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100+ pictures ahead
Get ready!
July arrived! The month we have been talking about for MONTHS! We planned on leaving to Idaho on July 11th so of course we first needed to celebrate the 4th of July.
Surprisingly it was kind of a chilly morning so we didn't last in the pool too long. We had gone over to the Ellett's to swim and play but since the pool wasn't as comfortable as the trio would've liked, they were more anxious to get inside to the toy room. The only way Clark was going to get in the pool was by diving. Going in little by little just doesn't work when it's chilly. He had some pretty good form though!
Marisol had a craft ready for the kids so we did that first, played, ate a delicious BBQ chicken lunch, and watched some of the World Cup. It was a fun day and we all were wiped out. Clark and I borrowed the movie 'Independence Day' and were excited to watch it once the kids went to bed. Unfortunately neither of us were able to stay awake through it although it certainly is a classic! Maybe next year we'll stay up for the fireworks....
After the 4th of July we began our preparations to drive to Idaho. Oil change, paying bills, finding luggage, passing on church responsibilities, purchasing and organizing car activities, etc... I outlined our route and even found restaurants and parks where we would make pit stops. I decided, since we were driving in summer, that we would take the Colorado route (no risk of snow storms). It was SO enjoyable and beautiful. I'm glad we went that way and I swore I'd never drive the New Mexico route again. On our morning of departure, we loaded the car, picked up Marisol who would be driving with me, and headed out! Clark planned to stay home for a couple more weeks to work so Marisol courageously accepted the challenge. The first part of the drive was fun with chatting and new toys for the kids. Because of that, we ended up missing a turn! :) Our first stop was Amarillo for lunch. I chose Chili's because they serve corn on the cob which the kids love and really tasty chicken kids meals. Add fries and mandarin oranges (that I bring from home) and it's an enjoyable meal with no bargaining or whining!
However, we were anxious to get back on the road so we finished fast and headed north to Colorado. We stayed in Colorado Springs our first night at a nice hotel with a heated pool. As soon as we unloaded the car, we headed down to the pool to burn some energy! With dinner, showers, and losing an hour with the time change, the trio went to bed four hours later than usual! Yikes!
But there was no time to sleep in because we had 10 1/2 more hours to go. We got up early, Marisol retrieved waffles from downstairs, and we made our way to Rock Springs, WY. We stopped at Veterans park which had a tank and a fighter jet. It was awesome! We laid on the grass, ran around, ate a little lunch, and headed out for our last stretch.
We arrived in Idaho Falls after two long days and were so happy to be there!! But holy moly, the amount of bug guts on the front of the van was disgusting. So the next morning I put the boys to work and they were thrilled to scrub some 'guts.' In fact they did Grandma and Gramps car too.
Marisol stayed the night with us and was being picked up by Michael that morning to head out for a family gathering. But not before a little bike riding took place! My parents have spent months collecting and finding bikes for the kids to ride so I wouldn't have to pack any. They succeeded with having five bikes available; however, the bikes had pedals.....something the trio aren't used to. So it was a frustrating first day for them on the bikes because they just wanted to go go go but couldn't catch on. Practice makes perfect right? Well that along with balanced training wheels and adult encouragement. On a side note, after the three weeks of practicing a little bit every morning, all kids got the pedaling thing down without any problem! Now we have to tackle the balancing + pedaling thing.
Once Marisol was whisked away (and we're so grateful she was willing to put up with us for two whole days in a van!), it was time to head up to Rexburg to see my Dad get released as Bishop of a newly married BYU-I ward. We were happy to have been able to attend and hear both his and my mom's testimony. We managed to squeeze in a visit to my oldest sister Deanna and her family before church and another sister after church for dinner and watching of the World Cup Final! It was a fun and exhausting first day in Idaho. We were happy to get back to Grandma and Gramps that night for some much needed rest. The next day was dedicated to exploring our new place/neighborhood of residence for the next month. The first and most exciting discovery was the garage sale easel on the back porch. Who knew?!
