, glad to be here, but wishing for more time with so many friends and family.

Kicks and Giggles

From Sea to ATV

Hanakapiai Beach...my favorite scenic beach on Kauai. A short two mile hike on one of earth's most scenic trails and you're there. Plus there's a bit of spelunking.
We're in process of finding a good infant pack for hiking. Zac has grown out of his little carrier and it's time for something a little more rugged. For evaluation purposes we borrowed a Kelty pack from one of my co-workers--we were sold!
The beach day was as good as ever.

Karen challenged me to a race (imagine that) and for some reason I accepted. Take a close look at the picture--who do you think won?
I've hiked this trail probably five times and each time there's something I didn't see before.
Zac loved the Kelty pack. In fact he slept nearly the entire hike back. To cool off we went to Queen's bath. These kid's were crazy to be jumping off the ledge into such shallow water.
Our 7 year anniversary is Monday. To celebrate, we opted to substitute a fancy dinner for a Kipu Ranch ATV tour. It was fantastic--a must do for visitors. It was Karen's first time on a four-wheeler and I've got to tell you, she made that four-wheeler look good!

The tour began in Kipu Valley. Anyone recognize this movie backdrop? Let me give you a hint. An archeologist and two kids are running through this field amongst a herd of dinosaurs being chased by a Tyranosaurus Rex.

Here's your next try at movie trivia. Anyone recognize this river? Another hint. Harrison Ford launched out over this river swinging from a rope from this very tree. If your thinking "Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark" then you're good. It's possible that Harrison Ford looked slightly more graceful than Karen.

I have always wanted to see this area of the island, but few seldom get the chance. Kipu Kai is a beach that is only accessible by boat. All other access to this beach is on private land that is strictly guarded. As part of our tour (and the reason we chose this tour) we were able to ride to this view point. I realize this picture looks to have a fake backdrop, but that's just how cool this place is.
On our way back we ran into hoards of wild pigs. It is said that for every one resident on Kauai, there are three wild pigs. This little guy was little more squirmy than Zac. Our tour guide called this pig "microwavable"--haha!

We love this island. If you look really close you can see our house.

First Taste of Mommy's Cooking

Zachary loves his baby food and rice cereal, but when we mashed up a banana, it was a different story. Watch his eyes.

Featuring the Nikon

Zac's reaction when he realized he was in for a photo shoot with Dad's new camera.


Like any good father, I bribed him by telling him there would be squash and bananas as a reward for good behavior. He lightened right up!

The next generation of tree huggers.

Mama's boy.

Zac and me chillin' at my lunch spot.

Zac wanted a turn.


This past weekend we visited a new beach--Hideaways. This is where we wanted to go snorkeling last week, but forgot our gear. The snorkeling was terrific. Apparently, this beach has been known in the past to feature some nudists. We couldn't talk Nic into it so we kept our suits on, but I won't speak for Zac.

Birthday Boy

For Brady's 2-9 celebration, we started the day out surfing. We think it's time to upgrade from a foam board to something that looks and feels a little more savvy. Unfortunately, those run a little more than the $100 we spent to get our Costco boards. Is it too soon to think about Christmas???
Brady's major gift this year was a camera. He has coveted Heidi's camera, as well as a few other friends' cameras, and thought that by talking about it long enough I would finally give in. A year later, I threw in the towel, and he purchased a Nikon D60 SLR.  Here are the first results of surrender:

Later in the afternoon, we went and played tennis for the first time since moving here. We are terrible, but there is something magnificent about hitting a ball hard, and having it go exactly where you want it to go. (When I reach that point, I'm sure tennis will be even more fun.) Zachary was not into sitting in his stroller with toys, and we discovered that he was an exhaused little chap the minute we gave in and went back to the car. He'd hardly been buckled up when he fell asleep.

We decided to use a sitter for the first time (discounting the five months he was with Heidi). She is a really great girl from our church, and loves kids. Her family will be watching Zachary on our kayaking adventure next week, so we wanted to get her aquainted with Zac. We left detailed instructions, including our 2 cell phone numbers. Unfortunately, we did not leave a phone, and we did not have a home phone. She didn't end up needing to call, but we thought that was pretty funny rookie mistake.

We ate out at Roy's, Paul's favorite eat-out on the island (right?). Brady ordered a tasty steak and shrimp dish, and I ordered a three-course special, which included chicken spring rolls, mac-nut snapper, and a delightful chocolate souffle. (When Kristen, Emily, and I made chocolate souffle at our cooking class, it tasted like eggs. This tasted nothing like eggs.)

The food was terrific, but we felt like we were eating at a mall food court. Not quite the ambience of Beach House. The restaurant made up for it by offering Brady a complimentary dessert (a gal he works with works nights at Roy's, and had this served up).

Of course, we had to come home and eat cake. Brady's mom gave me this recipe two years ago, and I screwed it up. The second time around, it turned out just fine. We sent half of it home with our sitter (instead of money...just kidding). I decided that I do not want to make cakes for our birthdays. I'd rather get a fancy dessert and eat it at the restaurant than have all kinds of leftovers. Cakes are for kiddos birthdays, or birthday parties. (We'll see how long I can stick to that.)

Speaking of birthday boys, Zachary hit the 6 month mark this week. He has chunked out overnight! A month ago, he was a relatively small kid for his age. I highly suspect he no longer fits in that category!

He's down to 2 naps a day, and that leaves him pretty exhausted around dinner-time:

He's a great little napper:
He loves to hold his own bottle now.
I think his two bottom teeth will pop in this week. It's delightful to watch him progress through these stages!!!

Independence Day

July 3rd, we went to the Air Force Base to eat, talk with friends, and watch the fireworks. It was Zachary's first go with fireworks, so we were curious to see how he reacted. Mostly, he watched wide-eyed:
To give you a feel for the scope of our small-town fireworks, this was the finale:
July 4th, we waited for Zac to wake up...
...then headed up the North Shore for some hiking. We've been dying to do a hike our friends told us about a year ago. We followed their directions only to realize they were a little incorrect in their directions, and we had already done the hike. It was raining where we were, so we went down to Princeville for some exploring.

We found 2 different paths, and spent time at both beaches. When we left in the morning, we took boogie boards, backpacks, and everything but snorkel gear. Of course it was the snorkel gear we wished for at the beaches.

A lot of people say this is the best snorkel spot on the the island. The current was really strong, so we both swam close to shore. The water was unbelievably clear and warm! We're coming here next week to try the snorkeling.

Later that day, we went to Will and Karen Summerhay's house for fireworks and dinner.
We had to take a picture of his daughter wearing a BYU shirt (they are hard-core Utah fans):
Karen's famous 4th of July cake:

We are so grateful to live in America! There is so much conflict in our nation (and the world) right now, but this holiday was a nice time for reflections on our freedoms.