Grand Tetons National Park

The Grand Teton mountains are in a small, touristy town called Jackson Hole, in Wyoming.  The mountain range is just gorgeous.
 I love mountains.  As soon as I see them, I feel a calm in my spirit.  It is as if the Lord is saying, "Peace, be still, and know that I am God."
It is a great reminder to His awesome power. 

While we were in Jackson Hole, the park Ranger had an interesting talk about beavers one night.  Did you know that they can close their ears?  Their two front teeth are also on the outside of their lips so they can keep their mouth closed while they are chopping wood under water!  Their homes also have 2 stories; one for a 'mud room,' the other for living courters!  We found a beaver's lodge while we were driving around town one day, too.  ;)

It might look like a stack of sticks in the river, but it is a specifically, designed 'home' for a cool animal.  I love learning about the special characteristics animals possess.  God is so purposefully creative!

We also noticed many different kinds of wild flowers:

Flora and fauna were all over the region of Jackson Hole, and you did not have to hunt for them very long!  We also saw our FIRST MOOSE!  Love it! 
He was eating plants near a stream, maybe 20 yards away!

Todd took the kids on their first mountain hike, too! Parker and I stayed behind and let the 'big kids' have their adventureous challenge of the day.  :)

 Here is a carcass they found on their way up.  Elk maybe?

YEAH!!! They did it!  Todd said that the girls did not whine or complain one time, and the boys loved it!  Tanner could have climbed it 5 more times, because he wasn't winded at all!  Todd kept having to tell him to slow down!  HA!  (I guess his work-out is paying off!  Yes, he works out in the RV about 4 days a week: push-ups, sit-ups, sprints and hand weights)

We went downtown one evening to take a stroll, and stopped in the 'Square' for some icecream. 

 Who can resist a chocolate goatee?

On each corner, there are these enormous arches made of horns!  Very unique.

They also accomplished another Jr. Ranger program, and received their badges & cool patches!  YEAH!

We thoroughly enjoyed our time in Jackson Hole and the Grand Tetons National Park!
Blessings,
Steph

Yellowstone NP Campground Review

While we were in Yellowstone, we stayed in one of the few campgrounds with full hook-ups.  At the east entrance, you drive about another hour until you reach the Fishing Bridge Campground.

The sites are VERY close.  Infact, you feel like sardines.  If you don't park j-u-s-t right, you may not be able to open up your slides on the motorhome.  Thankfully, we were placed on the end in section E, so it was fine.

It is affordable at $28/n and there is not  an extra charge if you have pets or children, which is refreshing!

There is a shower house and restrooms, and even laundry available at the entrance building, but we did not use any of them while we were there.  We just used our own in the motorhome, and I waited to laundry later.  Our days were SO full, the last thing I wanted to do was laundry!  HA!

The real and disappointing complaint I have about this place was the mosquitoes!  They were AWFUL.  They were SO bad, that you  literally could not stay outside.  Forget grilling or putting out the lawn chairs.  It was so bad that we would make a mad-dash from the van to the RV in record time, so we wouldn't get bit or attacked by 500+ blood-suckers!
You would think that they could spray the area so it was enjoyable, and would bring in longer stays at the campground?

This was honestly the only complaint we had in regards to the Yellowstone experience, and I am not sure if ALL the campgrounds are suffering with the same dilemma.  :)


Blessings,
Steph

Yellowstone National Park!!!

I had a few expectations about Yellowstone, but honestly, I was clueless about this special place.  I had no idea that there was so much to see and experience.  Someone could literally stay here for a year, and still not "do" it all.....really! 
There are millions of acres.  MILLIONS.
We did not even come close to the full Yellowstone experience.  Our four days were jam-packed, though!

There are many animals, birds and sea life to hunt for, mud pots, geysers, mountains, lakes, rivers, streams, waterfalls, valleys, plains, forests, hot springs, and much more!


Our first day, we went to the West Thumb Geysers.  Too cool.  There is a built-up walk way for the tourists to get pretty close to these 'skin-burnin' pools.  Boy, did they stink too!  Sulphur.  The kids were really surprised to learn that these pools are actually heated from the core of the earth.  To witness it in person, makes that reality pretty humbling.  :)

Afterwards, we kept travleing west and came upon:

The Continental Divide and SNOW!!  IN JULY!!  That just baffles me!  Ha!  It was a nice way of explaining to the kids, and then later driving over it and locating it on a map, where the continental map is....cool way to educate!!  LOVE it.

