The Rest of the Weekend

The wedding was over, but a whole new part of a family weekend had begun.  One of the bonus's of the weekend was that my cousin CJ got home from his mission on Friday the 23rd, so they had his homecoming talk that Sunday and we got to be there.  He did a great job on his talk then we all got the perk of being able to go back to Aunt Dana's house to have dinner with everyone.  Again, another fun family filled event that I was so glad I could be there for.  So many cousins were there and it was the first time all the great-grandkids were together.  We hung out there for a good part of the day relaxing and playing games, but all fun comes to an end and we headed back to South Jordan to rest up for the next day.

The next day was what the kids were waiting for.  We wanted to do something fun for them, so we took them to the zoo!  It was their first time and they thought it was so cool.  We went to the Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake and saw all kinds of awesome animals.  The monkeys, elephants, and insects were their favorites.  Sadly, we couldn't find the giraffes and that was one of the things Kayton really wanted to see.  They did pretty good but we stayed for like 2 hours at the most.  To end the zoo trip right though, we went to the gift shop and everyone picked something from the $10 and under section.  I think that was Kayton's favorite part. 

We wish we could have stayed longer, but we had to head back to South Jordan, pack up and leave.  We had one more stop to make. 

 Since it was Memorial Day, Aunt Dana had a BBQ for everyone at her house, so that was our last stop to make.  Such good food and again, more fun with the cousins.  We played games in the backyard for a little bit before we took off for real this time. 

 We decided to go the other route home and we stayed in Monticello for the night.  We played in the pool again that night but we were all pretty tired that night so we crashed.  The next day, the 27th, was the drive home.  We did a few little stops before we left town. I told my Grandpa that we were staying in Monticello that night, and he and Grandma showed me a few places on google maps where Grandma use to live and go to school.  It was all in the same neighborhood and also right down the road from the temple there.  So we stopped to see all of those places.

The house where my Grandma lived.  It's very updated now, but there it is. 

The elementary school where my Great-Grandma Perry taught at

The high school where my Grandma graduated from

The Monticello Temple

We made good time and got home in the early afternoon.  We were glad to be at our own home but were already missing being with everyone.  The kids did so good on the trip and it made everything so much better overall. 

Dallin and April's Wedding

We were so excited for this trip.  We headed up to Utah to go to Dallin and April's wedding.  We met April last August when her and Dallin basically began dating.  We were a part of them the whole time they were dating and engaged.  I was really excited and happy to be able to go up for the weekend.  We decided to make a fun trip out of it too so here it is. 
We left on May 22nd, which was actually the last day of school for Nate, but thankfully he only had to teach 2 classes in the morning so we left when he was done at about 11 o'clock.  We drove halfway there to Kanab, where we stayed in a hotel for the night.  I knew the kids couldn't go all the way in one day and to be honest, I don't think I could have either.  So we got to Kanab, and ended up going to the great little steak house right next door to our hotel which had some amazing great food and we counted it as our late anniversary dinner to ourselves.  So good.  They also had live entertainment there and totally set the mood and everything was decorated so cute.  After dinner we went back to the hotel and played around in the pool they had which was pretty nice.  The kids also needed something to do to be active after being in the car and sitting for so long, and they loved it and were so excited for it.
The next morning, we got up and drove the rest of the way.  On our way, we stopped at our friends house.  They use to live in Flagstaff and just moved up to Utah, so it was fun to see them.  Then, we finally arrived in South Jordan.  We were staying with my sister Christina at her in-laws house which was so amazing since they had it all set up for kids with toys everywhere and a big backyard to play in.  The kids loved it and it made the trip so much easier.  I did go that night to pick up Christina from the airport in Salt Lake.  I decided to head in a little earlier to go see Mom and Dallin and Tyler before I had to pick her up.  Dallin was so tired and so ready for the next day to come so he could be married.  I also got to meet Megan for the first time that night and she is so cute and Tyler has a good change about him now that he has her.  So I hung out at the condo and then left to go to get Christina.  We headed back to the house and went to bed.  I was super grateful for sleep that night because for some reason that whole weekend I was full of crazy emotions and was having some kind of panic/anxiety attacks a lot so I definitely needed the sleep.
The next morning was the big day.  We got up and got ready and we had to be in Salt Lake by like 10:30 so we hurried as fast as we could.  It was raining the day before and a little bit that morning so that made us all pretty nervous, but it calmed down by the time we got out of the temple, and it was a beautiful day after that.  The kids went to a visitors center to hang out with my Nielson cousins until the sealing was over which was great for me.  We dropped them off and headed in with Uncle Curt and Aunt Janene.  We thought we were super late and were going to be one of the last ones into the room, but we the temple was a little behind and so we were good.  We went to the waiting room and got to see so much family and friends it was an amazing feeling.  I loved it.  The sealing itself was beautiful.  I cried like a baby and love that they are married now.  They are such a good couple and I know that can last.  The spirit there was so amazing.  I love that April is now a sister-in-law.  Everything about the wedding was beautiful. 

Tyler and Megan

Keeping safe and dry under the umbrella

Our sweet little family

Our cousins - CJ, Shea, Ted, and Amy

Grandpa and Grandma Nielson

Siblings and out significant others

Next step was greeting them outside and taking pictures.  I had some time to take a few pictures before they came out so that's just what we did. 
Then they came out and there were more pictures.  Next was the luncheon.  It was at this cute little old church not too far away from the temple, just a little more downtown.  Since my family was in charge of the luncheon, we knew that it was chicken salad sandwiches and fruit and that is not a meal that Nate and the boys like, so they dropped me off and went to find some lunch for themselves.  At the luncheon, it was basically a introduce everyone kind of thing and then we all ate.  Nothing too exciting happened there. 

Now, we had the afternoon to kill until the reception. While we were at the luncheon, my aunt and uncle and some of their older children really wanted to go do some temple work for the afternoon, but needed something to do with their two youngest children.  Since we were going to go to the Church History Museum, they tagged along with us.  Unfortunately, the museum closes early on Saturdays so we didn't get there in time.  Instead we walked around temple square and went on a tour of the conference center.  I had been there before, but this time we went up on the roof and I loved it.  The view was amazing and they really put a lot of time and energy into the specifics of the building and landscaping. 

The tour man told us that this was special granite from South America I think, that is reflective so the idea is that when you see yourself with these pioneers and how everyone is a part of the work and hastening the work of the Lord. 

After my uncle and aunt were done with the temple session, it was time to go to the reception.  They had the reception at the This Is The Place monument park where they have little houses that double as event halls.  They had a little outdoor reception with a gazebo and a big green yard.  It was beautiful.  They hired some Coldstone Creamery employees and that was the dessert for the evening.  It was soooo good.  I didn't get to see the bride and groom much that night, but so many of my cousins were there that I hadn't seen for a few years and I loved getting to hang out with them and see them that night.  Throughout the day also, there were several facetime calls to other families that couldn't be there that day like the PA family and Grandma Peterson. 

I guess this is the only picture I got at the reception.  The boys with Uncle Dallin.

The whole day was beautiful and fun and I feel so blessed that we were able to go up there and be a part of it.  These two are so good for each other and I am so glad that they are going to live in Mesa for a while so we can be close to them.