This Summer was extremely busy. We did more things this Summer than any other Summer. Of course our big Nauvoo trip started our Summer off. We came home and it really took us a month too get back to normal We didn't want to do anything, or go anywhere. It was impossible to not do anything or go anywhere. Something always came up.
I had signed the girls up for the beginning gymnastics classes with Charlie which started a couple of days before we got home from Nauvoo. Charlie is the daughter of one of my crossing guard friends, and has taken gymnastics since she was 3. She is now a senior in high school. She teaches gymnastics in her yard with equipment that her Dad made for her. She does this every summer for 3 weeks, 3 classes a day 45 min each, to earn a little extra money. I was excited for the girls to go again this Summer. Kenzie was super excited to do more on the bar. We were all bummed to find out at the first class that the bar had broken. The girls still had fun, but it wasn't like last year. I feel bad wanting it to just be done and over with. I don't think we will be doing it next year, and I really think that Charlie is done too. It was good though, the girls learned the basics. I will be signing them up for gymnastics at a rec center when the next session starts.
The end of June consisted of play dates, eye appointments, a birthday party for one of Kenzie's friends from school, and a drive in movie. The birthday party was at Classic Skating, and water slide. We went as a family, but when Kenzie saw her friends she went off with them. We just did the water slides, and not the skating this time. We were going to the drive in after with our friends the Ethington's. Matt was only able to do the water slides for a little bit. Maddie had fun on them for the first little bit, and then she was just content to play in the dinky 1 ft. deep kiddie pool. Matt watched her, and I went and had fun on my own. It was nice! Classic water slides aren't the greatest or the funnest, but they did the trick.
We left the party early, so we could grab a bite to eat, and then meet up with our friends and head to the movie. I love that drive in movie theaters have a double feature. We were going to see Brave, and The Avengers. Matt and I had already seen The Avengers. Kenzie really wanted to see it. We told her she could if she could stay awake. She was all excited! The girls were really awake through Brave, and loved it. Matt and I loved it too. When the Avengers came on, our friends little girls were really grumpy, and wouldn't stop whining, so they ended up leaving. Maddie was tired, and she fell asleep right away. As excited as Kenzie was she only lasted for the first half hour, and then she was out. 2 really good movies, glad we were able to see them on the big screen!
The first 2 weeks in July were pretty low key. July 7th was the funeral for Aaron Beesley, the state trooper who died. We weren't able to celebrate the 4th of July as a family on the 4th because Matt had to work. My Mom wanted to do something with the girls and I. We decided to go swimming at the pool by her house. It was a nice day, but a little windy. The pool was extremely crowded. We were luck to find a spot to put our stuff. We swam for about an hour and a half. The girls were frozen by the end, and ready to go. Kenzie was able to go down the big water slide by herself, and she was super excited that she was able to do that! After swimming we went to my Mom's and hung out. Matt came for dinner, and then he had to go to work.
The girls and I also went and hung out with Jason and Rachael and their kids. The kids swam in the little pool, and ran through the sprinklers. Rachael was weeding her garden. She wouldn't let me help, so I just talked to her as she did it. When Jason got home from work we all thought it would be fun to go to the Riverdale splash pad. We decided to go and get food to bring with us. The adults got Mexican a Betos or rancheritos. I got a super yummy burrito. The kids just had the $5 pizza from little ceasars. When we got to the splash pad the water had barely been turned it off for the night. Bummer! Oh well we decided to go find a pavilion and eat our dinner. The kids still played on the wet splash pad for awhile, and then went and played on the toys at the park. When it started to get dark we went back to Jason and Rachael's to light off fireworks. The neighbor across the street provided most of them. Jason bought a few. The kids had a blast with the sparklers, and the adults had a blast with the adult snappers. It was a fun day!
Since Matt wasn't able to celebrate any of the activities during the week of the 4th, we decided that we were going to celebrate it on Sunday the 8th at my Mom's house. Quinn was going to be there as well. We had a nice bar-b-q. We weren't able to light off fireworks because of the law. You can only light off fireworks for 3 days before, and for 3 days after the 4th, and the 24th of July. Matt and Quinn were a little bummed. It would be okay though. We would save the fireworks for the 24th.
