Perfect Provo Day

Wendy and I decided that it would be fun to do a Provo day with the kids. We got a late start to the day because of workout and Ella's swim lesson at 11, but it was still a great half day in Provo. We stopped at Rob's favorite restaurant, Thai Drift, to pick up lunch for the Mommies and then hit McDonald's for the kids. Then on to Grandma Betty's for a swim.



Ella was in her last week of Swim 1 and one of the requirements was for her to jump in the water fully submerging herself. Well, if you know Ella you know what a big deal this was. Ella has never fully submerged herself in anything, even the ball pit. In fact we have had great discussions on whether or not she will be baptized, or join Jesus's church as Ella puts it, based solely on the fact that submersion is required. So when we hit Grandma Betty's pool we used a little positive peer pressure to seal the deal. Ella's best friend Kaylie isn't a bit afraid of the water and will jump right in on her own. We all congratulated Kaylie on jumping in and 2 seconds later Ella was out of the pool ready to dive in.



I won't lie. Ella probably jumped into my arms upwards of 20 times before we could even talk about submersion. Finally she was ready, and while no one but I was looking she did it. Then of course she was forced to do it 3 more times because Grandma wanted to see it and Wendy wanted to see it and then Grandpa because no one actually believed that it had happened. My mom tried to capture one of the jumps but she got it right before it happened. I had to hold out my hands and then at the last second let her fall. Thanks to the patented nose plug technique Ella actually smiled when she came up and now we are the proud parents of swim 1 graduate. Cross your fingers that we survive swim 2.



Next we hit the "little dinosaur museum", as Ella calls it. Because compared to the Thanksgiving Point museum it is extremely little but still fun. It is more commonly refered to as the BYU Museum of Paleontology. As you can see Seth found a buddy immediately. He shifted between calling it a dinosaur and a docdile.



Here Matthew, Seth, Kaylie and Ella are receiving a mini lesson from a very willing 10 year old who was adept at reading the sign posted next to the fossil.



The kids loved that many of the fossils were on the ground thus allowing them unencumbered access.



Triceratops huh? Well, see ya later.



Giant prehistoric crocodile jaw. Yes, Seth was a fan and so was Ella for that matter.



Once the kids realized that I was enjoying taking pictures of them they started hamming it up. Every 2 seconds they were coming up with another great photo op and some not so great photo ops.



Matthew especially got into the drama of photographs.



Seth adores "Maa chew"(Matthew) and yes it does sound like he is sneezing when he says his name. Matthew is so sweet with Seth and treats him like a little brother.



This shot was extremely high drama. I have about 10 more like it.



These next 2 pictures are probably my favorite. Matthew in his quest for photo ideas wanted me to take a picture of him pretending to be a dinosaur pretending to eat Ella.



Ella, unwilling to be bested, insisted on a picture of her pretending to eat Matthew. Hey it's a dinosaur eat dinosaur world at the little dinosaur museum.



Ella and Kaylie trembling in fear as dinosaurs Matthew and Seth go in for the kill.



A cute shot of them on a pelvic bone. Can you say cute and pelvic bone in the same sentence?



Then of course a shot of them devouring the pelvic bone. Hope you're not eating.



One last dramatic shot and onto the next stop.



I had Ella and Kaylie in my car and Seth absolutely had to ride with his beloved Matthew in Wendy's car.



The next stop was the Creamery on Ninth. It was crazy packed with all the EFY kids but we still managed to find a booth.



Mathew enjoying his ice cream.



The kids insisted on using the mini sample spoons to eat their ice cream, so it took awhile.



Kaylie bug



Seth dispensed with the formality of a spoon and opted for a more natural method.



What would a day in provo be without a trip to the Monte L. Bean museum? Yes, Seth found the crocodile.



We had to see the "BYU" cougar too.



The kids loved that because the museum was so small we let them roam a little on their own.



I asked Wendy if she wanted a picture next to a bear and she said yes. Then she proceeded to ham it up, Matthew style, by petting the bear. Immediately afer touching it she realized that it was real bear fur from years and years ago and it didn't feel like a teddy bear. That reaction led to this shot.



We all loved the giraffe head (and kneck) that greets you on your way down the stairs.



The African safari exhibit deserved some dramatic treatment as well. Here Mathew is trying to run from the lion. Kaylie is taking a different approach. I believe she is trying to blend in as some kind of fowl.



Seth admiring the bear in his native habitat.



We finally got our shot of Wendy with a bear. We just decided a glass encased bear would be better.



Checking out the bugs and swapping spider stories.

There were many many more fun things we could have done in Provo had we not been limited by time. That just means that there will have to be a Provo revisited day. We can hit the dollar movies, visit the BYU bookstore, feed the ducks at the botany pond, 7 peaks it up. The list goes on. Any suggestions for Provo activities?