September 2023 Part 2: St George Trip

Lea and Shayne went in on a place in St. George with three other couples, and we finally got to go stay with them over Labor Day Weekend. Unfortunately, we couldn't go until after football games on Saturday morning, so we missed a day of fun. That's okay; while we were watching games, the Utah Saville crew were doing this: 

I stayed up late the night before we left finishing my first homework assignment for my Arch 1010 studio class, so I took over the entire backseat and slept most of the way to St. George. I had a pretty good view as I drifted off. 

When we got there, the kids changed into swimming suits to take advantage of the HOA's manmade lagoon. It was so beautiful!

Gabe and Rachel loved swimming with Skyler, 

The next morning, we got ready for church. We swapped Michael for Skyler and drove to find the ward. We got there just in time for the sacrament because Michael was dragging his feet, so we couldn't all sit together. Brian and I had Rachel, Skyler, and Gabe. Skyler looks like he could easily be their sibling, and they weren't too silly during the meeting. I think as soon as the finished administering the sacrament, all three kids headed out into the hall to get a drink, and I was a little bit nervous because sometimes, all bets are off when they're together, but they all came back without causing a ruckus. It was fast and testimony meeting, and all the testimonies were really good. I was especially impressed with this tiny little girl who walked boldly up to the podium to testify. Most of the people wouldn't have even been able to see her, even with the little stool aiding her. It was precious. 

After sacrament meeting, we drove over to see the new temple under construction in St. George. While we were there, a couple from Amsterdam pulled up to where we were taking pictures and asked about the temple. We were able to tell them about temples and their significance to us. It was pretty cool, and they were so nice. 

We went back to Lea and Shayne's condo, changed, ate lunch, and then headed to Snow Canyon to do a little hiking. 

We were on the hunt to find some lava tubes, and we found a couple. Here's the first one. I didn't go down inside, but Brian and the kids did. 

After everyone was finished exploring the first lava tube, we found another one, a bigger one. 

It was a little tricky getting down in there, and this time I gave it a go. 

I love caves, and it was much cooler inside than in the hot dessert sun!

Once we were all out, Skyler, Gabe, and Shayne decided to see how quickly they could get to the top of this small mountain/rocky hill that was nearby. I made Brian go with them. I regretted that he was carrying my mini backpack with my water and bug bite cream, but I hindsight is always 20/20, right? 

The view from the top: If you look hard, you can see us standing down there watching. 

Brian told me to head back to the car, but I got bit by something, and my leg was incredibly itchy, not to mention that I was pretty thirsty, so we very slowly made our way back to the car. We passed this mud puddle, and I thought it could make an interesting picture, so I got Rachel to pose next to it so I could get my shot. She thought it was a weird ask since mud puddles are pretty ugly, but she kindly went along with it. 

Gabe wouldn't pose next to it; he couldn't see my vision. 

Michael found a muddy creek to play in, and it took some coaxing to get him out. Looking back now, I can't really blame him; it was very hot and I do love playing in water myself. At the time, however...

I played Guitar Hero with Danny and Michael. I think I only lost them one round. Brian and the others played games downstairs. 

The next morning, we wanted to hit up the lagoon one more time before heading home, but we got there early. Rather than drag the paddle boats back to the house, we opted to wait. We played the name game to try to keep these guys from going too crazy. 

Finally, it was time to head into the water! 

This lagoon is amazing! They have the nicest sand and beach chairs and a few palm trees. It is so beautiful! 

The kids had fun on the floaty and paddle boards, and Brian and I enjoyed catching up with Lea. 

Brian and I took a turn on the paddle boards as well, but I didn't even attempt to stand up. 

All too soon, we had to head back to the house, shower, pack up, and head home. 

We took Skyler with us and somehow got pretty far ahead of Lea and Shayne. We joked back and forth about leaving him at a certain mile marker for them to grab him on their way through, but we settled on leaving him with Nana and Papa in Mapleton. We needed to drop off a laptop they'd accidentally left in the condo anyway. 

We had such a marvelous weekend! Thank you so much, Lea and Shayne, for inviting us to enjoy your little St. George oasis!