Wild Horses and Helicopters!

Dave's family is here for a wonderfully long visit.

They are adventurous, so we found a rappelling adventure.

We hiked to a waterfall.  Carolyn is an expert!

Dave rappelled right through the waterfall.

Jacob honed his skills.

Will came down quickly.  He's big now, and has muscles.

Matt was fun to watch -- this was thrilling!

Even Nate got a turn with the guide.

Melanie cooled off in the waterfall at the bottom.

The rest of us watched in the shade below and had a few snacks.

But there were other adventures -- like a trip to the desert for a geode hunt.  Wild horses live in our deserts, and they were exciting to see!

Melanie hunted for Apache Tears.

Will enjoyed polishing geodes with Papa Ben. 

Actually, everyone enjoyed working with the geodes! 

But we didn't have to leave our neighborhood to have fun.  Ben and Dave mastered their skills with Ben's new helicopter.

Of course, we all love to feed the koi.

The koi have found a new hiding place far upstream.

Ben loves to teach kids about the fish.

Julia knows exactly what to do.

You don't have to be young to love watching the fish.

Sometimes just being outside is a vacation.

Climbing on rocks can be a lot of fun.

Jumping off rocks can be exhilarating!

Watching kids is also part of a great vacation.

And finding willing subjects to photograph is also fun.

Matt is a great, helpful kid.

But sometimes his hair is like having an extra grandchild around.
It has a life of its own!

Being outside can be thought-provoking.

Nate was happy to pat some good thoughts into Cousin Chris's head.

The Provo River is just a block away.

Everyone needs to spend time near a peaceful river while on vacation.

Although we weren't always peaceful!

Dave's family hiked the Y last Friday.  They thought it was going to be another beautiful day.
It wasn't.
But they had fun, anyway.  Will's aforementioned muscles helped a lot, carrying Julia up most of the way and carrying Nate down.
Ben and I met them at the bottom with towels. 

I took Carolyn and the kids to the Eyring Science Center in my devious plot to get kids excited about coming to BYU.
Shooting Mom with the vortex cannon quickly became our favorite pastime.

Although shooting Jacob was also fun. 

Julia knows how to have a good time.

And part of the fun was learning new things.

No vacation is complete without pool time.  We are always glad when Cousin Chris helps us have fun!

Ben taught the kids how to take pictures underwater.  Melanie loved this!

And Jacob loved posing for her.

Even Julia got in the act.

But sometimes the best part of a vacation is taking a well-deserved rest.