In Utah with Friends and Family

Abby holding Mark's sister Melissa's two-week-old baby, Rachel. It was so fun to meet her!
Millie playing on the water slide with Melissa's oldest boys Spencer and Jonathan.
Millie in action on the water slide.
Our our dear friends the Southwicks, who now live in Singapore, came to visit for an afternoon in Midway. We love that we have kids the exact same ages and are so happy when the stars align and our Utah/Idaho time coincides! It was so wonderful to see them. Here is a picture of Abby with their Eliza.
Millie and Claire Southwick.
Mark's kind of taken on the role of master mower when we are in Midway (he just loves to ride on the mower) and the kids love to ride with him.
Millie having a quiet chat with Grandpa Ward.

My dear friend Kirsten, who lives in California, also came up to Midway with her three kids to visit. It was so great to see them all and to get caught up! We loved having them come! This a picture of us with Kirsten, Ian, Kate, and Jacob.

Matt's and Sara's Wedding

The three flower girls: Abby, Millie, and my sister Jennifer's Emma.
Millie dancing with Jennifer's David at the reception at the Millcreek Inn.
Abby dancing with my sister Miffy with Jennifer in the background.
Mark and baby Jane.
Millie and her cousin David at the temple.
Matt and Sara at the Bountiful Temple right after Sara received her endowments
Millie and Sara at the temple after the ceremony.
Grandpa Ward holding Jane at the temple after the ceremony.
Abby on the temple grounds after the ceremony.

We had such a wonderful two weeks in Utah while we were there for my brother Matt's wedding and a Ward family reunion in Midway! The girls enjoyed spending time with their cousins and grandparents from both sides of the family and I enjoyed seeing Mark after a separation of three weeks while he's been working in Atlanta. It was a great time to be with family and get caught up with wonderful friends!

The week of the wedding was perfect (notwithstanding the bad luck that seemed to plague me at every turn -- finding that the car battery was dead just as I was about to leave for the temple when Sara went through for her endowments, having my cell phone go on the fritz and not being able to get a replacement for several days, having a spray on tan go terribly awry and being a streaky orange (fortunately it wore off before the wedding :)) -- the list could go on and on!). We loved getting to know Sara and her family better and rejoice in her and Matt's happiness. They are such a fantastic couple!

Goodbye New York, Hello Boston!

The girls with our dear friend Marianne Hopkin and her dog, Micah (oh how Millie loves Micah!)
Abby, Mason Apke, Will Thomas, Millie, Thomas Apke
Millie and Will Thomas
Kids in the Candy Shop

We've finally finished our traipsing up and down the eastern seaboard of the United States for the summer (phew!) and are setting our sights on the West as we get ready to go to Salt Lake City for Uncle Matt's wedding.

We sadly said goodbye to NYC after making visit to Dylan's Candy Bar (a candy store owned by Ralph Lauren's son) for some sweet treats. It was a riot watching the girls pick out what candy they wanted. It was like, well, watching kids in a candy shop! We then made our way to Boston (we won't mention the nightmarish traffic we encountered on I-95!) and had so much fun revisiting old haunts and reconnecting with wonderful friends! It felt so much like home and satisfied the longing I've felt all year for New England. Unfortunately, I was so busy reconnecting with people, I forgot to take a lot of pictures!