Vacation-Summer of '17

The first part of the week was fairly slow. We were just waiting for Thursday to roll around so we could go on vacation to the Tetons in Idaho.Thursday finally came and we went to Driggs, Idaho with Char's family. We left early in the morning and discovered that the little kids are NOT good travelers. They cried most of the way up. Despite some detours and traffic delays our family was the first to arrive at the cabin.

Unfortunately, the cabin was locked and we couldn't find the key box. Char went from door to door and found the back door unlocked. We hoped we got the correct address and joked about being in the wrong place. Once out of the car the kids were pretty happy. Rowan went around the cabin playing with an airplane, trying out every single chair. Anastasia crawled around, discovering stairs in the process. She can go up them but down is a different matter. However, Rowan did learn how to go down the stairs, scooting down one step at a time. 

Right after breakfast Friday morning all the cousins (minus Anastasia who hates grass) played in the front yard. 

They played in a tent, tag, with balls, bubbles, just playing in the cool summer air.

We planned on visiting my friend, Valerie, and her family in Yellowstone. But the day before proved that the kids couldn't handle a car ride for 4 hours. A drive of over 6 hours in the car was out of the question. We were able to meet in the middle at West Yellowstone, Montana. 

All the kids played at the park while we caught up. Heidi Anne was nice and pushed Rowan on a swing. I found that Anastasia hates sandy gravel in addition to grass, she stayed on the bench with me. Time flew by and suddenly the kids were hungry. We decided to have some Popsicles  followed by a picnic lunch in the shade.  

On Saturday everyone decided to go play on the water. Some people went paddle boarding, others went canoeing. While waiting for the canoe Heidi Anne had a butterfly land on her hand.

Heidi Anne rode in a canoe with Grandpa for most of the river ride. She got to ride on a paddle board with Aunt E for a few minutes and loved it. The four of us (Char, Rowan, Anastasia and I) went ahead to the meeting place to play in the river. I was envisioning a nice lazy river with a large sandy place to play and wade in the water. However, there wasn't much of a river bank at all and what little space there was had many cars pulling in and out of the area. We headed back to the cabin, made the babies lunch and put Anastasia down for a nap.

Later that afternoon we went to Victor, Idaho for huckleberry shakes. I got a raspberry one and tried to share with the babies. Anastasia is just barely learning to use a straw and Rowan kept chewing the straw, getting very little shake in the process. What little he did get, he loved every sip of it! He kept signing and saying the word "more". Naturally, he got as much as he wanted. Char tried sharing his huckleberry shake with the babies, but they weren't fans of the taste. 

Anastasia was content being outside of the car. (Or outside in general.) We got a double stroller a while back and it works perfectly for these little outings. 

Early Saturday evening Rowan went out with Grandma to play in a wading pool Aunt L brought along. It was a big hit with him.

He was a brave little boy and splashed in the cold mountain water. He sat right down and played away. Cousin G was more cautious and just put his feet in. He didn't get soaking wet like Rowan did. 

He was shaking from cold by the time he was done playing. Actually, I think he would have stayed in the water even longer if we'd let him. 

Later that night we roasted hot dogs over an open fire. Then the girls made S'mores. Here's Heidi Anne enjoying her hamburger outside. 

On Sunday we headed back home. Before we left we did a craft with all the cousins. Char made sensory bottles with them. You fill a water bottle with food coloring, glitter in varying sizes, and some baby oil. You shake it up and watch the glitter swirl.