Summer Activities

We had a great summer with a ton of fun summer activities. Here is a recap.  

Lydia had day camp and Shantel got to go with her. Lydia loved all the different activities and hanging out with the other girls.  

We were supposed to go camping at the summer range and unfortunately we got super sick (we went to the summer range a few weeks later instead). The kids really wanted to go camping and were feeling better enough that they convinced Shantel to go sleep in the tent with them (I stayed inside with Lucy that night while still trying to avoid getting sick from everyone). The kids were so happy!

We went to the Lehi Grand Parade and loved it and the kids loved that they were throwing candy again this year. Also, we loved our spot on 200 North and 200 West, it was a perfect spot - so I'm putting it in the notes to remember for next year. 




Shantel found a favorite new way to mop the floor with the kids sliding across the soapy water. 

For Independence Day we went to a celebration that had a bunch of period type items and activities and it was so cool, including this tool used to weave fabric. 

This year we even walked to the corner to watch the firework show instead of watching from our house. 

Last, one of our favorites this summer was going to Cherry Hill Farms in Santaquin to pick Cherries.

One of the workers showing us how to do a cherry pit spitting contest. 

I love this photo of Shantel walking down the row with all of the kids. We were just waiting to get picked up to go back to the car and she started down the row with the kids just walking and it is so beautiful and shows what a great mom she is for those kids who love to be with her. 

We let the kids pick as many cherries as they wanted and they loved it. We had plenty of Cherries to eat, some to save and plenty to make Cherry pie. 

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

This summer we did our annual Harry Potter party with Lydia- this time to read the 3rd book, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. 

We went all our for our party and had butterbeer and our own invention, Hogsmeade Cherry Delight. We played a Harry potter game, had decorations and of course, read the first chapter of the book. 

Lydia even prepared a special puzzle for us. 

Shantel and Lydia had a big surprise for me as well as they had made some vinyl that could be put on shirts with a few of our favorite Harry Potter quotes. I was so excited and she picked the perfect quotes for us all. 

We both loved sitting and reading with Lydia every night. This book is a bit longer, so it took longer to get through, and it was such a nice thing to do with Lydia. We have really enjoyed having this party. We also love Harry Potter and it is so fun to read it together. 

Summer Range Camping

"The Summer Range" is a beautiful piece of land tucked into the Wyoming side of the Uinta mountains where my Grandpa Walker takes his cows for the summer so they can free range instead of being fed hay and grain. It's a favorite location of the Walker Family.



We wanted to go camping there this summer and we picked a weekend to go with Jenna's family and my parents. Unfortunately, our family got sick that week and we didn't want to get anyone else sick. We were so sad to miss it, but my wonderful parents said that they would come back with us on a different weekend. Jenna's family couldn't come because it was just too close to Jenna having her baby (and we convinced her to plan to come for the day on Saturday but she ended up getting a stomach bug and they couldn't come). We were so glad that we were able to go, even though we weren't able to go with the Haderlies. I'm so grateful for all the effort my dad put into the camping trip. He brought 4wheelers and rangers from my Grandpa's house, a nice port-a-potty, and an awesome zipline for the kids.



It was a fabulous weekend!

We explored, rode 4wheelers, ate marshmallows, learned cool things about plants from my dad, and just enjoyed being together. Lydia built a lean-to shelter out of sticks, which was pretty impressive. Austin specifically requested that my dad bring his new gun to let them practice shooting it and had a good lesson in gun safety with some turns getting to shoot it. 

And also, it rained. A lot. Luckily we were prepared because Jenna had mentioned that it rained when they were there and that she had seen rain in the forecast for us and recommended we get rainboots. I grabbed a whole bunch from the store before we left and they made a huge difference. (And Lucy's pink rainboots were extra darling.) 

We got there late Thursday night, and even later than planned because my navigation skills got us turned off on the wrong dirt road. Because of that we ended up setting up our tent in the dark and in the rain. But, you know, it was an adventure. We were making memories, right? 

My dad took us on a tour and told us all sorts of stories about the Summer Range, like how my Grandpa Great (Ellis Colvin) used to work at the school and he brought up an old cafeteria table to leave at the summer range for picnics. It didn't last in the elements for so long because it was a formica table, but as we were cleaning up to leave I found a little piece of the green formica top. I pocketed it to bring it home because - family history? I don't know. Ha. I love the legacy of the summer range and the connection that I feel to my Walker family when we are there. My dad taught the kids how to find wild onions and let them eat them and showed us how to identify his favorite flower, monkshood. 

Lydia had been saving up for a small telescope/moonscope and finally earned enough money right before we came. We set it up to look at the moon which ended up being a super-moon called the "Thunder Moon". It was so bright that it was throwing a shadow even in the dark of night. It was huge and beautiful and fun to look at with her. 


We had such a wonderful time and I'm grateful for the time and sacrifice of my parents to make it so awesome for us. I'm also grateful that my grandpa let us use his 4 wheelers because that made it so special and I loved watching my kids learn how to ride as their confidence blossomed. We are blessed to have such wonderful people in our lives.