Picking Huckleberries

I LOVE huckleberries - in milkshakes, pancakes, plain - however you use them they are delicious! While we were in Driggs last week at my parents, my aunt took us all up to her huckleberry spot. We had 14 of the 15 grandkids with us and had a great time up in the mountains. The kids did much better than we expected and when they got tired/bored of picking huckleberries they all just ran around and played.

The favorite thing for the kids to do was to eat the huckleberries! Then they would complain that they didn't have any in their buckets, and want me to put my precious berries in their buckets. :) I consider myself to be a pretty nice mom - but not that nice.

We've made huckleberry shakes almost every night since we picked.

West Yellowstone

Last weekend we went camping with Rich's family up at Hebgen Lake by West Yellowstone. On Sunday after we cleaned up camp we drove through the Park and had a picnic. The boys had never been through the park and they loved seeing the geysers. It was only 59 degrees but OK weather to walk around in. Here are the boys at the firehole river.

We stopped for a picnic farther up the firehole river. It was difficult trying to get all the boys standing and looking at the camera. It looks like only Zack is cooperating in this picture - but he is folding his arms - so that makes up for Kade and Ty's crazy faces. :)

The boys were SO tired after the weekend of camping. This picture is at Old Faithful - all the boys laid down on the bench while we were waiting for the geyser to erupt.

Looking at the geysers by Old Faithful.

Hebgen Lake

For years we've been going to Hebgen Lake with my mom's side of the family and it is something we look forward to every year. We stay at a cabin on the lake, but we've always set up a tent and camp if the weather cooperates. It's a weekend filled with family, food, waterskiing, swimming, playing and golfing for the guys. The kids played and swam in the lake all weekend with their cousins. We waterskiied on very smooth water which was SO much fun!!! My mom and dad were even able to come up for a few hours on Saturday which was a fun surprise for everyone to see them and visit with them. My dad was able to waterski which he hasn't done in years :) There are always the memorable moments of the sudden afternoon thunder/wind storms, leeches and mosquitos but the fun we have all together makes it all worth it. We had a great weekend and are doing it again at Henry's Lake with Rich's side of the family in 2 weeks.

Summer Fun

It is so hard for me to keep this updated during the summer.  So I guess monthly updates will have to work for now :)  As of right now things have fallen through with our house and we are hoping someone else finds it soon and wants to move in quickly so we can move down to Utah.  But in the meantime we have been having lots of summer fun.   Kade and Ty have been to 4 birthday parties in the last few weeks and have been busy playing everyday with friends.  I have been golfing 3 times this summer, which I've loved.  I went once with my brother, once with Rich and then I went last week with two of my sisters and my brother. 

We had so much fun golfing.  I got 2 birdies!  They were both of a par 3 hole and I hit my tee shot within a foot of the hole both times and putted it in for birdie.  I took pictures of where my ball landed on the green but they were with my sisters camera and I haven't got them.  But I did have 3 witnesses to document it really happened :)

This last weekend we drove down to Utah to our friends house warming party/birthday party for their son.  After the party and playing we put the kids to bed and me and my girl friends went to The Proposal while the guys stayed home and played board games.  The movie was so funny!!  We were all laughing so hard the whole movie long.  It is definitely adult/crude humor so be warned.    On Saturday morning the guys went golfing in the morning and then we went over to the Roy Aquatic center with our friends.  We love that aquatic center - it is so much fun. Zack was having so much fun.  I put him in a little floaty jet ski thing and he could touch the bottom of the pool and he would walk all around and stop and watch people  or try to run kids over with his floaty.  Rich took the boys on the slides and they both loved that.  We spent a couple hours there and then drove back home.  We were exhausted yesterday - but after a good night sleep we are back at it again today and headed to Rigby Lake!  

Softball Tournament

Our stake had a softball tournament yesterday that was so much fun.  Each ward could put together their best co-ed team and they had unlimited hot dogs, chips, treats, popcorn, drinks, snow cones and an inflatable for the kids to play on.  Rich and I didn't plan on playing since we missed all the practices through the week, but we were quickly recruited to a team and had a great time playing.  Rich had brought his shoes and glove just in case.  I was not as prepared - I was in flip flops and ended up playing bare foot and borrowing a mitt.   Rich hit a home run with the bases loaded his first time up to bat.  A few innings later he hit it over the fence for another home run.  Our boys were very impressed and excited to see both of us play.  Kade, Ty and Zack ran around for 3 hours watching us play and eating an endless amount of hot dogs, chips, popcorn and snow cones.  Later that night Kade told us he ate 6 snow cones!!!  Good thing they were mostly just ice :)  

A round of Golf

When I was younger my dad used to take me and my siblings golfing all the time on this little par 3 course by Ashton.   I have so many fun memories of golfing with my family and today I got to add to those memories.  Thanks to my amazingly wonderful neighbor who watches my kids more than I do - I got to go golfing with my brother this morning at Pinecrest here in Idaho Falls.  It was a perfect morning, a little humid - but a little sweat is good right! :)    It was a pretty slow, relaxed day on the golf course while we were there and we had such a good time.  I don't golf very often, more like hardly ever now, but I do have to say I out drove a man who we let play through.  I was driving the ball really well - my brother was very impressed, and so was I!  I didn't play my irons as well and my putting was so-so, but it is the tee shots that really count - right :)  

Utah State Hey Aggies All the Way!!

Thanks to Rich's Uncle and his cousin, we had a family/USU alumni reunion Saturday at Utah State University.   Rich's Grandma and Grandpa on his mom's side both graduated from Utah State and many of his aunts, uncles, cousins and siblings including Rich and I all went there as well.  So far in their family there have been 29 USU graduates.  The USU alumni association gave all USU alumni "game day" t-shirts to wear and everyone got FREE Aggie ice cream! :)  We had family pictures and USU alumni pictures taken on the steps of Old Main.  If you went to USU and get the alumni magazine look for our picture to be featured in there in the next little while.  :)  It was so fun to go back to USU and walk around campus and show the boys where Rich and I went to school and where we lived.  After being up on campus and having the pictures taken we all gathered for a luncheon in the Agricultural building where Rich's cousin works.  She did such a great job organizing everything and decorating in the USU theme.   All the kids got goodie bags with candy,  USU chapsticks and temporary USU tatoos.  After the luncheon Rich's little sister was at a basketball camp/tournament at USU and we all went to watch her play a game in the Spectrum.  It brought back so many fun memories going back there.  The kids loved running up and down the steps in the stadium.  We had a great day in Logan and had a fun trip down memory lane!  We loved Utah State!

One of our future Aggies - Ty sitting on the A.

Rich's two aunts on the left, his Grandma in the middle and his uncle on the right all went to USU - he also has another aunt and uncle that went to USU that were not in this picture.  Rich's mom went to BYU.
Here is a picture Rich took while everyone was trying to get organized and all in the picture.  This is probably most of the people that came to the reunion.  Look at all those Aggie Blue       t- shirts :)
The boys by the waterfalls on campus.  It was so fun walking through campus again with the kids.