(Arlo, baby #2 and me playing in the water! Everyone was right... the 2nd bump comes so much faster than the 1st, good thing they are so worth it!)
For vacation this year, we let dad get his Utah fix! And I am so glad we went while we did, because a few more days in the humid Arizona heat would have made me crazy. Everyday that we were in Utah Arlo and I were able to play outside. We stayed with Tim's oldest brother and his family. They have an absolutely beautiful home with a great front/back yard. It was there that Arlo learned how to jump on a trampoline and he learned that his favorite thing to do (that we had to do EVERYDAY) was go outside and turn the hose on the trampoline. He also loved having his cousins around to play with... which was so much more fun than just playing with mom.
Besides going to a water park, our nights were the busy part of our Utah trip.
Saturday night was the 24th of July, which is the day that the Mormon pioneers settled in Utah and so they have a huge fun day at the park and then finish up the day with a firework show. Arlo, had such a blast! His dad bought him not one but two light up swords where he quickly learned how to use them and terrorize the entire park by running and crashing on random strangers blankets. It was so funny, but seriously if we did not watch him carefully enough he would have disappeared in less than 2 seconds. The only thing that would have helped us find him is his giggles that he would be belting out as he would run and jump on blankets. I knew we would have fun but I was really worried because the fireworks did not start till around 9-9:30 and Arlo's bedtime is 7:30. And when Arlo gets tired he gets fussy, so I had no idea how he would do... but luckily for me, he was an angel the whole night! I was also really excited to have Arlo see fireworks, he did not see them on the 4th, and last year he was too little to get excited over them. So, when the fireworks finally came on... he watched with big eyes and clapped for each and every firework that went up into the air. Needless to say, the day could not have gone better and Arlo was passed out in the car in less than 2 minutes.
Sunday night we had a family get together for my wonderful husbands birthday. Tim has a wonderful family and we spent the night eating, talking, eating and watching the kids have fun with their cousins. And then we had another late night because Tim entertained the entire family with another wonderful firework show.
Monday night we supposedly did not have any plans, even though I had planed a surprise get-together party for Tim with all his friends. First some background knowledge... Tim hates his birthday, he hates surprises, he does not like to be sung to and, he does not like people to pay more attention to him than they normally do. He made me promise that I would not do anything for his birthday while we were on vacation. So I smiled and told him okay and then continued planning. Another thing about Tim is that he is very observant, he catches onto everything. So, when I planned his get-together (which I did not do alone... thanks Aleksie!) I had to plan a few 'hooks' before the party so everything would go smoothly. I made sure that we were busy every night before the party so Tim did not have an excuse to go out with his friends. I planned a birthday cake at his family party, even though he asked me not too, because then he would think that is all I would do. Aleksie and Mijken came over and gave excuses for not being able to get together on Monday night, and then together we all planned on getting together with all "the boys" on Tuesday. So the plan was set, the bait was hooked, I just had to get him to The Pie on Monday, which would not be hard because it is his favorite place to eat in Utah. So, on Monday we went throughout the day, when it got to be close to the time we were supposed to meet everyone I casually told Tim that I was hungry and that we should go out for dinner. He thought it was a good idea and we got ready to go. My sister in law Jen volunteered to watch Arlo, so we left. I mentioned that I was craving pizza. Everything would have been perfect if Tim hadn't gone out bowling and then to The Pie with a few friends at midnight a few nights before. (I was so mad when I found out!) So needless to say, Tim did not feel like going to The Pie. I was basically begging Tim to go "just for me". He was starting to get so annoyed with me. Claiming that I was being irrational and not making any sense. But I persisted in going to The Pie and so like any good husband with a pregnant wife with a craving, he finally took me to the Pie. When we got there Aleksie and Mijken were already there, Tim did not know what to think at first and then when he finally put it all together, I was forgiven. Like I promised, we did not sing, I did not have a cake, I just got a few of his friends together for a good time at his favorite place. It all went well, and Tim got to see a few friends that he had not seen in a while, so after all was said and done, I think he was happy that I threw him a surprise get-together.
Tuesday night we decided to have a BBQ up in the mountains. When I was thinking BBQ in the mountains I was thinking a grassy area with a BBQ grill and a few picnic tables. Well, I was wrong... when we got there it was a steep, rocky mountain with a waterfall. Pretty, but NOT a good place for a one year old. To make things worse, Tim planned on going mountain biking with a friend a few hours before we were to meet at the BBQ area, and he ended up crashing and falling making him at least an hour behind schedule. So, I was left chasing/holding a screaming toddler because all Arlo wanted to do was play, but it was too dangerous so I would not let him out of my sight, and he was not to happy about it. By the time Tim had arrived, I was ready to go. It was an adventure!
Wednesday came and It was time to say goodbye to Utah. So we packed up and left. But vacation was not over yet. My family is lucky enough to get a full week on a beautiful houseboat on Lake Powell every year. So we headed down to Lake Powell to finish up our trip. Everything was going well until we got to the Utah/Arizona border and then it happened... the transmission on my truck gave out. My Mom just happened to arrive the same time we did and so she picked us up and took us to the boat. We spent Wednesday-Saturday without worrying about the car and enjoying the lake. We found the perfect beach to park the boat on. Arlo spent all his time sleeping or playing in the soft sand. When he was lucky enough, his dad or his Grandma GG took him on the jet ski which he loved... when he stayed awake on them. :-)
We were going to stay on the lake until Sunday, but because of the truck, we decided to come back a day early. We were able to drive our truck about 40 miles an hour. So, what normally takes 4 hours to get home, took us 6 1/2. But home we did get... safety! So we are grateful for that.
And that concludes our crazy... wonderful vacation. And, like I said before... I am happy to be home. But now that I am here... I HATE AZ SUMMERS! It is too hot!
