mommy daughter trip to utah, part 2

Here are a few more things that Everly and I filled our time with while we were in Utah:

 I spent a lot of time looking at the mountains; I miss them every day!

 Everly got to play with her uncles, and her cousin Jack.  Well, she tried to play with Jack.  Most of the time, Jack was terrified of her, and wanted nothing to do with her.  I told her it was okay to keep intimidating the boys!

 Grandpa liked to take the two little ones on walks down the street to check out the Christmas lights.  They both liked to touch all the lights they could.

 Everly had to show grandpa her little babies.  When grandpa is in the room, he is the most important one there, at least to Everly.  She adores him!

 Jack didn't want to be close to Everly, but he let me hold him long enough for a few pictures.  I'm sad we live so far away; I hardly ever get to show any of my nephews or my niece what an awesome aunt I am!

 We had to get in a few pictures from our visit wth my grandma!

 I was lucky enough to be in Utah on my birthday.  I don't remember the last time I got to celebrate my birthday with my parents or my brothers.  It was a great, special day.  My mom, Everly and I started the day by checking out the aquarium.  It was awesome!

 Don't worry, I found Dory!

 My mom made me this beautiful cake.

 We went out to dinner at Tucanos and ate our weight in delicious meat!  Yum!!

This sunset looked like the sky was on fire!  

A few of us went to see the light display at Thanksgiving point one evening.  It ended up being quite chilly out, but it was so beautiful, we almost didn't notice.  

Each area of the gardens were lit with a different theme.  There was music playing to match the light show.  Some of the lights "danced," there were areas with laser lights, and this flower garden actually smelled like real flowers!

Once Everly got over being frozen, she lit up and loved to watch all the lights.  She even got out of the stroller and danced along the path to the music several times.  It was so magical!

Everly and her uncle Andrew.  I have a picture of Andrew and either Everly or Krew in this exact same position from every time we've visited Utah in the last 5 years.  Had to keep the tradition alive. 

On our way to the airport on our last day, my mom, Everly and I stopped at the children's museum for one last bit of fun together.  I so wished that I lived closer to my mom so that outings like this could be regular thing!

We were sad to say goodbye to Utah and my family, but we were excited to get back home to our fellas!

mommy daughter trip to utah, part 1

Here's a little more of our mommy/daughter trip to Utah when we went out there for my grandpa's funeral.  The hardest part about being in Utah for the week was missing our guys!  The night before we left, the boys all made sure to get a selfie with mom!

 Everly got her selfie with mom on the plane.  She has been on a couple of plane trips before, but it had been a while.  I kept telling her that we were going to go on an airplane and go high in the sky, to which she would always reply, "No!  Evie fall down!"  I have to admit that I was a little nervous boarding that flight, wondering if she knew something I didn't!

 We played at the airport in Minneapolis during our layover, and having a layover with a two-year old sounds scary, but she was awesome!

When we got to grandma's house, she wasted no time finding all the fun toys, and thought it was hilarious to be buried in lots of them!

saying good-bye to grandpa

On November 22nd, my Grandpa Joseph Adams passed away.  Everly and I were able to go to Utah the next week to attend his funeral and celebrate him and his life.

 The above pictures are some that I found of grandpa with my kids.  I love the first one of him laughing while holding Krew,  and he's holding baby Ky in the second picture.  The bottom two are from this past summer when we were in Utah.  We had a chance to visit with him for the last time.  He didn't know who we were, but he still wanted to give long, sweet hugs to all of my children.  These pictures will always be a treasure.

 Sorry for the poor quality, but this is a picture of a picture I found at my parents' house.  That's my grandpa and grandma on the right, and who is that adorable little girl?  Oh wait, that's me!  My dad is holding me, and my mom and older brother are below me.  Such a fun picture!

 While my parents and I were setting up the display about my grandpa for the funeral, I decided to try on my grandpa's fedora.

 The whole service was lovely.  It was neat to hear my dad talk about some of his memories of his dad, as well as talk about his character.  

 After the prayer was offered at the grave site, my grandma took the microphone and said just one thing.  She said, "As Joe used to say, 'Come again when you can't stay so long.'"  It was perfect, because I remember my grandpa saying that, a lot, and it was the perfect example of his sense of humor.

Everly playing with her uncles

My three brothers, myself and my mom (oh, and Everly and Jack too!).  My favorite thing about being there for the funeral was spending time with family.  I was able to see and visit with so many cousins that I hadn't seen for years.  What an incredible legacy my grandfather has!

We love you grandpa!  We will miss you, until we meet again!