two lakes and a ranch
Conestoga Ranch is a must do in my mind! It is relaxing, fun and the best kind of adventure! We went to Bear Lake the first day and the next day drove to Tony Grove Lake. It was a recipe for a pretty perfect weekend!
a weekend in island park and yellowstone
We spent the weekend in Island Park and Yellowstone Park!
I have talked about it before but seeing wild animals is my FAVORITE thing. I have noticed that so many of our trips are planned around what wild animals we will see! I have never been to the park in the spring and it was so fun to see the baby animals. We saw a ton of buffalo, elk, a bear, moose, deer, and tons of birds!
The traffic was moving slow so we rolled the windows down and we just happened to be driving by the ponds. Since we were moving slowly we could hear all of the frogs singing! It was so cool and one of my favorite parts of the trip.
The weather was cold and wet, but that didn’t stop us from riding the rhino all over the mountains and adventuring outside.
Escaping to the mountains with my family was just what we all needed.
granite hot springs
Granite Hot Springs will forever be one of my VERY favorite places on earth! I grew up going to granite and I love that we live close enough now that we can go more often! This day at Granite happened to be the warmest (30 degrees) day with the most perfectly blue sky. It’s usually MUCH colder and always a little snowy.
We started our winter adventure on snowmobiles, my favorite! The trail follows an icy river for about 10 miles and you end up at the natural hot springs. The water is around 112 degrees in the winter, so don’t worry, you will get warm!
It is always interesting, and part of the adventure, getting out of your snow clothes and into a swimsuit, when it is FREEZING outside. I laugh every time when you have to make the barefoot walk to the pool. Walking like a cat that hates its paws wet. My toes tingle every time when I finally make it to the hot water.
After soaking, we get back on the snowmobiles and stop for lunch at the waterfall that is directly below the springs. The views are amazing!
Granite is a one of a kind adventure that I would recommend to EVERYONE!
Click the link below for more information.
boating on lake las vegas
We went to Lake Las Vegas and rented a Trevi Jay boat from Lake Las Vegas Water Sports. It was a perfectly relaxing Saturday morning. Exploring places by water is always my favorite way to explore anything!
snowmobiling, horses and a bonfire
I love days like today...
- We made a quick trip out to Summit Trail Farm to have a Christmas-Box bonfire and to snowmobile.
- Blizzard, snowmobiling, horses and a bonfire. Random and perfect.
- My Dad doesn't have any animals there right now, but he lets the neighbors horses use his pasture. They were curious and friendly as we snowmobiled around them.
- There's just something about Wyoming that loves to be photographed.
- I love hanging out with horses.
-I love making memories with my family. This was a good one.
dog sledding
"This is the BEST day ever!" -- K
Dog Sledding...WOW!
We booked a tour through the Togwotee Mountain Lodge, about 45 minutes from Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Click HERE for all the information. I HIGHLY recommend doing this with your family. It is a once in a lifetime experience and we had so much fun!
You could also book your tour with Jackson Hole Iditarod. We did this tour previously and you get to go into Granite Hot Springs with Jackson Hole Iditarod.
It was a beautiful sunny day, BUT only 10 degrees. Yikes! I would bring hand warmers, foot warmers, etc. It is easy to get cold so bundle up...
These Alaskan Huskies are incredible animals. They don't look like the sled dogs in the movies but to see them in action is a once in a lifetime thing you need to do. They are strong, kind, have amazing endurance, and are very happy animals! The dogs are VERY friendly and gave K and J a thousand hugs and kisses. When we started walking toward them they went CRAZY! They were so excited to go sledding. These dogs LOVE what they do! Every time we stopped; even to give them a break, they would look back like "What!?!? Why are we stopping?" Then they would start barking and howling and whining until we released the brake and they were able to run again. It was amazing to see them do what they are born to do.
The scenery is harsh and beautiful as only western Wyoming can be. Being able to enjoy some of these views isolated from the noise and other distractions of today was an almost spiritual experience. We can't wait to go again.
We LOVE you Wyoming!
eldorado canyon mine
Eldorado Canyon and the Techatticup Mine are just.... quirky. We love exploring this unique place!
Where else could you see a mine, a plane crash and a bedroom full of aliens on the same day?
Like I said.... quirky.
Our favorite part is the mine tour. It's the oldest, richest and most famous gold mine in Southern Nevada. We loved hearing the ghost stories and the history of the mine.
After exploring the mine we headed down the road about two miles and had lunch on a rock, overlooking the Colorado River.
It was a perfectly quirky day. Weird, but in a good way.
