Cera loves to have fun socks - whether they are knee high, don't match or toe socks. She was excited to find a couple pair of knee high socks while shopping in the states.
We were excited when some of our friends wanted to spend the afternoon at the river and we were home to play!! We took a few boats and floaties to the river and the girls ran up and floated down for hours.
It was great to see the kids working together and taking turns so everyone could have fun (and the Moms could enjoy a visit on the shore).
It was such a wonderful afternoon that we didn't want to end!
We also enjoyed a day of canning with Aunt Tori. The girls even jumped in to help out and had fun while doing it.
It was our first time canning - it was fun, lots of learning and things to do differently next time - but overall a great day!
After our Mt. Marston adventure and therefore stopping at the trailer for a night we had to stay until after the solar eclipse before we headed for home. We made our own viewers by putting a pin hole in a piece of paper, holding it above our heads (with our back towards the eclipse) and letting it shine onto a sheet in front of us. The girls got everyone out taking a look including Grandma!!
We were all pretty impressed by the view we were able to see with such a simple homemade viewer.
Cera made herself comfortable so she could watch the progress of the eclipse. We weren't in a complete eclipse area but were still impressed by how dark it got and the temperature did cool enough for us to notice. What a fun experience!
Then we were able to enjoy another gorgeous sunset as we drove home. We are so blessed!!
On the way home from the Richards family reunion we stopped for a bit of shopping in Kalispell. Emilee was excited to find a new sweater she loves - it's a dinosaur. And then it was funny when she put on the googly eye hat.
On our multiple trips to Kalispell Mom has noticed a turn off for Mt. Marston lookout and then had a 900m under it. She just assumed that meant 900 meters and has always thought about pulling off to have a look. Well she mentioned it on the way home and the girls said it sounded fun. We pulled off and started driving on a gravely, bumpy road. We came to one end which had a beautiful view with lake. We stopped for a few pictures but Mom felt it wasn't much of a mountain lookout.
As we drove back out Mom noticed she turned the wrong way at a Y in the road for the lookout. It said 13 miles to the lookout so Mom made the less than thought through decision to head up the road.
We had to drive pretty slow on the bumpy dirt road and it was wide enough for one vehicle. Mom isn't sure what would have happened had we met up with someone else. At some points it dropped down on the one side and there was no where to slide over and pass each other.
The 13 miles seemed to take an eternity and it was getting darker and darker by the minute. The view at the top was spectacular but it wasn't the best time or vehicle probably for this adventure. Especially because nobody knew where we were or if we were driving all the way home that night or stopping at Grandma and Grandpa's trailer, we also had no cell service - it provided Mom an excellent opportunity to talk to the girls about good decisions and that Mom's make mistakes also.
Luckily we made it safely to the top and enjoyed the view of Glacier National Park on one side and the Canadian Rockies on the other. The girls also had to take a potty break when we finally made it to the top. (Which made Mom realize she needs to have another conversation with the girls about some basic physics involving wind and liquids!)
We wished we could have spent some more time enjoying the view but Mom knew we needed to get down soon with night setting in and get across the border so we could contact Grandma and Grandpa about staying at the trailer before they were fast sleep.
After reading more about the lookout the next day, we decided we'd like to do it again and spend more time but should maybe take Dad's truck. The website said, "This is a great summer drive for an adventure. The road to the lookout isn't great, so take a 4WD and a spare tire, just in case." Oops - adventures are great but maybe a little pre-research is a good idea next time! We are grateful that our adventure ended well and we were able to spend the night at the trailer before heading all the way home.
It was another great year at the Richards family reunion. We arrived a day early to do a little shopping and have an extra day with some cousins. We scrounged up some breakfast!! Look how excited Emilee is to enjoy her caterpillar?!
It was huge!! (Mom was a little grossed out by it!)
Even after her face full of water last year skiing, Emilee was up for trying it again. She started out good.....
...but then fell and we were really sure why....
....and then realized that her cousin, Logan, wasn't as ready as he thought to hold the other end of her rope. He ended up going for a swim with Emilee!
Once they were both ready Emilee popped out of the water and, with a huge smile of accomplishment, skied around the lake.
