Summer Storms

One thing I didn't realize I missed was Summer Storms.  I remember when I was little we would get our suit on and play in the rain at the first sound of thunder.  When I was very little I used to be afraid of the deafening thunder until my wise mother told me it was just the angels bowling.  When we heard an especially loud crack that ment someone got a strike. My mother took us bowling often when we were young and we had so much fun that I rationalized angels need to have fun too so it must be true.
When I got older we would watch the storms from the front porch or from ontop of the garage that had a nice little eave over it to protect us from the rain.  I am  always amazed at the pure power of thunder and lightning. There is something scary yet exciting, and beautiful about a summer storm.  the way the air smells when it rains. I run to open all my windows when it rains to let that wonderful smell come in my home.  Last night we had a huge storm roll in.  The power in the storm made the hairs on my arms stand up.   This video just doesn't do it justice but you can get the idea.

JUST LISTEN

Fireworks

For the 24th of July which is a bigger holiday than the 4th we had an  amazing firework show put on by my brother.  Now that aerials are legal in this fabulous state there were plenty of good fireworks to enjoy.  He used to do shows when we were younger that had a theme with action.  One time it was James Bond with a car chase, another time it was Indiana Jones complete with the arc of the covenant. One of my favorite was a civil war reenactment.

This year with the little time he had to prepare he did a great slide show that was projected onto a large white trailer and surround sound with inspirational music choreographed to the exciting lights. It had an emphasis on my Grandpa who was in World War II.  He was a photographer who would go behind enemy lines and take pictures of the layout of the camps, giving us the advantage. He also is the one who took the original photo of the soldiers raising the flag.   It was really great.  It felt like the fireworks were right on top of us they were all consuming.

We were all a little worried because it started raining at 7pm luckily the rain stopped just in time for the show. (sorry about the video quality it was shot with my phone)

Little Mermaid

while we were in St. george my sisters, mom, dad and I went to the little mermaid at Tuachaun theater.  Can I just say amazing.  The story was basically the little Mermaid with a twist but the great thing was the set.  Its background was BEAUTIFUL. The stage is outdoor. The red mountains towered over us it was really quite amazing.  It all started with a little waterfall coming off the mountain that grew as the music swelled.  The water overflowed out of its little pond/pool and spilled onto the stage, covering the entire stage in a sheet of water.  Quite a way to start a show.  One ingenious thing was how the actors "swam"  Every one was wearing Heelys so they just glided across the stage as graceful as if they were really in the water. Another awsome thing was the sheet of water they had falling down from the rafters and they projected pictures on the water.  For instance when Eric was tossed overboard and sinking in the ocean he was suspended in a harness and they projected fish on the wall of water which made him look like he was really sinking. Pretty Cool.

Family Reunion

 

So we had a family reunion in St. George. YAY !!!

I was so excited to see family and have fun. Just what I needed to help deal with the stress of trying to move.  Although. . .  It was schedule right in the middle of the move.  Not ideal for scheduling but whatever I was still good to go.  We all headed out to this big house with a pool right on a golf course that my  parents rented. It was a great space for our WHOLE crew. (I have 7 bros & sis who each have kids.)

We tried to have a theme for each day, tried being the operative word.  There was just so much to do, and so many cousins to play with, and swimming to do.  Some successful days were mermaid day, and pirate day. We had octopus and seaweed for lunch. (hotdogs and raman noodles colored green) A treasure hunt was  a must for pirate day which was done with flashlights to make it soooo much better. Out of 20 grandkids only 6 are girls. With all those boys flashlights are a MUST.
My favorite part was the lake.  We went to sand Hollow.  It was kind of like a mini Lake Powell which we used to go to every year.  As I was crusing on the wave runner with the wind in my hair the spray on my face and the beautiful red rocks and sand all around It felt like those Lake Powell days all over again. We all had a great time driving boats, jumping off rocks, playing volleyball, swimming, and basking in the sunshine

Grandpa also brought the 4-wheelers but it was too hot to ride.  Everyone had a great time and it didn't seem enough so we had to spend one more day at the lake.  This time Scott couldn't go with us :(  He had to fly back to California to work.

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