Kanarraville Falls!

We found the coolest place to go hiking!!  I have heard of Kanarraville Falls my whole life but I've never been.  It was one of our summer goals of things to do.  Summer is coming to a close and we decided we better get on it!  

The hike starts out on a dirt road for 3/4 of a mile. Jack carried Mark for a while until he got too heavy.  

The road starts to wind in and out of a cold river.  Shoes get wet and there is lots of avoiding bushes and trees.  We stopped for lunch along the trail.  

The trail goes along the river for a ways until you get up towards a slot canyon.  The canyon narrows and creates waterfalls.  It was like a mini subway and so beautiful.  

Mark was riding in the baby backpack but Mikayla walked almost the whole way!  It was about 4 miles total.  The first waterfall had a ladder and after the first waterfall, Merril and Mark hung back because Mark wanted out of the backpack for a while.  

The rest of us hiked up to the 2nd waterfall and then came back down.  

 It was a fun hike but towards the end, Merril had to run back to do some work he'd promised.  By then, I had Mark in the backpack and Mikayla was starting to slow down.  The older kids kind of took off to get back to the car as quick as possible.  I ended up carrying Mikayla in my arms and Mark on my back for part of the time.  Woosh!  That was a lot of work but it was so pretty and we had a great time.

15th Anniversary to the Florida Keys...

Yay!  Time for our vacation!  To spend the least amount of time away from the kids, we left Sunday evening and flew all night on the cheap-o airline: Spirit.  We carried on backpacks because we had to pay extra for everything except for a personal item.

After arriving in Ft. Lauderdale, we rented a black convertible Chevy Camero and drove to Miami Beach for the night.  We went swimming in the ocean twice that day because the water was unbelievably warm, at least 90.

We had a nap and listened to live music as we ate dinner outdoors.

The next morning we got up at 5 a.m. to make it to Key West for our scuba lesson.  We passed Waffle House and Merril wanted to stop for breakfast.  Look how happy he is with his waffles!

We spent some time in a pool learning basic scuba like how to clear a regulator and goggles, had lunch and rode out to the reef.  We spent an hour diving and then drove to another reef and spent another hour diving.  We made friends with 2 single dudes from Belgium and had fun chatting with them about their country.  I guess European businesses close for 3 weeks during the summer to allow their employees vacation.  We saw a bunch of European tourists.

After scuba, we saw the alleged southernmost point in the continental U.S.  ;)

Then we went to see the sunset because Key West is the "Home of the Sunset."  There were food vendors and performers.  We got a virgin Mojito.

The next day we slept in and headed back up the keys.  Our flight didn't leave until 8:30 p.m. so we had the whole day and took our time.   We swam in the ocean again at Bahia Honda State Park.  Mini lobster season was in effect so there were a lot of people snorkeling for lobsters.

Merril insisted on a convertible.  He wanted a Jeep but the rental place was sold out so he settled for the Camero.  I felt like it was a great way to experience driving down the Keys!  

The Keys are all connected by a variety of bridges.  How amazing is that?  The longest, 7-mile bridge, is in the background.  This is where we ate lunch our last day.  They had a pool that you could swim in for free.  You could order food if you liked.

Our 3 day, 5 night vacation was amazing.  It was so much fun to be able to spend that much time with Merril without having to divide my attention 5 different ways.  The whole vacation was exactly what we wanted it to be.  There were no disagreements, no contention.  Everything was sublime.  Especially the Key Lime Pie.  ;)

My 5 kids...

We brought back shirts from Key West as souvenirs for the kids.  They all lined up for a picture.  I can't believe how big they're getting.

Mark is starting to get older and the rest of them are all growing up.  I love them!

Mark baby...

When Mark was born he didn't seem to look like any of our other kids.  Merril jokingly questioned his paternity to our 5th child.  I tried to order a mock DNA test for the first Father's Day after Mark was born to show that Merril and Mark were truly Father and son, as a joke, but those are hard to get.  But then Mark's hair started to grow in and the hair coming out of that boy's head is the exact same coarseness and texture as Daddy's hair!  Merril seemed satisfied.  :)

Further proof has come to light in the last few weeks!  Merril really likes salad.  He has huge salads all the time.  His dressing of choice is Thousand Island, which makes the rest of us stick out our tongues and go, "Yuck!"  However, Mark is my only toddler that has loved salad and after Merril gave him a taste of Thousand Island a few weeks ago, he refuses all other salad dressings.  That boy, is his Father's son.

24th of July float...

I've been called into the Primary Presidency since February.  It's been a new and challenging calling but I'm getting better at it.  The Primary is in charge of providing a float in the 24th of July parade in H-town.  I volunteered our truck and trailer and Merril took this opportunity to redeck the trailer.  We'd know about it for months but waited until the last minute to get it done.  This is the night before the parade.  We finished around midnight.  

It turned out really nice!

My favorite part were the 2 bubble machines on the back of the trailer.  Bubbles poured out behind the float and people thought it was a blast!

Juliet's baptism...

Juliet's baptism was set for July 11th, 2015.  Grandma Campbell had taken her to the fabric store about a month before to pick out fabric and a pattern for a baptism dress.  I took Julie to Deseret Book to pick out a set of nice scriptures and a scripture case.  We decided to take her baptism pictures at the St. George Temple and I loved how they turned out!

Juliet Aya Campbell was baptized and confirmed by her father, Merril L. Campbell.

 She's cute as a button.

Juliet was feeling "super!"  

