I’ve never been particularly popular, but every time we go to UT, I feel like a celebrity. We have more things to do and people to see than time to do it. Every spare minute was filled with summer activities and excitement. Even a last minute sick cancellation got filled up pretty fast. Without nap time, we wouldn’t have had any down time at all.
We were lucky enough to be booted from a stay in the condo on the drive up and had to make alternative arrangements----this meant an overnight stay with the Reynolds in Vegas! I love how months can go by and we’re still friends like it’s been no time at all.
Our first few hours in Utah were filled with Kemp family fun. We had a Pioneer day potluck and firework show.
Every single member of my immediate family was there (and also a few cousins, too), with the exception of Elder John in Costa Rica. With 25 of us, this was no small feat.
Unfortunately, none of the pictures from that evening turned out well, but trust me, we had a blast.
But it may have been too much fun. Liam had a hard time sleeping that night and seemed like he had a fever. He would cry unless I was holding him. Since this was the middle of the night and we were both tired, he ended up in our bed (something that hadn’t happened since our trip last summer). I was finally able to sneak away around 7 or 8 am and took this gem of my two boys:
Gotta love the belly on that little guy. I LOVE how cuddly and sweet my toddler is. Even still, he likes to cuddle after he wakes, sometimes we’ll just sit in the rocking chair for an hour.
Between the BAR and other activities, the next few days were totally packed.
My little brother Peter and I ran the Deseret 10K together. The last time we raced together, it was a mile fun run at his elementary school when he was in Kindergarten and I was 14. We won (it was around an 8-9 minute mile from what I remember).
Peter stayed with me for all but the last mile, and finished only a minute behind me. He beat out his cross-country team members he was supposed to run with (guess it’s good we ran together, then). We were able to visit my old cross-country coach as well---apparently, Peter and I do the same head tilt when we get tired.
My brother Arthur and I took Liam to the park while Steven was busy studying. Liam headed straight for some other kid’s bike. Surprise, surprise. It’s no wonder it’s his favorite word. We have to go on a bike ride nearly every day.
No trip to UT is complete without a Man Basket activity. We took the babies swimming in the morning, and met for an evening frozen yogurt and Jordan Landing exploration.
While Steven was taking the BAR, we used our time in Utah to visit friends and family. One of my good friends from middle/high school, Laura, took the opportunity to take our children to Wheeler Farm. It was a big hit. 
Liam was particularly fond of being able to celebrate Traci and Abby’s birthday. Normally, he’s an awesome eater, but for some reason, he really only ate junk food on this trip.
We saw almost everyone we wanted to, and to those we missed (i.e. Betsy, Angie, Anna, etc.), we are deeply sorry. One day, we hope to move back here and can see you all the time.
The way home from the cabin (post coming soon) had to be a 3-day trip. Oh joy. I had run out of blood thinners and wasn’t allowed to be in the car for more than 4-5 hours. It was especially hard since Steven had sprained his ankle so Liam and I had to switch off driving so I could prop up my legs.
This lucky break gave us extra time in SLC to see my family, and an impromptu morning with Donovan, Cortney, Elanor, and Stella. We almost convinced them to come back to CA with us, but Donovan figured that he had better go to work instead. Bummer.
My brother Philip and his family stayed at our place in CA while we were at the cabin. Steve had borrowed a watch from my mom and we met up for lunch in Vegas to get it back to her. We had to miss Abby’s baptism that weekend since Steve was taking the MPRE in LA the next day. Liam ate his entire Happy Meal and spent the rest of the time pointing out all the “bikes”.
I probably say this every time, but visiting makes me want to move back to Utah. It would be nice to get to see you guys up there anytime we want instead of cramming it all in a few days of craziness. And being able to afford a house and having family to watch William once and awhile would be a nice perk, too. There are lots of things I love about SoCal, but it’s never really felt like home. Hopefully one day, we’ll be there.
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