The next week was our busiest week in July. July 15-19, we had Emilie, and Clara stay over. Rachael was called into the Young Woman presidency and was needed at girls camp. Jason had to be able to go to work. It would work better to have the girls spend the nights here as well, rather than have Jason come and pick them up each night. All of the girls were super excited. It was one big party for 4days. One of the days we went swimming with the activity days girls for their activity. I was really nervous going with 4 girls all on my own. I had no reason to be so nervous. The girls were safe, followed directions, and played super well with everyone. We swam for almost 3 hrs. The pool wasn't crowded, it was a hot day, with hardly any wind. It was perfect, and we had a blast! On another day we played bunco. Kenzie really wanted to play it with the girls so I taught them how to do it. They had fun!
That night I had agreed to watch Alice and livvy so that Dan and Becca could go to one of their foster care classes. 6 little girls is a lot of drama. They all got along well for the most part. They played outside for the first 3 hrs., and then they came in and started a movie. It was pretty late when Dan came and picked the girls up. I was happy that night was over. I was exhausted!
Thursday was Emilie, and Clar's last day with us. I had scheduled a play date with my friend Allison and her daughter Peyton as well. I went to Subway and got sandwiches for lunch, and the girls jumped on the trampoline with the sprinkler underneath it. I wasn't expecting Rachael until that evening, which is why I scheduled the play date for that day. I was surprised when I got her call at around 1 telling me she was on her way. I'm glad she was able to come when she did, so she could meet Allison. We had a fun time talking for the next 3 hrs. Matt even talked with us for most of it. Then it was time for everyone to go. The girls were sad to have their cousins go.
Friday July 20 we had a bar-b-q to look forward to that night with our group SLLEEJ (Spiker, Layton, Lulu, Edstrom, Ethington, Jones) It was going to be at the Edstom's this month at 6 p.m. The day started out with nothing. Around lunch time I got a text from another friend that wanted to have a play date. I didn't get the text right away so when I messaged her saying that we could for a little while. She said she would come after her kids had a nap. Then our doorbell rang. I opened the door to a lady that I didn't know. She worked for Kirby vacuum's. They were doing free carpet cleaning. Well it was 1 room, or the stairs in your house for free. I told them they could come back. The lady came back with a man about a half hr. later.
I didn't know what I was getting myself into. I had never let a Kirby salesman into my home before. I won't ever make that mistake again. The guy was in our home for 3 hrs. He showed us everything that the kirby would do. It was interesting, but irritating because the guy kept saying that he wasn't trying to sale us a kirby. We kept telling him that it wasn't in our budget to be able to buy one at this time. Near the end I was getting anxious because I still needed to prepare for for the Bar-b-q. I finally told him that we were going to be late for a get together with some friends. He had to make a call to his boss, and of course try to get a lower price on the kirby to try and sell it to us. We told him no! While he cleaned up, I ran to the store. I bought a salad mix, and ice cream sandwiches. When I got back he was just leaving. I will never let a Kirby salesman into my home again. Good product, but way too expensive. Not willing to pay close to $3000 for a Vacuum at this time, even though I was thoroughly disgusted with what was in our carpets, and mattress. Maybe in the future.
It was 6:30 by the time we made it to the bar-b-q. The kids had a lot of fun playing with each other. Lot's of funny conversation going on between the adults. Got to know some of our friends better. It was awesome! The low point of the night was when Kenzie threw up because she drank too much kool aid, and ate too many cheetos. I found her lying down on one of our camp stools. I asked her what was wrong. She said her tummy hurt. I knew the look on her face and knew that we needed to find a toilet quick. We made it half way across the back yard when she started to throw up. I should have just kept her in one spot, and let her get it all out there. No I kept moving her, so she threw up in 3 different areas. Not fun. Kenzie did feel better after throwing up though. I have to warn her every time she eats at these functions not to overdue it on the junk that is there. She throws up every single time. You think that she would learn by now to be careful. I understand though, how hard it is to stay away from food and treats that taste so darn yummy.
