the cousins are back

we are always so excited to have liz and her kids visit each summer, my kids know that when they come it means time for some fun activities together. the church history museum was a great place to start, there was so much interesting stuff to see there, i wish we could've stayed longer, we especially loved all of the incredible art work. the kids loved the primary exhibit, there were some really great hands-on activities. my older boys liked the wall of prophets and were interested in seeing who they were named after, i don't know why i never thought to teach them about these great men before! the life size moroni was shockingly large, i guess i knew it was big, but wow, it was really fun to see it up close. i was so taken back by this gorgeous stain glass of the first vision taken from an old church building - why can't we have stuff like this in our church buildings now? so beautiful, i want to learn how to do this, who knows how who could teach me? we also spent some time at the olympic fountains at the gateway, a big favorite with the kids. ethan was so nervous about the water popping out of the ground, that after the first time it popped in his face, he would only enter the area if holding someone's hand.drew is such a good buddy to ethan, one time at the playground last year, a bully kid pushed ethan and really scared him. drew jumped right in and shoved the bully back! not that we promote violence, but it was pretty awesome! he is always trying to protect the littler guys.eventually, ethan was tired enough that only mom would do, so i spent some time out in the fountains myself trying to help ethan "catch" the water when it jumped.he thought it was pretty hysterical and gave me some of those great, unhibited belly laughs that bring me so much joy! i was so glad jenny had charge of the camera because she got some great shots - thanks jenny. we're grateful to be part of such a big family with so many cousins that everyone has someone to hang with.