I could not wait to reach this spot of the trip to Yellowstone!  I have seen pics, and saw videos of Old Faithful erupt, but to SEE it before my eyes.....this was SO exciting!  Would it really happen?  How would we really know if it was going to erupt, or was it all a horrible conspiracy?  What if the water ran out?  I know, silly right?  But these were some honest concerns as we arrived, and then had to wait......

and wait......

and wait......

and wait........

Nope.  Keep waiting......

(there were MANY little teasers like this!)  UG!

When, WHAM!  He erupted!  He did it!  It was AWESOME! 

There was about 200+ people watching with us, and when Old Faithful decided to show himself, everyone cheered and clapped and whistled.  It was like watching your favorite sports team score the final slam dunk or touchdown or homerun.  It was special and contagious.  :)

 

The next day, we went to The Canyons to Artist Point.  It is called this, because many artists travel here to be inspired.  Now, I can see why.  :)

These pictures do NOT come close to showing the grand beauty of this landscape.  There were yellows, oranges, greens, reds, browns and even purples scattered through out Yellowstone's Grand Canyon.

One of the fun spots on this location, is the access to upper and lower falls.  The kids enjoyed climbing on the boulders and seeing the falls rush down. 

(ofcourse, we HAD to do a 'silly' picture!)

Driving through out the area, we saw more and more bison, some deer, elk and many small animals, like prairie dogs and chipmunks.  :)
But, the views, for me, were just amazing. 

Driving down the road, we see a forest that then opens up to a humongous lake, that then shows a snowy mountain range, that then turns into a lush, green valley, that turns into bison-covered hills and prairies!

The kids also worked really hard for a couple of days on their Jr. Ranger program!

Great Accomplishment Golden Gang!  :)
(Parker was camera shy this day.  :)

 

Something that we thought was pretty spectacular, was meeting up with our good friend Ryan again!  It was too cool.  There we were, checking in to our campground, when all of a sudden, there is Ryan, on his bike, coming towards us!  Ryan and his grandparents are from Pittsburg, and we actually met them in South Dakota!!!  The kids hit it off right, off the bat, and it made our time at Yellowstone even more special.  :)

Yellowstone was amazing.  I am thankful that we went, even though the mosquitoes were unbelievable at our campground!  Just a simple reminder that nothing can be perfect!  :)

Blessings,

Steph

Cody Rodeo!

While we were in Cody, Wyoming, we went to our FIRST ever Rodeo!!  I had NO idea that Cody Rodeo is one of the most popular in the country??!!  They run it almost every day from June to August, and do a great job organizing all the entertainment. 

Above, in the pic, the kids ARE sitting on a 3000 pound REAL bull.  :)

Andy, the Rodeo Bull Fighter Clown, was the life of the show!  He is hilarious.  He is also a 2-time World Champion Rodeo Fighter!  We actually met him at the Walmart, kid's day, because he was the one painting faces.....go figure!  HA!

The rodeo was patriotic, as you might expect, but it was also very entertaining.  They had comedy, singing, and even a family of "gymnast horse riders" that were so cute! 

But, when it comes down to it, the REAL excitement at the rodeo was the COWBOYS!  We just loved the anticipation of each event to see how they would succeed!  Whether it was the calf ropers, bull riders or bare-back bronco riders, we seemed to hold our breath with each ride!

My Papa, Buck, was his nick-name, was a real cowboy.  He could 'break' a wild horse in no time.  While we were at the rodeo, I thought of him and my sweet Mema a lot.  :)

Before the rodeo started, my thoughtful son, Zach, decided to buy some cotton candy for everyone!  YUM!
We sure enjoyed our time in Cody!
Blessings,
Steph

Cody, Wyoming

Driving through Wyoming was just wonderful.  It is beautiful.

Cody, Wy. is named after Wild Buffalo Bill Cody, and I must say, that the kids REALLY got into the Buffalo Bill spirit!

We had a nice time strolling through this VERY touristy town, and went inside The Irma Hotel.  Irma was Buffalo Bill's daughter, and he built this historic hotel after her, obviously.  :)   It was authentically gorgeous.  Inside the restaurant, is the original cherry wood counters, cash register and bar.

Something that constantly surprises us as we are traveling, is the Lord's providential moments that simply bless us as a family.  Here we are, dry camping in a Walmart  parking lot, and on one of the two days we were staying in Cody, was "Kids' Free Day!"  Where?  Might you ask?

AT WALMART!!!!  

I love it!  :)

We spent about 3 hours having pony rides, stick-horse races, face painting, and roping lessons.  FREE!

Blessings,
Steph