Back from vacation

So we are back from vacation. Before we went I was on a business trip and I came home the night before we left. While we were in Yellowstone I found out I would have to travel the day I got back. Talk about a lot of driving.

Anyways, let's see if I can get this gigantic post in order.

First there was the thousand or so mile drive, a lot of which looked like this:



Which in turn led to this in the back seat (but we wish there had more of it!):




I particularly like the tongue out. It like bait for the fly trap. The picture of the girl drooling didn't come out so well.

We got in after dark the second night but were pretty happy with the campsite when we woke up in the morning..



The next day (the fourth of July) we went into Jackson to see the touristy sites.



And after dark we sat in the back of the truck to check out the fireworks.



We moved campsites a couple of days later up to Colter Bay. A short hike from the campsite was Jackson lake. This is the kids just before they disregard my advice/order of "don't get your clothes wet!"



For dinner that night we lucked out. We camped right next to a chocolate milk tree.

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At least they don't think it comes from a chocolate cow! They aren't dummies. I think I can tell how much they liked the chocolate milk followed by smores dinner from the expression on his face.



Earlier this summer the girl earned her Junior Ranger badge in Kings Canyon national park. Not satisfied with that she also got one in the Grand Tetons.

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After our time in the Grand Tetons we moved on up to Yellowstone. There was a lot of snowfall this year, so the lakes and rivers are very full.

Luckily for us the national parks are full of rocks. We try and get a picture of the kids on every one we can find. Here they are at the upper falls of the Yellowstone river.

Just one more step back... and get that worried look off your face.



There is nothing like being at the precipice of a really big waterfall with little ones to make you feel ill at ease. The hike down to the falls overlook is only 3/8 of a mile but drops like 600 feet. The girl hiked all the way back out, but the boy had a melt down... there is only so much sightseeing you can do a day before the kids get worn out. Which of course leads to parents getting worn out.

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The next few days we drove around looking for rocks to set the kids on (or so it seems).






On the boys birthday it was really cold in the morning - you could see your breath in the trailer. The girl was crabby, but the boy was happy being a dragon.

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Of course that was AFTER he finally got out of bed. It's like we have little teenagers. Check out what he does when we told him it was time to get up.



Of course there was the usual wildlife. You know - the giraffes, elephants, and wildebeests.





ok, there is more to come... it seems like I've spent more time downloading/uploading/cropping than I actually spent on vacation.