Santa Cruz!

Sunday was our last day of church in Riverton. It was kind of anticlimactic, since we didn't have any callings, we hadn't been there long, and we only went to church there about half the time between homecomings, reunions, etc. In the afternoon, Paul downloaded stuff onto Grace's toy laptop. She LOVES that it says "Hello Grace" when she turns it on now!

 On Monday, the girls did BYU cheers, and we did tons of packing.

 That evening, Uncle Mike and Nate came to help load all our stuff into the moving truck. It was hot, but easier than usual since everything was in the garage and just needed moved 10 feet. And it helped that it could all be seen at the same time, as far as the organization goes.

 Nate totally earned the 2 dozen cookies I sent home with him!

 Paul was grateful for the help. He was worried he'd have to pack the truck on his own - not a soul from the ward showed up!

 Tuesday was lots of errands, laundry, some packing, and getting ready for our big road trip. Grace helped me make pepperoni rolls for the drive.

 It was also a big cleaning day. Grace was a good little helper scrubbing the floors like Cinderella. We don't have a mop!

We were all pretty happy with ourselves by the time all the work was done.

On Wednesday, Paul drove the moving truck, and I drove the girls in the van. It was pretty awful since Alice was so grouchy with a cold, and she WILL NOT sleep in the car, but I was just glad we were on straight desolate Nevada roads when our tire blew out. It cost us 3 hours and $300, but we finally made it to Reno that night, and had a good night's rest in a decent hotel.

We woke up well rested on Thursday, then had to bathe the girls, since it turned out Alice threw up in the night! They were happy to be out of the car and watching cartoons on TV. The hotel had a nice hot breakfast, then we drove 5 hours straight to Santa Cruz. The roads are crowded and windy and scary, so luckily the girls were good that day.

 When we got to our new apartment, the girls climbed the stairs for a photo op.

The apartment is old and nothing fancy, but clean, and bigger than we remembered. We ventured into town for McDonald's and a shower curtain, then a bunch of guys from the ward showed up to help us move in. So nice! We didn't get much unpacked that night. Too tired!

Friday was spent unpacking all day.

 On Saturday, we went grocery shopping at Safeway. We couldn't believe their fresh seafood section! It was an expensive trip though.

 After more unpacking, we played with the playdoh pizza factory, after lots of begging from Grace. These poor girls have been so good about entertaining themselves while we work, so she deserved it.

 Playdoh hamburger.

 Playdoh cannoli.

 The view from our back window. We have a little fenced-in dirt area, but we're not allowed to plant anything in it. We're on the waiting list for a plot in the community garden.

 The kids' room.

 The girls have LOVED rediscovering all their old toys!

 The only bathroom.

 Our room.

 Top of the stairs storage space.

 Front entryway.

 Living/dining room/office.

 Backyard area.

Kitchen. No disposal or dishwasher. How do I wash dishes by hand with only one sink?
Overall, we like our new place. The cool weather certainly makes it bearable to keep unpacking boxes!

Brigham City Temple Open House

 Not many pictures this week because I've been sick with a bad cold. But here's a gem: Pink-Pink the Princess and her pony, Pinkie Pie.

 We went to Arby's on the way to the Brigham City Temple open house. Could she be any cuter?

 The shuttle bus to the temple.

 I don't know if Alice has ever been on a bus before.

 Cool temple!

 Grace took an artsy shot of us.

Alice was tuckered out after church today. Grace got her all set up with a pillow and blanket. Cute!

Random pics by random people in random order

 When Luke visited our house, he made an awesome lego tractor. (from my cell phone camera)

 Alice got really messy at Sizzler the day we got back from the JFFR. (my cell)

 Grace had to try on a hat when we went to Target. (my cell)

 Dad brought us a box from their house with my name all over it. It didn't take long before I realized it wasn't mine. It turns out Justin and Kelsey used one of my old boxes to store some stuff in HSB when they went to Australia 5 or 6 years ago, and they were never able to find this box again. Well, Kelsey didn't care about most of it anymore, so I kept a few things. Here's Grace in an old shirt/dress of Eden's. (my cell)

 Alice with a sheep ear headband. (my cell)

 Kisses from Grace. (my cell)

 Me with Heather's baby Kate. (Heather's droid)

 We tried to sit in the exact same position so we could be twins. (Heather's droid)

 Cousins on the back porch swing. (Sarah's camera) (Norah, Merrody, Eliza, Joely, Alice, Jensen, Grace)

 Paul and Grace on a horse at the reunion. (Sarah)

 Alice unwilling to pose for the camera. (Taken by Kelsey)

 Cute couple! (Kelsey)

 Just another meal at the reunion. (Sarah)

 Medals and trophies after the field games. Grace loved her "Best dressed" trophy! (Sarah)

 Paul with his group. They loved his idea of setting up their own mini golf course! (Sarah) (Joely, Preston, Ammon, Wesley)

 Cheyenne, Alice, and Eliza. Three cousins born within 6 weeks of each other. (Sarah)

 Silly siblings. (Taken by Ashley) (Sarah, Heather, Joel, Derek, me, Whitney, Cassidy, Haley)

 Me and Paul trying to handle the heat. (Sarah)

 Sweeties and their dollies. (Sarah) (Cheyenne, Alice, Eliza)

 Dad and Mom had their group make whoopie pies! Mom made the aprons herself. (Sarah) (Dad, Norah, Grace, Savannah, Mom)

 Alice, me, Cheyenne. (Sarah)

 The whole family minus Dillon, Austin, and Justin. (Sarah)

 Grace's cousin age group. The only girl, poor thing. (Sarah) (Jackson, Jude, Emery, Luke, Grace, Miles, Jensen)

 Cousins on the trampoline. (Sarah)

 Alice's cousin age group has no shortage of girls. (Sarah) (Savannah, Norah, Alice, Eliza, Cheyenne)

Adorable shot of Grace. (Kelsey) Kelsey also took a photo of our little family of 4, but for some reason it wouldn't upload. Cute pics by all!