Thomas Family Reunion....

My entire family met this summer in Duck Creek Utah where we rented a cabin large enough to accommodate the clan for a few days.  We rode four wheelers, talked, hiked, talked, ate, talked, roasted marshmallows, talked, played just dance on the wii (hilarious!), and talked some more.  There was also a lot more eating involved then I let on. 
Before the reunion we decided that we needed an update to our family photo collection.  We all planned to wear white shirts and denim bottoms.  This was trickier than it sounds.  Utah in July is dry dry dry.  And we were staying on dirt.  Dirt and white aren't pretty together.  Most of the kids were half naked up until the first photo was actually snapped.
Lucky for us, the backyard of the cabin we were renting proved to be the perfect backdrop for a photo. 
This is the entire Thomas Family. 

Back row L to R: Brian, Lyndsey, Ben, Jena, Matt, Shawn, Jayne, Charlie, Katelyn, Cory
Middle:  Mom holding Emmerson, Dad holding Lily (red flower in hair) and Presley, Kennedy
Front:  Max, Jackson, Landon, Ethan

Aren't we a beautiful group?  I love love love this picture.  However.  Notice how Presley's mouth is open in a strange way?  Nobody else noticed it either.  Until she threw up all over my dad.

My dad caught most of it on his arm while the rest stayed on Presley her self.  I love how Me, Shawn, and Matt are noticing something is amiss with my daughter, but everybody else is keeping their picture pose.  Hilarious.  Then.  Once everyone realized what went down a little bit of chaos ensued.  Everyone making sure they weren't hit with remnants of Presley's lunch.

I love that picture.  I think it just totally defines the moment.  Poor little Presley.  I'm a totally insensitive Mother.  I had a back-up white dress for her in her suitcase.  Three minutes after she puked I had her changed and back in another set of pictures.  The show must go on, right?!
For some reason as I was looking through these pictures, my absolute favorites were the ones that weren't staged.  The "behind the scenes" if you will.  Maybe because my family is perfect in my eyes.  Just the way we are.  Imperfect. 

Just a shot of us girls.

Katelyn, Jena, Mom, Me, Lyndsey.
And now ALL  the girls in the family.

Then the men.

Dad, Charlie, Ben, Matt, Shawn, Brian, Cory.
ALL the boys in the family.

A shot of my handsome brothers.

I've wanted a shot of my little family for a long time.  One with Shawn actually in the picture instead of behind the lens.  My wish came true.

I even got one of just my five babies.

And Shawn convinced me to get a few of just us.

And.  I really wanted a picture of just my parents.  Because my Mom hates pictures and it's a rare occasion for her to be a willing participant.  Peer pressure caved her this time.  I'm so glad.

This trip meant so much to me this year.  It's not very often that we gather as an entire family in one location.  I truly appreciate each of my siblings as individuals.  I enjoy spending time with them.  My parents raised a great group of people who have gone and accomplished a lot in a short time period.  When it was time to say goodbye, I have to admit that I cried the entire way down the mountain.  I wasn't ready for this reunion to be over.  Distance makes frequent get-togethers difficult.  When they do happen, it seems that time goes just a little too quickly for me. 

Yellowstone National Park....

We were mis-informed when it came to the actual distance Yellowstone was from the lodge in Driggs.  We were under the impression it was only 1 1/2 hours to get to Old Faithful.  After 2 1/2 hours we realized we had been mis-informed.  After 3 1/2 hours we finally reached our destination.  I had been to Yellowstone once for a college biology class, but had never seen Old Faithful.  The kids had never been near Yellowstone.  Once we actually reached the geyser we had to wait about 30 minutes for it to erupt.  While we waited we were graced with the presence of a buffalo.  10 yards from where we were standing.

Then the anticipation ended as we watched the geyser do it's natural thing.

Of course photos afterward.

And a photo to prove we were actually where we say we were.

After Old Faithful we enjoyed ice cream at the shop nearby.  Then we headed off to explore some hot pots and other natural phenomena in the area.

Some of which the kids found to be "stinky".  Sulphur isn't pleasant on the nostrils.

The boys ran off some energy.

And took a pit stop in nature.

We enjoyed our time.  However.  We wish we would've been able to stay longer.  It started to get dark after only a few sites being taken in.  It was a lot of driving for such a short visit.  Next time we'll be more prepared. 

Jackson Hole Wyoming......

While still staying at the lodge, we decided to take a day trip to Yellowstone National Forest.  On the way, we were lucky enough to drive through Jackson Hole.  The kids had only been once a few years ago, so we took advantage and stopped for an hour.
Since we only had an hour, we headed over to the center of town with the "antlers".

The kids found little chipmunk holes all around the square and tried really hard to catch one.  No such luck.  But they put in good solid effort.

Me and my oldest boy.

All five of my lovelies.

Shawn is always trying to follow me with the camera.  If I die before him, he'll have tons of photos to sort through and remember me by.

It was a gorgeous day to be in Jackson Hole.  We all wished our time would have been longer.  But.  Yellowstone was calling our names. 

Crook Family Lodge....