July 21st I was able to catch up on cleaning my house, and taking care of yard stuff before heading over to my mom's. Sarah and the kids were visiting from New Mexico. Chris would be flying in a week after they got here. Kenzie and Maddie were happy to see there cousins. They wish well we all wish they lived closer. Anyways so we just chilled that night. Sunday I had to teach primary. My Mom, Sarah, and the kids came to Sacrament meeting with us, then left. After church we went back to my Mom's house. Sarah wanted to go somewhere and take pictures of the kids. She had made cute matching skirts for all of the girls to wear. We ended up going to the International Peace Gardens in Salt Lake. It was a pretty, but kind of run down. Back in it's day i'm sure it was beautiful. Sarah took some really cute pictures. I'm so glad she is camera happy, she does such a good job as photographer!
We were at the peace gardens for a couple of hrs. It was time to head back to my Mom's and get dinner ready. We were going to light fireworks that night. Quinn and Matt met us at my Mom's. After dinner we decided to watch a movie, then it would be dark enough to light fireworks. During the movie a big storm blew in. We weren't sure if we would be able to do fireworks. We were bound and determined to do them. This was our only opportunity to do it until next year. We had some pretty expensive fireworks, and I didn't want them sitting around till next year. We sat in my Mom's garage, and Quinn and Matt lit the fireworks. It was sprinkling most of the time. It was windy. Just when we were about done the rain picked up. We only had a few dinky fireworks left. They could wait until next year.
The 23rd My Mom took us to see ice age 4. Super cute, but not my favorite of the series. Fun being with family though. Came back lounged around my mom's and visited. The 24th we went and got ice cream at cold stone, and then Sarah and the kids had to leave. Her side of the family were having a reunion that week. We would see them all including Chris on August 1st.
July 25th-31st we did nothing. It was nice! It gave me time to really think about what I wanted to do school wise for Kenzie and Maddie. I was having major anxiety about where to send them. Endeavor Hall the charter school Kenzie had been going to was just too far away. I wasn't sure about the teachers at Lakeridge Elementary the school just down the street from us, and also the school I cross at. I thought about homeschooling them too. I was just so unsure about everything. I weighed all of the pros and cons, and thought about what would be best for me. I didn't want my kids so far, I couldn't handle going back and forth each day. That ruled out Endeavor Hall. I didn't want them home with me all day either. I need breaks from my kiddos. That ruled out the virtual K-12 homeschooling. I had heard the teachers in the younger grades were wonderful. I finally made my decision to take Kenzie and Maddie out of Endeavor, and go enroll them back into public school.
August 1st I went to Lakeridge Elementary and enrolled them. I prayed that they would get good teachers. While I was enrolling them one of the first grade teachers walked in. Mrs. Fisher, she is the best of the first grade teachers from what I had heard. She talked with us, and she told the secretary to put Madisynn in her class. I said a silent thank you in my head. Mrs. Fisher told us to come down to her room after getting the girls enrolled, so Maddie could see where it was. Kenzie got put into Ms. Johanson's 3rd grade class. I had never heard of her, so I wasn't sure about it. After enrolling the girls we walked down to see Mrs. Fisher's classroom, and talk with her for a bit. She told me that Ms. Johanson was a really good teacher, so that eased my mind a little.
I went home and sent texts to my friends that were still having their kids go to Endeavor Hall telling them what I had done. They all supported my decision, and didn't make me feel bad about it at all. Jacoy asked me what teachers the girls got, and so I told her. She said that they both got the best teachers in each of their grades. I trust Jacoy, so now my heart and my mind were eased even more. I felt like I was doing the right thing. I felt like I was going to be able to handle having the girls do extracurricular activities.
Later that night we went to my mom's house. Chris and Sarah, and kiddos would be there. The rest of the week was going to be super busy and fun. Thursday August 2, was Matt and I's 10 year wedding anniversary. We were going to celebrate it the following week since family was in town, and Matt had to work it anyways. That day we went hiking up near Sandy to Rocky Mouth Falls. It was a short hike, and a dinky waterfall.