Make sure to call ahead to make reservations. All the information is HERE.
an october weekend in star valley
Crisp fall air (sometimes a little too crisp), the smell of a wood-furnace fire and snow on the mountain tops. I love Star Valley in October! Every time my kids smell fire or exhaust they say it smells like Nana and Papa's. I love that those smells remind them of my favorite place on earth.
When I was a kid, we used the month of October to prepare for the cold winters. I was able to show my kids what it was like for me. We helped my parents haul wood and transport chickens from the farm to their house. After working on the farm we went to a local dairy farm and had ice cream. That afternoon we took my Dad's kayaks to Cottonwood Lake and spent the afternoon kayaking... in the ice! It was an incredibly beautiful 30*.
Whether we were working on the farm, raking leaves at the house, playing at the farm or playing in the leaves we love what Star Valley has to offer this "thin-blooded city" family.
Working hard and then playing hard.
Star Valley = Happiness
top ten things to do in jackson hole with kids
This summer we spent a couple days in Jackson Hole, Wyoming and it's no secret that we are IN LOVE with this little town. I thought I would share our top ten favorite things to do and an incredibly long picture diary of our summer. The pictures will make you want to pack your bags and hit the road. You better move quick though, I heard it snowed. Yikes!
1. hike, bike, kayak, ferry-ride jenny lake
2. llama trekking at wildland llamas
3. schwabachers landing in the evening
4. mad river white water boat trip
5. jackson hole aerial tram
6. town square
7. horseback riding at a-ok coral
8. swimming at granite hot springs
9. bar-t-5 covered wagon cookout
10. cowboy coaster at snow king
lake hopping
Every summer should be spent going to as many lakes as possible. There is just something about a lake that completes me. This summer we spent time boating at Palisades Lake, fishing at Cottonwood Lake and kayaking at Tony Grove Lake. I grew up in the most BEAUTIFUL place!!
*Wood Boats are from SEEDLING.
atv adventure
Whenever we visit my parents in Wyoming they are always so generous with their time and toys. One of my favorite things is exploring the mountains on an ATV. On this particular adventure, we explored Dry Fork. Usually we go up this canyon on snowmobiles, so it was fun to see the difference.
Whenever I am on a 4-wheeler I will find mud/water and I will pretend I am on a jet ski. I have done this since I was little, and my Dad patiently lets me get mud EVERYWHERE! If you don't ruin a pair of shoes while riding a four-wheeler, you are doing it wrong. Haha! You can see in the first picture Kyler is new at the "ruining the shoes" idea. He is a shoe lover and couldn't stand the thought of mud all over them. It has been a very wet winter and spring for Wyoming so their was water EVERYWHERE! It was so funny to watch huge clumps of mud land on our helmets and arms while riding through the water on the trails.
We stopped for an amazing lunch in a grove of Quaking Aspen trees. We had walking taco's for lunch and they were so good. You take small bags of fritos and put taco meat, tomatoes, olives, cheese, avocado, etc. and eat it right out of the bag! Then you can walk around and eat your taco. So fun and delicious.
After lunch the kids explored, played with their sling shot and shot the bb gun. While exploring they found a nest with baby birds! Cutest thing.
Thanks Mom and Dad for the best adventure in the beautiful mountains of Wyoming.
beach volleyball junior olympics- santa monica, california
Last week we were in Santa Monica, California for the beach volleyball Junior Olympics. We are so proud of Jocelyn for qualifying and having this amazing opportunity.
Jocelyn and her partner Aubrie are both new to sand volleyball and have completely fallen in love with the sport and you can see it when they play. We are so blessed to have such a great partner for Jocelyn. They both work so hard, have great attitudes and love to play. We are so proud of J for her achievements already in this sport. Can't wait to see what more hard work will do for her.
Beach/Sand Volleyball is perfect for Jocelyn. It has a laid back vibe, music playing, on the beach, BUT wow is it a tough and competitive sport. Perfect for my J.
We love California and loved spending time in Santa Monica as a family.
summer in utah
Utah in the summer is the place to be! We had the best time celebrating my sister's 30th birthday. We went glamping at Conestoga Ranch, spent the day at Bear Lake, hiked Antelope Island, spent lots of time with wild flowers, went to an aquarium, and had quality time with family! As always, let my pictures tell the story.
spring break at imperial beach
For spring break we headed to sunny California! We rented a beach house at Imperial Beach which is close to San Diego. It was SO NICE! I loved being able to just walk out to the beach. So great when you have kids. My favorite part about Imperial Beach was the fact that at times we were the only ones out on the beach. Yes, it was freezing and windy, but STILL it just wasn't as busy as other beaches. The kids favorite part were all of the amazing seashells. Some of the best I have seen and so many everywhere. We LOVED Imperial.
