August on the Lake

We had a lot of fun boating this summer. I love being on the water. Floyd's parents have a big boat that has been so much fun to take out. 

First, we hit up Hyrum with the Myers. Aside from the time Floyd tossed their boys ten feet in the air, we had a great time. Landon was terrified his first time out, but was all smiles by the time they made it back to the boat.

We went to Oneida with Gary's family and quickly learned that everyone had a favorite driver (Floyd).  Apparently, they don't trust Gary.

 We also learned this summer that Ben loves kayaking. this kid would head out on the lake for a paddle.  

 We camped at Emigration for a night and then spent the day at Bear Lake. It was a quick trip, but it's always worth the effort. This summer, most of the effort was finding a spot on the beach. That place is packed these days!

 

I'm sitting here on a chilly night with snow forecast in a few days and these pictures are really making me miss summer. It always goes too fast!

Now that's a happy bunch! And no one even got sunburned, so yippee!

July

July was a crazy busy month around these parts. When we got home from Yellowstone, Annie cashed in a birthday promise and got her ears pierced. She was pretty thrilled. Molly came along and chose herself a couple of clip-on earrings (which she promptly lost) and told everyone she "got her ears pierced up too."

Floyd got a new bow for the August bow hunt, which meant a lot of time spent practicing for the hunt. 

I guess the practicing paid off because he got one on opening day of the hunt, which is always a happy day for me!!!

When the sun got too hot, we took a few trips up the canyon. High Creek is always top of the list, but we went up Logan Canyon a couple times too.

Pretty much every other picture on my phone is a shot of the sunset. I just love them.  

We, of course, made it to the Newton celebration this year. There was no mud pit, but the foam was still fun.

Karlee and I took the kids hiking up High Creek on the 24th. The waterfall was a little farther than I remembered it being, but we all made it.

And Aunt Kar got to snuggle a sleepy baby on the way down,so all's well that ends well.

July always treats us well. There's a lot going on and every year, it flies by and suddenly it's August and time to go back to school and I don't even know where the time went. 

Yellowstone

 Last year, Cole and I were the only ones to make it to Yellowstone {when we hiked Bechler}. Everyone was pretty excited to head back there this year. We stayed in a cabin in Island Park for a few days and had a great time. We left on Annie's birthday and had a late night birthday party for her. That's not her first Yellowstone birthday and likely won't be her last.

The next day, we went to Firehole. It was a good day for swimming and we all had a good time there.

Ben got a little cold (he's always the first to be cold - must take after me), but he soldiered through and still splashed up a storm.

Sometime, I should go through my pictures and see how many I have in front of this rock. It's a lot, beginning when I am just teeny.

This is my favorite picture of the trip. As I snapped it, Ben said, "Josh, you're gonna wanna see this," and then proceeded to run out of the picture frame whilst laughing hysterically at himself. Luckily, I caught the picture with his mischief face. It makes me smile.

He and Josh were really on one for pictures that day...

We brought along the twins, Nike and Reebok. Lookin' good, fellas.

After Firehole, we took a quick hike to this lake. I have forgotten its name, a peril of blogging two months posthumously. But, it had a lot of snakes and lily pads, so I can remember some things.

The weather was a little cold and drizzly the next day. We drove up to Mammoth.

Then, we went on to the Roosevelt Arch in Gardiner. I had never been there before, so that was a fun stop.

Grandma Donna tried to give us all heart failure traipsing all over the uneven terrain. She fell at our house on Christmas and I am completely nervous she'll fall again.

We had another birthday girl. She loved the attention.

The next day, we went rafting down Box Canyon. It was a little dull for a few members of the rafting party, but just right for the majority.

 Bet you wish you were on that raft, huh?

That evening, we took a drive up Sawtelle Peak. It had incredible views of the Tetons and into Montana. It was gorgeous.

But you see what I mean about Grandma Donna traipsing all over the mountains?

On the way home, we drove back through the park (cause Floyd just HAD to see Old Faithful:)

And mom just HAD to see the Tetons. It seems I can't go a summer without this view.

Oh look, a photobomber. Nope, it's just Floyd awkwardly leaning into our picture. Heaven help us we need a real photographer giving us pointers.

So, to sum it up, we had a great time. Until we hit Star Valley.

It was Wednesday.