Thursday, August 25, 2016

"Summer Loving Happened So Fast..." (Part 1 - The Smithtown Arizona Reunion)

",,,Summer Days Drifting Away"


I am terribly sorry for my lack of blogging in 2016. It's deplorable behavior on my part and hopefully this fall and in 2017 I will be much better. Apparently, Smithtown has been too busy enjoying life and feeling a bit swamped to dedicate the time necessary for blogging fun. So a little catch-up is definitely in order. Apologies in advance for the amount of pictures that will most assuredly be included in this post. 

Let's go back to the beginning of the summer. June to be exact and the Smith family reunion extravaganza held in the "mountains" of Arizona. I say "mountains" as I have lived in Utah for 15+ years and the mountains here are pretty spectacular. Arizona mountains are not nearly as impressive (no offense) and still pretty of course, just different. It was a pretty stress filled adventure getting to the reunion. 


Our sweet minivan Big Red decided it would be fun to overheat in the middle of the desert with no cell reception and nearly an hours drive in any direction to the nearest town. Luckily, it was only 100 degrees and we have been blessed with the easiest and happiest kid around. She didn't complain and laughed when the windows were down and the heat was blasting on us while trying to keep the car from overheating or when we were on the side of the road for almost an hour waiting for someone to stop and help us. We were very fortunate that several people finally stopped and gave us water for the engine and someone who knew cars informed us that our radiator was cracked and would need to be replaced asap. We were planning on staying in Sedona the night before the reunion and those plans had to change to staying in Page, Arizona and hoping our car could be fixed the next morning. We got a great hotel and Bailey had tons of fun at the pool and playing in the huge room. Our car was able to fixed quickly and we were on the road fairly quickly and off to the reunion we went. 




Quick Stop at the Page, AZ Airport - We were looking to rent a car, but nothing was open or available that day.  



 Our hotel room's fancy balcony! 





On the Road Again!

We were all in a big cabin and it was so much fun. There was a zipline for kids and adults who were braver than myself as well as fabulous daily and evening activities. Lots of yummy food was consumed and many games were played. Probably not surprising to anyone who knows me, my favorite night was the karaoke which then turned into a bit of a rave with glow sticks and glowing balloons. Bingo was also great thanks to Trevor's brother Todd who should probably leave his law career behind and become a professional bingo caller. Bailey had so much fun with her cousins and still talks about them daily and can hardly wait for Christmas to see them again.





































"Summer Loving Happened So Fast..." Part 2 - Coming Soon!