July 24, 2011

Minnesota Vacation 2011

Day 4
Today we reached the city of Cook, Minnesota. We were so happy!
We met grandma and grandpa Creswell at the Target in Virginia and gathered all our food for the cabin. Once we got our food and lunch, we headed for Elbow Lake where we would take a boat to the cabin. The last time we were here was 10 years ago and I still remember the mosquito that got trapped in my pants giving me 18 bites on my bum!
Once we got to the dock and loaded up the boat, we made our way across the lake to spend 4 days without cell phones, running water, electricity, and other modern conveniences.
It was so hot and humid that we broke a sweat just sitting in the shade. By evening we were all in the lake washing off the stink of the day and it sure felt good!
Adam loved fishing. Never ended up catching anything but got a couple of nibbles. Makinley enjoyed covering herself with mud from the lake and collecting slimy lily pads. Kennidy fell in love with the row boat and got really good at it by the end of the week. Ford and I got eatin alive from all the mosquitos. Thank goodness for grandma's Afterbite Itch Relief. Ford liked playing in the lake and giving grandma pinches.

Minnesota Vacation 2011

Day 3
We traveled across North Dakota to Moorehead, Minnesota.
We saw some really pretty land...green and simply beautiful but not without a price. We got out of the car for a bathroom break only to be smacked in the face with humidity! Blah! We were happy to get to Moorehead. The kids liked this pool the best. It had 2 big pool areas. A baby pool with a turtle and frog slide and a bigger pool with a ball hoop. We did laundry and had pizza for dinner. Very relaxing after a long day of travel.

Minnesota Vacation 2011

Day 2
Today we drove to Billings, Montana. But before we stopped there we went through Yellostone National Park.
Yellowstine was amazing! We stopped on the side of the road to take pics of a bald eagle perched in a tree, caribou grazing in a field, buffalo on the side of the road, and Old Faithful Geyser. We were all excited to see these animals up close and I think I took tons of pictures of buffalo! They are huge creatures. After lunch and experiencing a little part of Yellostone...we headed to Billings.
We got to our hotel and out came the swimsuits and towels! I have to say that this was the perfect way to end each day of our trip. All the kids looked forward to this!

Minnesota Vacation 2011

Day 1
Started out bright and early Sunday morning. We traveled 10 hours to Rexburg, Idaho. Brandon drove us around BYU - Idaho campus and showed us where he used to live. It was called Ricks College back in the day and much, much smaller. The entire town has grown so much since the '90s. The kids thought it was neat too see where dad went to college for a short while before moving to BYU - Provo. We also saw the temple that sits on a hill over looking Rexburg. It was really pretty and surprisingly bigger than expected.
The kids were happy to be out of the car and into the pool. The Springhill Suites in Rexburg were a favorite. They were totally groovy with their Retro designs.

July 01, 2011

Just the Girls...

I asked Lynda Thomassen, of Blue Lake Photos, if she would take me out for a photo lesson.  She takes amazing photos and was so great to help me.  I was just getting into photography when we moved from Utah, almost 4 years ago, and haven't done it since.  Just my family...dinkin around.  Lynda taught me some really interesting and useful tips!!!  Thanks so much, Lynda!