Bastian Family Reunion

Over Labor Day weekend we went to Idaho to the Bastian Family Reunion. It was so nice to see family and meet family. We had a fantastic time once we got there. It took us 15 hours to drive. We stopped a lot!

We stayed at Merrill & Darlene's. They have a beautiful home and the feeling inside their home is just as beautiful. We got to meet some of their children, which are Brad's cousins. Tyler and Katie thought they were in heaven having a trampoline in the back yard. Tyler went for a ride on the wheeler and they got to shoot off rockets and launch water bottles. It was beautiful weather, great company and food. Brad and I are the Bocce Ball champs.
On our way home we decided to go through Utah instead of Wyoming. It is so nice to have something to look at besides open plains. We visited with a good friend of mine from high school. It was so good to see her and meet her cute kids.
We can't wait to do it again!

Gone Fishin'

Have you heard the song "Gone Fishin'" by Louie Armstrong and Bing Crosby....well, I love that song. When we went fishing as a family I thought about that song. Tyler had been asking to go fishing for a long time, okay all summer long so we finally did it. We bought a pole, a license, some worms and bait and headed to the lake. We had a great time! Tyler is AWESOME at casting. He did better than I did.
Katie, well she didn't like it so much. She hung out in the van watching a movie and munching on some chips. Maybe she isn't old enough to enjoy it just yet. I think this might become a family tradition for us.

School Days

Today was Tyler's first day of school. We opted to repeat Kindergarten because he was so young last year. Now, he is the oldest in the class and will hopefully exceed at his studies. He is really excited to be back at school and make new friends. I am excited to see how he learns and grows this year.

Sunflower Trip

Today we decided to take a road trip to find the sunflowers. We ended up in Kansas. There isn't much to see between here and there except rolling hills. It was nice to be able to spend time together as a family. I was getting a little worried because we didn't see anything for a long time. We were almost to Kansas before we saw our first field. I LOVED IT!!!
As we were driving and we didn't see any fields we almost turned around and went to Mt Rushmore. I know totally random but it would have been so fun to just drive there on a whim. Maybe someday we will get to do something like that.

Family Photos

While we were in Arizona, I asked my cute niece Jessica if she would take a couple of family pictures of us.

After seeing these pictures I decided I need to be in more pictures with my kids as I am always behind the camera.

~Birthday Boy~

Happy Birthday to our sweet Tyler. He is 6 years old and getting bigger everyday. He had a great party with friends and family. (pictures to come). We love this big guy so much. His smile is so contagious you can't help but smile with him.

~Summer Fun~

We spent two weeks in Arizona basking in the fantastically hot but delightful sun. My kids were so excited to see their grandparents and cousins. They enjoyed every minute of it. We spent a lot of time at the pool. Tyler and Katie both jumped off the diving board this year. They have become little fish. Now if they could learn how to swim. Katie took her floaties off, jumped in and sank to the bottom. Hopefully this next summer we will be able to do swim lessons.

On the 4th of July we went to a flag raising ceremony at the church and had a delicious pancake, sausage, egg, bacon breakfast. I love how there is a unity in traditions. It was great to see my nephew Shawn help with the flag ceremony.

These are the cute hats we made for the 4th of July. We needed some kind of activity for the kids when they couldn't go outside. They really loved making them and they looked really cute too.
This is the men slaving over the stove to feed all us hungry people. Okay so I can't really speak for others but I was hungry.
After breakfast, we went to the 4th of July parade in Safford. It was my kind of parade. Short and to the point. We had great seats right at the beginning of the parade in the shade. As soon as the parade was over we went to get sno cones. I think we had one almost every day we were there. I think I could eat them everyday. Colorado really needs sno cones.
We ended our day with a pot luck, swimming and fireworks. It is hard to take great pictures of fireworks without your tripod.

It was a fantastic two weeks. We had a great time with family and friends, enjoyed the weather and pool but mostly we are so thankful for the freedoms we enjoy every day. We are so very blessed to live in this free country. Thank you to all the many service men and women who fight to protect our freedoms every day.
It reminds me of Captain Moroni and the Title of Liberty:
"In memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children"