Island Park

We just got back from Island Park near Yellowstone and boy did we have a great time!  Here's a little bit of what we did on our trip-

We rode bikes. 

We found out that Amelia is ready for a big girl bike because she would not stay off of Ava's. 

She was in heaven.

Lincoln also loved riding Ava's bike, mainly because it had a bell and a seat for his dog.

Riding a bike - Jeff style.

We rode motorcycles.

(Matt with Logan or Jack and Kim with Jane and Ava)

And my favorite part - we did some sittin' around the campfire and roasted marshmallows.

Mindi with Jack- eating some smores.

Amelia liked the roasting part but definitely not the eating part.

And this kid, who usually hates being messy, didn't seem to mind that stickiness one bit.

Guess he figured it was worth it.

Family photo by the fire.

Of course the one time that both the kids are somewhat smiling and looking in the direction of the camera, Derek pulls his Weekend at Bernie's face.

One day we headed into West Yellowstone and went to a place that had bears and wolves.

After that we ate some yummy ice cream.

Then we headed out to a steak house that people at Jeff's work raved about (Even on the internet there were great reviews for this place).  Everyone got there, unloaded, and found a seat at the tables (the place was empty).  The lady behind the bar then said, "You guys realize this is a cook-your-own-meal kind of place, right?  If that's a problem there are umpteen restaurants back in town." 

One important piece of information that Jeff's co-workers neglected to tell him.  So... we all loaded back in the trucks and drove back into town (where we had just been) to find us somewhere that would cook our food for us.  I wanted to get a quick picture of everyone before we left because I thought it was funny.

We cruised through West yellowstone.  It's really a cool little town.

(Derek has on his World's Greatest Dad shirt:)

Mindi brought some glow in the dark sticks and put them on the spokes of the kids' bikes.

They loved it!

We did a little motorcycle riding of our own, too!

She's our little Evel Knievel.

On the last day there we went down to the river, had some yummy ice cream again (isn't that what summer is for?) and then got some boats/rafts to paddle down the river in.

Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera on the boat - I was certain that if I took it, it would fall in the water somehow - but let's just say none of us knew what we were getting ourselves into.

Last day of trip.

Sleep deprived children (and parents!).

Nap time.

2 1/2 hours confined in raft/boat.

Wind pushing against the current, making it harder to paddle down the river.

3 kids falling out of boats.

Jeff screaming "Kid overboard!!!"

Fuses short.

Kids crying.

Amelia screaming.

Amelia saying "I'm tired" about 100 times.  Seriously, 100 times.

Jeff singing "We're having a BIG PARTY, BIG PARTY, BIG PARTY!" over all the screaming.

It was priceless.

Luckily we all survived and even though I think we all came back pretty exhausted, we had a great time.  I'm excited that my kids were able to sleep in the bunk house with about 11 other people besides our family.  I'm not sure we could or would have done that in previous years.  They are getting bigger and we are getting closer to doing those kinds of things easier and really being able to just hang out and enjoy it. 

One thing the kids absolutely loved was riding their bikes down this big hill near the bunkhouse.  The video doesn't really do the hill justice.  I about had a heart attack every time my kids went down it.  Thankfully we came back with minor cuts and scrapes and didn't have to make any trips to the hospital.

Good times.