After that hike we decided to drive up more through Little Cottonwood Canyon and to find a spot to eat our lunch. We found an area, and after eating let the kids through rocks into the river. We asked the kids what they wanted to do. Go home, or go for another hike. I thought for sure my girls would say go home. They surprised me and said hike. Chris and Sarah's kids wanted to go back to Grandmas house. Chris really wasn't ready to go back home yet, so we decided to see how much further up the canyon we could drive, and go for another hike. We hiked to Secret Lake, and it was beautiful. The hike was a harder hike than the waterfall hike we had gone on earlier. It was nice to be away from the city, and be in the outdoors.
August 3rd we decided to go to Lagoon, an amusement park. I wasn't really looking forward to it as much as the kids. I made sure we all had taken some dramamine for motion sickness. We got there when it opened at 10. We brought our lunch in coolers to bring in later in the day. Quinn and Matt were going to meet us in the afternoon sometime. The lines for the rides were pretty decent, but it was just so dang hot. When Matt and Quinn showed up around 2 the kids were starting to say they were hungry. We told them that we would eat at 3. I feel so bad because I forgot to leave Matt some dramamine at home to take before coming. I didn't think anything about it because I thought we would be eating lunch when Quinn and Matt got there. Matt went on the tidal wave, and the swings. Then we all decided to go on the scrambler, and that made him super nauseous. He had to find the bathroom, and a drinking fountain.
While he did that we went on the tilt a wirl. When he found us afterwards everyone else had decided that they wanted to go on the Samurai, a ride that has a lot of spinning and upside down moments. He didn't want to go on it so he took Maddie, and went with Sarah and trace to go on another ride. I"m glad he didn't go on the Samurai, and I wish that I hadn't either. I think Kenzie felt the same way. It wasn't fun at all, it hurt. When we got off we found sarah, they were at the bathroom again. She said that her and Matt had taken trace and maddie on the flying aces. She said that Matt about lost it on the ride, and she almost did as well.
That made me feel even more bad that I didn't leave the medicine for him to take to let it settle in time so he could enjoy the rides. We decided to do 1 last ride before eating. We went on the skyscraper, the big ferris wheel because Maddie really wanted to. After we went and got the coolers from the cars, and found the pavillion that was reserved for the Sunset Stake. We devoured our food, and took a little rest. Then we decided to go ride rattle snake rapids. We needed to get wet so it would wake us up, and cool us down. It worked for like 5 minutes. After that we decided to go and do some of the coasters. Sarah said that she would take Maddie and Trace. Sarah is so sweet! First we went on the spider, then we went on wicked, and then we went on the colossus.
By the time we were done Matt and my Mom had had enough. My Mom was so tired, and wasn't feeling well. Matt said he needed to get back home so he could be rested for work that night. He also was hurting. They were ready to leave. Matt was going to drive my Mom home. Matt and I left the girls with Chris and Sarah, and Quinn so we could go back to the pavillion and grab food for Matt to take to work. My Mom waited on a bench near the entrance. I could have left with Matt and my mom. My feet were killing me, I was hot, and tired.
After saying goodbye to Matt and my Mom, I went back into the park to meet up with everyone else again. Sarah's parents were there. They took Trace, and Maddie for about an hour. That was super nice of them! We got to go on a few more of the bigger rides because of them. Afterwards Quinn wanted to do the Catapult. The ride costs $15. Quinn had about3 or 4 people ahead of him. I sat with Maddie and Trace so the others could go on another ride, and make it back in time to see Quinn be catapulted into the air. He said it was incredible! I don't know if I could do it. Maybe someday.
After the Catapult the other's wanted to go on the rocket. Kenzie and McKell were all set to do it, but then chickened out when they got in line. So it was just Sarah, Gabe, and Quinn who went on it. Chris and I took the rest of them onto the flying aces. Afterwards Chris went with the older kids,and Sarah, and I took the younger kids on some rides. When we met up with Chris again, Kenzie wasn't wanting to go on the rides they were going on. She just sat and watched. I think that she had hit a wall. She was exhausted, and hungry. Her feet hurt too. We decided to ride the sky ride back across the park, and then walk to our pavillion to get our stuff. By then almost all of the rides would be closed.
