Festivals!

One of my favorite things about warmer weather, is the myriad of free events to enjoy. These are a few we stopped in to this month, as well as some other misfits.

The Be Well Utah fair is put on by the U and I totally look forward to it. This year, the week included one day's free entry to Red Butte Gardens, Tues. We went and got some free health information and goodies, Amie was excited that she got to meet Curious George, and of course, we got to see the gardens. Our fave was probably the pond with ducks and fish. That $.25 of food goes a long way to make little girlies happy! I was kinda hesitant to go, because free days are always overcrowded, but it didn't even feel like there were that many people there to me! I was really glad we went, we all really enjoyed the garden and exercise.

The actual Fair was on Saturday, and we went early since we had many other plans crammed into that day. There were endless booths (everything is centered in some way on wellness) giving out information and freebies. I really wanted to get my ears cleaned for free, so even though there was a long line Jeff and the girls stuck it out with me. When we finally got up there, they said my ears didn't even need it, but Jeff's did! Isn't that always the way. We got lots of pens, magnets, bags, cups, screenings, candy, baskets, aprons, books, face paint, healthier recipes and even lunch (turkey dogs, fruit, baked chips, healthy cookies, creamies) and everything was free! They had Curious George there again, along with magicians, balloon artists, music. No pics of course.

We also made it to the NAMI Walk this year. It's actually the first time I did a walk for anything! NAMI is the National Alliance on Mental Illness and they provide free services/support of all kinds to people with mental health problems. UNI (where I work) had a team there to walk, so I signed up. I did it really last minute, so I didn't raise any dollars, but Jeff and the girls even came and walked (or strollered) with me. They also had some snacks (fruit, water, bagels) for walkers, as well as some booths and the radio station. They held a raffle with SO MANY PRIZES. We sat and listened to them draw tickets for 45 minutes for prizes like gc's to Rodizio, Lagoon, Whole Foods, concerts, movies, and a billion other great things, but even with 5 tickets, we didn't get anything! Sad. It's cool, though. I enjoyed the walk, and hope to be able to do it every year. It's a cause that I really believe in and doesn't get nearly enough air time.

The other things we have been up to include cousin Stacey's birthday party. Amelie was beyond excited to go, and all 3 of us girls had fun. Amie's been obsessed with birthdays for weeks now. She asks so many times when her birthday is, that we finally had to start telling her "First is Ty's bday, then Stacey's, then Mallory's, then Papa's, then yours!" It happened so many times that she know the order, and she know that Papa is next, then it's her birthday! She tells everyone that "Someday it's gonna be my birthday" and "Someday I'm gonna be 3!" or "I'm having a strawberry birthday cake!" It's cute and exhausting (after 2 months) but she's being a good sport - she doesn't get mad or anything when it's not her birthday.


Finally, the last misfit, pictureless post-worthy item is Labor Day. We went back and forth (as always) about whether or not we would go to Delta for the little time that Jeff wasn't working. We ended up not going this time and hung out with my fam that Monday. We had lots of food and fun games, and then a fire in mom's fire bowl. By some freak accident, I burned my face with a flaming marshmallow! Though small, it was quite painful and the marshmallow stuck to my face! I had to keep cold on it for a few hours before it finally felt ok. Most of the area just peeled a little after a few days, but one small spot was a concentrated ouch-machine! I still have a little pink spot where it was and I am not sure if it will go away completely or not.