Whirlwind Utah Trip

Last month my Grandma Clark passed away.  Within two hours of hearing the news, I had our tickets booked to hop on a plane at 6:00 am the next morning to go and be with family. It was such a whirlwind.  I have never packed for a trip in that short of a time before.  Everything went surprisingly very smoothly, especially since I had to wake the kids up at 4:30 am!

The kids were good about watching movies and eating Cheerios.

The coloring master created some masterpieces.

And Bennett took some naps.  Hallelujah!

 Since the trip was so last second, my mom, dad and I decided to keep it a secret from my siblings.  It was so much fun to surprise them as they each got home!

Addie was VERY insistent about pulling her own suitcase through the ENTIRE airport.

She actually did a great job and only ran over a few toes in the process.

Surprising Sadie!

Hiding from Sarah...

She was so happy about her surprise under that blanket!

Bennett LOVED spending time with his Grandpa, which he actually called Grandma almost the whole time.

We took lot's of walks with the dog.

I loved being able to be in town for Mother's Day!

There was only one sibling not there this year.  Not too bad.

The kids and I LOVED cuddling on Grandma's fancy new couch.

We took Addie to my Grandma Phillips' grave on Mother's Day.

It was good preparation for the funeral to come.

These red heads are two peas in a pod.

We also got to see our great Houston friends the Baxters!!!!!!!

Addie loved being reunited with her buddy, Jacob.

And I LOVED seeing Lisa!  Geez, I miss her.

Grandpa loved spoiling Addie with special treats.

On this day he brought home a Frosty for them to share.

Sadie introduced me to the most heavenly donuts on earth.

And we even got to spend a little time with the Ellsworths!

They made the drive down South a few times to see us.

Bennett was CRAZY about his uncle Nate. As always.

Then it was time for my Grandma's viewing.

It was such a nice night.

Even Bennett could feel the reverence in the room and was very mellow.

He stuck by Uncle Calvin's side the whole time (I think he was missing Daddy and wanted a man in his life).  He would point at the casket and quietly say, "Seeeping."  He thought she was just sleeping.

I had a lot of good conversations with Addie about the next life and resurrection.  A lot of deep doctrine was talked about.  It was sweet to see her soaking it all in.

The next day was the funeral.  It was such a beautiful funeral.  I was able to really soak it all in because Grandma and Grandpa Ellsworth babysat the kids while I went!

All 13 of my Dad's siblings said a little something.

The thing I will remember the most about my Grandma Clark is her strong testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ.  She was a missionary at all times.  And I know that's exactly what she's doing on the other side right now.

The night of the funeral Sadie's softball team had team night at my family's house.  I let my kids play with the softball girls until it was time for bed.  Bennett stared out the bathroom window at them playing ball in the yard.  He wanted to go and play with them so badly!

Addie loved playing with the neighbor girl.

Jane taught her to pick the flowers in the yard and drink the honeysuckle because it's "so nutritious!"

Calvin taught Bennett how to dog pile.

We got to watch one of Sadie's state playoff games.

My Grandpa Phillips and RaNae wanted to take Bennett shopping for his upcoming birthday.

I LOVE this picture!

We met up with Lisa at the park for one more outing!

The splash just happened to be on, but he didn't bring the kids' suits.  We told them they could go for it anyway.  They had so much fun and got soaked to the bone!  At one point I heard, "HELP MOMMY! HELP MOMMY!" I look over to see that Bennett's shorts (which were too big for him) got so water logged that they were around his ankles!

Bennett got his first motorcycle ride.

Lisa, in her usual fashion, offered to babysit my kids while I went to Sadie's choir concert.

She's so thoughtful!

The girls were in matching Cinderella jammies and I was trying to get a cute shot of it when Jacob did an awesome photobomb.

We also had a fun outing at the Provo Rec Center.

These two are such good buddies.

Addie surprised us all and jumped off the 5m cliff! Twice!

Then it was back to Kansas City for us.

We even got upgraded to first class!  The kids thoroughly enjoyed the Milano cookies and juice on tap. They milked that for all it was worth.

We had such a wonderful time being surrounded by family.  Family time is good for the soul.  It rejuvenated me so much.  I am so grateful that families are forever!