Goodbye July Stop 2

After an enjoyable weekend in Logan, our month away continued in Grand Tetons National Park! I'd never been in the park before, but have often seen the majestic mountains in the distance.  We met up with Gwen and Mike and kids, Mom and Dad K, Dan and Karla, and Lynn in the park.  Surprisingly, we were the first ones to arrive, even though Gwen and Mike left Logan before we did and all the rest of the crew were already in Idaho.

We all stayed in Colter Bay Village, which is where Mom and Dad worked during the summer when they were dating. Mom was a waitress and Dad was a bus boy.  It was really cute to hear them talk of the things that were the same and different and remember fun hikes and moments they shared together there.

We stayed in a tent cabin, a very interesting, but very fun structure... two log walls, then metal frame with thick canvas secured over top.

Family selfie in the tent cabin.

After arriving and setting up camp on Sunday afternoon, we walked down to the lake and threw rocks and enjoyed a picnic dinner with everyone, which was cut short by oncoming rain and lightning and thunder.

My kids aren't quite sure how to handle lightning and thunder... kinda freaks them out... can't blame them; it's not at all a common occurrence back home.

We moved our dinner into Gwen and Mike's cabin, then went on a walk after the storm died down a bit.

Happy Birthday Baby Joseph! birthday cupcakes after dinner!

Changing poopy diapers togher... true family bonding time...

Jon can't resist trying something impossible... we all pushed and shoved and heaved a large fallen log over several large boulders and into the lake! After it floated away, Jon's dad told him to retrieve it, so he did... the lake was a pleasant temperature, the night was beautiful, and it was hilarious!

Someone had to teach baby Joseph how to throw rocks... that is an untie's job :)

As we huddled in for the night, we heard the storm coming back strong...


In the morning, we awoke to a somewhat unpleasant, but somewhat funny surprise... Xochitl sat up in her sleeping bag and said, "Mom, I must have been really hot last night! My bed is ALL SWEATY!" I looked over and saw that her bed was indeed wet, but not with sweat.  She was sleeping in a HUGE puddle that had seeped in during the stormy night. I guess we're lucky that Xochitl never felt cold... Unfortunately, Dawna had set her backpack and her clothes bag on that side of the tent also, so our Monday morning was spent hanging out sleeping bags, clothes, books, and shoes to dry.

After the laundry was hung, we headed out on an adventure! The rest of the fam were sightseeing in Yellowstone for the day, so the six of us headed out to find Jenny Lake and Hidden Falls.

We went to the dock, hoping to take the ferry across the lake and then hike a short distance to Hidden Falls, but the ferry would have cost over $60 for our family, so we opted to take the long way around the lake.  It was really a beautiful hike, albeit long... the sight of the hidden falls was well worth the effort of the hike. I tried to get someone to take a good picture of our family by the falls... but unfortunately, Sarah wasn't there, so we just got mediocre pictures... all well...

As we hiked and drove back to our tent cabin, the rain began to fall again... we may have driven a little fast as we hurried to get our clothes in before they got soaked Again!  Thankfully, we were successful.  We had a great evening of listening to stories of Sacagawea, eating at Mom and Dad's old workplace, and hanging out by the campfire at our tent cabin.

Larry was having a great time making baby Joseph laugh and laugh! 

And so ended part two of our Goodbye July... but the fun is still just beginning...