The Announcement

Perhaps I piqued your interest with my teaser at the end of my last post?  Perhaps you've already heard the news?  It is now time to share our exciting events as of late.  Elinor and Brandon Choi got married on April 16th.  It was a very simple affair that came with very little fanfare and VERY little time for preparation.  They live in a basement apartment in Vineyard and we are happy that they are happy together.  You probably have a lot of questions, but seeing as how this is their story (not mine), I'll let them share details in whatever way they want to.  We've been keeping this news on the down-low because Elinor still needed to give away the Miss Riverton crown-- emphasis on "Miss".

Thankfully we only had to wait about three weeks.  May 7th was the competition and Elinor co-hosted and performed her talent that helped her win one year ago.  

We were so, so, so happy to see Lily Snow-- who was Bethany's first attendant and is a very dear friend to Bethany -- win Miss Riverton 2022!

Sorry about the blurriness of this picture (I'll try to get the digital version of it).  I must be honest, in that, this is a chapter of life I am more than okay to see close.  Between Bethany and Elinor and COVID, we've done three years straight of Miss Riverton.  There have been some really fun moments and I am grateful for the relationships we've formed with city leaders and the pageant director.  We do love Riverton and are grateful for the experiences the girls have had serving the city.  That being said, I'd prefer Faith not run for Miss Riverton in a couple of years:)

Here's a picture of the program.

Easter Weekend 2022

In the famous words of Ferris Bueller, "Life moves pretty fast.  If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."

Fact.  

Stopping and looking around every once in a while could mean lots of things-- one of the ways I like to stop and look around is by writing this blog.  If I don't record life happenings, I very likely will miss them.  And I'll tell you what-- life has been moving very quickly as of late!

The day before Easter Abe took the kids over to the city park for a little city Easter celebration.  Not exactly the true meaning of Easter, but kind of fun.

Then we hiked Battle Creek Falls.  Faith's swim friend Anya joined us.  This was our first time doing this hike and it was great-- very accessible and not too challenging.  I just wished it was a little longer:)

Also, that same day, Faith had her club swim team's awards night.  She was honored for being part of the senior team that competed at state and she was awarded "Best Attitude".  I think the award was well placed.

Easter Sunday with the family-- or at least part of the family:) 

Sister Fox and Sister Hill in Fort Worth Texas.  They are well cared for by the members of their wards.  She is doing so well and it is a joy to pray for her each day and talk to her each week.  Her companion plays the piano beautifully and together they've loved sharing their testimonies through music.  This coming Friday evening they are putting on a "Night of Music" at their church building, in which they will perform a whole fireside of songs about the Savior.  I think they will Zoom it so hopefully, we'll be able to watch it too.  

Greta and her best friend Aly in their Easter dresses.

I like George's expression:)

The beloved foil-wrapped chocolate egg hunt.  It's so simple and quick, but such fun.

You never outgrow it:)

We got a few new games for Easter--Gnoming Around, The Bears and the Bees, and Nuts about Mutts.  George is cracking up in this picture because he had accidentally called his game Nuts about Butts.  As you can imagine we all had a pretty good laugh.  

We had my family over for dinner and an Easter egg hunt Sunday evening.

There was a round for the older kiddos too.

If there is a collecting game to be had, George will be a player!

Now, dear friends, I must tell you that there was WAY more happening this weekend than I am at liberty to write about here and now.  Fear not, I will share more later.  Do not be alarmed, everyone is healthy and happy-- just some unexpected changes that caught us by surprise:) Mostly, I want to share how grateful I am for Jesus Christ and what he did to redeem us from sin and death.  What he did to help us become more than what we currently are.  What he did to take away the sting of death and allow us to be together as families forever.  Because of him,  no pain is permanent. I am so thankful to him.

Cannon Cousins Sleepover

Friday night we hosted what was the first Cannon Cousins sleepover.  In addition to our children, we had ten more cousins sleeping at our house.  I had the idea that this would be a fun thing to do but decided that if I was mistaken, and in fact, it was NOT fun, there would never have to be another Cannon Cousin Sleepover.  It was a bit of trial run.

Thankfully, just as I hoped and expected, the kids were all wonderful.  They get along so well and are a joy to have around.

A little

A little dress-up is always fun.

We celebrated Rosalie's 9th birthday!

The cousins had a popcorn movie party watching Sing 2.

And then, miracle of miracles, THEY ALL SLEPT!  And they slept well.  And Abe and I slept!

We had a yummy pancake and bacon breakfast and everyone seemed in very good spirits.

The verdict is, I would happily host a 2nd Cannon Cousins sleepover!

Uncle Abe led the cousins in a game of Skull King. 

First Hikes of the Season

On Friday we joined Jesse and Amy's family who are in town for spring break, to hike up Rock Canyon in Provo.  I don't know why I've never done this hike before, but it was so pretty and accessible and I'd like to do it again sooner rather than later.

So good to get kids in the great outdoors!

I am not terribly adventurous or athletic, but I absolutely LOVE hiking with my family.  It is my favorite thing to do in nice weather.

Cannon and Jessica and only about three months apart in age.

We never quite get enough time with Jesse and Amy and their family.  We enjoy their family so much!

Ice cream at the BYU Creamery after hiking.

But then one day of hiking just wasn't enough-- so on Saturday we packed up and did one of our old standby favorite hikes-- over in Sandy we start at Hidden Valley Park and hike to the Bear Canyon suspension brdige.  

As usual, Greta was working her style!

It's so fun to hike with our kids-- even our little ones because they are quick and they don't complain.  They think they are awesome hikers and they are right!

Peter and Faith led the charge on the return hike and beat the rest of the family by quite a bit.

Now that we've gotten a taste of hiking this weekend, Faith and I (and many others, but not all Foxes) are excited to do LOTS of hiking this spring and summer.

April 10, 2022

Abe and Clark went to a firewalk last weekend that our friend Andrea hosted-- how adventurous of them!  They loved the experience and they did not burn their feet.

Here is Clark walking on the coals.

The evening included a trust fall.

And a board breaking.

Meanwhile, I took Team Middle Kids (Faith, Cannon, and George) to see Bright Star at Hale Center Orem.  Abe and I had already been to the show with Bethany and Elinor, but I love it so much that I wanted to see it again and I wanted these guys to experience it as well.  

George is holding a rubber flying chicken on his finger that he picked out, rather than a treat at the gas station beforehand.  The flying rubber chicken did not disappoint.  Its entertainment value was well worth its $3.00 cost.

Faith and a couple of adorable swim friends hammocking at the park on a sunny day.

They came back and made bracelets during the women's session of General Conference.  

A group of neighborhood kids held a very profitable lemonade stand last weekend and George was the corner street sign dancer.  So proud.

George took an online game design class this year and he created a new card game-- he calls it "Staged".  It is actually a really fun game!  We all enjoy playing it with him.

Last weekend after all the sessions of General Conference we got together for dinner and games with our good friends.  We were introduced to a new game that we can't get enough of-- Skull King.  It's a pirate-themed game and since   Greta is not quite ready to play with us, so she likes to participate by wearing her mermaid costume.

We don't usually start the school day with games, but, like I said, we can't get enough of Skull King.

One of my favorite things about Greta is her ability to self-entertain.  The other day she took her echo dot outside and danced like no one was watching.  I recorded her from the kitchen window, thinking to myself, that is how I want to feel! Click here