Summer in a Nutshell

As summer "winds down" I find myself wondering why time passes so quickly! We have packed a lot into just a couple of months....I started the break off by traveling to St. Louis to spend time with Jeff. We had a wonderful time together, he surprised me by taking me to dinner on a river boat that traveled a couple of hours on the Mississippi River...we saw the "Arch" and drove around the beautiful area. Upon returning home everything was running full tilt at the McKinney Household with T-Ball, Baseball & Soccer; not to mention Boy Scouts and other church activities. Bryce's club soccer team took a silver medal at The Utah Summer Games and then she started with cheer practice soon after. Jeff arrived at the beginning of June and was able to be with us for three weeks. We managed to visit his folks in Northern Utah and even do some sight-seeing. We took the kids to Lagoon Amusement Park during our visit. We had our photo taken in an old "Wild West" setting. Jeff left and is now stationed at Fort Riley, Kansas. He has his own private room in the barracks where we correspond through the internet and telephone, just thankful for daily contact! The kids and I have been able to attend two family reunions this summer. My moms side of the family (The Cosslett's) held their family reunion here in Cedar City at a park close to the mouth of Cedar Canyon. There was good food and time for the older folks and kids to get re-acquainted with each other. My mom always puts this reunion together and does as great job! My dads side of the family held their reunion (The Robb Reunion) at a park in Parowan, Utah. I loved being able to see cousins that I have not seen in a while as well as the older members of our extended family. The kids ate and went directly to the Parowan City pool to swim...which was reserved just for the reunion. It was the firs time I had been to a reunion since the passing of my dad, and even though it has been five years since his death, it took me quite a few minutes to get a hold of myself (turn off the water-works) and enjoy the time spent with relatives ( I just kept thinking back to times when my dad would take us places...he would give my sisters and I "a talking to," about behavior and the finer details of politeness before we could join in on the fun). In the sort weeks of Summer I (by myself) was able to fit a visit in to Jeff in Kansas. We talked and enjoyed each others company the "SHORT" three days I was able to spend with my soldier. We found the church he will be attending, went to the movie (Harry Potter), purchased a car for Jeff to get around post in (an older model Volkswagen Jetta) and drove around admiring the countryside near Fort Riley, Kansas. In another nutshell Summer went by too darn quickly!!! Other things to mention about the summer; 4th of July in Cedar City with my folks and Neshia's family, Bryce attending Cheer camp, Bryce attending a Pioneer Trek reactment in Wyoming with many other young adults (ages 14-18) from our church. Swimming, hiking, mowing yards, trips to the library and just trying to enjoy the things we are blessed with.