Drawing is hard work so naturally the kids threw their clothes off and asked for the sprinkler! I suppose I should inform them soon of socially acceptable behaviors outside our home. :)
Once everyone had cooled off, it was back to drawing. They did some of the best work in the nude! And they will probably never forgive me for these pictures...
Once every corner had been explored, it was time to get the party started! And party we did. In fact the first week of our vacation we had originally intended to just take it easy and play around the neighborhood. Well it ended up being one of our busiest weeks!
We headed to the zoo right away because I just couldn't believe how cheap admission was! The kids were free and I was $6. In Texas, the kids and I would cost $51!!! As a result of that savings, I took the kids to the zoo two more times! My sister Darla and her family joined us for our first excursion. We saw camels, penguins, monkeys, lions, goats, otters, etc.... What more do you need? The kids were exhausted after 50 minutes anyway so the zoo was the perfect size. We ended our zoo trip with a picnic at the park. Leah was even starting to warm up to Gramps after just one day in Idaho!
Gramps was really racking up the brownie points that day with a special ride in his self-restored VW Beetle and stories before bedtime. Zachary is actually asleep sitting up in the story time picture. Too my fun I suppose!
Getting to the library was my top priority once we arrived since I usually have 45-50 books checked out at any given time at home. We came away with a meager 26 books but they got us through the week. Caleb and Zachary came across some Avenger picture books so they were pretty amped up to read them once we got back home.
The rest of the first week included more sprinkler time with cousin Brock (only boys allowed and swimsuits were required for this one!), swimming in the 'cold tub' (no swimsuits required), fishing with Gramps (the kids were equipped with snazzy new fishing poles and loved the idea of catching something on their hook...no luck though. We've brought the fishing poles back to Texas with us in hopes of getting them their first catch), and the riverwalk down by the Idaho Falls temple with Gramps. The waterfalls over there are beautiful and the trio enjoyed throwing leaves in the water and watching them go over the waterfall. They topped of the riverwalk with some donuts and the kids were in heaven!
(check out Caleb's forced smile and upside down glasses....classic)
I think the most successful activity of that first week was playing at a nearby reservoir. Because the kids had so much fun the first time, we went back again later when more cousins could come play. We spent nearly five hours at the beach that second time which is UNHEARD of for my kids. They really had so much fun at this beach. The best part, especially for Leah, is my sister Emily and her daughter Payce came up to Idaho Falls for the week to meet us at the beach and stay at Grandma and Gramp's too.
Four-year-old interactions are so funny. Leah and Payce were really meeting for the first time so it was partially awkward but somewhat natural at the same time. Like they'd been friends for a while and saw each other regularly. The skipped the introductions and went right to playing and making sand cakes. So cute. This relationship continued throughout that week and later on when we visited Payce's house for several days. When all was said and done, Leah and Payce, in all the hours they played together, only had one fight. Guess what it was about......
ELSA! The disagreement was on the location and ownership of an Elsa doll. I mean, Elsa is a pivotal person in their lives right now so it's only natural that there may be some disagreement about her eventually. :)
Anyway, back to the beach.
Besides the sand box, the kids don't get much exposure to sand and water activities. The had so much fun playing in the shallow water and using all the sand toys that Payce brought. There was even a few rafts that were brought which Zachary became attached to. Turns out he LOVES older boy cousins. He wants to be them and follows them around everywhere. Forget the four-year-olds, he wanted to hang with the eight and nine-year-olds! As a result, he grabbed onto a raft and kicked himself out and over to a platform where all the older boy cousins were playing and hanging out. They pulled him up and he hung out there for the rest of the day. Ha! When some of those older cousins left, he attached himself to Uncle Tyler. If you are older than him and a male, he's your best friend. In one of the beach pictures I caught him in his orange shirt making the journey out to the platform.
