This July we had our big Olson Family Reunion! We do this reunion with my G&G Olson and all their kids/grandkids/great-grandkids every three years. This was Beckett's first one! This year we all met up at the Clear Creek Family Ranch in Southern Utah for four fun days. It's just outside the back entrance to Zion. It was a beautiful place to be and we had a blast catching up with family and making new memories.
Day 1: The first day we all got to the ranch and settled into our rooms. The cousins immediately started playing and didn't stop the whole week. We explored the property a little bit and Beckett and I even got a canoe ride from Uncle DeVar. We had dinner as a family that night. After some visiting time and a little 1st birthday party for Dean and Wilson the kids went to bed and the rest of us stayed up way too late making Dubsmash videos and watching them. We even got Grandpa to do a Dubsmash! Pretty hilarious.
Day 2: Most of the family went into Zion to hike and explore Springdale. The Henshaw's took Weston and Davin into Zion with them and worked on the Junior Ranger program. They went on a hike too. I stayed at the ranch with Talia and Beckett. Mom and I took them down the road to look at the buffalo. Then we went into town and picked up supplies for smores.
Once everyone was back from Zion later that afternoon we all did the giant slip and slide. Oh my goodness. It was so much fun. It started with just the kids a few adults (I was one of the original adults) but after watching for a little bit almost everyone ended up in their bathing suits trying it out. There were races and crashes and all kinds of laughing. We lucked out that it was one of the only sunny afternoons we had!
That night after dinner we had a bonfire and roasted smores. So fun, minus the bugs. :)
Day 3: I went with the boys into Zion. Mom and Dad, Aunt Joyce and Lance, and the Henshaw girls (including Joy) came too. Ian stayed back with Tal and Beck so they could nap. While we were in Zion we went to a few different places so the kids could complete their Junior Ranger program. We listened to a really interesting presentation from an actual ranger about scary spiders, beavers, and other nature things. We watched the Zion National Park video at the visitors center. We ended our trip with a quick hike up to Weeping Rock. It was a pretty long day, but we had a good time. At the end the kids got sworn in as Junior Rangers and got a cool badge.
Later that afternoon the kids went outside and did a giant water balloon sling shot with Uncle Darryl. Weston loved it. We got lots of rain while we were at the ranch. It was kind of fun to watch the storms and enjoy the beautiful rainbows. Luckily it wasn't too rainy that we didn't get to enjoy boating on the pond and playing on the playground or doing a round of Frisbee golf or ladder ball.
That evening after dinner we took our big family picture. Grandma Olson taught a quick little FHE lesson to the kids and gave them these cute little lanterns to remind them to be a light to those around them and to gather their own oil/testimonies. Then we played a bunch of fun games in groups. Somewhere in there we also did our traditional "tasting game." This year we tasted and had to guess a whole bunch of varieties of M&M's. Yum.
When the kids weren't busy outside they were playing Lego's or with giant balloons. They also had this awesome loft in our bedroom where they played for hours. They played with their DS's and read books and played lots of Pokemon. They LOVE to spend time together. I loved spending time with my aunts and uncles and cousins. We grow at every reunion and I love that we stay close.
Day 4: Pack up and head out! We were all out by about 10am. On our way out of town we stopped at a rock shop where the kids each picked out a bag of fun rocks. Beckett was a fan of the dinosaur out front. We also stopped at this random German bakery and tried a few of the yummy pastries. We made it home pretty quickly and uneventfully. So grateful for my family and the time we get to spend together!
