Bear Lake Trip 2015

Our trip to Bear Lake was memorable as always and thankfully there were no broken bones involved this year! Emri stayed far from the jumping pillow! :) The weather was really hit and miss most of our stay.... during the rain and chilly times we hung out in our camp site at the KOA. We borrowed Brett's parent's truck/camper trailer this year so that was nice to have our own little spot in the middle of everyone instead of being in a little cabin separate from the rest of the group.

 Kolby and Blais playing washers

 We rented these fun (and really strenuous) double bikes to cruise around camp in! The kids thought it was great... they weren't the ones with JELL-O legs after the ride was over though! 

 When the sun would peek out we'd head for the beach! We rented a few paddle boards from Weber State Outdoor Club this time and they were so fun...and way cheaper than renting them for a few hours up at the lake. The kids had a blast going for rides non-stop! 

 Ayden, Kassie and Keeley playing in the sand

 What started as badminton turned into a game of volleyball---with a really low net! We might not have the greatest volleyball skills, but we are quite entertaining to watch! The Bowman fam joined us again on this trip! 

 Grandma Max and Emri

 Little Ikey boy was just about the cutest thing on the lake! He loved sitting on the paddle boards

 Daddy and Ike flying a kite

 Marshmallows by the fire

 These bikes are so fun to rent! I don't dare get on them with my brothers though... Kassie is brave! They treat them more like bumper cars than bicylces! WATCH OUT!

 Because sometimes you just have to have sand on every part of your body...

 Bathing beauties...Blais and Jet

 I tried to paddle Brody and I without dumping us both in... it didn't last very long! 

 I think these kids really like their uncles :)

 One day it was rainy and too cold to do much... so we decided to do the tour at the Minnetonka Cave. It was even colder clear down there under ground, but lots of cool formations to see so it was worth it! 

 After the cave we had our picnic near the beach... under a pavilion because there was still a little rain. We decided to wait it out a bit longer because there were blue skies in the West. It certainly wasn't the warmest day on the beach, but we still got some play time in! 

I'm grateful for my immediate family and cousins that we are so close to! I always look forward to this trip each year! 

Daughters of Faith Camp

This year being the laurel advisor in church,  I got to join the laurels in our stake at a special camp called Daughters of Faith that is put on by the Stake YW Presidency. It is more spiritual based than just regular girls camp. It was at Lake Lyman in the Uintahs at our stake property. On the drive up we had a small road block in Wyoming. :)

Setting up our bedding in the lodge... this is the beautiful view we would wake up to!

It was SOO SOO cold out-- I realize we were in the mountains but it was July!! The weather made us change up a few of the plans that were scheduled... we had an impromptu karaoke/dance night! The girls were all so cute! 

 One night we talked all about "hands" and how we can serve... we got to give eachother manicures, then had a really spiritual evening on what the Savior did in his lifetime with His Hands.

 The first morning we were there I woke up a bit early and went for a jog. It was absolutely amazing... the scenery everywhere was so serene. It was the perfect way to start the day, being out and enjoying just a small amount of Heavenly Father's creations. 

 The girls all headed out for some scripture study in nature and self-reflection.

 The thing I really loved about this camp was that the girls are all assigned bunk-mates from different wards, so there are no little groupies or clicks... everyone just gets along! I loved being there with some of the girls I was a leader over from our old ward that we just moved from. 

 My other favorite part was spending a few days with friends... I'm lucky I get to serve with ladies that I also like to hang out with on the weekends! 

We had a great workshop on being positive and seeing the good in our situations. We all got to write on this stool that we built, why our life is good! 

 Haley (one of my yw) and Becky (in the stake YW presidency)... 2 of the funnest people to be around! 

Our theme for the camp was "I WILL" and by the end of the 3 days we were each supposed to come up with our own "I will....." statements. Mine was "I will not pass by an opportunity to serve others." Here are all the girls just before leaving camp. We watched a slide show of pics from the previous 2 days, then sang the camp theme song together. A very moving experience. 

 Me and Kate our ward YW president (to my right w/ hat on) with the girls from our ward.

There is an activity we do with the girls called "the burdens walk"... basically the girls write down a burden they are carrying on a rock. They take that, along with an empty gunny sack and start down a path. Along the way they are met by leaders, each either giving them scoops of dirt (burdens) into their sack or sharing testimony, scriptures, and spiritual thoughts. They cannot put their burdens down at all until the end. Towards the end there is a large hill to hike up. At that point they call out to their bishop (who is waiting for them) to help them carry their burden up the hill. At the top of the hill there is a large picture of the Savior, and they place their bag/burden at the Savior's feet. It is really a neat experiece. Then they take their rock that they wrote their burden on and throw it as far as they can into a field, and get rid of it. I loved seeing the girls get so emotional and seeing their testimonies of the Savior and His Atonement grow. As the leaders were walking the course ahead of time, we started noticing little HEART shapes in nature. It was really neat and we felt of Heavenly Father's love. We continued to find hearts throughout the rest of camp in random places. 

 Our amazing Stake YW Presidency...and me and Kate! 

 The end of camp... hug circle. :)

 It was a great couple of days--- very rejuvenating for the spirit! So thankful I was able to share it with such neat ladies and YW! 

 And of course, I made us hit up 7-11 on the way home. Because the date was 7-11 and hello... FREE SLURPEES!!