Draper Days

This summer really has been filled with traditions that our family has! Draper Days isn't exactly a tradition but was one that got started kind of by accident. Since Travis and I got married and moved to Draper we have attened the parade they have every year. Its not like the one down town! It doesn't seem to be as crowded and I think we actually get some better shows here! How often do you get to see a blue tank? They have one in this parade!

Even though it is a smaller parade we still get up early to get some really good seats. By this I mean we are in shade the whole parade.

Laynie loves her Uncle Travis!!!! This two are always together!

Papa's Dave's favorite part of the parade!!

And of course our comic relief!!!

Camping out

Growing up in the Vallett family you learned how to camp! I don't mean just camping we did the whole hiking thing with it. Even though sometimes these hikes lead to tears we always had a fun family experiece. Counting how many mesquitos we could kill, squirrel stealing my sock with dad chasing after it, and dad reading by the camp fire are some of my fondest memories.

This is another tradition that is being passed down. As kids we each had our own pack that would hold our clothes and our sleeping bag. Dad never really made us carry much he took most of it. But he decided Gavin and Laynie needed to have this camping experience.

Gavin and Laynie each got there own back pack that included the sleeping bag, flashlight, and water bottle.

And Papa also set up a tent for them! Not exactly camping in the mountains but I think for their first time this was a great idea!

Even though they may not have made it the whole night outside I think they had a lot of fun! Thanks Papa!

Lots of Summer fun!!!

Ok I know that these are old but I needed to get them on here. Its better to be let then never, right! Becky and her sweet kids (Gavin and Laynie) came to visit for a little while this summer! And we made a trip to Wheeler Farm! This is always an adventure!

It first started out by Gavin chasing the ducks! Or should I say that Travis told him that he could pet the ducks and for some reason they wouldn't stay still for him!

Next we went and saw one of my most favorite animals! The PIG!!

They might be my favorite animal but MeMe has the gift. She is able to call them with this pig noise that she makes and YES they really do come to her! It is so amazing!

Aren't they so stinkin' cute! They thought it was fun to play in the water!

Laynie and Travis are always the best of friends. Here she is modeling his sunglasses!

Here Laynie is with Papa Paul, as Gaving refers to him as. Watch out Becky she likes to hang out with all the guys!

Look at that smile! This boy is always happy when he is riding his tractor! I think he is going to be a farmer some day!

Lost Pictures, Memories, and Traditions

So I'm very bummed out today! I finally decided to update my blog due to my brothers request and some of my pictures that I took I can't find them anywhere! If I find my Memorial Day pictures I will have to put those on here!

That day has always been very special for my family. Each year on Saturday before Memorial Day we get up bright and early go over and grab Grandma Edie! Then we make the long (ok so its not that long but as a kid it seemed like forever) trip down to Beaver to go and decorate the graves. When we were little Becky and I would make this trip every year with Grandma Edie and Grandpa Walt. Grandma always had treats for us to eat while we went down and some kind of entertainment. Grandpa was always the driver and had control over the air conditioning. And for some reason we always froze.

When we get down to Beaver we get all the flowers out and unloaded. The graves are next to be cleaned because Grandma would never let a single piece of grass stay on those headstones. Then we would make the trip to the river (its not really a river but at fast moving stream but once again as kid it seemed like it) to get the water. Yes, we would get the water from that! When we were little Grandpa usually got the water and we tried to help but as we got older he let us do it. We would grab the bucket and stick it in the water, one of us usually holding on to the other so we didn't fall in. Sometime we would successful and get the water other times we get wet. Most of the time the bucket came back half full and we would take several trips to get the amount of water that we needed.

One of the years that we were there we found a headstone that just said "Indian Princess". We have no idea who she is but each year we have placed some flowers there for her. We figured that she was a princess and should have some flowers also. So each year after that Grandma has specially got flowers just for her.

Since we have gotten older and Becky has moved away cute little MeMe has taken our places most years and instead of Grandpa going down it has been our parents, MeMe, and of course the cutest little lady Grandma Edie.

But this isn't over yet! Even after the graves are done we don't just leave and go home but we stop every year and get some food at Arshel's! This has been our spot each year! It's one of the best places to stop and eat in Beaver. So if you ever get the chance you should eat there!

This year was very special for me because I was able to take my dear husband Travis with us. It was fun to be able to share this adventure with him!

Thanks Grandma for the wonderful tradition that we have! This trip has always been special to me and I have loved spending that time with you!