We spent most of our time just hanging out on the beach. J and K had the best time with the boogie boards. I love watching them play, it makes my heart happy. We also went to the San Diego Zoo, went kayaking, explored La Jolla, and went whale watching!
My favorite place we ate was a restaurant called Cliffhanger Cafe. It is on top of a cliff and has the best views and sandwiches. It was the coolest. So if you are ever in La Jolla, you must go!
One of our favorite things to do while on vacation is to go whale watching. We have been 5 times! Guess what, we still have not seen a whale! What the? Even though we haven't seen a whale we have seen some incredible wildlife. One of these days we will see a whale! Kyler said, "Do they even exist?" Haha While whale watching aka whale searching, we encountered THOUSANDS of dolphins, like so many. It was one of the coolest things I have ever seen. We also saw a rare dolphin called the Risso's dolphin. So beautiful! I will never be bored of watching wildlife do there thing. It is my favorite.
Check out ADVENTURE RIB RIDES next time you are in San Diego.
Thank you California, as usual you are the best!
foggy dana point
Last weekend we went adventuring to California to check out the Whale Festival at Dana Point. Dana Point is one of our favorite places in Cali. It's just so beautiful!
My family loves anything centered around animals and it is on my bucket list to see whales! We have tried to see whales in Hawaii and again a couple years ago at Dana Point. No luck. So I thought we would see whales for sure at the Whale Festival!
It started off as a beautiful sunny day and then the FOG rolled in. It made it so hard to see, which made it very difficult to find whales. So sadly, once again, no whales! I will keep trying. Hopefully next year! Never give up right?
Even with the fog we had the most amazing time. We saw so many dolphins and a sword fish!(Kyler kept reminding me that Dolphins are whales, but...) After the whale safari we spent the rest of the day at 1,000 steps beach. It is an incredible beach, has amazing views and we always see wildlife. It is worth the hike up and down the stairs. You just don't want to forget anything, because once you are down there, the only time you are going up is to leave! I left my sunglasses in the car.... SO my amazing husband let me wear his. I have the most sensitive eyes, so he was nice to help me out. He was probably just sick of looking at my squinty face and hearing me sneeze.
I know it's super obvious that I love pictures. It is my form of journaling! The pictures I took at Dana Point are some of my favorites of all time. There is something so magical and dreamy about them. The fog added a filter that you just can't duplicate.
Even though our weekend didn't go as planned, I am still head over heals in love with Dana Point. We better see whales next time though! haha
We love Captain Dave's Dolphin and Whale Safari! Check out more information on their website HERE.
snowy wyoming
Our time in Wyoming is always our favorite and it has a lot to do with the fact that my parents make it magical. I will never get sick of exploring and sharing Wyoming with my kids. I know they love it as much as I do.
Our time in Wyoming was a snowy one. We started our adventure in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. We went on a Sleigh Ride at the Elk Refuge. If you haven't done this, it is a must! It is on the top of our "must do list" in Jackson in the winter.
The rest of our time was spent at my parents house in Afton, Wyoming or Star Valley. It was full of sledding, snow ball fights, snowmobiling, backyard fire-pit, snowman making, snowshoeing, building tunnels, more sledding, and yelling, "shut the door"! All in my parents backyard. Like I said, magical.
Our favorite things to do in Jackson Hole in the Winter:
- Sleigh Ride at the Elk Refuge (get tickets at the visitor center in Jackson Hole)
- Dog Sledding
- Snowmobiling into Granite Hot Spring
family fun in las vegas
LAS VEGAS FAMILY FUN:
- Hiking Red Rock (Go early)
- Red Rock Climbing Center (Do this after hiking Red Rock)
- Fountains at Bellagio-Botanical Garden (Free)
- El Dorado Mine Tour (Book your appointment for the mine tour before driving out)
- Ethel M Chocolate Factory Tour and Cactus Garden
- Adventure Dome at Circus Circus (Fun for older kids)
- The Neon Museum (this place has all of the old signs from Vegas throughout the years)
- Hoover Dam Tour and The Hoover Dam Bypass Pedestrian Walkway
- High Roller at the Linq (Worlds Tallest Observation Wheel)
- Big Shot! at the Stratosphere (Big Kids 48" tall to ride)
- Walking the Las Vegas Strip: M&M Factory, Coca Cola, Hershey, etc.
- Tree House and Play Zone at the Container Park
- Fremont Street Experience, Slotzilla Zip Line, Toy Shack
- Discovery Children's Museum
- Gameworks at Town Square Mall
- Las Vegas Mini Gran Prix (affordable and my kids love it)
- Bass Pro Shops/Silverton (They have mermaids swimming in the tank)
- Tournament of Kings Show at Excalibur
- Historic Railroad Tunnels Trail Hike and Lake Mead Overlook (We park at the Hoover Dam Lodge and towards the back of the parking lot is the trailhead. Turn right on the trail go down the mountain and you will see the tunnels trail. Turn right and you will get to the tunnels in half a mile.)
