August

Noah's birthday started us off this month. He got quite the haul this year as Indiana Jones has started to replace pirates. Noah and Summer have both gotten very good at swimming this year and Noah got a body board to play with when we go to the Sperry pool.




We took a long Sunday drive to scope out a new bike ride. We talked with some friends about going all the way around the Oquirrah Mountains and we wanted to check it out first. Along the way we stopped at the Great Salt Lake and got our feet wet. It was salty. Actually it was on the nasty side. I guess we can scratch that off the list of places to visit.





We were excited to check out the Tour of Utah. This was a 5 day bike race that brought in some of the top US pro teams included a few guys who rode in the Tour de France. We went out on the second day and watched them climb Big Mountain (near East Canyon). We had our cowbell and cheered on the racers.







We missed 2 days of the race as we went to Bear Lake for the shop's annual Treasure Hunt/BBQ. The kids had a blast but the wind blew so hard at night that our tent was pressed against our faces.


The next morning after we got home, we went out to Tooele to see the final day of racing, a time trial.



It was pretty boring plus hard to know who was in the lead. We were rooting for a Utah native who was 30 seconds behind the leader and he caught him for the overall win.






Dave took off for a few days with some friends at the end of the month. They went up to Banff, Alberta, Canada for some golf and the Stobbe Invitational, their yearly competition. He didn't come in first but didn't come in last either. 7 guys in an RV for 5 days. You'll have to ask him for stories.



The end of the month brought the first day of school for London and Summer. London is in 3rd grade and Summer is in 1st. Noah will start in September.





The first day of school also brought some excitement at the south end of the valley. The mountain was on fire!! It was a few miles from us but sure looked impressive.

July

As soon as we got back from the Bahamas, the Smith family gathered up in Ogden for Bub and Di's blessing of Broc. It was nice to have the whole family together and we were able to get an updated family picture. (There are a lot more kids in this one!!)








We have tried to stay active this summer and one afternoon went for a hike/picnic up at Alta. The road to Secret Lake was still closed so we hiked up a bit and had a picnic dinner. The kids loved playing in some patches of snow, though it grossed Tee out since it was "old, nasty snow."





We have been losing teeth left and right. Summer has lost a few and looks like a jack-o-lantern. Even Noah got in the act and lost his first tooth.

Tee got to spend a week at Girl's Camp and Dave enjoyed playing Mr.Mom. We went to Silver Lake near Brighton one day for a hike/picnic. They have a really interesting visitor's center there. The kids enjoyed playing with the binoculars and playing "Pick the Poop". I will leave that one to your imagination.

Tee and I will often go out for short bike ride and leave the kids on their own for an hour or 2. This is what happens when the girls decide to play beauty parlor.