July 4th weekend with the Beachy's

My family takes turns hosting the whole gang every 18 months. This year it was my sisters turn and we had a wonderful time. I have a boatload of pictures and most are pretty self explanatory so I'm not going to write a book :) . Brian and Michelle have made a pretty little pond and picnic area on their property and we spent a lot of time there. He even made a zip line over the pond so that and the canoe got used a lot!

Mom with the 2 youngest, Ethan and Alex. Ethan is none to sure about Alex.

Grilling chicken. It was delicious!

Most of my zip line pictures are blurry :(

Logan and Makayla roasting marshmallows.

We made this for Michael since it was close to his birthday.

3 of the 5 grandsons.

Eldon made pancakes over the fire Saturday morning. So good!

It decided to be rainy a few times so we crowded under a tarp.

Love how you can see the rain rolling in.

More cuddle time and avoiding the rain :)

When fishing, be sure not to cast over the zip line. That would be dumb.

Wet sand makes the perfect place to practice flips.

Michael and Nakita making a town.

Saturday night we went to pizza hut.

They surprised me and had cake and 30 presents for me!

My presents......see, they know how practical I am! Love every one of these things!

It sure was nice to have dirt bikes and 4-wheelers to run back and forth with from the pond!

Sunday evening Michelle had invited anyone who knew our family to the park. Everyone brought finger foods and we had a fantastic time seeing people that we hadn't in years!

Makayla with Mrs. Cunningham, a lady I worked for one summer when I ran her produce store.

Me with 2 of my friends, Emily and Stacy. Remembering the good ole' days :).

There was a lot of people there! And the food! It was all so good!

Chet, dad, and Phil. Anyone who knows these guys knows that trouble is just around the corner!

Monday we enjoyed a Fourth of July parade then wandered our way around the mountains and ended up in Ouray to watch the fireworks. 

Lots of cool cars in the parade!

I  liked the loud ones :)

Antique firetruck.

They misted the crowd with water and it felt so good!

Patriotic horse.

Black Canyon was our next stop!

It's as majestic as I remember it when I was little.

The lovely young ladies of the family. 

Painted wall.

Our family. We really were happy, it was just bright and hot. And who wants to stand by mom and dad when you could be with your cousins?

Marrow Point Dam was another stop. Love the way these rivers meet.

Lunch time!

Katelyn and Ethan at the top of Owl Creek Pass.

That sky! And mountains! It's so gorgeous it makes my heart hurt.

Bear Creek Falls, partway up Red Mountain Pass.

Another waterfall near Bear Creek Falls. It was so cold and windy here!

We did the short hike to Cascade Falls again.

My men. 

Feeding the fish at the Ouray Hot Springs.

Evan and Kaylene doing.....something :)

Eating again. What else would we do while waiting for dark?

Emily with Michelle and Brian.

 Makayla with Grace and Eugene

And Michael with Kaylene and Evan. Amused me how they all wormed their way next to a couple :)

Tuesday we spent the day at Evan and Kaylene's. They recently bought a house that needed a lot of clean up and it was SO fun to see the difference it made with so many people working.

Ethan and Alex trying to stay cool.

Alex and Kaylene

Some of the moms and little girls picked cherries in the morning while Eldon and I ran to town for more food. Tuesday was an extra day that had not been planned but we're so glad it worked out for us all to stay!

They were so good!

Eldon and Ethan running the skid steer. Ethan kept trying to drive :)

This massive bush had to go.......

Dallas and Logan hauled trash and brush pretty much all day long with this thing!

"Just wading". They were soaked within 10 minutes :)

More junk headed to the pile.

The trash pile. It was.......big! Eugene said he didn't know green sagebrush burned so well :).

Some people played most of the day.

The kitchen crew. Genea and Katelyn are typical oldest girls and were more responsible then I expected. They washed piles of dishes and made us iced coffee.

The adorable crew!

Michelle made ice cream for supper. Michael attempted to help :)

Grace decorated a cake for dad and Michael with many onlookers.

Birthday boys

Mom and dad

By Wednesday Evan and Brian went back to work for most of the day and dads had to leave in the afternoon. We squashed in as much fun as we could though!

Water balloon fun!

They had a blast!

Eldon and Dallas fighting over the water hose!

One last meal together at the pond.

By the time it was over everyone was exhausted, I guess it's a sign of a good time! Family is such a blessing and I'm so thankful that we can enjoy being together. We have many memories to cherish and I'm already looking forward to Christmas 2017 at Eugene and Grace's!