Panguitch with the Perkins

 Next chapter - go visit Jill and Larsen in Panguitch. Jill wasn't feeling amazing as a pregnant lady, so we mostly hung out. We ate dinner at the Smokehouse, visited Jill & Larsen's horses, went to Cedar City to try (unsuccessfully) to get a covid test, ate lunch at a Mexican restaurant, & drove over Cedar Breaks on the way back to their house. We tried to wake up Jill for the picture, but no luck.

The next day we headed out early to try for a covid test in Spanish Fork. We were hoping to get the results the next day, but we learned that the tests get shipped to Tennessee and the lab wasn't open on Sundays. So we changed plans and decided to go and visit Declan Nunn in Montpelier and so we call the Pitchfords to see if we could come and stay with them. We had a fun visit with Randy and Liz and then Declan came over after he got off work. Austin went out on a drive with him in his new yellow mini cooper car and had a good visit with him about life. We went to the singles branch in Montpelier for church on Sunday (where Randy is the branch president) and we got to sit with Declan too. As stressful as it seemed to me to have the delay in covid testing to get back across the border to Canada, we do think the visit to Declan was meant to be. It started the communication between Austin and Declan where Austin was asking Declan about his future plans (Declan had served for a few months on his mission before he came home with mental health troubles). After texting back and forth, Declan did apply to go to BYU-Idaho in Rexburg, so that's good - he was thinking of just doing online school. The in-person college experience is (usually) much better!

After Montpelier, we headed to Idaho Falls for one more covid test - in case the first ones didn't come back within 72 hours. We stopped at the temple for a minute on our way. Then we had a fun visit with my parents and got to see Tristan and Julie's new house.

Monday morning we did a little shopping and headed north hoping our covid test results would come. While we were stopped in Helena, we got the results that all of our tests came back negative. Hooray! We could head home. (If they didn't come, we were going to stay in Great Falls). Luckily this time we didn't have to quarantine because they have a new rule that you don't have to quarantine if you are fully vaccinated.

Randy & Carol's 50th Anniversary

 My parents celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary on June 4, 2021. But we made plans to celebrate in July when we could all be together in Utah. First, we went out to dinner at Sundance up the canyon with my parents, the 7 kids and the spouses that were here. During our planning, my parents were worried it would cost too much (some things never change:) but we assured them we were all okay with it and that we wouldn't make them pay for everyone's dinner. But it turned out great  - the location was fun and the food was delicious. My dad said it was the best restaurant meal he had ever had.

The out of town kids all stayed at Jeanette's house. It was a party. The next day after breakfast, we went up Provo Canyon to a park to shoot off rockets. These are the things you do at family reunions when your dad is a physics teacher. We headed back to Jeanette's house for lunch and then we spent the afternoon at a little pond by Jeanette's house with lots of paddle boards and swimming toys that Jeanette had gathered up.

After a catered dinner that Jeanette had ordered, we had an anniversary program. Jeanette had made a game of questions about Mom & Dad. Rachelle had changed the words to the song "Sweet Caroline" that the grandkids sang about Grandpa & Grandma. Then each of the 7 kids shared a memory. I told about all of the rides in the backseat of Mom & Dad's car: trips to the Tetons, Yellowstone, California, New York; the ride to Logan the day they dropped me off at Utah State University; and the ride to the temple the day I got married. 

We ended the day swimming at Jeanette's neighbor's pool. This is where the brother-in-laws are super fun and get all of the kids jumping off the rock cliff.

My family hadn't been together since Nathan's wedding in December 2019 - a lot because of covid. So it was great to be together. But if you want to know how to ruin the mood at a family reunion, have one sister announce to another sister in front of everyone that her kid was bugging the crap out of everyone. I know there is background to the story and two sides to every story, but it was awful.

The lyrics to the grandkid Anniversary song:

Where it began, clear back in California,

That’s where their love was growing strong

Was in the spring

And spring became the summer

Who'd have believed they’d come along

Hands, touching hands

Reaching out, touching me, touching you

Sweet Grandma Carol

Good times never seemed so good

They got married,

Everyone believed they would

But now we

Looking at them and they seem so happy

They started out with only two

And when they laugh

We all laugh with them.

How can we love them anymore.

One, becoming two

Then there were 9, now there’s 38!

Sweet Grandpa,

Good times never seemed so good

We all knew

To believe they always would

Oh yes, yes,

Sweet 50th,

Good times never seemed so good

Sweet 50th,

We believed they always would

Sweet 50th!

Good times never seemed so good

Hanging with Young Nunns

The second chapter of our summer vacation was to visit Les & Hollis. It was our first time to their new house in Council, Idaho. They are managing a ranch that is 28 miles from the small town of Council, Idaho. It is a beautiful place with a really nice house. We had a concert on the front porch while we were waiting for Sunday dinner.

On Monday, Les & Hollis had to move cows and fix fence so we just hung out with the kids. Then they took us on an adventure down a canyon road where you had to dodge boulders in the road. Then they thought it would be fun to drive us up a mountain that was a narrow road with a steep drop off, while telling us about all of the people and horses that had died on the mountain. Not my idea of a good time - or Carly's. Carly and I chose to sit out the second mountain climb. Then we played in a creek for a few minutes before we headed back to their house for dinner.

We love the Young Nunn kids. I wish we lived closer!

 

Nunn Reunion - Lewiston, Idaho

The posterity of John & LaDelphia Nunn met for a family reunion in Lewiston, Idaho right along the Snake River. It is only the second reunion of Austin's cousins since I have met him, so it is a big deal. During Covid, we had reunited with family on zoom for church a couple times a month and a few family hangouts. It was fun to camp, eat, hangout and play in the river. There was a wildfire near by so we were constantly covered by a thick layer of smoke, which was in some ways a blessing because it was supposed to be 100 degrees, but it didn't feel that bad because the smoke made it cooler.