The rest

... of that crazy long weddings/graduations/house hunting/everything trip all over the Mountain West.

But first, my favorite picture from that trip -- my favorite accessory:

Nothing beats a Jakey on your leg.

The trip started out with a flight from LAX to SLC. We spent the next few days house hunting, shopping for Nicole's wedding, going to Mike's wedding, and seeing Matt's family.

Mirrors are the best. And so is Uncle Anthony (Matt's Academy roommate who also came to Mike's wedding).

Dinner at Maddox with Matt's family. Yes, Jake is in the process of kicking his pants off.

We delayed our trip to Colorado because we were busy dying of the worst stomach flu ever. But, luckily, we made it to the Springs in time for all of Jordan's USAFA graduation events. Then it was back to Utah -- we only had 32 hours until Nicole and Jordan's open house!

We love those Hendrickses.

Matt's parents made it to Coley's open house.

Ali, Brian, Brody, and baby girl!

The next day was the big wedding. Afterward, I decided to be a nice sister and take my siblings on a late-night ice cream run. Note to self: Never take teenage brothers on a late-night anything-run. We were supposed to pick out one carton of ice cream. Instead, we came home with 3 cartons of ice cream, 2 bags of chips, 2 boxes of bagel bites, 1 thing of weird round chapstick, and whatever else those two added to the cart that totaled around $40. "Who is paying for this?," I'd ask every time something new was added to the mix. And then we'd all laugh because the answer was me. Of course. I'm so easily persuaded at 2 a.m.

Oh, Walmart.

Matt had to head home to California after the wedding because, unfortunately, the Air Force doesn't believe in month-long vacations (ha). Jake and I stayed behind to help with the wedding aftermath, take groomals for the little lovebirds, and spend time with family. I got to attend cousin parties for both my dad's and mom's sides, which was such a fun treat.

The view from my Uncle Brian's cabin at Sundance.

Graf cousins and Grandpa Graf.

BBQ with the Smith cousins, overlooking Utah Lake.

Girlies with our Grandma Smith.

Smith grandkids with our grandparents

Jake accidentally had his first ice cream cone on Memorial Day. He reached out and snatched Heidi's cone from her and then cried when we tried to take it away. It appears we have a shared interest in that cold, creamy goodness.

I met up with Matt's mom and sister Monica for lunch at the Lion House in Salt Lake. Always so yummy!

Jake and his little cousin Samuel get along quite well.

The most important reason for Jake and my extended stay was Christian's high school graduation. Kiken actually did what Coley and I did and earned his associate's degree while he was in high school. Having a college diploma in April makes that May high school diploma feel a little less significant, but hey, we're all glad he graduated high school, too. The after party was at Tucano's in the Riverwoods, where Kiken helped Jake navigate around the splash pad. Jakey loved it. 

At last, Jake and I flew home to Matt. Flying alone with all of our stuff was slightly ridiculous since we didn't exactly pack light for such a long trip. I had two crazy-heavy rolling bags, a duffle bag and a diaper bag in my hands, a ginormous car seat backpack strapped to my back, and my sweet baby in a Bjorn in front. It was quite the adventure! Luckily Jake is an awesome traveler, which made my job about a thousand times easier. Still, we were pretty relieved and super excited to see that Matt and just be home in California.