She stayed up for a long time....
...and we weren't sure she would ever want to stop!
During the few days there was also a lot of time spent on the tube. Mike enjoyed a ride or two and even flipped off once! He was too busy chatting to hold on and when they hit a wave, he went flying!
Here he is in the water saying, "Logan, come back!" We all laughed and wondered if he'd be brave enough to get back on the tube - he sure was!! Way to go Mike!
It seemed to be a constant rotation of cousins on the tube in every different combination imaginable - so fun!
This group wanted to go fast and crazy. The looks a little crazy to us!
They enjoyed some airtime too!
Sadie was even bounced off the side! Cera seemed a little surprised with feet in her face.
From the boat, we saw lots of hair and feet - followed by giggles and requests for more. That tube logged a lot of lake time in a few days!
Aunt Jenn also organized some fun games to play while we were there. Slip and slide kick ball anyone?!?
The kids and some adults had so much fun playing - the rest enjoyed watching from the sides.
Then it just switched to slip and slide.
The kids were looking forward to being tipped around on the lily pad in the middle of the lake but sadly the boat had had enough just as we pulled them out there. They still seemed to have fun trying to walk on it and swimming back to the boat.
Elizabeth wanted to try it, but all by herself as the other kids were too crazy for her.
We are grateful for the fun we can have each year as we get together. The cousins love their time with one another and making great memories. Look at that group!
We were excited to tackle Bear's Hump again this year as it's been a few years since we were there last. In fact our last visit involved Mom packing Elizabeth up in the backpack carrier while Dad helped Emilee and Cera up the mountain! Cera had lots of energy and was ready to head up the mountain while Emilee and Elizabeth wanted to take it slow with lots of breaks along the way. Luckily Aunt Tori was with us and took the lead with Cera while Mom hung back.
Emilee loves to take in her surroundings when she is doing anything and has a keen eye. She picked up on this bee gathering some nectar and just needed a picture! (She might get that from Mom!)
When Emilee, Elizabeth and Mom were about two thirds of the way up the mountain we received this picture of Cera and Tori at the top!
The other two were very proud of themselves for making it all the way to the top.
Shortly after we all arrived at the top some storm clouds moved in. The wind picked up, sprinkles started to come down and the temperature seemed to drop 20 degrees. We grabbed a few quick shots to prove we'd done it and headed back down.
Mom was a bit nervous for the girls to be near the edge for the picture as it was so windy!
As quickly as the weather moved it, it seemed to move out so we headed over to Red Rock Canyon. The girls hadn't got enough the first time we stopped by.
We found some more "rock slides" this time and the girls had fun yet again!
We encouraged the girls to just look down this slide as it was a much bigger and a tight drop off.
We had to make a stop in Glenwood for some ice cream we had been hearing all about! It seemed to be enjoyed by everyone and Dad really enjoyed the cheese curds we brought home for him. (See we still think about him while we are out and about!)
After dropping off Aunt Tori we headed for home. The sun was setting and was almost a see through red color. Mom had the girls snap a picture (it's just above the trees on the left).
We live in such a beautiful country and are so blessed to be able to get out and enjoy it! (And as a late note - we are so glad we were able to make it to hike Bear's Hump as the park was sadly part of the wildfires of 2017 which decimated so much including Bear's Hump. It will never be the same again!)
In true Hayhurst girls style - our plans changed mid-trip. We heard that Grandma and Grandpa were coming down to the Richards baseball tournament wrap up/reunion dinner so we decided to stay also. We enjoyed some visiting and seeing extended family we haven't seen since last years dinner.
When that was done we had a little time to use up before heading to Tori and Tyler's house. (Because we stayed for the dinner, we decided we could extend our trip and get a little more hiking and visiting in!) We decided to stop by the Cardston Temple and take a few pictures of the girls.
They each had their ideas of how they wanted to pose by the bench and temple. It's fun to see their personalities in different ways each day.
After the mini-photo shoot we were back on the road to our next destination! (We are grateful for Dad's flexibility with us girls as we have fun travelling and playing. We think he also enjoys some quiet time at home with his dog and guitar.)
