Dad and I dressed up Arizona style.
The first thing that the kids asked for when we got to Mike's was for Grandpa to play "Alligator"! Always a hit and NO ONE got seriously hurt!
The kids played, read, put on plays, and slept in the loft. What a great place for them to enjoy.
There was lots of serious visiting. Here are the ladies- Carole, Alissa, Adrianne, Rachel, Ruth, and Miriam.
Grandpa played lots of games with the kids. Here Carole joins him with Elijah, Lily, Amelia, Joey, Sydney, and Michael playing Suspend.
It was fun to get to know Lily and Amelia better. What beautiful girls!
A bunch of the family went shooting where Ben showed off his skills. Some of the family also went fishing- here Ben checks Michael and Amelia.
Yes! Amelia proves that there are fish in that stream!!! (also a very pretty pink hat.)
Elijah KISSES his fish while Don and Myra watch!!!
A successful fishing trip- Elijah, Joey, Sydney, and Michael.
Don proves he can still walk on the stilts- and they are not at the low level!
Michael was the pogo stick champion and got his name and number written on the stick for a hard number to beat.
One night we went to the "Bowery" and Carole brought her Soda Stream machine. The kids absolutely loved making their own soda and she was super patient and let each make his own.
We had a dutch oven dinner- yummy poppy seed chicken and potatoes that Mike and Alissa made.
After the grocery store had closed for the night, Mike took us there for a fun time. Adlyn shows how good she is at riding the horse, or should I say standing on the horse?
And then there were the grocery cart races. Who will win???
Mike had the kids play a short version of the "Freezer Challenge" and win a treat. Here is entrepreneur Mike behind the dairy case.
One of the funniest things I have seen was Ben Smith playing hide and seek with the kids. They would run up and down the aisles with him chasing them and yelling "I am going to eat your brains out!!!". He ended up with only Rachel still missing- she was hiding under the cash register right next to where Ben was calling the kids over the loud speaker. Good Job Rachel!
Here are the Smiths- Ben and Rachel with Camille, Lily, and Amelia.
And here is pretty Adelyn. She is sure growing up.
One of the special things was to get to be there for Ellie Ann's baby blessing. Alissa, me, and Ellie (I love that she has my middle name.)
And here is the Utah Crockett family- Joey, Michael, Adelyn, Alissa with Ellie, Mike, and the twins- Braden and Nelson.
This pretty much sums up the time together- lots and lots of fun but EXHAUSTING! Lily is out. Now we can all look forward to the family reunion next year! YES!!
