Hannah's Photography

So, the more I scrapbook, the more Hannah wants to! AHHH, Ed would be so proud. The last time I scrapbooked, Hannah sat with us for almost three hours scrapbooking herself! So, while we were in Yellowstone, she asked if she could take a picture of us. Her argument was that she needed to practice for when she got her own camera to make scrapbooking pictures! Of course that argument was enough for me! Not so sure Ed was too thrilled about it! In any case, here is the picture she took. Not too bad if you ask me!

Fourth of July

For the fourth, we took it relatively easy. It started with a simple game of double deck pinnochle, which turned into and epic battle in which the women were victorious! Then, we went to Lowe's to buy some PVC pipe to make the game ladderball. Our BBQ at the Jolly's started at 5, and we alternated partners and teams from 5-9:30 when we walked to the fireworks. Ladderball was quite fun! Thanks Rachel for introducing us to it! The firework display was nice. I spent most of my time trying to figure out my camera. I was able to get a couple of nice shots! Finally we walked back home to let off our AWESOME fireworks! I love the 3ft rule for Idaho...nothing can go above three feet...of course many people don't follow that rule. Elayna and Hannah both liked the sparklers, mainly because they could hold them I am sure, but Elayna kept holding on to them well after the sparkle was out. Since they are now made out of a straw type material, it slowly made it to her finger. That was the last sparkler she held. I now have a daughter who is afraid of the sparkler! All-in-all a good day. Nice and relaxing.

Yellowstone 2011

Fourth of July weekend we decided to take the girls to Yellowstone to camp. Normally we spend one long day running around the park seeing the sites. This time we decided to take it a little easier and spend one night in the park. We stayed at Bridge Bay Campground, very nice place. By spending two days in the park, we went on a couple of hikes that we haven't been on before. Hannah did surprisingly well. She walked well over two miles the first day and one the second. Elayna walked to entire 2/3 mile loop on her own, and then down another 3/8 mile to the brink of upper falls. She was way too tired to walk back up the switch backs though. Luckily for us, as we were driving, we saw two bear sitting off the road. The amount of people stopped was insane! I have waited my entire life to see bear in Yellowstone, we have gone there yearly since I was 8, and now I have seen them two years in a row. I guess the time of the year matters! Hannah wasn't that excited to see the bear. To her, it was just another animal to check off.

We took the girls for a nice dinner at the Lake Lodge, bit of advice, make reservations ahead of time! Afterwards, we went back to camp and built a fire to make smores! We used cookies with chocolate as the base, then fancy campfire marshmellows for the inside (although I am not convinced they are any better than normal marshmellows! By the time we made it to bed, it was well passed their normal bedtime; compounded with all the hiking, the girls were exhausted! All three of us slept in two bags zipped together, while Ed slept by himself! Wipe a tear! The next day we leisurely made our way to Old Faithful and then out. The new visitors center at Old Faithful was kind of nice, but it looks a little to modern for my liking. Lots of information inside, especially for kids. Not to mention, a cool place to get out of the heat! After Old Faithful, we made our trip back home. Great weekend!

Puppy Face

A week ago we went to my father's company picnic. Hannah was so excited when she finally made it to the front of the line. She asked to look like Beauregard (my mother's puppy). She was so proud of her face! I think they did a fabulous job!

Braids

So yesterday the girls played in our little swimming pool for a couple of hours. Afterwards they decided to go down the slide in our backyard which had a hose running at the end of it...WELL with wet swimming suits and wet grass, the girls flew off the end of the slide and went skidding across the grass for five or more feet. Needless to say, they thought that was the coolest thing they have ever done. HOWEVER, by the time they were finished they were a muddy mess!!! Hannah knows that if we take a bath in the middle of the day, I will braid her hair in her "little" braids. Although her braids are bigger than I would like, after getting through Elayna's hair, my patience was running out! The good things about them is that I am off the hook for doing their hair for a week!