After living in Alaska for two and half years Hailey, Nate and I decided to take the month of July and visit family and if possible friends in the lower 48 (We just love to say that).  Eric would join us two and half weeks later.  A few days before the trip it seemed that a month was going to be too long.  How were we going to spend all that time?  Eric is the fun one in our family and I wasn't sure I could pull off taking his place for a few weeks.  It turns out 4 weeks wasn't nearly long enough, because our families are large.  We landed in Denver the morning of July 4th and didn't stop visiting, eating, and sightseeing until we left on July 30th.  We spent about 2 days at each house and had to scratch trying to get together with friends, and some sightseeing off our list, there just wasn't enough time.    It was wonderful to reconnect with family and  just enjoy a month of being visitors.  Oh, and the sun, we soaked up as much sun as possible. 

 Nate enjoyed riding with his Uncle Scott.   He also loved hanging out with his cousins. 

 There were many firsts on this trip for Nate.  First airplane ride,  train ride, bus ride,  big roller coaster ride, Jet ski ride, and first time using a sled to boat in an irrigation ditch in Idaho.  He seriously had the most fun out of all us on this trip.  Everything was fun for him, even the bumpy turbo prop ride in Denver. 

 Hailey was so excited to meet her cousin's and their  horse. 

 We took a tour with some sister missionaries who fell in love with Hailey and inspired her to perhaps serve a mission some day. 

My children absolutely loved Temple Square.

 
 Although we don't really enjoy camping and we didn't think we'd like 3 days at Bear Lake, I'm glad to say we were wrong. We loved it.  Hailey had tears streaming down her face at the airport when we left Utah.  She really enjoyed her cousins and wished we lived closer.

Eric joined us after we returned to Colorado from Utah.  In Colorado we spent time visiting his children and grandchildren.  Nate and Hailey were looking forward to this part of the trip the most.  They talk about their brothers, sisters, nieces, and nephews, all the time.  We spent a lot of time eating  at our favorite and most missed restaurants, playing games, and driving from one activity to another.  When did the traffic in Denver get so bad?  We were able to attend a baptism for one of the grandchildren, celebrate a birthday with a daughter, and attend a baby shower for another daughter.   The time flew so fast and in the end 4 weeks  didn't seem nearly long enough.