reunions, auctions, family, and fun

Our lives have been crazy for the last few weeks!! And that trend looks to continue for the next little bit. Between a trip to Utah and a trip to North Carolina, we made it to 12 states in less than a week. We are finally home now, only to be met with a big interview for Rachel, a big move into our new house later this week (pictures to come), and Brennan's classes starting next week. Jikes! I'm excited for when we can get into a normal life routine and maybe relax a little. I think I have been sleep-deprived for about a month now. But it has been well worth it. We have had a blast and are excited for what the future holds for us!

First up was the trip to Utah for the Cardon family reunion and to visit Brennan's side of the family. The reunion was a riot! My parents rented a big house by the Jordanelle, a lake near Park City. There was plenty of room for everyone and a great view from the back deck. Grandma did treasure hunts for the kids, we all took a little hike, there were bikes to ride, lots of games to play, and besides sacrament meeting we even had our own family church. It was pretty awesome.
The house we stayed in.
The view from a bike ride we took very close to where we were staying.
A beautiful sunset. They are impossible to truly capture. Cameras don't do it justice, especially not our low-end one. But trust me. It was beautiful.

These pictures are going to be all out of order. But on Sunday we played some Minute to Win It games. If you've never seen the TV show, basically you have a minute to complete random challenges and the more you complete, the more money you win. No money was involved here, just the pride of knowing you were the best. :) The following are pictures of the M&M challenge. We had to pick up 3 M&Ms (one at a time) with a straw in our mouth (no using hands) and balance them on other straws that were standing up in a wooden block.
Stacy was the first to give it a whirl.
Super pregnant Mara trying to do it. Probably a little hard to bend over with that big belly. ;) And for the record she got slobber everywhere and I had to go right after her. Nice. Thank you.
Brennan decided it was all about the stance, and wide stance was the way to go in his opinion.

Next up was the Marble Tape challenge. We put double sided type part way down the table and then had to roll marbles down the table and try to get them to stick to the tape. I might have actually gotten the most on this one. And I think I might have had the fastest time on the M&M challenge. Hmmmmm.....
And last but not least was the Cookie Challenge. We had to put a cookie on our forehead and then using our face muscles we had to try to move the cookie into our mouths. I did not hold the record on this one. Didn't even complete it in fact. It was probably the most entertaining to watch.
Check out that look on his face. He is pretty proud of himself.

Back to Saturday...some of the group ran Utah's toughest 10k that morning. Caleb, Nathan, Brennan, and Crystal were the lucky ones who got to get up early and practically kill themselves on the run. I think eventually they were all happy that they had done it.
The happy group.

Later that morning we took a hike down to the lake. The kids loved skipping rocks and dipping their feet in the water.
Even though we don't look incredibly thrilled in this picture, I'm pretty sure we can count this as one of our bonding moments. Actually we have to, because I didn't get any other pictures of the two of us. Ben was a good sport and got his feet in the water just because I asked. I'm probably just like his favorite sister-in-law or something.

After our hike we packed sack lunches and headed to the park.
Even the BIG kids had fun on the playground. haha. Actually this piece of playground equipment provided a lot of entertainment.

Not sure how well you can see their faces in this picture, but it was the best. Kids are so carefree. I loved watching their complete happiness on this little toy.

I got to ride a road bike for my first time. It was a little scary at first but once I got the hang of it it was a lot of fun. I just might have to buy myself a road bike eventually.

Stacy got a try one too. I think it might have been a little too big for her though. :)Rich decided to try out the padded bikers. Just had to grab a picture. Rich is the greatest.

Preview

We had our first ever family auction at this reunion. We all had to make something homemade to sell at the auction. Then we could earn fake money by eating all of our dinner or helping in the kitchen. We weren't sure how well it would work or how much the kids would really get it, but it ended up being a huge success. It was hilarious to watch the kids. They loved it! And Rich was a great auctioneer.
Everyone waiting to bid.

Gavin holding up his number to place a bid.

I learned out to crochet for the auction. Once I finally got the hang of it it was a lot of fun. But it took me awhile to really learn. I made three little stuffed animals to sell. A duck, a dog, and a bear. I only managed to get a picture of one of them.

There was a hot tub on the back deck of this house, so one night Brennan and I got in it with most of the kids. They are so easy to please. I mean there was hardly any room to move at all and it wasn't cold, so it wasn't like it felt real great, but they couldn't have been happier. It was great.

Preview

On Saturday afternoon we went to the Olympic Park in Park City. There was a ski jump event going on. Despite the incredible heat, it was a lot of fun to watch. They were jumping into a pool with skis on...I'd never seen anything like it.
Me and most of the kids watching the ski jumpers.

Some of the best things about the reunions are new babies. Somehow I didn't get any pictures with Marci and Caleb's new baby, Wyatt. He was very new, very tiny, and very cute. We also got plenty of baby time with Jaren. He's got quite a smile.
I think that about covers it for the family reunion. A nice short post, right? :) The bottom line is that our family is great, I love them all, our reunion was awesome and full of a lot of fun. Thank you mom and dad for the time, money, effort, and love you put into it!! We love you for planning these for us!

