Roper Reunion Trip - 02 - Roper Reunion

We were one of the first to arrive at the reunion rental on Monday night and we all greeted each other as families arrived.

Grandpa grilled hamburgers and hot dogs for dinner, then Damon and Miles and I were in charge of s'mores, so we got the fire going that evening.

On Tuesday morning, I was in charge of taking the family picture.

The reunion theme this year was about the in-laws. Grandma had a game where three people all claimed to be the originator of a funny story, and everyone had to guess who was telling the truth. After lunch, we watched videos, skits, and presentations about each of the in-laws.

We made a video about my childhood starring Miles as me.

Fizz had her baptism in the swimming pool there, then the kids all took Mean Uncle Jake's swim test around the dock in preparation for all the water activities and somebody picked up the boat, but the boating didn't really get started until Wednesday.

The boat went out all day, and in between people did crafts and puzzles.

Thursday was more of the same until Grandpa's push-up challenge in the afternoon.

That night, all the adults went out to dinner.

Friday was shopping day. The older kids went out on their own while the little ones went for ice cream.

Olivia and Abby ran a Jeopardy game that night about the in-laws.

On Saturday morning I came upstairs to find Grandma had passed out and cracked her head on the floor. Jake took her to the ER to get stitched up while the rest of us cleaned up the house and closed out the rental.

It was a frightening moment, but we heard on our drive back that her doctor said she would be fine.

Grandma wasn't the only one to take a fall, however. Here is a compilation video of all the wipe-outs on the lake.

Vacation - 07 - Christenson Reunion - Part 2

After mini Nauvoo, we had dinner, and then we were ready for the main event. Amber's mom asked her to write a musical telling the story of Else, a Danish ancestor who had a miraculous story of conversion and journey to America where she became a doctor. After many months of work, it was very cool to see it come to life.

Saturday morning we got up early for the kids to do baptisms in the Payson Temple (as part of the reunion theme of ancestors).

By then some families were starting to leave, but there were still enough left to have a session of the Christenson family sport - Pillo Polo - and eat a lunch of leftovers from the previous two days before officially ending the reunion.

Vacation - 06 - Christenson Reunion - Part 1

The Christenson reunion started Thursday evening at a park in Lehi. We gathered at a pavilion and had pizza for dinner, then did family pictures.

They had rented out the pool also, so after pictures we played in the pool. It had some waterslides and a rock wall that kept the kids entertained.

On Friday we started out the day with outdoor games at a church building in Lehi. Damon's yellow running shoes fell apart while he was playing, so I drove to Walmart and got some glue and yellow duct tape to keep them usable for the rest of the trip.

Next we went inside the church for family history presentations. We rotated between four sessions, pausing for lunch in the middle. There was a puppet show, a live action show, a trivia game, and a class learning about education in the family.

In the afternoon we went to another church building (literally across the street) where they had set up a mini Nauvoo with tons of fun activities.

You could make a wooden spinning toy, do family trivia, or get your hair done in the style of the time.

You could make a rag doll, work on a quilt, or dress up in period clothing.

You could stamp a leather keychain, or talk to the doctor about leeches and bloodletting.

I thought it was very well done. And I'm still playing with that spinning wood disc toy!

Roper Reunion Trip - Part 06 - Good-byes

The last day of the reunion we all packed up and said our good-byes before we started our travel back home.

I'm sure I didn't write half of the things the kids did, because it seems like I barely saw them. They had a lot of fun hanging out with their cousins. Amber and I (with others) had some good conversations with Derek on his upcoming mission that brought out some good stories from all involved. The boat was going almost non-stop and there were lots of wipe-outs.

Having done this approximate drive a few times now, we didn't have anything we wanted to stop for on the way home, so it was a safe, but uneventful drive home.

Roper Reunion Trip - Part 05 - Shopping, Tubing, Goulash, Flag Routine, Jeopardy

The theme of the day was Europe, and we had the usual presentations in the morning. In between activities there were usually games of shuffleboard and pool happening.

It was the last day for tubing, so we made sure to get a few last runs in.

Amber and I went together for one run, and various cousins paired up for others.

The older kids went on a shopping trip together, so Amber took the not-quite-older kids to get some ice cream.

For dinner, we were in charge because of our European missions, so we decided to make Hungarian goulash in honor of Derek's mission call, along with Czech knedliks, potato salad, and sausage. It was a hit.

At some point Grandma coordinated a flag routine, which those of us not participating in watched from the balcony.

That night, we all played a Jeopardy game created by the older cousins that reviewed everything we'd learned during the reunion.

Roper Reunion Trip - Part 04 - Crafts, Boat, Push-up Contest, Adult Dinner

The theme for the next day was Asia. The presentations about different countries continued in the morning.

The kids made their own boomerangs, and learned how to do Chinese calligraphy.

We also had a boat with a tube, and that became the focus of much of the time during the 3 days we had it.

We had Asian meat skewers for dinner.

Grandpa's push-up contest was the big activity the next day.

It paid off well for some of us.

There was a lot more boating on this day, but I didn't take my camera. In the evening, the kids ate pizza while the adults went out to eat together.

Roper Reunion Trip - Part 03 - Picture, Hike, Crafts, Mystery, Lake

We started off the reunion with my job, which was to take the family picture.

After that the whole gang drove to a local park to go on a short hike through the woods. The playground there was a good setting for an impromptu grandkids picture.

Then we hiked through the woods and along the lake.

The theme of this year's reunion was international, so the older kids gave presentations throughout the reunion about various countries that people had served missions in.

We had a break in the afternoon and people started exploring the lake and swimming pool.

Amber prepared a fun murder-mystery/escape-room activity themed around Derek's upcoming mission to Hungary where everyone had to solve puzzles to figure out where his layovers were after his travel schedule was changed.

If they figured it all out, they were able to open the safe to get a treat.

Dinner and craft for the evening were themed around Central America, so the kids made pinatas.

After dinner, it was lake time again.