Alternate Anderson Reunion

Well, this year we didn't make it to the Anderson Reunion. Not for lack of trying, I'd like to say -- I was SOOOO prepared! To make a long story short, we loaded our minivan (with 8 people -- our family and Nick & Christina's family -- and all our stuff) and tent trailer for three and a half rugged days in the wild, and ended up turning around before we even got out of Springville. Apparently, the hitch we bought for our van, which we knew was very low, was WAY too low -- we bottomed out going into the gas station. We almost got high-centered on a two-inch hill. So, prudence won out, and instead we unloaded a bunch of junk and went to Diamond Fork Campground, only 15 minutes away. The kids were a little disappointed not to be going to the Reunion (we're not even going to talk about the parents!), but they rebounded pretty quickly when we told them we'd be camping anyway. They loved being at the campground, and to make our weekend more Reunion-y, we planned some fun games and snacks we WOULD have done (and eaten) if we'd been there. Christina and I even took the kids on a Hobo Hike* -- complete with juice boxes (a real treat at our house), string cheese, Swedish fish, and Smarties! (We'll have to show pictures of that later because they're all on Christina's camera.)* for those non-Anderson-Reunioners: A Hobo Hike is a tradition at the Anderson Reunion. Someone takes all the kids on a short hike, sometimes talking about our ancestors, sometimes talking about nature, sometimes just hiking. We call it a Hobo Hike because we always have to tie up a little snack in a bandana on the end of a stick, just like a real hobo. The really exciting part of the Hobo Hike for me, though, was that Mom always packed something extra special for the treat -- something we didn't usually get that was loaded up with sugar or chocolate. It was second only to Halloween, in my opinion!Packed to the gills? Oh, yeah! that "empty" middle seat is really just baby Mia in a car seat!