Ron and Steph's visit to Fruita!

My Brother Ron!

Abby getting a little frustrated on the hills

Stephanie biking down Kessel

Ron getting ready for a jump on Rustlers

Rock ON!

Steph, me and Ron at the top part of Rustler's Loop

Ron, Gary and Steph

It has been so nice to catch up and spend time with my brother and his family. They have lived in Maryland (right by Washington DC) for the past 3 years and we have only seen them a couple times. They are going to be moving to Germany so they planned a well deserved trip out to Utah and here to visit with friends and family. They have 2 girls and a boy, just like us. Our kids got along wonderfully during their visit and it was so fun to see them have fun together.

They arrived on Thursday night and stayed through Monday. We spent our time biking, boating and eating! They were not used to the rocky terrain that Fruita biking is famous for but I think overall, they enjoyed it. Abby, their 9 year old, impressed me with her knowledge, piano playing and persistence. Gabby, their 7 year old, impressed me with her cute voice, bravery and willingness to do whatever was going on at the time. Aubree and her loved catching frogs and building a habitat for them (the big girls did this too!) Xander is their 3 year old and he is as crazy as Braden! They got along well for the most part and managed to get in some trouble, but not too much. He is obsessed with anything "Cars" and he loved playing outside. He was cute and fun and was a good playmate for Braden.

We took Ron and Steph to Texas Roadhouse on Friday night. It was so yummy. The wait staff treated us like royalty when they found out Ron and Steph were there for the first time. They gave us complimentary ribs and gave us a to-go box with rolls packed inside before we left. I think I will start saying it is my first time there every time!

The girls wanted to "camp out" in our backyard so we pitched a tent for them on the tramp. However, as we were getting ready to leave them by themselves, they started getting scared. Gary was a pushover and told them he would stay with them until they fell asleep, but then he would go inside. They agreed. Gary came in the house about 11 pm and the tent was all quiet. However, about 1am I heard talking and rustling. I went outside and all the girls were bringing their pillows in to sleep in the house. Maybe they will make it through the night next time!

I let the kids "paint" with colored shaving cream on the outside windows and they had a blast! Xander didn't particularly like getting his hands dirty but the rest of the kids had a good time. It is always nice to have a project or activity going I have found. Otherwise, it seems like everyone just says they're bored or they say they are hungry. I need to do a better job of giving them activity ideas so they can just have fun!

It was awesome to get to spend time with their family. On Monday, they headed out to the Baucom's cabin and even took Kylee and Aubree with them! We are going there on Thursday so we will get the girls then. It has been so quiet around here and I have been able to get some things done. I have also got to spend some one on one time with Braden and that has been great. I discovered he is really good at the game Memory and I am really bad. I must be getting old because my short term memory is horrible with that game! It is pretty pathetic that he is winning me, legitimately...and he is 4. Maybe I need to start taking ginkoba or whatever that stuff is that is supposed to help your memory.