Vacation time :)

The big boys finished up another school year and are now officially 2nd and 3rd graders!! Yikes!!
On the last day of school Granny and Papa gave Clayton an early birthday present(a big blow up pool), we set it up and put out the slip 'n' slide and started the summer off with a swim and a sunburn!
This past week we went on an actual, really real vacation! What a blast it was. We really needed this time together.
Thursday morning, we headed first of all to Boise, ID (there's a Cracker Barrel, and it's the only reason we stopped there) Mmmmm..... and then we swam in our hotel pool.
The next day we headed for Crater of the Moon(in Idaho), exploring caves made from lava, they were really neat and huge. In one section we had to use flashlights, which was creepy cool.
We attempted to camp out in the campground there and pretty much failed miserably. The wind was blowing like crazy making it hard to set up the tent and the dirt was blowing and it was hot, which caused 4 out of 4 kiddos to cry, fall, get injured, or become cranky which in return caused 2 out of 2 parents decide to find a hotel! Lol!! We ended up driving and staying in Idaho Falls (and swimming again in a pool).
The next morning we headed for the zoo, spending a few hours there, enjoying ice cream and smoothies (served with lots of brain freezes).
Next, we drove to one of the highlights of the trip, Bear World. They let you drive through the park while seeing elk, buffalo, bears, wolves(it was so fun, we drove through twice). After that, we went to the petting/feeding zoo part and fed deer, chickens, goats, pigs,and peacocks. We ended our visit with the all the boys getting to ride on some carnival rides (a train, jeeps, a roller coaster, and an up and down ride).  We then drove and stayed in this cutesy cabin in Victor, Idaho. Before bed, we swam in the campground's pool, played on the playground, and shot some hoops. What a great day!!
The next morning, on Sunday, we woke up ate an ice cream and headed for the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone. Almost immediately upon entering we saw a moose. The weather was perfect for a day of enjoying the beauty of the outdoors (sunshiny and warm, not hot). We saw elk, (once with a momma and a baby suckling) bison, pronghorn. It was exciting each time spotting animals along the road. No trip to Yellowstone is complete without seeing Old Faithful, so of course, we did. It really is majestic and beautiful. We bought some rock candy(no vacation is considered complete without at least one stick of rock candy). We stopped all around to see smaller geysers, pools, waterfalls. It was a perfect day. We stayed the night in Bozeman, Montana.
We started Monday off by driving to our final destination, Coere d'Alene, Idaho. We found a cabin by the lake and decided to stay 3 nights. Once we got settled in, we played some frisbee golf and ate at Texas Roadhouse(cinnamon butter is awesome).
Tuesday we played all day at an indoor  waterpark, sliding down waterslides, jumping the waves in the wavepool, chilling in a hot tub. After we all got dried off and changed into dry clothes, we played some arcade games, and Nathan did a rock climb and made it to the top and rang the bell! We ended the day perfectly by eating dinner at Chili's (their skillet queso is my FAVE!!)
Our third day in Coere d'Alene, we spent most of it thrift store shopping (one of my favorite pastimes). We then ended the day, like many other days, swimming in the campground's pool and doing a couple loads of laundry.
On our last day (June 28th), we headed to Winthrop and enjoyed an ice cream for the birthday boy (Clayton), a game of putt-putt golf and a little shopping.
After arriving home, Clayton go to open up presents waiting from Grandma and Grandpa and Uncle Phillip, Aunt Crystal and Cousin Layla!!! We sang Happy Birthday and ate brownies!
We had a great, wonderful, happy, family time on vacation. I'm so thankful for my little family and what each one means to me and I feel so lucky and blessed to call each of them MINE!