Caleb wouldn't go near the rafts so I had to take him out on my own but I'm not sure I was as stoic as I needed to be. It was a pretty wobbly ride!! Caleb decided that shallow waters were more his style and he played at the beach for the rest of the time.
To top off the week (are you tired yet?), we participated in a local fun run with Payce and the trio. My sister ran the half-marathon earlier that morning and did awesome. Then she joined us shortly after for the fun run. I'm still regretting not running the last 1-2 miles with her since she said those were the worst.
Anyway, the kids were super excited to run and liked being a part of all the commotion. When the announcer said GO! we all started running and things were looking good. Then about ten seconds in, Caleb said his feet hurt. Oh boy. Leah and Zachary were fine just running along. In fact Zachary was staying up with Payce and Emily for quite a while. Then Caleb just couldn't go any further and Leah kept thinking I was going to run away from her so they both melted down. All the while Zachary is way ahead but unable to keep up with Payce anymore. So he starts panicking and melting down so I sprint way up to him. As a result, I actually did leave Leah behind which made her hysterical. Once I gathered all my chicks, we had a family huddle. We talked about finishing together and that no child would be left behind. :) We held hands and walked toward the finish line. Then Payce and Emily appeared after already having crossed the finish line. They joined in our holding hands and we all crossed together! Talk about perseverance right?? Yeeesh! I think we ran a total of a quarter mile which makes the whole scenario all the more comical. Looks like our kids need more physical activity to build their endurance!
Our second Sunday we headed over to Driggs (right at the base of the Teton mountains) where my brother Taylor and his family lives. They showed us around, made us dinner (the most delicious BBQ chicken that the trio devoured), and introduced Caleb and Zachary to Razor scooters which they loved! I've already located and purchased three scooters off craigslist for their upcoming birthday since returning home! Another product we were introduced to that day was a tag-along bike. We totally want one! It's a one wheel add-on that you attach to the back of a regular bike and a child can ride behind you.
SO MUCH FUN.
Anyway, my brother was married less than a year ago so it was fun to meet his new wife Ginger and her kids for the first time! Of course the kids had fun and we enjoyed our visit but with a 1 1/2 hour drive home ahead, we headed out after dinner. Not after seeing some awesome buffalo though! Zachary is still talking about those buffalo. Pretty interesting animals!
After all the fun at the beach combined with allllllllllllllll our other activities from the week (and we did a TON), the kids were wiped...as was I. By Sunday night, we were all sick! One with a cold, two with fevers and sore throats, and me with possible strep throat. I visited Urgent Care because mine came on so quickly and just a day after I had ALREADY finished a round of antibiotics. I was negative for strep and mono so that was good. I started on more antibiotics and we all hunkered down for most of the second week to rest and recover.
All the while we were sick, Clark had left Texas and flown to Oregon to visit his grandparents and play in Grandpa's wood shop. His favorite thing was Grandpa's lathe and he said he spent many hours playing around on it.
We were so anxious to have Clark drive over to Idaho Falls after his visit in Oregon. Whenever we're sick (especially me), we just want him around. He was glad to see and spend time with Grandma and Grandpa though. Grandpa had made and prepared all our drawers for our kitchen and Clark had come to help finish them up! We're excited to install them and have smooth rolling drawers! Thanks Grandpa!!
Clark has never seen the Tetons so I knew that the first thing I wanted to do after he arrived was drive back to Driggs and take the chair lift up to the top of Targhee ski resort. You can't get a better view than from up there. I actually did the chair lift as a kid and remember liking it a lot. However, as a parent,, it was a little frightening trying to get on a moving chair lift with kids, being super high up with these little people next to me, and not having any seat belts! I tried to enjoy it the best I could but definitely was nervous all the way. Leah and her cousin Alyvia joined me in our chair and Clark and the boys went in another chair.
