Summer Fun

Thanks to William (as mentioned in our chronicles), we got to go to a special Dream Night at Hogle Zoo. Trent, Cally, Connor & Leah came along with us.

We had fun watching a Pachederm show and seeing all of the other animals, such as bears, giraffes, rhinos, a cougar, and this bengal tiger.

The sunset at the zoo as we were leaving was beautiful.

But the sun certainly did not set on our summer fun!

Jonathan's 1st birthday was on July 2. He had a nice bath (when his Dad thought it would be a good time to take some pictures of him in his "birthday suit" for blackmailing purposes later on.)

Then we all went up into American Fork Canyon for a Bateman Family campout. Jonathan opened some presents and ...

... patiently waited for his dutch oven birthday cake.

We had a lot of fun in the canyon with family. 'Becca doesn't often get to see all of her siblings together at one time.

William enjoyed spending quality time with his Aunt Katie.

We celebrated "the 4th" with an extended family luncheon in the lodge there at Mutual Dell.

The next day, we all broke camp and met for Bateman Family photos at the Provo Library

(the beautifully-restored BYU Academy building.)

From there, David, 'Becca, William & Jonathan headed down to Delta for David's 30-year high school reunion.

Jonathan is meeting David's high school classmate (and BYU roommate) Garth Jones and his wife Patty.

We had fun hanging out as much as we could this summer with 'Becca's parents before they left on their mission to Panama City at the end of July.

Mom and Dad Bateman with all of their little grandkids the night before they flew to Panama.

We got to spend some fun time up in Bountiful with the Blacks twice this summer;

once for a swimming party and once to celebrate the upcoming marriage of Alissa and Mike.

Gayla helping William make some baskets.

The boys also had fun doing other things this summer, like ...

Going for rides in their red wagon,

Playing with Daddy,

Sitting in the occasional random box.

Gayla took William and Jonathan with her for almost two whole days of fun (it was fun for the boys at least!) so that David and 'Becca could go down to the Utah Shakespearean Festival in Cedar City.

They met up with Scott and Sarah Bateman, who celebrate their anniversary there every year, and saw Cyrano de Bergerac and Shakespeare's The Two Gentlemen of Verona.

David trying on hats at the Festival.

'Becca enjoyed receiving visits from dear friends this summer: Becky White, Susie Record, Nicole Navarro (who she hadn't seen for 3 years) ...

She was even treated to a surprise late-summer-night visit from the Julien sisters all the way from Florida! (Maryse Julien, who just returned from serving a mission in Georgia and Christine Johnson with her darling new baby girl Christina Kay.)

'Becca loved catching up with everyone (and getting to hold the baby!)

'Becca has also loved getting in-touch with old friends through facebook (an online networking tool she discovered this summer.)

David's been taking some scenic photos for a project he's working on.

He especially enjoyed driving the Mt. Nebo Loop and capturing some of its beauty on camera.

Larissa had a very fun, full, busy summer.

Her senior year is "out of this world" so far.

Larissa is the yearbook editor

and her school's publicity manager.

She is good with a camera

and her new laptop computer.

She is already getting good reviews on the articles she has written for her school paper.

She'll be performing in Bye Bye Birdie with her friends later this year.

Jordan is enjoying sharing a new home with his friends in the Sugarhouse area of SLC. He is also glad to be taking classes that are all in his major: Film Production.