Summer in the Mountain West

This past year was one big blur for us as we moved from England to Colorado. Our move, and some unexpected challenges that sprang up along the way, made for a really busy summer. This post captures a lot of our activities over the summer throughout the Mountain West.

(Above) Jack & his cousin Oakley just before leaving for their sports day camp at CSU.
IDAHO

(L) Lucas (R) Jack, Aaron and Noelle in kayaks at a lake near Burley, ID

(L) Camping up in the mountains near Burley, ID. (R) Jack chowing down on junk food.

(Above) Jack trying to steal Grandpa's junk food.

(Above) Jack fishing

(Above) Lucas fishing

(Above) Jack celebrated his 7th birthday at his grandparents' house in Idaho this summer.



(L) Jack (R) Noelle

(Above) Harmony with her family and grandparents

(Above) In front of the main BYU library. We stopped by campus on our way down to Aaron's grandparents. This is the kids' first visit to BYU.

(R) Outside the room in the BYU Wilkinson Center where Harmony & Aaron first met in winter 2003.

(Above & Below) On our way home from Idaho, we stopped in Utah to visit Aaron's grandparents. We also made a day-trip to Bryce Canyon.


(Above) Our kids with their great-grandparents.

(Above) Aaron's brother, Mike, brought his family from St. Louis to Colorado for a visit this summer. This was taken during a short hike near Fort Collins.

(Above) Rocky Mountain National Park. We made a couple of visit to RMNP over the summer. The scenery was absolutely stunning.

(Above) A moose walking through a lake up in RMNP.


(Above Two) More RMNP

(Above) Moving Day. Our stuff finally arrived from England in early September.

(Above& Below) Garden of the Gods near Colorado Springs.


(Above) Lovely Noelle

Last Day in England

On our last day in England, we visited a couple of nearby churches. We loved seeing these old churches dot the English countryside while living abroad. Many of these churches are well-preserved and are still in use, despite their age. The 900 year-old church in our village continues to receive regular use.

(L) Getting into the beater rental car. (R) In a field near the village of Achurch

(L) The Achurch parish church. (R) The parish church at Old Weston

(Above) Gravestone of a man who died from wounds received in WWI

(Above) Jack in front of the Old Weston church

Punting on the Cam

On our last day in England, we made one last visit to Cambridge to complete one of our England bucket list items: Punting on the Cam. The River Cam, which runs through Cambridge, is filled with small river craft called punt boats during summer. Local college students offer river tours providing a history of Cambridge University to earn some cash. This is definitely one of the most popular tourist activities in Cambridge and we were glad to have the chance to take the tour before leaving England. 

(R) The Bridge of Sighs

(L) Sweet Noelle (R) Standing alongside the River Cam

(Above) At the market square in Cambridge

(Above) In front of King's College

Moving

Moving was bittersweet. We were happy to be moving back closer to family but knew we would miss the charm of living in the English countryside. 

(Above) Last day at our 214 year-old cottage.

(Above) Moving truck. Not a lot of space for large loris (semis) on these small village roads.

(Above) I'll miss the fish, but not the soft, mushy chips.

(L) Jack & Lucas in front of their school after finishing their last day. (R) Chasing pidgins in Peterborough

(Above) Noelle in front of Peterborough Cathedral