The Photo Shoot

Really, all I wanted was a nice family picture that

we could use on our Christmas card. Since Peter is

too busy with work and school to make it home, the

rest of us took a road trip to Logan for the "Photo Shoot"

Not really what I had in mind . . .

Nic looking a little too "suavae" for the rest of us

(is that even a word?)

Yes, Peter you are related as painful as that seems!

A little too "Forrest Gumpish"

Too many shadows and then there's Nic the "Robot"

Yep, at this point . . . just shoot me in the head !

At last a family that at least LOOKS normal

Merry Christmas!!

(And thanks to Steve for taking the pictures in the freezing cold)

Diesel "In the Shop"

Derek's football season was cut short this year

after he made a tackle and got hit from the side

resulting in a tear of his right ACL

After looking at the MRI, the surgeon said

it looked like the ACL had exploded

(just what every parent wants to hear)

Thank goodness for the skill of Dr Cooley who

fashioned a new ACL out of a piece of Derek's

hamstring. The surgery went well and with

some physical therapy he should be good as new

Having a little fun in Walmart---haven't we all

secretly wanted to drive one of these around?

All was not lost however, at the football banquet

he was awarded the "Hammer" and named

defensive player of the year

The BIG question that remains is---will Diesel be seen

playing in the Bruin Bowl next year?! Stay tuned . . .

Good Luck Peter !!

Peter took off today, headed for his new

adventures at Utah State University. He is

really excited to continue his education in

Logan and to be out on "his own" !!

We have no idea what Cellular Molecular Biology

is but we're pretty sure he can handle it . . .

No doubt Peter will "Meet the Challenge"

and have a great time as an "Aggie".

Good Luck Peter---we love you!!

The First "Gary LeChem" Family Reunion

The LeChem's gathered for our first family reunion

June 22-25th in Park City. We rented a

beautiful home in Bear Hollow Village which

is at the base of the Utah Olympic Park

The kids loved the pool and the hot tub

The little girls had fun together and yes,

they are royalty in our family!

The little boys (and big boys) had fun playing

baseball and basketball at the Bear Hollow Park

Gary and the boys golfed at

Wasatch State Park in Midway

To even the playing field, (is that even possible?)

we "non-golfers"decided we deserved a little time

without kids too and what better way to spend it

than getting pedicures and manicures!!

(Yes, Peter came and says---don't knock it until you've tried it)

We had a blast at the Aerial ski show

at the Utah Olympic Park

One of the best parts was watching

the excitement on the kids faces

These brave men did the zip line and

lived to tell about it!

Of course no trip to Park City is complete

without a ride on the Alpine Slide!

Of course the little boys wanted to go again,

thank goodness it was closed by the time they got down

We ended by attending Church in Provo at the Grandview 10th Ward.

We are so blessed to have such a great family---we love you all!!

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

It's been another fun summer spent at the ball park

watching Diesel play. He started out on the Provo

Dawgs team and then for summer league is playing

on a Mt. View team

Pitching . . .

Hitting . . .

At first base . . .

And football is just around the corner . . .

Spring Break in San Diego

For Spring Break this year we decided to head south to

San Diego where the weather is warm and sunny--

which has not been the case here in Utah!!

(I would like to add windy to that warm and sunny as well)

Our adventure started in Old Town with a tour of the

Mormon Battalion Monument. It was great, really the

Church just knows how to do things right!

A night out at Petco Park where the Padres

played the Reds but lost in extra innings

One day we toured the USS Midway aircraft carrier

It was really interesting and fun to do

This is a typical classroom where the "Top Gun"

pilots might train and get their assignments

With Derek standing next to this plane you get

an idea of how large this ship really is

Loved Coronodo island and seeing the famous

Hotel del Coronado. (Seeing this picture made

me realize that my little boy is almost a whole

head taller than me!!)

This is about as close to the beach as we got, the water

was pretty chilly and add in that wind I was talking about

and no one wanted to go surfing this time around

You know when it comes to our family vacations it's really

all about the golf and this one was no exception.

Gary and Derek loved the course on Coronodo Island

and then they golfed at Kokopelli in St George

on the way home.

No trip to San Diego is complete without a visit to the

beautiful San Diego Temple. We loved it!!