- Blue Man Group Show
- Seven Magic Mountains- large scale artwork (Only here until May 11, 2018)
- Mystere by Cirque du Soleil
- Bonnie Springs Ranch
- We have so many fun parks in Las Vegas/Henderson. One of our favorites is Reunion Trails Park.
- Lake Mead- feeding the fish at the marina (Go buy a bag of popcorn in the gift shop)
- Spring Mountain Ranch State Park
WE WANT TO TRY:
- Glowzone (new family fun center)
- Marvel Avengers Station at Treasure Island (THIS PLACE LOOKS AWESOME)
- Kayaking the Colorado River
- SeaQuest Interactive Aquarium
indoor camping adventure
I love that my kids are still kids. I feel like this is a lost art. Haha! Why is everyone in such a hurry to grow up? I just hope that my kids will have some good memories of being together, being silly, using their imagination, being weird and having some good old fashion FUN! I hope they remember the good times we have together. I don't want them to only have visions of Minecraft and Pokemon video games. I get that, "thats what kids do", but I want them to have more. I struggle with the guilt of letting them be on electronics. What do you guys do to monitor electronic time? Give me all the ideas!
Talking about making memories and being silly.... our indoor camping adventure was hilarious to us. We went searching for animals, roasted marshmallows, cooked hot dogs, and slept in a tent. I LOVE their imaginations and their love for camping and animals. They said real camping is better, but this was a close second.
I was happy that for at least an hour they were just... KIDS! Then they went back to Minecrafting like the tweeners they are.
conestoga ranch and bear lake
This place is AMAZING!! Put Conestoga Ranch on your summer bucket list. So family friendly, and in my opinion the best kind of camping.
To say the kids were excited for these couple of days was an extreme understatement. Their cousin Kase being there added to the crazy excitement. As you can see from the pictures their faces have this crazy "I'm on vacation, lack of sleep, sugar high look to them." Pure CRAZY! Words cannot describe how much fun they had!
The morning before we checked in we headed to the Minnetonka Cave. The kids and I both loved it. Make sure you bring jackets! We had them but wished we had coats. We are a bunch of pansies though. This place can get very crowded so avoid the lines and go early! We went right when it opened and got right in. After the caves we went to the Bike Barn to rent bikes. It is right next to the KOA campground. Three kids and me on a four person bike was hilarious. Kyler had to get out and push from behind a couple times. SO MUCH FUN! The bike paths were safe and perfect for an hour rental. After the bikes they had a mine your own rocks activity. Since being on vacation the kids have done this in West Yellowstone, twice and now at Bear Lake. Cannot get enough of it! You can pick your own bag and mine for treasures! Your kids will love it.
My sister met us at the ranch and we checked into our tent. What an incredible place! The property sits up on the hill and overlooks bear lake. Beautiful. Our tent was the very back one, so our views were so so good. Your room comes with a complementary smores kit. This place is a kids dream. They have a little park, games, volleyball and baby horses to look at. We bought them bows and arrows at the gift shop and it was the best thing ever. haha No electronics were allowed so basically it was for me and my sister's sanity! The best part of glamping was the no cooking part! The restaurant was great and it felt like you were outdoors the whole time. After dinner they came and started our fire! We felt pampered and never wanted to leave! Go to their website HERE. You will find their rates and more information about this amazing place! I give this place five stars. We were definitely happy glampers!
After the best night of glamping we met my family at Bear Lake. One of my favorite places ever. Its just so fun for everyone. We rented paddle boards from North Shore Rentals and it was so windy that it made it very interesting! Watching my kids laugh and play on the beach and in the waves makes me one happy Mama. You know its the end of a bear lake day when you start chasing seagulls.
I hope that you guys are all making plans for next summer to check this place out. You will not regret it.
Thanks for reading!
chickens and turkeys and lambs oh my
Time spent at my Dads farm, is time well spent. It is hard to explain the feeling that you get while working on the farm. It is probably because it reminds me the most of my childhood. I loved growing up on a farm and love that my kids get a little taste of it as well. I love sharing my childhood with my kids.
Running a farm is a lot of work though! My poor Dad broke his back a few weeks ago and needed some help. I loved helping him but was sad that he couldn't do what he loves the most....farm.
Every day I would help out my dad would laugh at my outfit. I really did wear some very interesting things to change pipe and feed the animals! One of the last nights we were there we took some photos at the farm and I love how they turned out. Being that close to animals is so fun for my kids. I love how much happiness the farm brings to the whole family!