What a super long tiring fun day. More fun for the kiddos that's for sure. My feet had swelled up again like I was pregnant. So weird. The girls fell asleep right after we drove out of the parking lot. Lagoon is only a once a year activity, that's about all I can handle. It was great to go with family though!
Saturday August 4th we went to Jordanelle Reservoir. This year it was my turn to take care of any reservations. I reserved us a pavillion that was close to the marina, and close to the bathrooms. I think I did a pretty good job. I also reserved 1 wave runner for 8 hrs. Those things aren't cheap! $300 for 8 hours per wave runner. When I went to go fill out paper work for it I felt like I was signing my life away. I was so worried about all that could happen with a wave runner, that it was hard for me to enjoy and have fun the first time out with the girls.
I eventually calmed down, and had a blast going out with my girls, and my nephew Gabe, and niece McKell. I felt like I actually built somewhat of a bond with Gabe, and McKell. We caught some air on a few waves. Gabe actually bumped his lip on the handle bars, and bled. I had no idea that he was bleeding until we got to the no wake zone. Nothing to worry about thank goodness! It was just dried blood. Kenzie wasn't a huge fan of the wave runner, but Maddie was. Kenzie was content to just swim, and float on the tubes.
It was very relaxing to be away from the world. I wish that Matt could have come, but he was hurting pretty bad from the day before at lagoon. Jordanelle wasn't anywhere near as good of a place to swim, ride wave runners, relax, and play on the beach as Bear Lake is. We all had a lot of fun in the sun, and were definitely ready to leave. I'm so glad that we were able to spend so much time with Chris and his family. It was hard to say goodbye that night after the beach. They were heading home early the next morning. I will miss all of them.
August 11th was a busy day. I had my annual crossing guard training meeting to go to. That went form 9 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. After the meeting Matt and the girls came and picked me up to go to Ogden. We were meeting up with Jason and Rachael, and Josh and Brenda and their families at the Tree house. We spent a couple of hours letting the kids play, and have fun. They had a blast! After the tree house we all went to go and visit Grandpa and Grandma Pierce who are serving a mission for the LDS Church. The mission they are serving is the construction for the Ogden Temple. It's a 3 year mission. They have been serving now for a year and a half. They wanted us to come see a presentation of the work that has been done. It was really neat to see the work that has been done, and the work that still needs to be done. So glad we were able to visit with them!
After the presentation Matt and I were going to head off to celebrate our 10 year wedding anniversary. Jason and Rachael were keeping our girls until Monday night. We went and ate at the Prairie Schooner in Odgen. It was a fun experience, we got to eat in a dimly lit covered wagon. The french dip sandwich, and fries were good, but I wasn't able to really enjoy it so much because I had a soar throat, a cough, and a headache. After eating we headed back home because Matt had to work that night. We watched a few episodes of numbers until he had to leave.
The next morning I went to church. After church, and when Matt woke up we went and rented some red box movies came home, and watched a couple more episodes of numbers. Then we left to go spend the night at the anniversary inn a bed and breakfast in Salt Lake City. We went and picked up some Panda Express on the way. The room Matt reserved was the Cape Cod room. It was a neat room, but not as good as the last room we reserved. It was smaller, and the tub wasn't as big. The jets didn't work too well either. The shower was a waterfall shower, that was really neat! The bed was inside of a light house, also really cool! It was so nice to get away together away from our kids, and relax.
The next day after checking out we went and walked around the new City Creek Mall in Downtown Salt Lake. Ate pizza for lunch, and then we went and saw the Bourne Legacy. The movie was really good, but not as good as the others in the series. After the movie we stopped at Arby's for dinner. Then it was time to go and pick up the girls. So glad that Matt and I were able to enjoy each other for a weekend. It was nice to not be bombarded with kids. I missed the girls, but it was just nice to have a break from them. Thanks Rachael and Jason for helping us out!
August 16th the girls and I went to the zoo with Becca, Alice, and Livvy. We met up with Terri, and her kids. Becca had a pass to get herself and 2 other adult guests, and 12 kids in for free. Awesome deal! I'm not the biggest fan of the Hoagle Zoo. In my opinion the zoo had really gone downhill. knowing that there was a couple of new exhibits helped knowing that it wouldn't be a bad experience. The new exhibit were the seat otters, seals, sea lions, and the polar bear. Couldn't really see the see otters, but got a great look at the seals, sea lions, and the polar bear. It was amazing to watch them, and made our day to see them!