Grandmas and Grandpas were in attendance but most of our families couldn't make it.  We invited several friends: Olivia R., Lauren S., Ellie and Ayzie H and their Moms.  :)  How thankful I am for good friends who were able to come and make Juliet's day a special one.  

Afterwards we had cinnamon rolls, fruit salad, and eggs for brunch back at our house!  

Aladdin Jr....

Maxine was in the junior musical production of Aladdin.  She auditioned and got the role of the Genie!  I helped with sets and made her costume, which I thought turned out great!

I have a love/hate with these plays because they rehearse Monday through Friday for a little over a month.  It's a lot of driving and schedules for the summer.  

That being said, Maxine did amazing.  She.killed.it.  I would watch her with such pleasing satisfaction.  She hit her notes, she delivered her lines, made her entrances.  It was a great role for her.  She's growing up into an amazing person.  

After the last performance, the cast went to DQ for a cast party.  They had to ask us to be quiet a number of times and about asked us to leave.  But they quieted down enough to stay until closing time.

Cedar Breaks...

This year for the Campbell "cabin" reunion, it was decided that we should try a different place and so everyone met at Brianhead.  There was a pool, which was fun, and there were activities and usual reunion fun and drama. I had meant to take pictures but never did.  On the way home, we stopped in Glendale to go to church with Grandma Swapp.  We stopped by Cedar Breaks on the way home and someone snagged this for us!  

We all look pretty cute, except for Mark who isn't looking.  I photoshop so many family pictures that I'm not used to him looking away.  Ha ha!  There should be at least one, to keep it real.

Juliet's 8th Birthday Party!

Maxine and Merril are headed up to girl's camp on Wednesday, Juliet's birthday and my anniversary. We settled on the idea of having Juliet's party on Tuesday so the whole family could be there and so Merril could help with the party.  Julie wanted a rock climbing party, just like Jack.  Merril was able to borrow the search and rescue rock climbing wall again and so away we went.

She wanted an Oreo ice cream cake!

Presents are always fun!

This is the next day, Juliet's actual birthday, eating leftover cake.  Merril and Maxine had left to girl's camp by then.

On the morning of our anniversary and the day Max and Merril were leaving for girl's camp, Merril said he thought it would be fun to spend a few days in the Florida Keys.  I balked.  I have always wanted to visit the Florida Keys but I was worried about leaving the kids.  I suggested maybe spending a few days in Springdale.  :/  Merril, who is always supportive, said that would be fun too and I sent my priesthood leader and my oldest daughter to camp.

Then I stewed.  I was angry with myself because I chickened out!  Grrrr.  So I grabbed balloons and a tub of red vines (one of Merril's favorite treats) and drove up to girl's camp Wednesday evening.  I surprised him with the "Happy Anniversary" balloons and when we had a second to talk, explained that I didn't want to go to Springdale!  I really, really wanted to visit the Florida Keys!!!  He grinned big and I drove home.  We'll be headed to Florida soon!

15 years married!

I don't know what the thought was when I took this picture.  Sometimes I think there aren't nearly enough pictures of me and Merril. Whatever the thought, I'm glad Merril is in the picture next to me.

It's our anniversary tomorrow.  Not that you can tell.  Juliet's birthday is the same day and so we'll be celebrating later.  I can't believe the closeness we share.  The happiness that encompasses our life together.  How can it be that two people are allowed to be so happy and so blessed??  It just keeps getting better!  I can't wait to spend the rest of forever with this guy!

Little boys and trucks...

I've always found it fascinating what qualities come preprogrammed into my children.  Some things are taught, and others are hardwired into the DNA somehow.  I believe the love between little boys and trucks is a natural phenomenon.

So adorable.

Some things will always be.

Mikayla at the dentist...

At the last dentist appointment, I asked about Mikayla getting her teeth checked.  They said they could squeeze her in and see how far they could get.  She was very cooperative and allowed a full exam and cleaning to take place.  It's all due to Juliet.  Mikayla watched while Julie was in the chair and Julie was great!  Unfortunately, 2 little cavities were found.  Since they were so small and because Mikayla had done so well, the dentist believed they could be done without numbing shots.

This is after her cavity appointment.  We went early in the morning and she did a very good job opening her mouth and sitting still for the dentist.  It took half an hour and we were on our way!

Wafflitas!

My kids love waffles.  It's because of Grandpa Campbell.  He makes great waffles.  I make waffles too but they aren't quite the same as Grandpa's waffles, and that's the way it should be.  :)  Still, my kids will eat them with relish when I make them.

The Markmeister is at such a cute age.  Every little thing he does it magic.

He loves to stand on the table.  Grrrr!  I wish he would sit down.  I found him on the table with leftover whipped cream this day.  

What a punk.

4th of July at Laub Ranch...

Grandma Evans (Laub) normally holds the 4th of July reunion up at the farm in Beryl.  Land that had fallen out of the family was recently purchased again up near Enterprise Reservoir.  Newly dubbed the Laub Ranch was where the 4th of July reunion was held.  We donned our patriotic duds for the occasion.

LaDel and his kids worked really hard building a pavilion and fixing the pond.  The area was really nice and they did a great job!

A bunch of kayaks were hauled up there for the kids to play on.  Maxine was playing in one and got all wet.

I would have brought swimsuits had I known about the pond.  We'll know for next time!  After Maxine got wet, she decided to make the most of it and jumped off this tree a bunch!

 Jack was in the kayaks the most.  But I don't have a picture of that.  :)

Mark was being a turkey from missing his nap so we were having to play with him a lot.  Even then he was grumpy.

The the Laub Ranch is a really nice place and I think we'll be doing many more family reunions there!