Last Bit of Summer

We LOVE the beach! 

Although the sand sticks to us and drives mommy crazy, 

it's always fun. The kids dig a big hole. 

Sun bath. 

Rin crazy up and down the beach. 

And of course get pummeled by the waves. 

 The rides at the Boardwalk are a must on dollar ride days. 

We play until they close around midnight. 

Goodbye summer vacation!!

Summer Vacation 2014

Summer Trip 2014

 We made it out to Mount Saint Helen's before the family reunion. It was cloudy but beautiful. The museum there is amazing. 

Family reunion games. 

 It was a long drive with a bit of vomit. 

CAmping with family, Sam & Linda and lots of sight seeing!!

Yellowstone 2014

We, meaning Jennifer, wanted to go to Yellowstone this summer. 

I had one time read about making your children 

realize they weren't the center of the universe. 

A way to do that was to travel. Go places, see things. 

Explore how big our world is. 

So Yellowstone got a visit from the Hasleton family. 

I remember going as a small child. 

Really only remembered the fancy hotel, 

seeing a buffalo  & Old Faithful. 

We camped at Madison camp grounds.

 It was freezing. And rained. 

But our tent was a good one and did well staying dry. 

On the way towards Old Faithful. 

We saw lots of hot springs. 

The kid's biggest complaints was the sulfur smell. 

It wasn't pleasant, but everything was gorgeous!!!

Old Faithful was timed just right. 

We arrived, spent money on souvenirs, and off it went!!!

The kids were amazed for about ten seconds. 

But we can say we've all seen it. 

The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone was outstanding. 

So much to see. Different views. It was beautiful. 

A lot of walking and some hiking. 

Jared & I had lots of exercise carrying Britton on our backs. 

Me waiting in the car. One night I did not get much sleep. 

I tried in vain to hide for a nap. 

 Eating at a hotel at Old Faithful. 

Souvenirs. $12 for "Peppermint"

 Lots of fun at the campsite. 

Grandma & Grandpa were a couple sites down. 

We got to play. 

Talented Daddy. 

We did a lot of driving around. 

Saw a bear, tons of deer, herds of buffalo and at the end a moose. 

It was a blast. I hope to go again in a few years. 

See if the kids remember it. 

First Half of Our Vacation in South Dakota!!

On our way out, I got to stop & spend some time with my favorite missionary companion/trainer, Sister Salvador! 

Or I guess it's now Sister Simmons, or I could use her first name Olimpia.  

Nah, it'll always be Salvador. 

She's living in Provo with her 3 boys that are super cute! She always cooks delicious food. 

This is where I get my good Lumpia cooking from. 

All our cute kiddos. 

Then we finally made it to South Dakota! 

Lots of bugs, humidity & cousins!!

 Quiet time reading books. We went to the library a couple times for story time, an Olympic games for kids, & to get a ton of books to keep us occupied! The library there was amazing! So clean & nice people that work there. No cranky librarians. 

 It was so much fun spending time with Kirsti! I got her all to myself that week. She endured me yacking at her & following her around wherever she went. 

It was very winding one particular day. 

Was hard for the little ones to walk straight. 

But it made for good kite flying weather!

The kids & Jared flew the kites pretty well. 

Everyone was tired all the time from all the excitement.

 Crying was all around. 

Cute Oliver loved posing for the camera. 

Ellie liked to copy Oliver. 

At the local Dairy Queen that is know nation wide. 

So tired........

What the kids did in the basement. 

Watching movies or playing the Wii. 

That was fine with us cause it meant we got some time to ourselves. 

Then we drove a little bit out of town to see J.B.'s bee farm & wax plant!

Honestly, it was more exciting than I expected. 

J.B. showing off with the bees. 

Kids messing around at the wax plant. 

Not the best smelling place ever. 

The population of this town was 40? Or maybe 50? 

This is the post office that serves the town. Smallest I've ever seen. I wonder what they do all day?

J.B.'s Grandpa started a tradition of always keeping ice cream in the freezer. 

We got to partake of it!

Then it was on to Sioux Falls! 

Everyone graciously waited while I visited some cute little quilt shops. 

And we got to see the falls! 

Throwing rocks. 

From on top of the observatory. 

Ellie's favorite spot while at Kirsti's. 

The best street name ever. 

 Charles & Ellie had fun playing/fighting the whole time. They were so cute!

Thanks for the visit Aunt Kirsti! We'll try to come out again soon!