As we were preparing to go to drive to the chair lift, we stopped by Taylor and Ginger's house to get ready. Taylor was really lubing up with sunscreen so I got super nervous about the sun because I hadn't brought hats or glasses or anything. He said the sun was super intense at the top of the mountain and sunburns happen quicker. Boy was he right! We were at the top all but 15 minutes and I felt like my head was getting fried! The sun was very intense...I could feel the difference. So I guess he had the right idea. :)
We got some great pictures with everyone and I was glad Clark got to experience it. The ride down was equally as terrifying but once we were on solid ground I felt much better. We ended the night with crockpot lasagna at my brother's house (once again, delicious!), rode the tag-along some more, and then headed back to Idaho Falls.
During our third week and now with Clark around, we just did activities around our area which included playing at my sister Darla's house. My brother Spencer and his family drove up from Utah and met us at Darla's so we were excited to get there and see them! During our visit there, Clark ended up on the tramp with six 4-year-olds. I think he prefers playing with kids as opposed to sitting/talking with adults anyway. When Clark was done, the six kids moved on to the water slide and then on to chasing Uncle Spencer. They caught him too and afterwards he was soaked from all their wet swimsuits! So cute to watch.
We also visited Clark's sister Jen during our down time. We loved seeing her and meeting her boyfriend (finally!). He was so good with the trio and even had a trailer of snowmobiles to show them. Zachary, trying to be older than he really is, was totally enamored by the snowmobile. Especially when Marc let him sit on it and even turned it on!
Caleb? Well he couldn't get far enough away from that thing. Again, Caleb is afraid of dark clouds so he wasn't going to get on that snowmobile for sure. We were glad to chat for a bit but called it quits since we were technically interrupting her work day. The following week Clark and I (without the kids) picked up Cafe Rio and went back to Jen's work to share lunch with her and Marc. Nothing beats good company while eating Cafe Rio!
At the end of our third week, we actually packed up most of our things and headed down to Preston, Idaho to stay with cousin Payce for several days. Our ENTIRE family was down in Preston.....
just not all at the same time. So a family picture was impossible.
This was probably a good thing though because we are a big group all together with a TON of kids running around so it would've been pretty wild. Our family of five stayed at Emily and Tyler's the whole time and others came and went throughout the week/weekend. The big event that was pulling everyone down to Preston (besides us being there of course) was the Preston Rodeo and carnival. We grew up going to the rodeo every summer and I have very fond memories of all the events surrounding the rodeo. So I knew we had to get down there and let the kids participate in all the fun! The ONLY bummer about our stay there was that Clark took his turn being sick. Before even arriving at Emily's, he ended up in urgent care after a really rough couple days with a high fever and stomachache. Turns out he had strep throat and was started on antibiotics immediately! Yeeesh! We couldn't catch a break!
There were so many things we did that weekend. We started with going to the hospital to participate in the activities they sponsor in their parking lot. Activities included bounce houses, horse rides, barrel rides, games, popsicles, and prizes. Leah LOVED the horses and seemed like a natural up there. Caleb, usually the scared one, seemed fine with the idea and hopped right on. Surprisingly, Zachary was a no go! Finally near the end of Caleb's ride he decided to hop on too but his face at the end was priceless! I don't think he has much cowboy in him. :)
Preston is where my Dad grew up so we spent an afternoon driving up to see his old farm and farmhouse. We also drove by his school house and played at the park he used to play at. It was a beautiful afternoon and a beautiful drive.
Once Clark had some antibiotics in him, we headed up the canyon for a leisurely hike. It was SO NICE to be up in the trees and mountains, taking in the fresh air and hearing the river. We don't get that in Texas. And we especially can't drive to it in 30 minutes or less.
The best thing about our hike was our destination. We hiked clear up to a mountain spring and drank fresh water right out of the rock. The kids LOVED the idea of drinking from a river. The problem was they wanted to do it back down at the bottom too! Clark told the kids that the more they drank the fresh water, the stronger they would become. Zachary was all over that and was totally water logged by the time we left. What's cute is that the kids were convinced they were stronger. Caleb was showing his muscles to everyone. Again, we dealing with gobs of four-year-olds here. :) While everyone was drinking the water, Clark decided to scale the side of the mountain (not an unusual occurance) and we all looked toward the sky to find him. Quite the climber he is....strep throat and all. We ended the hike with a picnic and the trio was fast asleep in less than ten minutes of being in the car.
