Sunday evening we packed up and left the Roundy house. We are staying our reunion at George & Ruth's house. They have a large house big enough for all of our group and they were kind enough to offer it to us and even vacate it for us for the week.
The kids were so excited about the grand house. A fun fun playroom and a huge beautiful yard with soft green grass. A huge tv too.
I am impressed with the the views. You have a mountain in the backyard! A city view and you see the Timponogos Temple from the backyard, the front and front windows.
Monday we put on our Roundy Reunion shirts which are comfortable and cute. We took photos in the backyard of us all in our shirts. Then we went to hike up to Timp Cave. Turns out it's a big hike. I didn't expect a big hike. My legs were just recovering from my last hike.
Hannah's almost fiance. Wedding talk but no ring yet...
Stewart.
The morning and afternoon were hard. We hiked up with many rest breaks. There were 30 of us and 11 of that were children. So it took a long time to get up.
We took a tour of the cave. We had to do it in two separate groups. Athena thought the cave was made of mud. She exclaimed "We need to clean this cave." It was adorable.
Later in the cave a formation we were shown looked like popcorn on the wall. After the tour guide explained that it was not really popcorn Athena said "Look , it's popcorn on the wall. ...Just kidding."
Tiberias was so cold in the cave that he didn't seem to enjoy it. So we skipped the end of the cave tour and went outside to warm up. Athena did great until the middle of the tour then she started to get antsy and Luke needed to use the restroom.
Poor Jon was sick so he left the tour early too.
Here is the tour guide showing us a formation that looks like the head of a dog.
Below is a photo of what looked to me like a person kneeling and praying (small on the left lower part) and a rock tower.
Below is a photo of a pond in the cave.
Walking down the mountain was hard too. A lot quicker than going up but not easier. My calves were killing me.
We went from there to Leatherby's for lunch. But it was 3pm by the time we got there.
We got food and ice cream. Everyone had a great time. My kids got the messiest with their ice creams. Ster had to scrub our shirts good that evening.
7/27/16
Tuesday was a more relaxing day. Dad and Mom went to a wedding for half the day. The rest of us took a long easy morning. We went to a nearby splash park before lunch. Home for lunch.
Trevor and Simone went and found out the gender of their 2nd child that afternoon. We had taken a poll to see who thought they would be having a boy and who thought they would have another girl. We also suggested names for them to choose from.
At the Gender Reveal they announced that they are expecting a baby boy! And all who had guessed a boy, previously, won their favorite candy (which they had already and passed out at the reveal).
That evening was dinner and preparing for the family portraits. Mom hired a professional photographer to do our portraits in George and Ruth's amazing backyard.
So we all dressed, made hair nice and prettied up ourselves and our children. I decorated the Unbirthday cake. We had scheduled to do the Unbirthday party that day but the day turned into a relaxed do nothing kind of day. Hanging out, playing games and visiting. Which was awesome. So the Unbirthday got split into two days. Cake the first day and pinatas the second.
Maddie dressed as Elsa
Chloe as Elsa
Playing Disney Headbands
Athena as Elsa
Tuesday evening at 7:00 the photographer showed up and set up in the backyard. The wind presented a problem with the soft box umbrella. We started portraits about 7:30 and they went until after 9:30pm! We did portraits of everyone together, individual families, Dad and Mom with their eight children. And the grandkids with Kelly and Denise.
It was near 10pm when the Unbirthday kicked off. We sang the Unbirthday song and cut and ate the cake. We had a large cake but ate almost the whole thing that night. Then sent the kids to bed.
Elliot and Jessica had come over and we all sat and visited late that night.
Wednesday we went up Hobble Creek Canyon. We found a shady place and set out tons of chairs. The kids played. We cooked hot dogs for lunch. After lunch we had our Unbirthday party. We had two pinatas...a bee and a treasure chest.
We all had a blast with the pinatas. The children took turns hitting it (no blindfolds). Then when they had a few turns each we turned to the adults. They had a blast too.
Some of the men went fishing after that. Abi taught some of the kids how to hold and aim and shoot bow and arrows.
Luke, Ty and Athena played in the creek. It's a really hot week outside.
We toasted Smores over the fire. It was a wonderful family day outdoors.
That evening Kelly and Denise's children with their spouses went out to dinner. We left the children with their grandparents. We went to the Purple Turtle where we had dinner and dessert while visiting together without the distraction of little children.
Tomorrow is Thursday. We will pack up, clean George and Ruth's amazing house and leave. We will all be making our way to Mt Pleasant to the cabin in the woods at different times that day. Everyone has a different plan. Sterling and our family will be going to Kelly and Denise's house for a few hours. We will make cds of the pictures I've taken during the Roundy Reunion. For Dad and Mom and Ster's sibblings too.
What a fabulous week! The worst things that happened were Jon getting sick at the beginning and some grouchy people (including myself) at the end of the Timp Caves hike. So all in all...a rather stress and drama free reunion. Which is amazing considering the number of people involved. Denise planned an amazing time for us all.
