Park City, Utah!

My brother Scott and his wife, Cynthia, bought time shares a while ago which is great because we are lucky enough to have them visit Park City to use them.  We love it!  I'm grateful our family is tight enough to keep in touch and visit each other often.  Jim and his family have made a few trips up here as well and we always have fun when family visits.  This year, Scott and Cynthia got us a sweet deal on a timeshare attached to theirs for $169 for the week!  How can we say no to that?!  We couldn't!  We had a blast.

One night, Mom came up to watch the kids so Sarah and I, along with Scott and Cynthia, could have a night out.  We went to a sports bar within the resort and had a good time without screaming kids.  Thanks, Mom!

These kids loved the huge bathtub.  It was especially nice after a swim in the freezing cold!  BRRRRRRRRRR!

We went ice skating, but at $18 a person (plus $4 a kid's  helmet) we decided that only the oldest kids and one parent each would skate.  I wanted to skate badly, but with my arthritis, I know that there is a good chance I would be out of commission the following days as a result, so Sarah and Scott went skating while Cynthia and I watched the smaller kids and took pictures.  It was nice to see Scott helping Leah, but it was painful for me as well that I wasn't out there. 

Sarah loved helping Leah and Grace.  Both girls took to the ice within minutes and did very well.

Am I the most blessed man or what?!

Dax and Lucas were a handful as the day went on.  I can hardly blame them though.  It was not that exciting to watch your older sisters skate while you played in a puddle and sat on a chair. 

These two love each other.  I am so happy that Lucas came to the family shortly after Dax.  I always hated the fact that I was the oldest boy in my family and all of my cousins were younger than me.  It would have been nice to have somebody more my age around at family gatherings.

 

Leah did fantastic!  The greatest thing for me was to watch her fall, cry, dust herself off and get back out there.  So proud of her. 

Thanks, Uncle Scott for helping Leah skate!

Grace was so cute as her confidence grew.  Towards the end, she decided she was good enough to forego the railing and skate right through the center of the rink.  Momma', Papa, Uncle Marque and Auntie Sarah were proud of her.

We didn't get much snow, but that didn't stop the kids from enjoying what we did get!

Cynthia found these steps going up from Main Street and she had to climb them.  The kids had a blast.

We got a little concert of "Let It Go", courtesy of Grace and Jane while Dax danced on.

Gotta' take time to make a snow angel...

I have a lot of pictures of Scott's family, but limited them on this blog.  I know he gets a little protective of his family online.  I get it.  I hope it's okay that I added a few.  He can tell me if he wants them down.

These two were joined at the hip.  Dax calls Lucas, "Okus".

Sarah loves her nieces and had a fun time with our cute little Jane doing her nails.

Scott, Cynthia, Grace, Jane and Lucas

The kids loved going swimming and they absolutely love each other.  That being said, Leah is at an age where she appreciates a little bit of alone time...probably as a result of having a younger brother.  In an instant, she now had 4 younger kids around her.  She loves her cousins and I think she enjoys being the slightly older cousin, but she also appreciates her space, so once she locked herself in the bathroom so she could play alone.  It was heartbreaking for Grace and I can understand why.  She took it personal, but I also understand Leah's point of view.  Luckily, the alone times were not required often and they got along well.

Cynthia and Sarah shopped online NON-STOP the entire trip.  Scott and I both made fun of them, but here Scott got a pic of me on my laptop at the same time.  If I was on my laptop, I was likely working.  We've become such an electronic people and it is not a good thing.

Every night was a challenge to get the kids to unwind.  We usually accomplished this with pajamas and a movie in bed.

The kids made art and played games when trapped inside. 

That's my Lucas!  He loves his Uncle Marque!

As is usually the case when we get together with my family, there was way more food than we are used to.

 

We had a blast!  We have made this trip with Scott's family twice now and look forward to others.  I am blessed with great brothers, sisters-in-law and an amazing family.  Thanks Mom and Dad for that!