4th of July in Utah

Taylor and Natalie at Silver Lake, UT

Kennedy and Taylor "hiking" at silver lake
Kennedy, Taylor and Natalie at the Utah Arts Festival, downtown SLC

Natalie, Lucy, Kennedy and Taylor adding their own art at the festival

Taylor and Natalie enjoying some cotton candy after the 4th parade

Kennedy at the carnival

Taylor at the carnival

watching the parade outside Grandma Ricks' house

After our reunion in Park City, Nate returned home while we stayed and played. We enjoyed spending lots of quality time with my sister Becky and her kids. Taylor and Kennedy loved getting to hang out with their cousins and we did lots of fun things together. We stayed in Utah for the 4th of July and had the privilege to attend the Stratford neighborhood breakfast, parade and carnival. Good times.

Snowbird, Utah with the Ricks Fam

This last June we headed to Utah to spend time with the Ricks fam. My mom took us all to Snowbird and we enjoyed each others company along with the beautiful scenery. It was a great time being with all the cousins and most aunts and uncles (which doesn't seem to happen very often), we missed you Gabe. Thanks Grandma!

Dear Tooth Fairy

The other day Kennedy ran into the house to inform us that Taylor had broken her tooth. Sure enough Taylor entered expressing that a tooth was loose. She spent an entire afternoon wiggling and pushing on the tooth and seemed excited about the whole event. That evening she was in the bathroom and I heard a "oh no!" and she came running out holding her tooth in her hand. At that moment the excitement turned into horror to know that a part of her was not a part of her anymore. And then came the news that someone named the tooth fairy was going to come and take it away from her. We talked it over and I explained that the tooth fairy always leaves money in its place and she seemed to be slowly accepting this new change. At least that's what I thought until when she was getting ready for bed I heard sobbing coming from the girls bathroom. She was going to brush her teeth when she looked in the mirror and for the first time saw the empty space in her mouth. I never remember having a hard time parting with my baby teeth, but then again Taylor has a hard time parting with anything. We decided that it would be okay for her to leave a note for the tooth fairy explaining that she just wasn't ready to give it away and Taylor seemed to feel much better. Hopefully by the time the next one falls out she will be ready to let the tooth fairy do her job.

Jeppson Family Reunion

Every summer we get together with all of Nate's siblings for a reunion. This year we traveled to Bear Lake in Utah for a few days of fun on the water and beach. Despite the cold weather we had a great time with the family. We missed Nate's brother Josh and sister Rachel and their families but had a wonderful time reacquainting ourselves with the rest of the clan. Here are some of the highlights.

the view of the lake from the cabin we stayed at

The girls with cousins Moses and Tyson playing on the canoe.

The swings and the trampoline...always a hit no matter where we are.

Collecting rollie pollies with Katie

Kennedy on the boat

On the boat with Austin and Katie

This was us on the boat before the storm rolled in. Our first boat ride got a little sketchy with a incoming storm. The water got extremely choppy and with as many people as we had on the boat it made for quite the adventure. Everyone began the ride all smiles and laughs but by the end all of the kids were crying and scared out of their wits! To make a long story short, we had to rush to get off the boat onto a very unstable dock and wait 15 min for my nephew Poter to bring the large tube to our rescue. In the meantime the girls were freezing (the water temp was probably in the 40's, sooo cold) and so scared. But we made it back to the shore and we all survived! :) The next day was storm free and we took the girls on a much happier boat ride.

All the kids lined up for the traditional pinata

Kennedy up to bat

Taylor posing before taking a turn at the pinata

One of the older kids knocked the pinata off the rope so Nate stepped in to shake the rest of the candy out

The mad dash for candy

The girls eating lunch before going into the Minnetonka Cave

Monique, Katie, Logan, Grandpa Jeppson, Connor, and Ethan getting ready for the hike

Poter, Trevin, and Megan eating lunch

Rachelle and Kennedy walking down to the cave entrance

All the cousins ready to enter the cave

A bat, there were a few of these little guys flying around inside

Grandpa inside the cave

Memorial Day Weekend Fun

This summer has been deemed the summer of adventure, or at least the summer of getting out and doing stuff with the girls. We decided to start the summer off right this memorial day by getting out doors. We went hiking up to Devil's head. It is a mile and a half hike up to a fire look out station, the views are amazing and the hike is easy enough for the girls and enjoyable for all. Nate also promised the girls a camp out in the backyard. They loved being able to sleep outside and use the flashlights. It was a great weekend!

Taylor had a blast on the hike and loved to climb up on the rocks

One of our many snack and water breaks along the way

Nate and the girls making their way up the mountain

Me, Kennedy and the view from up top. Beautiful.

Me and the girls at the top of the look out station

This is Taylor's (and Kennedy's) new favorite activity with Roxy. Roxy rather enjoys it as well. It really grosses me out!


Taylor helping Nate set up the tent

The girls setting up the sleeping bags and anything else they thought was necessary for the night which was pretty much anything they could grab from their rooms!

Pancake breakfast in the morning at the picnic table

Preschool Graduation 2010

Taylor Graduated from Preschool in May! She loved going to school and loved her teacher Ms. Kim. It was a great experience for her and she made some really cute friends along the way.

Miami Beach

Nate and I took a quick trip in May to Miami Beach, FL. We stayed at the Foutaineblue Hotel that was right on the beach and so much fun! We ate, laid by the beach and then by the pool, ate some more, walked down the beach and relaxed. It was a perfect weekend getaway to enjoy each other and the warmth of the sun.

Nate at the News Cafe in South Beach...great people watching

At the very tip of South Beach looking up towards our hotel

Nate and I on South Beach

We ate at Scarpetta, a restaurant in our hotel opened by Chopped judge Scott Conant., So good!

Me in the lobby of our hotel