the one about the Burns reunion

We got home Sunday evening from the annual Burns family reunion. That is Grandma Galley's family. This year, we went to MillSite State Park near Ferron, Utah. It was such a neat place! I had never even heard of it but it was a super fun place to go. It was very nice and clean. There were very nice camp sites right on the beach of the lake. There was a really cool golf course there and the guys hit that a few times. We had a nice pavilion and full bathrooms and showers. Of course, I have my own bathroom and shower in my trailer, but it is still nice to have it there. The weather was sort of nasty the first couple of days, but Saturday was PERFECT! We had a lot of rain, but that wasn't even that bad part... the WIND was AWFUL! But only a small part of the time so it was bearable. We left Wednesday afternoon. the drive should have only been about 3 and a half hours, but it ended up being about 5. We started having vehicle problems at the summit of Indian canyon. We pulled over, popped the hood and Brett discovered a blown radiator hose. He had to totally McGyver it with an old leather glove and his belt, but it got us to Price so we could get the parts we needed. We traveled with Tara's family and by the time we got to the part store in Price, the kids were ready to stretch out.

They had water guns so.... do the math. Antsy kids cooped up in cars, slow, hot travel; add in a few water guns and... well you can only imagine! After that little bump in the road, and a pit stop at Subway, we were on our way. Setting up camp was pretty easy, since there wasn't much leveling to do. Spence looks totally weird in this picture, but it was so funny that he kept putting his head in the trailer and yelling things like, "Mommy! I'm hungry!" "Mommy! I'm scared!" etc. etc. He is such a nut!!! He took a tent and we put it right by our trailer. I was so worried that he was going to get attacked by a bear. Brett assured me that there are not many bears in the dessert, but I was still concerned. They also told me they sprayed the tent with bear repellent so that eased my mind a lot. ;) We were all hungry around 10 pm, so I made TONS of grilled ham and cheese sandwiches. Thursday morning, we headed for Goblin Valley. It was about an hour and a half drive from our campground. Like every camp out, Quayd and Drake are attached at the hip, so Drake rode to Goblin Valley with us. They are such good boys and they have so much fun together. Here are some pix from that day. Brett, Spencer, Quayd, Drake and I all walked into the valley together. Can you see Brett and Spence way up at the top of the above picture???It started getting really hot and it was time for lunch but Brett and Spencer still wanted to hike so the little boys and I headed back to the pavilion. Grandma Galley had brought a nice big lunch for everyone. We spent a few hours there, then headed back to camp. We were all hot and tired and I think everyone of us, except Brett since he was driving, fell asleep. Friday morning we played Bingo. Grandma Galley takes her Bingo pretty serious! She shops all year long looking for sales and good deals on prizes for the kids and adults. Brett was the bingo caller and I helped set up prizes. Can you believe this? There were close to 80 people there and everyone that played went home with with a paper grocery sack full of stuff! On Friday evening, with the swords they got from Bingo, Brett and Spencer decided to have an ultimate fighting/jousting competition on the water trampoline. It was so funny. They both ended up bruised, scratched and sore the next day.

/p>

Saturday was spent mostly just relaxing and playing in the water and on the beach.








On our last night at the reunion, Brett and Spencer decided to make a craps table. They used the back of some wrapping paper and it it actually looked pretty good!


Brett had packed his poker set and it had everything in it for craps. They invited anyone who wanted to play. It ended up being Chad and Marcie, Scott, Shae, Brett and Spence. They had so much fun! The kids stayed up late that night riding bikes, playing with glow sticks and roasting marshmallows. Tara and I stayed up and fed our Bejeweled addiction. Yah, we totally had WiFi at the campground!!!

This is Chad's little boy, Evan. Isn't he so cute? I just love him!!! He gives "face lovies." So CUTE!!! It got kind of windy once it got dark, so it ended up being sorta chilly. I don't know how or why... but a few "people" decided to "take a dip" in the lake, if you know what I mean. Burrrrrrrr, it was SO COLD, but it sure was fun!!!!! It was a good way to end this fun camping trip. Quayd loves camping so much! I like it, I always have fun, but even if I didn't it would still be worth going, just so Quayd could have fun. It's funny, actually. I feel like I hardly even see Quayd when we are camping because he is off playing the whole time. He stays pretty busy exploring and playing. I'm so glad he loves it so much. He is so much fun! I just wish he would stop growing....

