Highlight #5 - Yellowstone!

Our family went camping at Yellowstone the last week of Peter's summer vacation. We had a blast! However, I wouldn't call it relaxing - camping with 3 young kids. We did make some great memories and had a lot of fun though. I have included a ton of pictures. Keep in mind, this is our families book of records as well. As our kids get older, I'm going to need proof that we do have fun and do fun things.
As we all know, packing up for camping and coming home from camping are all part of the experience of camping. For the adults, it's a lot of work (and kind of stinky). For the kids, getting ready is very exciting! Peter, Elsie, and Kimball ran around in these life-jackets we scrounged for a couple days. They even wore them to the library!

To get them excited about the animals we were going to look for, I made buffalo sugar cookies. We all had fun frosting them. Kimball really caught on to the frosting part. They were fun to eat on those many drives around Yellowstone.

Since this blog is about trying to remember the happy memories our family makes, I won't bother to talk about our drive to Yellowstone, but we were all really excited once we finally got there. We stayed in the campsite Canyon, and loved it. While there we drove along Hayden Valley and Lamar Valley, in search of wildlife. We also went to Mud Volcano and saw lots of neat stuff. The kids were fascinated! We saw lots of wildlife, as these pictures can attest.

There are almost a dozen elk behind the kids, if you squint a little. They (the kids, not the elk) are all in their pajamas. The hope was they would eventually fall asleep as we drove back to our campsite that evening. It worked!

Here's a buffalo we saw about 2 feet from our car. I rolled down my window a smidgen and quickly took this picture. Although they're not typically dangerous, a 1 ton animal isn't something I'm willing to test much luck with. My heart was pumpin'.

These buffalo were hangin' out at the Mud Volcanoes, rolling in the dirt, and keeping each other company.

We saw herds of buffalo in Lamar Valley, right up against and on the road. This was really fun for the kids. We saw baby buffalo, mommy buffalo, and even a couple male buffaloes fighting. That was exciting.

While in Lamar Valley we saw a couple coyotes and a wolf. Apparently, the official wolf expert in Yellowstone stopped by and told us we were watching the Alpha Wolf himself. This was more fun for the adults, but the kids had a hard time getting excited looking for animals through binoculars. After this trip, the kids had it with looking for more animals.

This is how we bribed Elsie to get out of the car to look at animals towards the end - she could bring her coloring. That girl loves to color!

This buck was just wandering through our campsite. He's staring me down in this picture.

A huge elk lounging along the side of the road

A bald eagle. This was one of the highlights for Peter. He's fascinated with them right now.

Between the sugar cookies and these we ate in the car, it's no wonder Mike took a hose to the inside of our car when we came home. It was SOOOO filthy! Half way through our trip we moved camp to Grant Village. This was closer to the Southern part of Yellowstone. Now onto geysers and hot pots!

The Famous Old Faithful! This is never a disappointment.

In the top picture, one must note the sling shot in Peter's hand. All the kids got one as their souvenir. There were rocks and pine cones flying all around our campsite. Peter packed it everywhere. He was on a true adventure! At first, Elsie was afraid of the steam in the hot pots. I don't blame her - the heat and stink is a little unnerving. She eventually got to where she was excited about them though. By the later half of our trip, Kimball was really excited about hot pots and geysers. Every 10 seconds Mike or I were getting whacked by Kimball trying to get our attention as he pointed in a direction and said excitedly, "Water, Water, Water!"

When I told Elsie I was going to take a picture, she got into the pose above. Where did she learn to do that? Just a pretty picture below.

We went on Uncle Tom's Hike, recommended to us by a good neighbor. This was fun for the kids, and included 258 steps (or something like that). Peter felt really tough hiking the hole thing - he was pretty proud of himself. By the end Kimball was tired of being in the backpack, and Elsie wanted to be carried. The scenery was beautiful though and well worth it!

Peter and his dad even managed to squeeze in a couple fishing trips.

During this time Elsie, Kimball and I became expert rock throwers.
Next: Hanging out at the Campsite. I think this was the kids's favorite.

Breakfast - already they're a mess!

We had to watch Kimball close by the fire. He wanted to do everything Peter and his dad were doing. I'm raising some boy scouts, for sure. We really enjoyed our smores in the evenings!


We played tag and we all had special powers we ran around with that Peter and Elsie assigned everyone. It was a lot of fun.

On the way home we stopped in Jackson and walked around for a bit. It was nice, but we were really glad to get home to a clean house.

Highlight #4 - Peter's Birthday!

It's about time I blogged about this one! I really look forward to Peter's birthday because summer birthday parties are SOOOO fun for me to plan! This year Peter turned 6, and wanted an owl birthday party. Owls do have some amazing powers, but it took some serious brain storming and internet surfing to figure out how to pull this one off. It all worked out in the end.
I had a long time friend of mine come over and help me keep things organized. She's a great teacher, so she was well practiced and lots of help! As we waited for all the kids to come, we played a rousing game of "owl, owl, mouse" (aka duck, duck, goose).

