Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Montana!!

A few weeks ago Tyson and I were able to go up to Utah and Montana so that Tyson could meet some of his great-grandparents. It was so much fun!!Here is Lana with her second son Dallin (who is so cute!) and me with Tyson. She has been my best friend for over 12 years and I am so grateful for her! Hopefully we will get to live by each other again! I love you Lana!!
The trip started out when we flew into Utah. Aunt Patty picked us up and we got to see James and Jillian and hear about their first years at BYU. It was great to see them again. Then they took us to Grandma Sumsions. She is one of my favorite people in the whole world! Tyson and she got along splendidly!
Grandma was up and down reading books, picking up Tyson, going on walks and everything! It was so kind of her to let us stay at her house! We love her so much! Thank you Grandma!! After staying the night with Grandma, Aunt Laurie came and took us to lunch. It was so wonderful to see her and hear how she is doing. She had come up to see Tyson when he was a new-born and there was a definite bond still there. Laurie had stayed up all night for several nights with him back then. Thank you Laurs!! Unfortunately we never caught a picture so we will have to get those two together again!! We love you Laurs!!
Next we got to see my grandparents. It was so wonderful to see them again! They are such great examples of living the gospel and trusting in the Lord. I was able to have a great talk with my grandma and both Grandma and Grandpa were so good to play with Tyson. I also got to see my cousin Linda and it was so much fun to talk about old times and see how smart her little boy is now! I was so impressed!
Tyson was so comfortable in Grandma's arms. I couldn't help but take this picture!

While in Utah, I also got to see Dan and Katie! I was blown away by their hospitality and love. More and more I realize how blessed I am to have association with such wonderful people. Thank you so much for your love and help with everything!! Dan picked me up from my old roommate Kathryn's house. It was so fun to see Kathryn again! Although much has changed since we roomed together nearly five years ago, my opinion of her has not changed. I still think she is the most perfect person I know. She is so full of love for everyone. Thank you Kathryn!
Next I got to visit another old roommate, Chelsy Ann! She always had the best insights. She just got back from her mission to Liberty Jail and it was so good to see her again! While at her place, Tyson sat up on his own for the very first time and it was so cool! During this trip, we also got to see Jamie, one of my last roommates before marrying Christian. She was so kind to me even though I was always gone. I look up to her so much and she just got back from her mission to Spain.
Lastly, I got to go to Park City with my dad. It was fun to see where he lives and watch as he played the guitar for Tyson. We bought Tyson a fun "Going to the Dentist" book and were just able to catch up. It was so good to see you again. I love you Dad!

Finally, I got to spend some quality time with Ben. I am so grateful for him! Ben got back from his mission to Canada in December and I haven't seen him much since then (since I'm in Texas and he's going to school in Utah). I was astounded that he was willing to drive all through the night and clear to Montana on Friday just to turn around on
Monday to drive home. What a selfless brother I have! Thank you Ben! I love you!! Here we are at the Rusty Yoke, or something like that. It was a cool lunch place in Helena where we stopped for lunch during Tenille's tennis match! Tenille did so great in her match! She smashed the competition 6-0, 6-0. What a superstar! While in Montana, Mom and I drove to Great Falls to visit my oldest sister, Laura and her family. It was so fun to see them! Laura has always been such a good example to me and it was cool to have Tyson and Eli get some quality time together! Tyson was so excited when he first met Eli that he could hardly contain himself! He would let out squeals of joy and just reach out to grab him. Eli wasn't quite sure what to think of this, but it was so cute to watch them interact! We are going to have to live close again someday! I love you Laura!! Finally, here is my mom holding Tyson in beautiful Montana. If you look closely, you can see the elk in the background. It was so much fun to be in Montana. While there we also got to spend time with Mom and Dad Francis and Tyson loved having his grandma read stories to him on the couch. We also got to meet my mom's fiance, Andre, while there. Overall it was an amazing trip. I am so grateful for my mom and her kindness towards me. Thank you for helping me fly out and spending so much time with me! I love you Mom!!

7 comments:

Ann-Marie said...

Just reading about all the things you crammed into your vacation makes me tired! Fun, fun, fun!

texansusan said...

What great pics! It looks like you had a great vacation. It makes me want to go on one. :) Tyson looks so happy to be there.

The Elledges said...

Man. Tyson and Dallin had fun. I need to move to San Antonio. We'll have to start looking for jobs at dental mills there!

Michael and Kyndra said...

Shannon, Tyson is adorable! How old is he now?

Kathryn said...

I can't get over how cute Tyson is! It was so great to see you. Now, I need to come to Texas to visit you! :)

Maegan said...

Tyson has gotten so big! I don't think I've seen him at all this semester since Christian and I aren't in Gross Anatomy together anymore. He is adorable!! Christian e-mail Lauren and I and told us you had updated your blog, so now you have to keep it up so we can see how big he's getting. I hope you guys are having a great summer!

Adespain said...

what a vacation!! It looked like tons of fun! Not to mention exhausting. And your hair has gotten so long! It looks good!