One of the days at the carnival was dollar ticket day. We forked out twenty dollars for twenty tickets but after a few rides with our kids, we were already out! So we replenished and went on everything from the slides, car rides, Ferris wheel, merry-go-round, and obstacle course! I convinced Clark to go on a ride called Starship I used to go on with my brother Spencer when we were kids. Basically you lean back against a wall in something that looks like a spaceship. It starts to spin really fast and you are pulled so hard against the wall that you can't lift your head up. It's hilarious and totally fun. However, recovery wasn't nearly as fast as an adult compared to when I was a kid. I felt a little woozy for a while afterwards. Definitely worth it though! All who participated had a good time and we were $40 poorer as a result. Good thing it wasn't a regular price day...we'd have to triple that cost!
One afternoon I was convinced to drive up another canyon and float down a river. The kids were playing happily together and I figured Clark and I should go while we had babysitters readily available. So we got ready and headed out with brother-in-law Tyler, nephew Druw, and niece Jessica.
I was SO glad that I went. It was incredibly refreshing to be on the river. Tyler had promised some class 5 rapids but luckily we only encountered class 1 maybe class 2. It was just enough to get you nervous but not fearful for your life.....which has happened on other river adventures in my life. I was originally not wanting to go because I didn't want to get fried from just sitting in a raft under a hot sun. I really don't like rubbing sun screen all over myself either. So I decided to overdress and avoid any potential sunburn altogether. I had a feeling Clark was a little embarrassed to be on the river with me. :) What's even more funny is that the tube that Clark had was made for a six-year-old so he was pretty much submerged during his entire journey down the river. Ha!
The most exciting thing for the kids during our stay in Preston was the fact that there was a parade for three nights in a row!! You should've seen the candy they came away with. Zachary could hardly contain himself while candy was being thrown at him. The second parade night we finally (since all of them were born) were able to get all the 2010 born cousins together in a picture! The predicament is that Darla has now added a seventh 2010 baby through foster care and he was not there that night! Darn it! We'll eventually get them all in a picture. We can't leave out sweet Emilio!
Seriously though, the nightly parade was awesome. Emily and Tyler set chairs out for four days in a row and no one moved or stole them. I mean.....I didn't know places like that existed anymore! Our kids think Preston is the BEST PLACE EVER because it has parades every night. Leah loved seeing all the 'Princess' floats and couldn't tear her eyes away as they passed by. She would wave so frantically as they passed too. It was adorable.
The morning before we left Preston, Clark and I participated in a 5k fun run with Emily, Druw, brother-in-law Aaron, and nephew Greyson. Before the race began, the organizers starting talking about medals and Clark's ear perked right up. He had those medals in his sight. So when the race started....all I saw was the back of him and eventually he disappeared. Luckily Emily stuck with me (considering I haven't been running hardly at all for a few months) and we pulled in a 30 minute time. I mean....she recently ran a half marathon so a 30 minute 5k was probably a breeze for her. Clark pulled in a 22 minute time and knew he was a medal contender. While he was running he made sure to only allow two people in his age group pass him. If someone ran by him who looked about his age, he kicked it up a gear!
So here's where the drama begins. The winner of the whole 5k was in Clark's age group which meant there were two medals left to give out. Clark guessed the second place finisher, with 21 minutes, because he saw him pass on the course. With Clark at 22 minutes, he knew he was third. But the announcer called someone elses name! What's even worse is that when the third place imposter stood up he said, "I got 25 minutes...not 22." But the announcer said, "well we have you down here as third place so come get your medal!"
Poor Clark. Seriously. He was super bummed. We got in the car and the first words out of his mouth were about how bummed he was. So I made him get out of the car and go talk to our brother-in-law Tyler who had timed the race. Tyler knows all the right people so he was able to set things straight and Clark came away with a medal in the end! Phew!
