Discovering Idaho

Last week we spent a few days in Sun Valley and Ketchum, ID. Kory had business meetings for a few days so the kids and I explored the area. It was fun since we'd never been to this part of Idaho. Ketchum was fun with lots of little shops and everything in walking distance of where we were staying. It was such a bike/pedestrian friendly town. There were bikes all over and the motorists were so aware of everyone either on bike or foot.

During one day the kids and I took the lift up to Mt. Baldy and hiked around. It was beautiful.


Yes, Naomi did get worn out and Gray was so nice to carry her back to the lift.

radKIDS

A few weeks ago Gray and Naomi experienced a radKIDS course. They learned how to be safe in different situations and what to do if they encounter a "bad stranger". The first day the kids were pretty quiet about yelling "no", but by the end of the week they had it down. They learn how to fend off a kidnapper with blocks, shin kicks, hammer fists, elbow strikes and peppering the eyes. The week culminated with a final exam where a police officer dressed in a "red man" suit tried to take them in three different situations (trying to convince the child to go with him, trying to guess a childs password, and just physically grabbing the child). The kids did a great job and I was impressed with the program. It was definitely worth the time and Judy, their instructor, was absolutely wonderful.

All suited up waiting for their turn to to the final exam.

Gray with the powerful hammer fists. He thought it was pretty exciting to take on a police officer. Naomi saying "Stay Back! You're not my dad!!!"

Here's Naomi receiving her certificate. Way to go!!

More Camping

Why not go camping again? We had quite an adventurous biking/camping trip planned for last week, but at the last minute small business ownership's calling card required us to stick close to home. We went up to our favorite camp site in Logan canyon. It's close to the river and has a great biking/hiking trail. It was fun to take some time off work and just relax.


The kids got quite involved in their beading and Gray even started to do some wire wrapping. I think he just likes to use the pliers.

We had some pretty serious games of Care Bears Checkers.

Naomi doing some marshmallow art. Check out that sweet mushroom! I love summer time and living so close to such a great playground where we can camp, hike, bike, fish and swim. It's hard to beat being 10 minutes away from such beautiful country.
And no, there were no mosquitoes!!

Swan Flat

We finally got out camping. For our first trip of the summer we got a bit of a late start so we were looking for a camp site at 8pm on a Friday night. I knew it would be crowded, but we were starting to loose hope by about 9:30. We tried a campground and then a bunch of unimproved areas then headed up Swan Flat Road, which is near Beaver Creek Lodge (Logan Canyon). We had just decided to look for ten more minutes before giving up when we happened upon a gorgeous spot although we didn't know how pretty is was until morning. It was great, Gray opened the tent door and I head him say "Wow, this is beautiful!".

Naomi was asleep by the time we found our campsite so she had s'mores for breakfast. Graysen told me he'd always remember eating dutch oven dinner at 11:30 at night.

I won't make too much of it since even the very thought of it makes me shudder, but there was one down side to our location. There were at least a million mosquito's and no, I hadn't purchased new repellent.

Yep, Kory was able to get a ride in and I got to drive the truck down to the highway. The kids say I am a much slower driver than Kory. We didn't get a whole lot of time to explore during this overnight trip, but I definitely want to go back to that same spot.

Aaah, the Fresh Mountain Air

Last night the kids and I did a last minute hike in Logan Canyon. It was such a beautiful evening. I love to be in the mountains with that crisp air, the smell of forest, the hint of campfires and there were so many wildflowers in bloom. The kids are great hikers. Naomi loves to listen to fairytales while we hike and we even went so far as to each have a part telling Goldilocks and the Three Bears. It sure helps keep her mind off the steep climbing.
We took the Crimson Trail, which has got to be one of the most amazing trails in the canyon (at least it's one of my favorites) but didn't have time to finish.

The hiking alone would have made the night excellent, but to top it off check this out. It was great, last week I ordered and paid for my Dream Dinners online (12 six serving meals), scheduled a time to pick them up (last night at 9:00) and took advantage of their free assembly offer. So as we hiked, someone else made all of my meals and to top it off, when we picked them up (smelling of sun screen and insect repellent) we were given a box of Fat Boys!

Maybe some time this weekend we'll be able to get back on the trail and complete the whole thing. I'll probably need to go buy a new bottle of mosquito spray first, ours seemed to be a bit lacking in the effectiveness area :)

Happy Father's Day!!

The kids put together this music video for Kory as a Father's Day gift. They think he rocks!!

School's Out

The end of the school year was packed with all sorts of events. The kids had field trips, end of year parties, concerts and recitals. It was fun to see what they had been working on for the past few months.

We took a trip down to Borders to get some summer reading and as soon as we got home, the kids were out on the lawn reading their books. Hopefully that keeps up through the summer. Naomi chose a Junie B. Jones book and Gray picked the Diary of a Wimpy Kid.

And of course, taking it easy on the porch. Don't those big smiles say "School's Out!"