The Crook side of the family (actually Bates if you want to get technical) have a lodge in Driggs Idaho.  This is where most of our Crook reunion's take place.  It sleeps all of us (barely.  We keep growing!), and it's the perfect place to mix touring beautiful locations like Jackson Hole and Yellowstone, with just laying around the lodge talking and eating.  Family photos are rare, so we headed outside to get a shot before it was too late.

Back L to R: Curtis, Logan, Rhonda, Jack, Shawn, Jayne, Darla, Brynn, Brian
Middle: Atlin, Presley, Kennedy, Tyler, Anna, Jeremiah, Dad, Mom, Deeanna, Dusty, Maggie, Rochelle, Jessie
Front: Landon, Ethan, Aubrey, Alyssa, Trey, Damien
Quite the group!  And we are far from being complete I'm sure.

We got a shot of some of the "cooperative" grand kids.
And Shawn tried to get one of just our kids.  When our kids are done taking photos, they are really done. 

Fall Soccer Season....

Landon decided to try soccer this year.  He's seen his three older siblings play.  Sadly, if he hadn't requested being on a team he wouldn't have had his chance.  Poor kid.  After trying the gamut of sports with the first three, and deciding none of them are a good fit, the fourth child gets forgotten.  Think Landon has it bad?  Presley doesn't have a chance. 
The community center was the perfect starting point for Landon.  One hour a week.  The first 30 minutes they practice as a team.  The next 30 minutes they play a game.  It's a slow ease into the sport which was just what Landon needed to thrive.  And he did!  Most of his team he knew from school.  It was fun to see how adored he is by his classmates.  Especially the ladies.  Definitely a ladies man.  Who isn't afraid to say how much he enjoys their attention.  Funny boy.

Surprisingly, he was a pretty aggressive player.  Not mean.  Aggressive.  He wasn't afraid to go after the ball, and to take a turn kicking it down the field.  It was fun to see this side of him.

Landon loved playing soccer.  He can't wait until next year so he can play again.  I'm glad he found something he enjoys.  And is pretty good at.  It's fun to see him in his element interacting with kids his own age.  I love this little guy with his melty chocolate eyes and big grin.  Who wouldn't enjoy watching this kid play soccer?

Tri. Tri. And Tri Again......

I remember a little over a year ago I mentioned wanting to attempt a triathlon.  But then I changed my mind.  Too much fear of the unknown.  But I've kept that idea in the recesses of my mind for awhile now.  This summer the perfect opportunity arose and the idea became a reality.  I was going to be near Riverton Utah in June.  The time I would be there happened to coincide with a sprint triathlon that my sister-in-laws were considering.  We all decided it was time to jump the gun and just do it.  Before I left for Utah I rode my bike a few times, swam a few times, and continued running.  I wasn't as ready as I could've been, but I was somewhat prepared. 
My parents graciously watched my kids so I could drive solo down to Riverton and back without the hassles of finding sitters, feeding, sleeping, and all the other motherly duties taking kids with me would entail.  Darla lives in Riverton so I stayed at her house Friday night.  We were a bundle of nerves laying out all of our stuff to make sure we had what we'd need. 
Saturday early morning Rhonda and Anna picked us up and we loaded all of our bikes into the truck and headed to the transition zone.  I was so nervous it was crazy.  And.  It was actually cold for June.  Low 50's .  Luckily I'd brought a jacket for the bike portion or I would have froze.
Darla, Rhonda, Me, and Anna before the race:

My transition zone:

The number display (traditional triathlon poses):

Me and Anna:

You can see that we are all wearing jackets before we raced.  I was freezing.  Standing on the deck of the pool with my bathing suit and spandex on my teeth wouldn't stop chattering.  The water was warm when it came my turn.  Once I entered the water, being cold was the last thing I was thinking about.  After the swim we biked.  After the bike we ran.  It.  Was.  Awesome.  I loved it.  In some ways it felt a bit harder than a half marathon.  Only because when running a half your body gets into a groove and just moves.  In a triathlon, just as you start to get into some sort of groove, you jerk yourself around and change it up.  However.  Recovery from a triathlon is much easier than from running a half.  And I really enjoyed cross training this summer.  So much so that I ended up doing two more sprint triathlons before the summer ended.  Both with Christine:

I think I'm kind of addicted to these sprint triathlons.  After the second race, and trying to decide what to wear, I ended up buying a tri-suit.  Which is just essentially one big piece of spandex.  The inventor of spandex is making a killing at these events.  So much spandex it should be illegal.  But the only thing that works when doing these particular events. I have this constant fear of the unknown.  I was so afraid to try this new endeavor that it took me a few years to muster the courage.  I'm so glad I got over my lame fear.  I was missing out.  I'm also really hard on myself and what my body "isn't".  I'm getting better.  I'm trying to just appreciate the fact that I have a move able, workable, body that is strong.  When I'm doing a race like this I'm always amazed at what my body can actually accomplish.  This years season has come to an end.  I'm excited for next years season and what it will bring. 

Kansas City Chiefs.....

Last Friday night Shawn and I attended the Chiefs pre-season opening game against the Rams with Clif and Jaime.  Sans kids.  It was awesome!

Jaime and I chatted it up the entire game.  Though we did pay attention for a few minutes of each quarter.

The boys were there for the actual game, not just the food and atmosphere.

Thanks for the invite Bells!  Good times.