4th of July in Kanab!

Just a warning...this is going to be a VERY long post with LOTS of pictures. We have been SO busy since Memorial Day Weekend. We have been out of town every weekend for the last five weeks and I'm finally excited to enjoy this weekend at home (although my mom and brother are coming to town tomorrow, so it won't be totally relaxing).

To start off, on Sunday, June 19th, we went into Idaho Falls to see my brother Tim, give his mission report in Sacrament. My brother Bobby, was also in town to bless his baby girl that Sunday.


Here are the kids in their cute, church attire.

The following weekend was my birthday, so we decided to make another trip up to Idaho Falls to celebrate with our families. My mom had also scheduled family pictures that day, so it was definitely a busy day. Anyways, I had a great birthday and it was so fun to see the kids play with their cousins that they rarely see. My brother Bobby is going to be moving to Germany in the fall for three years, so we definitely wanted to take advantage of every moment we were able to spend with them.


Here are the kids with Camila and Cayley.

Last Friday, after Jarom got off of work, we headed to Provo to get a good head start on our long drive to Kanab for the Johnson Family Reunion. Since Lehi is on the way to Provo, I couldn't resist stopping by this house...do you recognize it?



This is the famous Brown house that is featured on "Sister Wives." I know that they are no longer living there, but it was still fun to see in person.

When we got to the hotel, the kids quickly stripped down and got their swimming suits on. They had a blast swimming even though the water was freezing. When we got back to our room, I quickly got the kids some rootbeer as they were claiming that they were SO thirsty. Well, Braylon chugged his down in a matter of seconds and then was wanting more. I gave him a little more and then he proceeded to chug that down. Well, after drinking about a half a can of pop, he was complaining that his tummy hurt. I told him that he probably just needed to burp and I had him sit down by me on the bed. About two seconds later, he very loudly belched and vomited all over himself and the bed. It was a disaster! Needless to say, no one slept on that bed that night...actually, I didn't sleep at all that night as Sadie woke up at 1:00 am and didn't ever fall back to sleep. It was a great start to the trip!


So, after being awake the whole night, Jarom and I decided that we should just get the kids up and start driving to Kanab. After making really good time, we decided to stop at the Moqui Caves which are caves that hold dinosaur tracks and other random findings. It probably wasn't worth the money, but it was nice to get the kids out of the car for a while.

Dillon comparing his hand to a dinosaur's print.

I really don't know what this is, but we thought that it was a good background for a picture.

The whole fam in front of the cave.

When we finally got to Kanab, we quickly noticed the 100 degree temperature and thought that it would be a smart idea to have the kids cool off in these water fountain/spout things.

Sadie was more content to watch and wander around the park.

The boys, on the other hand, had a ball running around and getting soaked.

That Saturday night, we went to Jarom's Great Aunt Zelma's house to have a little get-together and a light dinner. It was fun meeting some of Jarom's Grandpa's siblings and seeing the town that he grew up in.

Jarom's Grandpa, Thales, with five of his ten siblings. Let's see if I can remember... Kent, Mary, Laura, Arden, Thales, and Zelma.

The next day, we decided that it would be fun to go to Colorado City, AZ to see if we could come across any of Jarom's distant polygamous relatives.

Jarom's Great Great Uncle, Leroy Johnson, was the leader of the FLDS church for many years until he died in the 1980s. He had many wives and many children. Well, while we were down there, Jarom and his dad were able to meet up with one of Leroy's children, Orval Johnson. Orval also has many wives and many children.

Todd, Orval Johnson, Jarom's Great Uncle Arden Johnson, and Jarom.

After seeing the rundown, desolate town, we headed up to their cemetery to see if we could find any relatives.

We found Leroy Johnson's grave along with a few of his wives. Overall, it was pretty interesting seeing the FLDS church's way of life. They definitely have strong opinions and beliefs that are very apparent throughout the town.

The next day was the 4th of July! Every year, I get so excited to dress my kids in the cutest, patriotic attire.

Sadie's cute outfit.

All the kiddos.

I even decided to paint mine and Sadie's fingernails and toenails patriotically.

Our little family ready to celebrate our country's independence.

Before Kanab's parade, we stopped at a little souvenir shop called, Denny's Wigwam.

The kids including cousins, Stockton and Easton, sitting on the famous Denny's Wigwam Chair.

Another cool gadget at Denny's Wigwam.

After wasting some time looking at the junk at Denny's, we headed to the parade.

Dillon and Braylon loved hanging out in the street with Stockton and Easton throughout the parade. The older boys were so nice as they continuously helped Dillon and Braylon get lots of candy and beads. Dillon and Braylon had a blast with them.

After the parade, I decided that I just had to see these sand caves that Jarom's family constantly talked about. They kept mentioning that they wanted to try and find Jarom's sister, Jamie's retainer from when she had lost it in there years ago. So, we decided to go and I'm definitely so happy that we did. They were amazing! The kids loved chipping away at the walls trying to find the many different colors of sand.

Everybody in the sand cave.

All the kids on one of the ledges in the cave.

After the sandcaves, it was time to head down to the fireworks.

Dillon, anxiously awaiting the big firework show.

Braylon, trying to find something to do to pass the four hour wait time.

Sadie, eating her 20th piece of licorice to pass the time. (She's just like her mommy)

The firework show was surprisingly decent for a little town. It was definitely no Idaho Falls show, but it held its own.

The next morning, we got up early and headed back home. We stopped at a place called, Burger Bar, in Roy, Utah to eat lunch. Jarom wanted to stop there as it was featured on one of his favorite shows, "Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives." It was good, but we all agreed that it was nothing spectacular. Anyways, to sum it all up, we had an awesome trip with so many incredible people. It was so nice to see the little town where Jarom's Grandpa grew up and to finally meet some of his siblings. We are definitely planning on attending the next Johnson Family Reunion.

Whew...sorry for the long post, but I think that I'm finally all caught up.