Up next: our trip to Lagoon. :)

Our Summer (a.k.a. The Longest Post EVER)

Wow..it's been awhile. We have had quite a summer. Right after my graduation from BYU we made the big move to Iowa. That was quite an adventure in and of itself. We bought an old truck to bring everything to Iowa with the intent of selling it after we got here. Another option presented itself and we ended up selling the truck about a week later for a small gain and used ABF to move our stuff. We still used the awesome truck (did I mention that no key was required to start it?) to take our stuff to Salt Lake City to load onto the semi. We lost one box on that relatively short drive and we couldn't go very fast at all. That's when we realized someone was surely looking out for us in providing another option. I can't even imagine how miserable it would have been to drive that truck through the mountains of Wyoming!! Luckily we didn't have to and we made it to Iowa (and so did all our stuff).

So we packed thinking it would just take a couple of weeks to find a place and move in and then we would have access to everything. Well it didn't quite work out that way...We started talking to my sister and her husband about the program they went through to get a house and thought it might be a good option for us. So we started the process of applying for that program. It is quite an application let me tell you! Then we had to wait to get word that we were approved. And then we got to start looking for a house!! But I found that when I know I'm not just renting, but actually BUYING, that that house is going to be MINE, including any problems it has, that I'm a lot more picky!!! So the house shopping took awhile too. Needless to say I think we have probably overstayed our welcome here at my parents' house (they are far too good to us). And we have started to need things we packed away in their garage knowing we could live without them for a couple of weeks, not a couple of months. But last week we finalized negotiations on a house and the closing date is August 18th. We are so excited!!

But now to our summer. A picture tells a thousand words, right?? So I'll tell you about our summer so far with pictures (and a few words).

First we got to go to the circus!! Yep, the circus came to town. And look at that amazing acrobat.
My sister Mara came to visit during a break she had from PA school. It was so fun to spend time with her. She is pregnant with a little girl, due in September so we got to throw her a baby shower. It was so fun to plan it with my mom! Check out that poopy diaper.
And there's the woman of the hour herself. Haha, great picture...please don't kill me Mara. :)
Macy, the little acrobat from the circus, had a birthday! I actually think that might have come before the baby shower...who knows. I can't believe Macy is 6 though. And I can't believe she convinced me to dress up like that for her carnival party.
Brennan and I got to go to Adventureland with my family in June. It was his first time and I think he had fun. I was just so sad that the Falling Star (or is it Shooting Star? I can NEVER remember) wasn't working that day.
Macy, Rich, and Brennan on the Silly Silo. Makes me sick just watching it. And it kind of looks like they all wet their pants...I guess it was a little scary for them.

Caden and Brennan on the Ferris Wheel. It was beautiful night.
Brennan and I celebrated our anniversary! I cannot believe it's already been a year. It sure has been a good one. I'm one lucky girl. Unfortunately, all our ambitions for a weekend getaway or something didn't come to fruition. We are road tripping to North Carolina next month for my friend's wedding, I guess that will have to do. We did get to celebrate though with a picnic in the park and playing some catch to break-in Brennan's new glove.
See how lucky I am? What a gem! How can I help but be in love? :)
My nephew, Caden, has had several video game sleepovers with Brennan, where they get to stay up as late as they want playing the Wii.
I got to go to a Justin Bieber concert with Kelbie. Her parents got her tickets for her 12th birthday. I can't believe I have a 12 year old niece!!! There she is with Justin himself.
I must say I think I might have contracted a slight case of Bieber Fever at this concert. :) It was a blast. Thanks for inviting me Kelbie!
On the 4th of July it poured....so we played in the rain. And by 'we' I mean Brennan and the kids. It was fun to watch though. haha.
I got to star in a parade this summer. Haha. My hometown has a little carnival/fair every summer which includes a parade. Somehow (still not sure how it happened) I got roped into being an old fashioned nurse (to go along with the Traveling Through Time theme of the parade) on the float for the doctors office where my mom works. It was hot. And slightly embarrassing. But still fun.
We got to go and watch trains on the train bridge in town. It's the craziest feeling ever when the trains go right underneath you. Brennan had been promising to take the kids and show them how the train will smash coins. He did not disappoint. There is a very funny story to go along with all of this, but I will have to do a post about it another day.
And finally, we participated in the Amazing Race. That's right folks. Brennan and I made it on the Amazing Race. The one that never leaves the towns of Mount Vernon and Lisbon. Kelbie has done the Amazing Race on bikes for five birthdays now and we got to be team leaders again. Brennan's team got second and mine got second to last. Not a great showing by the Hardings, but we had a blast!
Here are both of our teams at the stop where we had to eat TONS of cookies in order to find the quarters hidden in them. Thanks Crystal!! Sheesh, how cruel. :)
There's our summer in a nutshell. A very large nutshell. It really has been a fun couple of months. And it looks like it will only continue. We head for Utah today for a family reunion and lots of fun. Then North Carolina after that. And then our new house!