Bradley Brights

We finally took the plunge and bought a van. James' cousin, Randy, has been helping us look for a van at car auctions because he has his dealer's license. It was a great way to go since, we were able to save a couple thousand dollars in the deal. But, we had to get outbid and disappointed several times before we finally landed this beauty. It was quite the adventure. We were actually lucky enough to get this van below the auction price. I know that's a blessing from above. It's a Hyundai Entourage. And it's blue, depending on the light, sometimes it's grey and other times it's green! Yes, I LOVE the color. We've been driving a silver car around for so long that it's fun to have some color. The next best thing is the SPACE! Oh wow! We went on a camping trip the weekend we got it and it was so nice to not have to worry about fitting everything. I feel right at home in it. I guess I was born to drive a minivan and that's OK with me. I do have one complaint about it. I'm further away from James and we haven't quite figured out how to hold hands comfortably yet. We'll keep working on it.

(To answer the question that many of you might be thinking, no we are not expecting. But, we are preparing for the future.)



Our first big trip in our new van was up to Bear Lake for Memorial Day weekend. We went up with some of James' siblings and their families. Although the campground was sub-par, the company was great. We always have a good time with his family. We spent our time relaxing and enjoying not having a schedule. The kids especially enjoyed their selves. Children are truly at one with nature. And, although we were in a tent on an air mattress, it was the best night's sleep that James and I have had in a LONG time because both of our kids were zonked out the whole night. That made it really tempting to stay another night, but I wanted to be home for Sunday. We really had a great time, and we're looking forward to more camping trips this summer!


A picture of Bear Lake as we were driving home. Notice the rain. We were glad we didn't have to spend a night in the rain.

Because of all the space in our van, we were finally able to bring James' guitar with us. I love listening to him play. It's wonderful to have some music in our family.

Hailey and gang on a small trail that led to a natural spring.

The natural spring. The color was beautiful!

Abby sharing candy with Thomas, or it was more likely that Thomas begged for it.

Attempting to build a sandcastle at the beach. We were there for about 15 minutes when it started to rain. We abandoned ship and went to have some yummy shakes that we even ate in a covered wagon. I don't think the castle would have been built anyway because Thomas and Eric enjoyed smashing the sand too much.

And of course, it wouldn't be a complete vacation with James without some pictures of the wild flowers.