Here's the infamous medal that was part of the scandal...
The last big activity that I will document was our trip to Downata Hot Springs. It's just outside Preston and it is awesome. It is fed from a hot springs so all the pools are pretty darn hot! Luckily it was cloudy that day so we weren't all dying of heat stroke. The kids were totally comfortable with the water temp and never ushered a word of complaint. There was even an attached splash park that spewed warm water and slides they could go down. The best part was that it was hardly busy at all!! That's my idea of perfect.
Emily and Tyler were so gracious to allow us to take over their basement for five days. We loved having the time at night with them to chat, watch House Hunters, and catch up on old episodes of The Middle.
After returning from Preston, we did our goodbye rounds, packed, prepared, and mostly stayed inside because of rain. It was a pretty low-key few days which was good. One of those low key days was actually my birthday! I decided that going out for a birthday breakfast would be fun so when we woke up, Grandma and Gramps and our family of five headed out to a local diner to enjoy pancakes, eggs, and french toast. It was super fun and delicious. Our kids never have any problem polishing off a good pancake or waffle. We rounded out the day with more packing and laundry, strawberry shortcake, and watching Divergent. I even got a VERY special, VERY coveted fresh huckleberry shake from my sister Deanna. They had just picked six gallons of huckleberries the weekend before and I was lucky enough to be a recipient of such delight because it was my birthday. Had it not been my birthday, I'm not sure I would've been so lucky.
There are many more things we did that are pictured such as a sisters lunch, shopping, buying a Time-Out bench/Work-it-Out bench (more to come on that later), evening bike rides, swimming in Deanna's pool, visiting the farmers market, eating loads of kettle corn, throwing rocks into ditches, meeting Ife Arted and laughing so hard we cried, and playing at the nearby parks.
We sadly drove away the next morning and couldn't believe it was over already. That's how vacations go though I suppose. We were so grateful to my Mom and Dad who put up with our messes and noise for almost a month. It was so fun to spend time with them and allow them to get to know our kids more. The trio met more cousins this trip than they could've ever imagined and did so well with all the interactions and play. We were just so happy with the way things went (besides the sickness of course). But when we left Idaho Falls, we weren't quite done yet!
We headed down to Provo to spend time with Clark's brother Bobby, his wife Amy, and their new baby Porter! I'm sure we overwhelmed them with the chaos of the triplets but they seemed to tolerate us just fine. :) After spending a few hours with them, Bobby had a training so we headed up Provo Canyon to visit with our long lost friends Bill and Kate from college, meet their kids, and play in the water at Bridal Veil Falls. We realized how much we had missed them and can't wait to catch up some more very soon. We left the falls and made a quick stop at Clark's Aunt Annie's house. She had whipped up some kitchen towel bibs for us, for which I will be forever grateful. She gave us three bibs when the kids were born and they have literally worn them every day for every meal. I travel with them and take them when we go out to eat. They are a must have for us. So when I text her THE DAY BEFORE about possibly making some more, she was more than happy to do it and did it fast!
We spent the rest of the night visiting with Bobby and Amy (we wish it could've been longer!) and then headed to bed knowing we had a long day of driving ahead of us. There's not much to document about our trip home other than it was long and dreadful. Remember how I said I'd never drive through New Mexico again? Well we went that way because of our being down in Provo already. When I think of the lone and dreary wilderness, I think of northern New Mexico. Albuquerque was nice and cool and we had a good night of rest there. However, as we drove toward our home the temperature rose 50+ degrees! Nothing like a humid and hot welcoming home.
Nonetheless, after 4500 miles in 3 1/2 weeks, it was good to be home. We sure did enjoy our time in the mountains this summer!
P.S. Looks like I was wearing the same tie-dyed shirt in about seven different instances during this blog. Looks like I should increase my tie-dye repertoire.
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