Reunion Trip July 2021

 After not being to Utah for a few years, it was finally time to head that way for our Rex reunion. We stopped in NM for a few days to pick up the boys and spend time with my family. The drive there was very quiet since it was Dale, the girls and me. 

We got to take Cameron to the temple (and Kimball) to do baptisms for the dead. It was his first time and it was such a neat experience. He could not wait to go back again. 

The Rexes head West

The Rex reunion was in Oregon this year, so after much hemming and hawing, we decided to drive out and have some adventures along the way!

Christmas 2015

It had been 8 years since we spent Christmas with the Rex side of the family, so we made the trek to Utah this year.

We left on the 22nd and drove to Albuquerque that night. My mom managed to squeeze in some family pictures while we were there.

Albuquerque!

After my Dad & sister visited, they took the boys back to NM with them. It was the boys' first time going to Grandma & Grandpa's house without us, and they were so excited! They drove there on the 4th and did fireworks with my parents that night. They were thrilled to have tank fireworks.

My mom kept them busy while they were there. They got to go swimming...

To the children's museum...

To the aquarium, zoo and botanical garden...

 Kayaking with the adaptive sports program (working with kids & adults with special needs)...




To the recreation center in Santa Fe, and more. While the boys were there, we remodeled our master bath since we really know how to take it easy when we only have 1 kid to worry about ;).

On Thursday the 9th, I drove out to NM with Lily to pick the boys up.

We went kayaking at Cochiti Lake on Saturday, and then to Tent Rocks.

 Tent rocks is a bunch of sediment that formed in the shape of tents from volcanic and other run-off. There is only one other place in the world like it!

 On Monday my family celebrated my birthday by taking me out to lunch, then mom made me a cheesecake and I got fun gifts. My boys gave me roses and earrings. They already know how to make a girl feel special.

On Tuesday we loaded up and drove home. We finally stopped to see the cars half-buried in Texas...

Our kids are amazing travelers! We can usually make a 9-10 hour road trip with only 2 stops.
All the while, Dale was home, working or finishing up some of the last details of our bathroom.

Albuquerque New Year

We were able to go to Albuquerque to spend New Year's with my family. It was the first time most of my siblings had met Lily. 

All three kids were great on the drive; we only had to stop one extra time to feed Lily both ways.

We got to Albuquerque on Monday just in time to see OU bomb their bowl game.

On Tuesday Dale and I got to go to the temple for the first time since Lily was born. That night we went to see the River of Lights. It was frigid and windy and we were glad that Lily stayed at the house with Grandpa. 

My cheeks got wind burned!

Wednesday morning Dale, my sister and my mom went skiing up in Santa Fe. Dale came back sore but had lots of fun. It was awesome. Cameron also lost a tooth. He missed singing the song "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth" by less than a week! He was very worried that since the tooth fairy had been in Oklahoma a week previously, that she wouldn't make it to New Mexico in time. Fortunately she did.

We celebrated New Year's eve that night and both boys made it past midnight. 

Dale and I stole away on Thursday for a date to Olive Garden. Friday morning we left early and drove to Norman. We spent a few hours there with Dale's brother and drove home late that night.

Our car was packed to the hilt! My brother gave Lily a giant stuffed lobo for Christmas and he gave us an Xbox 360. 

All in all, we had a lot of fun. It was crowded but we got to spend lots of time with family, catch up, play board games, etc.

Balloon Fiesta!

Since none of the boys had ever been to The Balloon Fiesta, we decided this was the year to do it! So on Wednesday October 8th, as soon as Kimball got home from school, we drove to New Mexico. This was my first time leaving our city since Mother's Day, and Lily's first road trip. We only had to stop once to feed Lily on the way there and we got there in the wee hours of the morning. It was raining and I started panicking that The Balloon Fiesta would be cancelled the whole time we were there!

On Thursday we rested and recuperated from the drive. On Friday morning, we woke up at 4:30 (?) and headed down to The Balloon Fiesta field. It started raining lightly and I panicked again, but the rain stopped and we got there in time for dawn patrol (the first balloons to go up to check wind, etc). I had forgotten how incredible it was to see hundreds and hundreds of balloons go up and Dale seemed to be in awe of the sight as well.

 

 The boys got bored and were tired until they saw Darth Vader and Yoda take off, then they got really into looking for special shape balloons.

Later that day we went to a pumpkin patch where they had tons of kid activities from sling-shots to pumpkin bowling, etc.

Dale told the boys they could each pick a pumpkin they were willing to carry. Kimball did really well with his until he got out the gate and dropped it. His pumpkin had a huge split and Dale taped it for the ride home, but sadly it did not survive until Halloween.

Saturday we just hung out and shopped. Sunday we went to Sacrament meeting then were on our way. At a random gas station in New Mexico, there was a free car museum. It was hilarious listening to the boys ooh and ah over the antique toy cars they had.

In Oklahoma we hit a massive storm where we could barely see the road through the rain, but we were blessed to see an incredible double rainbow and got to chase it down the freeway for a while...sadly no pot of gold.

We made it home safely and it was a quick trip, but so much fun!

Post Christmas 2013

After Christmas, the Ferrells came to visit! We got to show them what little they hadn't seen in OK last year, play games and enjoy spending time together.

While rough-housing with Justin, Kimball lost his 8th tooth! He kind of looks like a backwards vampire :)

Then, the Ferrells and our family caravanned to NM since they were heading back up to UT and we were heading to see Judy's family. We got to take lots of breaks due to the 3 kids involved ;).

In NM, we did "family reunion" type activities including eating out at Olive Garden, going to the Cochiti Pueblo on New Years to watch their traditional dances, play games, celebrated New Years etc. Kimball actually stayed up until 12:30 New Year's Eve, but Cam passed out by 10:00...

 We also got to go to Explora Children's Museum which the boys loved. They were like ping pong balls bouncing from exhibit to exhibit and I was exhausted by the end.

 While in NM, we went to visit my aunt and Duke got to meet her dogs Dakota and Lily.

 The boys got to play rhinos with Grandpa.

 Ant I got to convince my niece that I'm a pretty good aunt ;)

 My mom got her much-desired family pictures

Dale & I got to go on a double-date with my brother Nate & his wife Kelsey and talked at the restaurant for ages. Dale & I spent several hours test-driving mini-vans as well but haven't committed to one yet.

Grandma took Kimball ice skating for the first time and he loved it!

We also got to go to the temple and play pool at the recreation center. All in all, it was a good trip. The boys had lots of fun and we left in time to get back for school to start again. While there. I discovered that Cam, who is 4 YEARS OLD has his first loose tooth and was slightly broken-hearted.