We were able to travel to Utah this summer around the 4th of July which is what we normally do for our vacation. We were not able to go last year because of the pandemic, so we were very excited to go this year and see family. We drove all the way to Tooele, UT to stay the first couple nights with Tim and Lora. There is a lake in their neighborhood, so it’s always fun to spend an evening there paddle boarding, kayaking, and fishing. Aubrey, Tessa, and Makaela were able to balance together on one board while Anson took Taryn for a ride on the other one.
The kids also took turns on the kayaks. Here’s Taryn and Anson on their own kayaks. The kids love having any reason to be in the water and the lake and surrounding grass areas are a fun, relaxing place to spend some time together. While the kids played in the water, Tyler got to go fishing and Lora and I visited with the kids who were waiting their turn for the next kayak or paddle board. After Taryn was finished being in the water, she decided to join Tyler at the bridge for fishing. I took this picture as she waited for a bite because the sunset was so pretty. They had fun trying to catch fish but they weren’t able to pull any in. They did have a few bites and a few broken lines so at least they had a good adventure before it got too dark to see.
The next morning, we woke up bright and early to go to Lagoon - an amusement park north of Salt Lake. Tyler and I have been a few times, but not since we’ve had kids, so the girls were very excited to go do roller coasters. We drove up there with Lora and family and Tiff and her family met us there too. The tower behind the kids in the first picture was the newest ride at the park, Cannibal, and our first destination - a very tall drop roller coaster that we were all excited and nervous to try. I even talked Tyler into taking a selfie with me while we waited in line.
Here’s the Cannibal roller coaster up close as we waited in line. It was fast, twisty, and scary. Taryn and Anson even went on it, but they were both scared as we pulled out to take off. I think they were even crying a little, but after making it through, they decided it wasn’t so bad and they were happy that they were brave enough to try it. The older girls all thought it was best roller coaster ever.
Taryn and I took a picture under the next ride we waited in line for. She was nervous about this dropping and shoot off ride too. One side takes you up and drops you down while the other side starts at the bottom and just shoots you straight up. I think Taryn cried more on this one than the first roller coaster, but once she realized she wasn’t going to fall out, she decided it was an ok ride. Once we met up with Tiffany and her family, we went on a “scary” ride - Dracula’s Castle. It was an easy family ride that had jump scares as you rode around in the car, but the kids just thought it was fun.
We took pictures of the different age groups as we waited in line before and after the Dracula’s Castle ride. Here’s Tessa with Julia and Makaela, and the second one is of Abby with Kate, Anna, Sara, and Halley.
We had to do the River Rapids ride. By the time we were all hot and ready to get wet, we had to wait in a really long line. We did get some Dole Whip, pineapple ice cream drinks while we waited which made the long line bearable. We pulled the cameras out of our bags at the end of the ride to catch some pictures. We all got pretty wet. The adults and three littles rode in one raft while all the other kids rode together in the raft behind us.
We stood in line for the Terroride, but it kept breaking down. I don’t think we ever made it on. Another reason we missed the ride was because Tessa ended up getting a nosebleed. We had to hop out of the line because we were stuck anyway and her nose would not stop bleeding. While Tiffany and I walked back to the car to get some ice for Tessa, Tyler and Tessa ended up going to the First Aid Station because it was bleeding so much. It probably bled for a good 30 minutes. Finally with some ice on her neck and lot of pressure, it let up and we were able to leave the First Aid Station, but Tessa had to take it easy for awhile after that. This picture was taken before the bleeding began.
We separated a couple of times so the kids could go on different rides. I usually followed the littles and either watched or rode with them on the kiddie rides. This Odysea ride was one of their favorites. The kids could control their “fish” to determine how high they were flying and they had to dodge the shooting fountains that were constantly trying to shoot the riders with water. They rode it twice throughout the day. The first time, Taryn rode with Anson and the second time she rode with Tyler.
Some other favorite kid rides were the Tidal Wave and the Ladybug Bop.
As time was running out in the evening, the kids got one last ride on a kiddie ride - the Moonraker. Taryn just laughed as she rode the little flyer, but they were happy to try so many rides. We all rode the Sky Ride from one side of the park to the other. I took some pictures as we waited our turn in line and the kids took off before us. Here’s Abby and Anna.
Tessa rode with Julia and Aubrey rode with Halley. This was also a pretty long line, but it was a long ride as it took us way high in the air to the far side of the park. It was much better than walking. I was glad for the rest. Some of the wooden roller coasters were making me dizzy and queasy. I was so sad that my old body can’t take roller coasters like it used to be able to. I was happy for the “sit and relax” ride.
We found some cute picture spots. I loved this one of Taryn with Anson and Lucy. They were having so much fun riding rides together. Even though there were three of them, they were happy to take turns being the odd man out and having to ride a ride alone. I was very impressed. They had so much fun together. This was my favorite picture of all of the cousins together while we waited in line for the Bat ride.
Our whole group almost took up an entire side of the Tidal Wave boat. I took a picture of all the kids behind our row while we waited to start. We were all yelling and cheering really loudly as the ride rocked back and forth. We competed with the other side and we were definitely the loudest.
We rode the bumper car ride called Boomerang and had a fun time. Tyler, Tiffany, and I went with the three little kids and we had a blast. We got to drive our own cars, and so did the kids. Tiffany took pictures of me and Tyler before it started.
I was able to get one with Taryn, Anson, and Lucy all together and one of Tiffany too before we put our phones away and drove like madmen bumping and swerving around the circle.
One of the last rides the kids wanted to try was the Air Race. Tiffany and I sat this one out since it was a lot of spinning, but Tyler rode it with Taryn, Anson, and Lucy. I got some good shots of them as they spun past us and by spun, I mean SPUN. They were twisting and spinning and flipping the entire time. I was so glad I did not ride this ride. The kids loved it, but Tyler was finished with rides after he got off this one. We all had a blast at Lagoon and felt like we got our money’s worth by riding so many rides. It was definitely the best because we got to do it with family.
The next morning, we got up early and met at Timpanogos Cave National Monument to hike Mt. Timpanogos. I remember doing this hike when I was a kid, but Tyler and I had never done it together and the girls had never been. We met Tiffany and Tara’s family at 7:00 in the morning so we could make it up to the mouth of the cave in time for our 8:00am scheduled tour appointment.
The kids were a little leery of how hard the hike would be, but again, it was easier since they had their cousins with them. We even brought Anson with us, so there were a ton of kids and the hike was along a paved path so it wasn’t too difficult.
Inside the cave, we had a tour guide who told us about all of the formations that we were seeing. It was pretty cool. Out favorite part was the dripping water that the kids got to try catching in their mouth. I didn’t get any pictures, but the tour guide made it really fun and the kids really enjoyed learning about everything she was telling us.
We had to go in two different groups, so Tyler and I were with the teenagers. They had some larger rooms that we stopped in and I was able to get a picture of all the girls while we waited to move on with the tour.
Abby had fun hiking with Anna and Halley and I loved the view behind Tessa, Aubrey, and Julia. I had to have a picture at that spot as we made our way up.
On our way down, we were able to stop at one of the turns and get a group picture of almost everyone. It was an early morning, but we were happy to be out in nature and doing something active and fun all together.
We were finished hiking just in time to make it down to BYU for lunch. We ate at the BYU Creamery and then did our usual tour of the BYU Bookstore. The girls always love the Cosmo statue that’s outside the bookstore. I thought Lucy and Taryn looked pretty cute as they found the place to rest. We packed in a lot on our vacation, but we were excited to make the most of our trip and make some great memories as a family. And this was just the beginning of it.
No comments:
Post a Comment