Oktoberfest in August?

Yes, Snowbird starts their Oktoberfest celebration this early!  This past weekend was their opening weekend.  I took the kids up there to ride the Alpine Slide while Andy was studying, but when we got there, the wait time for the slide was 60 minutes!  No way was I waiting in the hot Utah sun (and yes, even though it is cooler in the mts, it was still a very hot day for Snowbird!) with two kids by myself for that long.  So we settled on trying the bungy trampoline instead.  We had a wait, but not nearly as long as for the slide.

It was both kids first time on the bungy trampolines.  I fear it won't be their last after they got a taste of it.  Both kids had a blast.  Riley quickly learned how to do flips and Kendall even got to try one (with the help of a Snowbird staffer) before she got off!

Here are some pics of our fun day at the 'Bird:

Wish you could hear her squeals of delight!

He loved doing back flips!

Since it was Oktoberfest, I had to participate in the activities, right?  I mean, it was REALLY hot out and what tastes better on a hot day?  The downside of Oktoberfest is the cost per beer:  $6.50 for that little plastic cup of liquid refreshment!

 The kids enjoyed a snow cone and some ice cream while we were there too.

What would a trip to Oktoberfest be without a picture of my little Germans!  (Yes, both kids are very German from both sides)

Wildflowers!

A friend of mine told me that the wildflowers were still in full bloom up at Albion Basin at Alta.  We were there a few weeks ago and it must have been still too early for what we saw yesterday...WOW!  They were incredible.  I'm assuming it was all the snow we got over the winter (and late due to the fact that it took a long time for all that snow to melt).  But boy is it worth waiting for!  If you have some free time - head up to Cottonwood Canyon and check them out for yourself.  Both kids had a great time checking out all the colors.  You can also hit up Snowbird for some Oktoberfest activities on the way.  It's that time of year!

Yes, I know they are mostly (all but one) of our adorable daughter, but she was REQUESTING that I take her picture!  She's finally interested in posing for the camera!  (Only took 3 years!)  Riley was busy snapping pictures of the wildflowers with the camera on his DS player.  Maybe he'll be a budding photographer or a graphic designer someday?  He loves editing his photos on his DS...

Trying Something New

I have these crazy, out of control, gigantic tomato plants.  We haven't had any of our large tomatoes to harvest yet, but PLENTY of cherry and grape tomatoes at the moment.  I've made numerous batches of bruschetta with the grapes and now I'm attempting to make oven-dried tomatoes (I was too chicken to put them outside in the sun for fear the birds would help themselves to a snack!

I found the recipe here at Sweet Little Smoothies.  I hadn't even considered drying them to use on pizzas or in pastas until I saw it posted there.

Here they are in the oven at the start

All I did was slice them; place them on the cookie sheet; sprinkle them with olive oil, kosher salt and Italian seasoning; then bake for 3-4 hours at 225.  The house smells so good right now!  I can't wait to see how they turn out!  I may have to attempt some homemade pesto to create a yummy pasta salad!  Thankfully I've got plenty of basil out in the garden too!

Early Morning Balloon Launch

There was a hot air balloon festival a few miles from our house.  Riley and I decided we wanted to rise with the sun to go check it out.  It was great to spend some one-on-one time with him with our two sleeping beauties caught up on their much needed zzz's!

Here are some of the pictures from that morning:

Lift Off!

Lots of balloons there!

Riley liked this one because it reminded him of Captain America!

Headed towards our house

Loved the colors of this one

I liked how this one had flags hanging off of it

This poor guy never got off the ground

Heading towards the Wasatch

This one is headed towards Little Cottonwood Canyon

Some of them landed back in the field where they took off from, while others landed in the lot across the street or in neighborhood cul-de-sacs.  Riley and I had a blast watching them.  Bonus for us was seeing our good friends from Grace while we were there!  I love to bump into people while we're out and about...makes this place feel more like "home" instead of a temporary address!