Cousins' Retreat 2013

Our Cousins' Retreat 2013

Oh, what fun it was!  Since we don't see our cousins as often as we would like, I had an idea at the beginning of the summer to have a cousins' retreat:  a few days where cousins could create memories and bonds through positive experiences and good ole' fun!  

It was an enormous success!

On Monday, we met at our home and divided the cousins into boys and girls.  Melissa took the boys to the park in Alpine for four hours.  Included in their afternoon were all sorts of activities, sports, games and cooling off in the splash pad.

I took the 5 girls shopping to Gordmans and then to the new outlets.  It was so much fun!  The girls bought matching wallets, bought school clothes, treats at Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory and shoes.

Around 5:30pm, we met back at our home and started the mini pizzas.  Brendon showed off his skills in the kitchen!

 The girls dyed their hair with Kool-aide and the boys played with legos. 

 After dinner, we made popcorn, cotton candy and homemade ice cream for the movie on the deck.  What a hit!

 The next morning, we ate Ebelskivers, eggs and sausage for breakfast.  We had planned to on a hike, but Dave needed the suburban to pick up some more dry wall for the basement so we opted for an hour at the park instead.

 Next came the cousins' craft:  painting picture frames for our memories.  The kids loved the project and created the most unique frames.

 TIME FOR THE WATER SLIDE!  I rented a water slide for a few hours in the afternoon.  We had a BBQ and then played in the water.  The kids had a blast on the slide.

 The twins, Levi and Lydia, consumed our energies.  We love and adore them....and fight to hold them!  Here are Jessica and Jasmine with the babies.

 By the end of the retreat, we were exhausted!  Austin feel asleep on the couch.

I can honestly say the retreat was busy, exhausting and LOADED with fun!  We bounded together and enjoyed our time together.