After the zoo, and eating dinner, I had to get outside to do a lot of yard work for the neighborhood cleanup. I needed to get a bunch of weeds, dirt, gravel, and other junk from our garage into the huge garbage bins. I emptied piles of dirt mixed with poky weeds bucket full after bucket full. I worked from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. In the morning I emptied gravel bucket full by bucket full for almost 2 hours until the garbage cans were covered and loaded onto trucks. I got so much work done. So nice to have a nice looking yard again!
August 17th Maddie had an eye appointment in Ogden. Good news her eyes are getting better! Slowly, but surely. That night we had a bar-b-q with our Slleej group. It was at the Ethington's this time. Wonderful food, and conversation. The kids had a blast! Our next Slleej group get together dinner at our house, and then having babysitters come for the kids. The adults will go over to the Ethington's to watch The Hunger Games on their projector screen. It will be fun!
August 25th the girls and I went hiking with my Mom up to Bells Canyon. It was a moderate level hike, and it did get the heart pumping. We hiked up to the reservoir, and let the girls throw rocks into it for about 15 minutes or so. It was nice to be able to talk with my Mom away from the cares of the world. We were going to hike up to the waterfall, but we weren't sure how much further it was. We just knew that it got steeper. My Mom was really tired, and wasn't sure if she could handle it. We decided to go back to the car, and drive up the canyon more to see if there was another easy hike to do up by the ski resort. My Mom heard that there was some easy hikes to do. We couldn't find what we were looking for though, and decided to just head back home. It was a nice drive.
Later that evening we had a family reunion with Matt's side of the family. The reunion was at his Aunt Thailene, and Uncle Steve's house. It was nice to see everyone. I wasn't really in the mood to go around talking to everyone. I really hope that I didn't come off snooty. The food was good. The kids had fun playing. Matt played some horse shoes with his brother Josh. While he was playing Nicholas came walking up behind him, and Matt swung his arm back to throw the horse shoe and bonked Nicholas in the head. Nicholas didn't even cry, and said I go sit down on the grass now. We didn't even know he got hurt until he came walking over to us, and we saw the bump on his forehead. Poor kid! Matt had to work that night, so we had to leave early.
On August 29th my Sister and her family came to visit from Washington State. They were going to be here for a week! They were coming to get more of their belongings, since they now have a house that they are renting. It was so good to see them, I can't believe how big her kids are! Kaleb just turned 15, Dalice is 13, Jack is 11, Sam is 8, Ruby is 5, Sophie is 3. My Sister is amazing! September 1st we had a Kotter side of the family get together in Logan. We all drove down together and spent the day at the park. It was good to see my cousins, Aunts, Uncles, and Grandma. The weather was perfect for most of the day, and then it started to get stormy. We spent the remainder of the time under the pavilion talking and eating until it was time to go.
Photo shoot at the International Peace Gardens: Pictures by Sarah Kotter
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| McKell, McKenzie, Madisynn |
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| Trace, Madisynn, McKenzie, McKell, Gabe |
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| McKell, Madisynn, McKenzie |
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| Gabe & Trace |
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| All of the kiddos with Grandma Kotter |
Photo shoot at Grandma Kotter's:
Fireworks at Grandma Kotter's:
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| Quinn |
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| Matt |
Rocky Mouth Falls, River break, and Secret Lake:
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| Karen |
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| Chris |
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| Sarah |
Jordanelle:
Videos from the hikes, and Jordanelle:
Some pictures that Matt took:
Maddie at the International Peace Gardens:
Justin, Kate, Sophie, Kaleb, Grandma Alice, Sam, McKenzie, Jack, Ruby, Madisynn, Dalice, Karen at Temple Square:
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Justin, Kate, Sophie, Kaleb, Grandma Alice, Sam, McKenzie, Jack, Ruby, Madisynn, Dalice, Matt at Temple Square:
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