While I was at my mom's house, she and her friend collected owl pellets for Peter's party, so they had real owl pellets to dissect! Isn't that cool?? It was a treasure hunt trying to uncover those little bones and such. Some kids found some cool stuff and insisted on keeping them in their bags. I wondered what their moms said when they came home with them.

Afterwards, they practiced their owl abilities and looked for pellets (or easter eggs). Inside they found lots of candy and plastic insects and small animals. It was fun watching them!

After doing such a good job on their hunt, as all owls do, they earned their owl costumes. I spent too much time sewing these things together, but they turned out sooo cute, I decided it was worth it.

I had another hunting game for them to play, and then they went inside where I had huge furniture boxes connected together. They all found a good "nesting" spot and listened to Renee read Owl Moon by Jane Yolen while I got the cake and ice cream ready. I love this book - the pictures are great and the story is classic!! Below are the owl cupcakes. Aren't they fun?!

Last of all were the presents to open. Peter really made out! He got balls, squirt guns, transformers, stuff to do outside, and other stuff. The pictures below are a couple of the presents.

This next one Becca made for him. He sleeps with it every night. It's gone camping with us twice, and is in need of a trip to the dry cleaners.


After all this excitement, you'd think that was enough, but no. Then he got a party at the family reunion as well. Everyone was so good to remember him, I was touched. We gave him a load of Bakugans, which he loved. It's always tricky getting the perfect present. Grandma gave him some weights, and now he thinks he is so tough now, and Grammy gave him a cute board game called Hoot Owl Hoot. Everyone was so generous, and he have had a ton of fun!
Peter is a great 6-year-old. He is a bundle of energy, eager to please and do the right thing. He loves rules and structure. He really likes to be tough (when it's convenient) and even looks forward to getting shots, so he can prove how tough he is. He loves the outdoors - hiking, climbing trees, and swinging on our swings. Peter is a great friend, and loves to meet new people. Just recently 1 of the few boys he knew in his 1st grade class moved to another class. I asked him if that made him sad a little. He looked at me perplexed and said, "Why Mom? I already knew him."
I am impressed with his eagerness to learn. Peter loves to read and memorize things. At church he takes great pride in knowing the answers. He loves to answer questions. When he asks me a question and I say, "I don't know." He says in dissatisfaction, "Just give it your best guess, Mom." He is a great big brother and a great example. As parents, Mike and I are soooo proud of him!

Highlight #3 - Reunions

This summer Mike and I's families both had reunions. Mike's was camping for the 4th of July weekend. Because we were camping, the shorter time, and a ton of kids running around, our arms were full and the thought of a camera didn't even surface our minds. Hence, we have no documentation of this grand reunion. However, it was a lot of fun. We celebrated 2 birthdays - Peter's and his cousin, attended another cousin's baptism, chased kids, went boating, cooked great food, and lit off and watched fireworks. Fun was had by all.
The reunion for my family lasted about 9 days. The evening before it happend Mike had a catastrophe at work. He worked a full 24 hours, and still couldn't resolve the issue. I had a sister that drove to our house so we could carpool together to my parent's house for the reunion. I was glad she had, because I ended up leaving without Mike, with the kids and Michelle. Mike's work paid for him to fly up a few days later, when the dust had settled a bit. Poor Mike, it was really stressful, but everything has worked out okay. Anyhow, the 10 hour ride with 3 kids in the car was a work-out in and of itself. Once we got there, it was fun to see everyone and be involved in all the happenings.

To begin, a lot of this (above picture) took place. These 2 little cousins were inseparable! They played and played and made the biggest messes. They would disappear for a while, and then resurface every now and then. One time we found them in Poppy's and Grammy's shower with all the matchbox cars at their feet. Those two.....

This was another ongoing project, with my 10-year-old nephew as the catalyst. Actually, he and his dad did 90% of the work. It sure was deep! Mike is standing on a little ledge inside the hole. It was probably 5 foot deep in all - which was huge for the kids! This is also one of the few shots of Peter. He was busy as well running around with his 3 boy cousins. That kid sure played hard!

Ahhhh - swimming. This was a lot of fun! Thank's to my mom's sweet friend who lent us her pool!

And of course, what would a trip to the country be without a horse-back ride? Elsie really liked this - doesn't her face show that?

My mom put together a rather involved obstacle coarse that involved water and swings. It was fun to watch the kids try to run through the pool. Mike, the last one to finish it up, added some extra moves. He reminds me of Superman!

Meanwhile, my dad put together a rather complex treasure hunt. He had these kids shooting BB guns, putting puzzles together, digging in the dirt while trying to dodge the sprinkler circle, and all sorts of stuff. It was a riot! The treasure at the end? ICE CREAM!

