Craig and Debbie Swensen Family Reunion: Part 2

On Wednesday, July 4th, Brian and I took the kids and our nephews, Nathan and Danny, to our ward's 4th of July breakfast. We spent the rest of the morning packing clothes, gear and food for our trip to Tamarack. In the afternoon, we made the drive up to the mountains and spent the rest of the week hanging out and relaxing.

Here are my nephews and Sydney enjoying the pancakes and made-to-order omelets they served for breakfast.

Cute little Ruby Lyn with her daddy after we had arrived at Tamarack.

We wanted to get a picture of the grandkids in their coordinating outfits and Angie had to hang out for a bit so Lanie would stay happy. I think it's a cute picture!

The cousins in a line with their patriotic clothing.

The little boys and their matching muscle tees.

The big girls and their matching outfits.

Our attempt at a family picture.

Grandma and Grandpa Swensen and their 10 grandchildren.

In the evening, some of the group drove to McCall to watch the fireworks on the waterfront.

I'm sure Wes is pondering the meaning of the holiday and the freedom he enjoys. :)

Cutie girl and her daddy!

On Thursday, the kids enjoyed breakfast in the great outdoors (this is my idea of camping!).

The babies - Ruby and Lanie - enjoyed their breakfast indoors.

Later that morning, we took the kids swimming.

The kids took a break to warm up a bit since it was a bit cooler in the mountains.

Sydney thought she was done swimming until she decided to try out Ruby's floatie.

Apparently Wes was freezing his buns off.

On Friday, we went down to McCall to play on the waterfront. Here are all the kids posing for a picture.

Lanie was the highlight of the beach time for the kids!

Wes was content to play in the sand and stay away from the water.

Sydney was a little more adventurous about getting in the water, but she was happy to play in the sand as well.

Uncle Eliot took the kids in turn to the deeper part of the water. Wes was the only one who was happy to pass up the opportunity.

On Saturday, we cleared out and drove home. In the evening, we celebrated Danny's 12th birthday and then went to a splash park to let the kids play.

My cute Mom and Dad splashed around a bit, too!

One more attempt at getting a cousins picture before everyone went their separate ways!

Craig and Debbie Swensen Family Reunion: Part I

During the week of the 4th of July, we enjoyed some Swensen Family time here in Boise for the first half of the week and then in Tamarack/McCall during the 2nd half of the week. Here's part one of the week...

On Sunday, July 1st we got together with my sister Jennie's family to make pizzas for dinner. My other sister and my parents hadn't arrived yet.

Sydney was working diligently on her pizza.

The boys took a break from playing to make their pizzas, too.

After dinner, we had a mini dance party.

Look at their moves!

That evening, we celebrated Uncle Mike's 37th birthday!

On Monday, after a day of work for the men, we all went to a park in Boise and had a picnic dinner. My sister Angie and her family had arrived by then, but still no Mom and Dad Swensen.

The kids attempted making a pyramid.

However, I think they had the most fun breaking the pyramid apart.

Brian was in charge of the Family Home Evening lesson for the night.

Everyone got to take a turn to stand on the picnic table and then answer a trivia question about the Book of Mormon.

If anyone got an answer wrong, the kids got to shoot them with water guns. Needless to say, the lesson was a huge hit with the kids!

On Tuesday, we had another impromptu dance party in the living room.

After a day of playing, we all enjoyed S'mores.

Aunt Jennie painted the little girls' fingernails in preparation for the 4th.

Sydney's well-practiced in getting nails and toes painted.

The girls with their patriotic nails all ready to celebrate the 4th of July!