By the time we got home, cleaned everything up and re-stocked the trailer, I had decided that I had enough camping for awhile. But, now I have changed my mind... I am ready to go again. I actually think we might go this weekend. Anybody want to go???

the one about our jazz trip

We came to SLC today for our Annual Galley family Jazz extravaganza. Brett and Quayd are at the pool right now and I am sitting in the hotel room listening to my iPod (LOVE IT!!!) and doing a little blogging. Tomorrow we are going to the Apple Store so I can get a case and some screen protectors for my precious iPod. I am so worried about it getting scratched that I am a little scared to use it. I have some amazing music on it and one of my most favorite movies in the whole world... Notting Hill. I also have a couple of games and a bunch of pictures. I so love it. Yes, Ramanda. I have really come a long way in the the world of iPod. I even downloaded my songs, movies and pictures... all by myself. I didn't even have to bug Shae.

Anyway, enough about my iPod, lets get back to our big adventure. Let me just say that my car is the suckiest thing EVER in the snow. We were worried to drive it to Salt Lake because it has been so stormy. We did ok all the way here, then we got to the I-80/I-15 interchange. Brett was driving and we hit a really slick spot when we were getting of on our exit. We started sliding all over the place and hit into a snow bank. It was like slow motion. Shae rode out with us and she and Quayd were in the back. We hit on the passenger side, front corner, right where I was. That was cool because I would rather me get hurt than anyone else, but we were almost to a stop by the time we hit, so nobody got hurt. It was so weird though. We still hit pretty hard though and we were just sick to think about what damage it did to our car. We were able to drive away and when we got to our Hotel we checked it out and we can't find any damage. I am so thrilled, but surprised. It was pretty crazy. It all happened so fast and we immedietly got back on the road, so I didn't get a picture. Dang.

We made it to the hotel, then rode with the Galley's to dinner. We went to this cool Italian place called Buca di Beppe. It was so delicious. It was family style dining so were just ordered big plates and we all shared. YUMMY!!!
Ahhhh, look at Marcie's big cute belly. SURPRISE!! ;)

This is a picture of Tara and Shae's boyfriend.

From dinner, we went to our game. It was a good game. The Jazz won. Nothing too exciting except that Brynn fell down and landed on some people. That was prettycrazy. She is fine. A little embarassed and sore.
Drake and Quayd were LOVING the game. They were so cute watching it.
Then Beau'D wanted to get in on the action. He just wants to be one of the big boys. We did have another crazy thing happen at the game.... Brett and I walked down to get a drink. Quayd didn't want to go, he had just been for a snowcone with Gleneita. He was sitting right in front of her, just watching the game. Brett and I had been gone for a few minutes and Gleneita said he just dissappeared. By the time she realized what was happening, he was clear down the bleachers. Cory and Talia ran after him. In the meantime, Brett and I had got our drinks and were heading back up to our seats. Gleneita asked if we had seen Quayd, Cory or Talia. She told us what happened and Brett took off to look for him. I just stood there. I didn't know if I should go look for him or what. Gleneita told me in detail want happened and we figured it out. He had his snowcone in his hand when he left. He needed more flavor on it. I guess you can pick your own flavor and squirt it on your snowcone. I sent Brett a text message telling him to head for the snowcone stand. Pretty quick, good old Quayd was headed back up the stairs. Alone. I sent text messages to Cory, T and Brett telling them he was back. When Quayd got back up to his seat I was like, "Quayd!! Where did you go?" So casually, in total Quayd fashion, he says, "I just had to go get more stuff on my snowcone." I said, "Buddy! You can't just run off like that. What if you got lost?" Again, in pure Quayd style, "I knew where I was going. Just to the snowcone place then back to 'MM'(that was our section). I wasn't going to get lost." Then I said, "Well, you still can't take off like that. We were so scared and someone could have taken you." He just rolled his eyes at me and promised not to do it again. We were all about to have a heart atack. Little stinker.

After the game, walking back to the car, Quayd and Amelia found this snow cave on the sidewalk. They decided a hobo must have made it. They are obsessed with hobos.

So far, our trip has been super fun. We still have 2 days left, so we will see what other fun and excitement we can stir up with the Galleys. :)

FAST FORWARD....
Now it is Saturday. I didn't post yet because I was having trouble loading the pictures. Now it seems to be cooperating a little more, so we are gonna try again. Today was just a laid back day of shopping and fun. I made it to the Apple Store so now I feel like I can protect my new precious baby. It's all hooked up with a clear acrylic case and a clear sheet for the screen. I feel so much better now. That was the only thing I cared about doing while we were in SLC. The only thing Brett cared about was getting a new tattoo. He got that today. I will have to post pictures later. We haven't taken any yet. It is pretty cool though. The only things Quayd cared about was swimming in the hotel pool and going to Toys-R-Us for some PlayMobil toys. We did those things today too. So mission(s) accomplished. Tomorrow we are going to head home. Yuck. Back to our Christmas mess. I wish I could go hame and magically have my tree in its box, toys put away, laundry done and everything put back together. Oh well. It is so fun to be able to get away for a few days. It was a well-needed break after a hectic holiday season.