And here we have Idaho, Winning her way to fame

That is the song we sing whenever we cross the state line into Idaho. And for good reason too - it's catchy! AND Idaho is beautiful, maybe not famous yet, but we like it that way!

We love the time we spend in Idaho each Summer and this year was even more memorable than years past.  We took a trip to Yellowstone, we had a Pioneer Day Parade, we had an exciting adventure floating the Snake River, we went hiking, picnicking, singing, eating, and laughing.

Yellowstone!

We spent a day hitting a few spots in the park - Old Faithful, Geyser Basin, paint pots, emerald pools, and the river.  My parents and sisters took the little kids home and we took the older girls to a show at "The Playmill."

Pioneer Day

 The kids decided covered wagons are over rated.  When we ended our parade at our friend's home, the spent the rest of the afternoon driving her mini-suv.

Cress Creek Trail

Snake River

 Our float down the snake was supposed to be relaxing and fun.  It was... until the last 10 minutes.  What might have been a tragedy is now an exciting memory.  The short version of our experience is that the current near the exit point of our float was so strong and fast that it pulled two of the rafts down stream and into a large, fallen tree that was straining the river.  The first raft to hit was immediately tipped upside down flinging 4 adults and 3 children into the churning water.  Fortunately, no one was hurt or lost (though we did not know that immediately).  The second raft was dragged under the tree branches, caught for a minute and then able to continue on to the bank and try to help the first raft.  The experience left us all feeling grateful for life and for each other.  We also feel grateful for the kind fisherman who passed by with perfect timing to rescue the stranded raft.  It made the rest of our time there sweeter as we realized how fragile life can be.

Fun at Grandpa's and Grandma's House

On the days we weren't out adventuring, there was plenty of fun to be had in Rexburg.  Aunt Kristi "helped" all the little girls made aprons.  The girls had sleepovers on the trampoline with Aunt Pika and Aunt Kristi.  They convinced Amberlee and Stephen to participate in their musical skit of "Heart and Soul."  Grandpa, Jeniel and Jason took Curly and Lettie to explore the Civil Defense Caves and play at the sand dunes. We rode the carousel, visited LLL Ranch,  and swam at the pool. It was a wonderful time together with many happy memories!