Utah Trip, Part 1

We have been looking forward to our Utah trip all year!  It was a jammed packed 2 weeks between both families.  Tyler's family has many memories of having to get out of the car to get state line pictures.  We had to do it just once with ours! 

My dad celebrated his 70th birthday with all his family there.

We had a fun BBQ in the backyard, where all the family played. 

Climbed trees and played laser tag

Had a water fight

And roasted marshmallows for s'mores. 

Here are my parents with all of their grandchildren.  

(Minus Chase, who is the only adult grandchild and in the military)

We did the Kannaraville hike one afternoon.  

It was quite the adventure with so many people!

It was hot and dry at first.

But, we eventually walked through a small creek and through some beautiful slot canyons.

We climbed a ladder by a water fall.

The kids found a natural waterslide that they enjoyed.  

They also enjoyed drying off on the rock in the sun.

We also spent a day enjoying the four wheelers and motorcycles. 

Ellionna got a ride with Uncle Dan.

The kids all took their turns on the smaller toys, so they could ride independently.  

 

Hailey, our teenage niece, crashed her motorbike at one point.  Tyler decided it as best to call an ambulance, as she was having a lot of back pain.  It was more of precaution, but it sure did bring more excitement to our day than planned.  After several tests at the ER, they deemed her well enough and she was discharged.

While all that was happening, we had the kids stop riding.  Gavin persuaded the younger kids to push him around without the engine on.  He has a talent at getting what he wants. 

And that was the highlights of the 2015 Bales Family Reunion.
Utah Trip, Part 2 (Sherman Reunion) is next.

Cruise to Alaska

With Tyler being a physician, post-residency, he is now required to get "Continuing Medical Education" credits.  These credits can be found at conventions and conferences that are usually held in vacation areas.  We also found that credits are offered during cruises.  Well, we took advantage of the cruise first thing.  We decided to take a 7-day Alaskan cruise, since it ports out of Seattle, and we didn't have to pay for any airfare.  

We were excited to experience a cruise for the first time, and I hear Alaskan cruises are pretty nice, as their isn't as much as a party crowd.  Tyler attended lectures during 14 cruising hours, which really wasn't too bad.   We had plenty of time to see all the ports and have downtime on the ship.

Our first stop was in Juneau.  The main attraction to see was the Mendenhall Glacier.  We found a shuttle to take us out there and we spent a couple hours hiking and exploring on our own.  

 

Back to Ohio

Tyler has a friend, who was also a resident, that had a wedding planned in May.  Tyler definitely wanted to come back and support him.  We thought it was a great time to bring the whole family back and enjoy what was home for us for three years.  

We saw many of our old friends, and also ate at our favorite places.  

Gatti's Pizza was on the list!

Makenzie with her best of all friends, Meghan.  

They still Skype and send letters weekly.

We spent some time out at Shawnee Forrest and found all the bugs and critters that WA doesn't have.

 

So here is the happy bride and groom, Stacy and Jerod Walker.  They are a perfect match for each other.  They have quite the talent in designing and decorating for parties, so we knew that their wedding would just be spectacular with every little detail covered.   Their outdoor wedding had threatened rain all day, and it even downpoured for 30 minutes right before.  It was an adventure for us guests waiting with umbrellas.  Luckily it stopped and the wedding went on.  The reception was in a large white tent, which was great, because the rain started coming right after the ceremony!

Here is just a piece of the beauty: 

 

Their wedding cake was upside down, and resembled a chandelier!  

It was something I have never seen. 

 

We ended our trip with a visit to the Columbus zoo with our friends, the Lyons, who kindly opened their home to us during our stay.  We had a kid take the picture, so that is why Tyler's head is chopped off.

Out of the three years of living in Ohio, we never visited the zoo!  We always opted for the COSI museum instead.  It was a perfect day to go with overcast skies. 

I don't know when we will make it back to Ohio again.  I tell our dear friends there to give us a reason to come back and we will.  So I guess we will wait for that trip-worthy event once again!

Spring Fever

We enjoyed a beautiful Spring season here in Wenatchee.  The city has a big "Apple Blossom" festival the first weekend in May.  They had a fun run, a huge parade, a car show, food vendors, and other fun activities.  The two older kids were excited to participate in the fun run.

I had Tyler run with him, because it made me nervous to have him run alone. 

   Jordan wasn't too excited by the end.  

We enjoyed several hikes in the foothills.  

The wildflowers were in full bloom and the weather was perfect.  

 Tyler took the boys on the first campout of the season.  They went and helped cleanup a church-owned ranch. The boys enjoyed their hot chocolate in the morning.