Adam's Trip to Utah

 Adam's turn to travel to Utah was a bit overdue because of Grandma and Grandpa's mission, and Emma was very ready for her turn, but we made sure that he was the next in line (after Leah) for a solo trip to visit Grandma and Grandpa. Direct flights from our home to Utah were a pandemic casualty, so we opted to drive the first leg of the trip and fly direct from Kansas City.  Our summer schedule was packed pretty tight but we eventually decided on two back-to-back trips, first Adam then Emma in July. Noah most of all was not looking forward to two weeks without his best buddies at home!

Adam was a little nervous and a lot excited about his trip!  Flying solo is a rite of passage, and I felt confident that Adam's height would preventing him from getting too much unwanted extra attention. He reported that both the flight there and back were uneventful. 

And once he got to Grandma and Grandpa's house, he got to work!

First around the house- 

and then in Grandpa's shop!

They decided to combine Grandpa's love of wood with Adam's love of defying gravity by building a tensegrity table. 

The end result is pretty awesome (and definitely always this tidy). 

Grandma made sure that Adam was fed and entertained for the week, including an early morning trip to the temple and to Temple Square for Music and the Spoken Word. 

Auntie Al took a lot of the pictures, and took Adam out for a Utah-special- Swig soda. 

They got to go hiking with Uncle Bubba and Cousin Junie too!

Boondocks in Utah is basically designed to capture the attention of a 14-year-old boy. 

Grandpa braved a night of camping in Wyoming with Adam and Emerson. 

I think either there was a pool at the campsite or there were a lot of bugs there. 

They spent their morning digging for fossils- and found some!  Adam said it was a bit reminiscent of Holes, but worth the effort. Such a cool experience. 

It's been a few months now since Adam went, and there are probably another 100 memories for every one that I have a picture of here. We loved FaceTiming with him a few times throughout the week,

 and while he didn't have a ton to report over the phone, he told us lots of stories about his adventures once he was home again. After a good long pup snuggle, that is. 

Almost all together again!

(Emma not pictured because she was already in Utah starting her own one-on-one adventure!)