OOF

(which stands for "out of office")

I am taking the next week off for a much-needed little extended-family reunion. In case you need a visual, I will be tweeting/blogging from here:

Lake of Bears

The Pingree family used the 50th birthdays of my mom and my uncle Jim as an excuse to spend a weekend together at Bear Lake. We used to go to Bear Lake for family reunions a lot when I was younger, but it had been 8 years since our last trip and everyone was beyond excited to go back.

(I am awful at remembering to take pictures when I am on vacation, so most of these photos are stolen from my mom-- if you are friends with her on facebook, then you've probably seen them already. And if you AREN'T friends with her on fb....well, you should be. Add Karen HERE.)

Bear Lake by the Numbers

Travel
162: Miles from Provo to Logan
1: number of tickets I got out of on the way there
5: number of vehicle related incidents in the family before we even got to the lake

People
29.5: number of Pingrees attending (one is preggo)
7.5: number of Pingrees missing (another preggo)

10: number of Pingrees under the age of 18
95: percent of the time we all acted like we were under the age of 18

Entertainment
6: number of people on a water weenie

75: percent of people whose skim boarding skills provided endless amusement
0: number of devices Logan used besides his bare hands to catch a fish
11: how much this grossed me out on a scale of 1-10

Food
30: pounds of buffalo wings we consumed on the first night's dinner
2: number of raspberry shakes I had from Le Beaus over the weekend
2: number of Old Ephraim pizzas ordered
2: maximum number of slices of Old Ephraim able to be consumed in one sitting

This Is Why We'll ALWAYS Be Fat

Fourth of July= Freedom Festival in downtown Provo= street vendors, snowcones, and delicious fried goods. Presenting....the deep fried oreo:
There were four of us (minus one, because Poppy's mom wouldn't let her partake), four cookies, and Steven decided to help himself to the extra. So I marched him right to the 1776 Freedom Village and taught him a lesson.

Brother/Sister Bonding Week: Day One

I brought my brother back to Utah with me. Logan and I spent four days playing in the mountains, going to museums, going to Transformers 2, and eating burgers and hot dogs. It was so much fun to act like a 12 year old!

Our first meal in Provo was a J Dog. Logan thought that the special sauce was heaven sent, and I can't say that I disagree.

Then we went for a walk around BYU. We went to the art museum and then walked across campus to meet Steven at work, where he gave us a tour of the fish and turtle tanks downstairs. Ewwwww...
That evening we went to go watch cousin Jackson play a baseball game. After the game, I made the very bold decision to take Jackson, Relish, and Logan back to my place for a slumber party. We watched Bolt, had popcorn and rootbeer floats, and I am pretty sure that I went to bed before they did AND woke up after them.

Brother/Sister Bonding Week: Day Two

Tuesday was our outdoorsy day. We went up to Park City and met Natalie for lunch and a little alpine coaster action.



On our drive back to Provo, Logan and I stopped at Sundance to take a little ride on the chairlift and look at the mountains where his dad used to be a ski instructor. Logan was more interested in squirting all of the squirrels with his water bottle (OK, maybe I laughed at that too. More than I'd like to admit).


Our next stop in Provo Canyon was Bridal Veil Falls, where our Mom and Dad got engaged. Logan loved climbing on the rocks and I stayed at the bottom with my feet in the cold water, calculating how long it would take to drive to the hospital when he fell and cracked his head open.


After all of this we were both exhausted, so we went home, ordered a pizza, and fell asleep in front of the tv.

Brother/Sister Bonding Week: Day Three

I had to work on Wednesday, so Logan went to Seven Peaks with his cousins. That evening, we went to a bbq with family and then off to Transformers 2, but in between all of that we went to the Bean Museum.


Logan took the "Do Not Touch" signs very seriously, and was very concerned with my lack of respect for the museum. But then I took a silly picture with one of the signs and he felt peer pressured to do the same. That's what big sisters are for...




Our sister Sydney thinks ducks are disgusting, so Logan was super excited to see a whole wall of stuffed ducks. Because that's what little brothers are for...

Despite growing up in a conservative household, Logan has learned a thing or two from me. Like the fact that our carelessness has lead to global warming, which has led to the melting of the polar ice caps, which is causing the polar bears to drown. I like to think that I'm leaving my mark on future generations.

{Please NO comments on me wearing a baseball hat. Spending a week with a 12 year old boy apparently made me think it is ok to dress like one.}

Brother/Sister Bonding Week: Final Day

On our last day together, we went to lunch at Marley's, which has the best sliders and fries ever.








I also introduced Logan to one of Utah's favorite art forms: small scale replicas of famous stone structures.

There's mini-Stoneghenge in Orem...

...and mini-Rushmore in Liberty Land....

...and a mini-Sphinx with the face of Joseph Smith. Gilgal Garden, ladies and gents. Run, don't walk.

Then we went to Temple Square, mostly because I felt like my mother would kill me if the only LDS culture I exposed my impressionable young brother was the JS Sphinx.

(Logan loves geneology, and the doors to the Salt Lake Temple were designed by a Pingree relative-- an "I don't know how many greats" grandfather)

And then we were off to the airport. Such a fun weekend-- come back soon, Logan!!!