August Acclamation

 A lot got accomplished this month. The Olympics came to a close with USA taking home a total of 125 medals!

                                                       

The United States led the final medal count for the fourth consecutive Summer Games, with 40 gold and 126 total medals, while China finished second with 40 gold and 91 medals in total. The occasion marked the first time a gold medal tie among the two most successful nations has occurred in Summer Olympics history.^[

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — Happy Tuesday, Utah! Active weather has returned Tuesday afternoon bringing thunderstorms, lightning, hail, and powerful winds to parts of Utah.

We had some pretty strong winds, rain, and even hail for a bit in our area. Pretty crazy for mid August, but we need the rain!

Some Utahans also had a chance to see the Perseid Meteor Shower which was also tied in with a glimpse of the Northern Lights.

 We tried to see this amazing sight, but our area was too overcast. The pictures here are taken in other parts of the state. Still pretty cool.

Dale and I went to Jamacia to honor our marriage of 43 years. We took a red-eye flight and arrived in Jamacia in the evening the next day. We had a layover in New York and then Fort Lauderdale, Florida where we ended up being the only white couple on the flight to Jamacia, other than some of the crew members. I sat by a nice lady that was from Jamacia and she told us that while we were going to be there Jamacia would be celebrating their Emancipation Day  which started at the first of the month and also their Independence Day which marks the abolition of slavery in Jamaica, which falls on August 6th, commemorating the day Jamaica gained independence from the United Kingdom.

At the airport in Jamacia we had to go through customs and again we were in the minority, but the people were very friendly. On our ride to our resort we saw a LOT of people out walking along the streets celebrating and almost hit a guy that was standing in the street! We were told by our friend on the airplane that it would be best for us to just stay on the resort because of all of the celebrating that would be going on. It goes on all night long.

We got to the Sandals Resort in Jamacia where we'll bw staying and got settled in our room at around 1:2.00am our time, 1:00am their time the day after we left. It was a long flight

Where we got in later at night (or early morning), after we got our rest we headed out to explore the Sandals Negril Beach Resort. It was clean, nice, and the beach was very inviting. We went kayaking, in the ocean, went to shows each night, walked the beach, took in the sun, went on a snorkeling adventure, and tried twice to learn how to parasail, but the weather didn't cooperate for us both times.

Around the resort

Snorkeling, and hoping to go parasailing

We saw a couple of weddings preformed on the beach and saw different entertainment each night.

We only stayed 3 days in Jamacia and stayed on the resort. Where we came in late and left early we didn't get to see much of the town. This is some of what we saw on our ride to the airport. at 4:00am. 

We put our trailer up for sale and when we got home we got some calls about it, showed it 3 times and sold the trailer after 2 weeks of having it listed. I hope our new one treats us as well as that one did. 

These are the best pictures I got because I forgot to take any when we were using it.

Dale and I broke the new trailer in by taking it to Sun Outdoors at Bear Lake to spend some time with our friends, Mike and Kathy Bullen. They pulled their boat over to the lake behind their RV and spent the weekend with us. 

We spent a day out on the water, which was nice and relaxing and we played card games and went to see Pickleville Playhouses show of "Newsies". It was a nice relaxing weekend and the trailer worked out nice.

My brother, Kim, and his kids pulled together the Petersen Reunion. They held it at a place called "The Hide -a- way, in Cove, UT that had a water slide, zip line, swings, a pond for kayaking and zip lining as well. It also had a pavilion with tables for eating and some shade. We all had a fun time. Thanks Kim, Kathy, Sandy, Heather, and Holly for helping to pull this event off! It was good to get together with my extended family again.

Dale and I were able to help USU students prepare, and tie plastic grocery bags for the CVHC up on the USU campus as part of their welcome for the new freshmen that were going to USU. 

We pulled the trailer through Logan Canyon and again got it set up for a stay at Sun Outdoors. The Mallory's joined us on the last day of the month and were able to see a firework show that was put on at Ideal Beach. It was quite the show again. We were glad we stayed up to see it. 

The Doctor in the family got to get out of the office a bit this month. 

To celebrate Nate's birthday they hit the trails--by doing the Volcanic 50K Run. At 42 he's still got it!! Happy Birthday Nate!!

They also did the Cascade Summit --

Those two definitely know how to make the most out of a good weekend.

Elder Mallory left Provo, UT and headed to Mexico. The family got up early and got to see him off at the airport. We wish this Elder the best. Adios Amigos!!

Mazin's had quite a month, he played in a soccer tournament and medaled and also in a 3v3 Basketball tournament and his team took 1st place. I bet he sleeps pretty sound at night with all he's doing.

Kennlyn's been playing indoor soccer and Amie's been coaching the team, but their goalie got injured, so Amie's been playing goalie. We got to watch both of mom and daughter play together. They did pretty good too! 

School started for all the kids, including Matt who works at a school and Jaxson because he arrived in Mexico for the start of his mission. They'll all be learning new things. Amie's learning more in her new job too.

Kennlyn also celebrated her 16th birthday. She is now an official driver!! Dale and I took her to dinner at Laan Thai and we all enjoyed a tasty meal. We also gave her a card with some money, because we all know how those teenagers love money. Happy Birthday Kennlyn!!

Andrew and Lindsay got into the Olympic spirit at their restaurant, Stonefire Pizzeria, by hosting a night where people could buy an all you can eat Pizza buffet and watch our local Olympian, Conner Mantz, from Smithfield, run the marathon live on TV's they put around in the restaurant. Where it was live, it was held from 10::00pm -12:00am. They had a great turnout too. 

The best part was even though Conner didn't medal, he took 9th place, and had the best time any American has had in the marathon event at the Olympics. Pretty cool!! 

They pulled their trailer over to the KOA Campground at Bear Lake and spent some time in the sun, on the beach, fishing and spending time with family before school started.  They also took their boat out, before they sold it, for one last ride, ski trip, or boarding. All had a great time.

After all the fun the kids all started school. I loved seeing their "Back to School" pictures and how they've grown.

Titan also got his wisdom teeth pulled at the beginning of school. That's one way to miss a few days of school. 

Garrett's been training on his bike, running and swimming so that he could give  the East Canyon triathlon another try. This time with his buddies, Nic Winn & Austin Truman.

Zandra and the kids were his biggest cheerleaders and support. He finished and got a better time too! Way to go Garrett!

They also woke up one morning and instead of finding sheep eating the grass on their side yard, they saw turkeys in their field by the house. I guess we could say that their yard is a gathering place for humans and all creatures! 

School started for the kids and that meant PTSO went into full swing for Zandra. Go get em!!

The Hassell's made the most of the sunshine and warmer temps by getting out their boat as much as they could. The kids love being in the boat too. and Danica got her 360 down!

June's a swimmer and loves the water too.

Jason got them out on the golf course and Danica got them pulled together for a family picture. I'd say they've got their smiles down.

Locally, we had a chance to see one of the times a "Super Moon" was out, It was really bright outside, but so cool to see.

We also got this notice from the city.  I guess we better be better at putting on the mosquito repellent!!

 It's been a pretty good month for all, and that's my acclamation for the month.