Colorado!

After 2 1/2 weeks of missing Daddy while he was teaching in Colorado, it was time to go visit! And I was so ready. I have so much respect to women who are single mothers or whose husbands travel frequently. It's tough! 

On the way out we stopped at Little America for ice cream cones. Since I was a kid, I've always wanted to stop and get ice cream there but never did (clearly their 5,000 billboards work!) Check that one off the bucket list! 

Walter did pretty well on the drive,  and we made it to Daddy in decent time! 

 

We spent a few days in Greeley hanging out while Daddy taught. We introduced the kids to mini-golf which they thought was amazing! 

The kids really wanted to visit Tiny Town, so we left Thursday for a stop there before heading up to the family reunion. On the way we stopped by the house I grew up in. The trees are SO tall! 

Sadly, when we got to Tiny Town they were planning to close in 15 minutes due to a thunderstorm moving that way. The kids were so bummed! They'd hear all about Tiny Town from Hazel. They were nice enough to let us in for free for those 15 minutes, so they at least got the running tour of it (and we got Hazel's then and now pictures snapped.) Guess we'll have to come back again soon. 

The forecasted thunderstorm arrived and it was a big one! We spent some time in the car waiting out the rain in Breckenridge. But once it stopped, we enjoyed a beautiful evening and found the troll! (Michael had one day of teaching left and missed this part of our adventure). 

He was so cute! A Danish artist creates these forest trolls. There are many in Denmark and now he's creating them all over the world. 

After visiting the troll, we strolled through the forest and found the cutest train themed playground. The Colorado mountains are pure soul food! 

We tent camped that night at Dillion Reservoir. Walter did great (and the big kids went crazy around the fire). The next morning we took a stroll down to the lake and caught the most amazing views. It was paradise. 

It's safe to say this cutie loves camping as much as the rest of us! 

After packing up, we drove the last little bit to the family reunion near Glenwood Springs. It was a wonderful, relaxing weekend as always. I forgot to take many pictures but we enjoyed swimming, great food, playing with cousins and second-cousins, visiting, a mini-river float, an awesome alpaca farm, and tons of memory sharing with family. 

And of course everyone LOVED Walter. Especially his second-cousin Ettie. She would have held him every minute of the trip if she could have! 

Yay for a safe trip and enjoying the remarkable Colorado mountains. Even bigger yay for having Daddy back home! 

Fourteen

Our baby is now fourteen years old. Fourteen! 

I'm not sure I'm ready for fourteen. Fourteen means Hazel's staring High School. Fourteen means that in two short years she'll be driving, and in four short years she graduates. I'm not ready for her to be grown in just four years, and yet, I love watching the amazing person she is becoming! 

Hazel is such a joy! She's helpful around the house, works hard at everything she sets her mind to, and is genuinely so much fun to be around. 

Hazel is organized and observant. When she sees needs around her, she truly tries her best to fill them. She's learning day by day to be gentle and kind. I've noticed more and more that she's able to redirect her younger siblings in kind, fun ways that make them want to listen and follow-through. 

Hazel has the most beautiful hair! Her two-year-old self would be so happy to have such long, elegant princess hair. 

Hazel also has really lovely handwriting. She's worked hard over the years and learned to write in elegant cursive script. She's slowly learning more "fonts" and each is beautiful. As the perfect birthday gift, Jamie gave her a stamp and sealing wax. Now she can send Regency era letters (and nothing makes her heart happier than anything and everything from the Regency era). 

For her birthday, Hazel made the perfect apple pie. It came out of the pan and everything! The way she decorated it feels like an excellent representation of who she is - elegant, classy, and uncomplicated. 

Hazel has had an extremely busy, wonderful summer. This has been our view of her far too many times as she's headed off to various camps and events. Each one has brought her wonderful experiences, chances to grow her testimony, new friends, and tons of fun! 

While we've heard highlights from each trip, we're now at a point in life where Hazel will have to start recording her own stories. Here's the recap version: 

Provo South Stake Youth Conference

Journey with Jesus

Utah Valley Children's Choir Tour 2023

Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, and Wyoming

Hazel rode so many hours on tour buses with her friends, performed, stayed with a host family one night, sang in a beautiful cathedral, ate tons of off-brand Cheese-Its, visited church history sites, and had the time of her life!

Girl's Camp 2023

Tent Camping near Heber, Utah

ASL FSY

BYU Campus 

Hazel had the opportunity to attend the ASL session of FSY. While the session was geared toward Deaf youth, they opened registration to CODAs. Hazel roomed with her good friend Brynn and said it was amazing! She also appreciated that their session had 60 youth instead of the 1,300 in the other BYU sessions that week. One of the most memorable moments was her first Deaf dance. She said they had four huge speakers cranked all the way up. All the hearing people wore earplugs and the whole floor was shaking! 

Whew! She said she loved every one of these camps. We sure missed her while she was gone. 

One last bit of fun... while in Colorado, we were able to visit Tiny Town very briefly. Hazel had the great idea of recreating some pictures, and they are golden! I think Hazel was about 2 in the original photos. 

From barely to the porch roof to towering over Soapy Smith's

We used to fit on the benches quite well, now not so much

And my personal favorite, Hazel in the little Dutch house...

I'm SO glad we made these happen! Seriously, priceless!

Hazel, we love you to pieces. Keep being such an amazing young woman. We can't wait to see where this next year takes you!