This year for an early thaw we made it down to Phoenix for some warm sun and to check out the Grand Canyon. We spent a couple of days at the pool and one very rewarding day to visit the Grand Canyon. It was quite the site to see! We all enjoyed it very much although we did not get to enjoy for as long as we would have liked. As usual, pictures do not do this landmark justice.
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Slideshow…
The kids had a great time with friends this year and we enjoyed visiting Uncle Nix and Aunt Jen’s great Halloween experience.
Not sure if Joey smiled for this one or not 🙂
Joey and I enjoyed the experience of Vikings training camp together this year. We had a good spot to watch the players come by and see how massive they are. Joey even got to give AP a high five!
Bridgewater!
In addition to the normal grind of dance and karate for the kids. Elizabeth played Volleyball again this year and Joey played flag football for his first season.
Lots of practices, he learned a lot about the game this fall which has carried over into watching a lot of football with Dad 🙂
I love watching Elizabeth grow and compete volleyball – I hope that she continues to harness her competitive spirit to drive her.
Lots of special guests to watch Joey’s games this year including Uncle James who we lost about two weeks later. It was special to share this time with him 🙂
Towards the end of the season it was a little chilly! In the end Joey’s team placed 4th in their league. The playoff games were a blast!
Joey also competed in a forms competition and earned his brown belt this fall.
It’s been a while since I have posted any updates :-\
We had a few visits to the cabin with friends and family before last summer ended.
The Thompson’s came to visit…
The Lenzen’s came up…
And we ended the cabin season with a Labor Day trip
This trip has been planned since this time last summer and the time finally came. We went there with the Lenzen family and spent time with three other families at Yellowstone. A broken foot and a ear infection were the two issues that we had. Ruby is one tough cookie and Kyle was an animal carrying her to Inspiration Point. The bottom line is that the weather was terrific and we had a great time!
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We took our time getting to Yellowstone by leaving a few days ahead of time. We stopped in Alexandria, MN then Medora, ND, and finally to Livingston, MT before entering the park. Once ‘there’ we spent four days in the Madison Campground at Yellowstone, another four days and Colter Bay in the Tetons, two days in Spearfish, SD.
Medora Campground
Livingston KOA
Time in Yellowstone
Our view from the campsite
The first day in Yellowstone we headed over to Old Faithful
There she blows!
The springs are so cool (and hot)
On day two we visited Artist’s painters pots and Uncle Tom’s trail
Bandits!
This valley was incredible!
The falls from afar
Dragon’s Mouth Spring – This thing really does roar
Bison!
Yellowstone Lake
We enjoyed plenty of time in this river
A nice warm third day
On our way to the Grand Prismatic Spring
I cannot get over how colorful this wonder is
One last night at the river
Grand Tetons
The lake just down from our campsite
View of the mountains from our campsite
Day two – Up at Jackson Hole
Going back down
Up on the chairlift
Day three – Tetons
The Lenzen crew
The girls helped us start a fire on the beach. Later that night the stars were unreal! We met a couple of college students from China and a couple from New York the Mrs shared a story of surviving the first tower falling on 9/11, incredible stories.
Jackson Lake Dam
Our journey to inspiration point – Kyle gave Ruby a piggyback ride all the way up!!
7,007 feet up
Mt. RushmoreÂ
Spearfish, SD (Chris’ Campground)
Some geocache fun
A beautiful drive
A fun restaurant named after one of our own
One week until Sturgis
Mt. Rushmore
Minnesota is the 32nd state in the union
This was so much fun to study
Wall Drug
You have to stop right?
A relaxing week at the lake with the family. Lots of fishing, the local parade, time with friends, water sports, kayaking, and canoeing.
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The buddies
Nix and Jen
Look at the reflection!
Fishing was a blast. We caught 7 northers in one hour!
We had a beautiful weekend at the lake with the fun of a new paddle board and kayak. The kids were not deterred from the water even though it was pretty chilly! A bonus visit by Grandma and Grandpa on Saturday was a nice surprise 🙂
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Being adventurous…
Catching up with neighbors
Lovely night skies
Last weekend started with a father/daughter dance and went straight into camping mode.
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Both daughters and dads had fun at the dance…
The girls are on the wrong side of the dance floor here…
Kyle and I had some fun with our fancy camping attire once we arrived at the campground 🙂
The kids were ready to go right away Saturday morning
We had a great day today surrounded by loved ones to celebrate Joey’s First Communion. Congrats Joey and thanks to all for joining us on this special day!
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The Godfather’s
