Relatives!

My brother-in-law and his wife, Devin and Maren, came to visit us this past week. The boys love their uncle and aunt, and they excitedly jumped around during most of the visit. On Wednesday we ate a BBQ dinner at the park. The kids played on the playground while the adults played "Rook." Thursday we went to Salt Lake City and did the tourist thing. We toured the Conference Center, visited the Tabernacle and Visitor's Center on Temple Square, and ended at the Church History Museum. Somehow they'd never been to any of them before.

My highlight was walking on the roof of the Conference Center. About 8 years ago I helped plant dead grass on the rooftop garden. They assured us the grass was just dormant, but it looked dead to me. This trip was the first time I saw the finished garden; the roof was closed due to rain or snow on my previous visits. I'm happy to report that the grass actually grew!

Last month my sister Emily offered to babysit for us. Friday evening we took her up on the offer. We dropped off the kids and had a great time at the nearly-empty waterpark (it was the last day of the season). We ate dinner at the "Pie Pantry" but didn't get any pie; I don't know why. The water slides were the most fun. It's a shame we didn't know about them earlier in the summer. To make the evening even better, the kids didn't want to come home. One word: cousins!