This is a picture of my nephew holding up his homemade "Title of Liberty". It relates to a Book of Mormon story during a time when there was a lot of feuding among the people. A man named Moroni "rent" his cloak and wrote on it all the things he felt were worth protecting, even to the extent of fighting for. So, the cousins got to tear an old shirt and write their personal beliefs they were willing to fight for as well. Way to go!

Apparently, when there happened to be down time, the cousins all banned together and shot Nerf guns at their defenseless Aunt Rachel, just as this picture shows! They weren't provoked or anything!

I had to include this picture because I thought it was hilarious as all 20 of us were trying to fish along a 50' long bank. It was a bit scary and tiresome - little kids flinin' poles, lines getting snagged, and no one was dressed warm enough for that cold morning. Not to mention a few slides and falls in the mud! Needless to say, the fishing only lasted 45 minutes or so. No fish were caught. Better luck next time!


Swing, batter batter, Swing! Grammy puts together a great pinata! Lots of toys and candy - we really appreciated them as distractions on the car ride home. Thanks mom!

Here's the frantic gathering of the loot!

And what would a family reunion be without cheesy matching tie-dye shirts and a photo at the end!!! It was great - thanks Mom and Dad for all the hard work and the wonderful hospitality. Can't wait for 2013!

Summer Highlight #2 - Hiking!

This summer, along with painting, we did a lot of hiking. Every week a good friend, Becca, and her 2 children, and me with my 3 children plus 1 extra we watched this summer, explored a new trail in the area. Peter found out he LOVES to hike! His friend, who went with us was always a lot of fun to have around. He would often bring a list of trees or birds or something he wanted to find along the way. They sure were explorers. Our outings often went like this, "Hey....Hey! Boys! Slow down! Hey, you guys need to stay where we can see you at all times! Thanks!"
Followed by, "Elsie, come on, you can do it! Those who hike the whole time get ice cream at the end! That's right, good job!"
It took some juggeling, but it definitely made some great memories, and I think Elsie even had fun as well. Becca is a great photographer, and sometimes she even brought her camera. She was always prepared and willing to carry a sleeping baby of mine. She was such a great help - I couldn't have done it without her! She sent me some pictures, and I was so glad because I had nothing.

This is Elsie in all her splendor! She's winding up and getting ready to throw a rock, and boy is it serious business! I love her expression and am so glad it's captured!

I couldn't decide which picture I liked better. He sure loves the duck hat Grammy bought for him! They both capture him in his element, don't they?

Annnd Kimball. He was mostly along for the ride on my back most of the time. Occasionally he got out to walk, throw rocks, or just get dirty, but often he was content to just hang out on my back. There were many a time he'd take a little nap as well.

Summer Highlight #1

One of the things we really focused on this summer was art. I bought a home based art class pdf file online at pineapplepaintbrush.com. We did a lot of it and the kids had a blast painting, learning about colors, lines and textures, and different paintings and artists. Peter is really fascinated with Vincent Van Gough (who isn't?) and loves Starry Night. I also have our rendition of a Jackson Pollock painting on an old sheet of ours hanging downstairs as a makeshift drape. We had a lot of fun and I hope you'll indulge me with all of these pictures.


We read some great books too. While we talked about colors, we read Mouse Paint; Shapes - The Dot and It Looked Like Spilt Milk; and Lines - Harold's Purple Crayon. I also succored into buying several "Touch the Art" books by Julie Appel and Amy Guglielmo. I loved them. Some better than others, but the kids have really enjoyed looking through them.

This was a lot of fun, and thanks Jeff for letting us use your nice easel!

They're working hard on their masterpieces!




This is our Jackson Pollock masterpiece. It was soo fun to watch the kids just spill the paint out wherever they wanted. I would highly recommend this art project. Plus, it was a great way to get rid of my old paints I didn't want any more.

Okay, and I admit, I even got into it. And it was really fun, okay?

Learning about texture through Bubble Art! The kids loved this one as well. It made me a little nervous though. Those bubbles can still make fairly large puddles of muck, but how could I resist this face?

Oh, I even let Kimball try this art project. Not a good idea. He wasn't sure whether to blow or suck the straw. Needless to say, in 2 minutes there was a blue mouth and a call to poison control. Don't worry, watercolors are non-toxic. Whew.

This was a fun part of our summer, and we look forward to learning more about art and artists. I'm just not sure what to do with the piles of artwork I've got still lingering in my kitchen.

Kindergarten Graduation

Our wonderful school does a great Kindergarten Graduation. I know, I know, Peter has already started 1st grade, but I'm reminiscing, so bare with me. Here is a great picture of him.

Isn't he cute? They made those great hats, and stood on the stage and sang some classic songs. I loved hearing them sing a jazzy tune of "Humpty Dumpty" and when these kids sang "I'm Proud to Be an American" and the Star Spangled Banner, I nearly cried. I'm so proud of Peter and all he is learning. Congratulations!
I'll try to get some clips we took with our camera of them singing for Grammy and Poppy, but our computer is too slow, so I can't do it at home.