The pond

After we finished our horseback ride we changed into swimsuits to enjoy the pond that was there at the ranch.  We paddled the boats around and then enjoyed the chain swing that they had rigged up at the pond.  At first, some of the kids were afraid, but in the end most of them went off!  It was a little tricky for the smaller kids just to reach the bar to go swing...but with some help they did it!

Horseback riding trail ride

Today we ventured out for a trail ride with all the kids.  Ethan was apprehensive after a bad experience 6 years ago on a trial ride.  He remembers his horse freaking out and his having to jump off the horse...

This time was pure success for everyone.  We all had very nice horses and enjoyed a two hour ride through the beautiful hillsides in Island Park.

I was even able to take a selfie while we were out on the trail.  My horse, Rocket, was so gently and sweet...until he decided to bite the horse in front of him at random intervals.  I think he was just bored...the fast we'd go the sooner he'd be home.

Upper and Lower Mesa Falls

We ventured out to Upper and Lower Mesa falls today.  What a beautiful canyon and majestic waterfalls!  We stopped first at the Lower Mesa Falls overlook and were able to view the falls from across the valley.  You look down and across the river to the falls.

Just a short 1/2 mile up the road is the turn off for the Upper Mesa Falls.  We pulled in there and walked along the boardwalk down to the top of the Upper Falls.  It is a large waterfall, but not as tall as the Lower Falls.  The cliffside around the falls was covered in moss, mostly green, with a little orange moss too.  It's constantly being misted with the mist from the falls, so it's a fertile jungle.

 At the Upper Falls they have a visitors center.  We were able to view an osprey nest through the telescope.  The osprey are nesting right above the falls.  They also had a small room full of animal furs that you could try and identify.  We were good at getting most of them, but struggled with recognizing the wolverine and the marmot.  We were also surprised how small the weasel was!

After exploring the visitors center we were outside walking when we saw a snake on the sidewalk.  When we looked closer we realize the snake had a fish in it's mouth.  We watched the snake devour the fish...it was fascinating!

We finished off the day by walking the 1 mile to the top of the Lower Mesa Falls.  This was the same waterfall that we had viewed from the overlook, but this time we were down at the top of it.  It was a fun nature hike down to where the falls were.  Once we arrived, we were perched above the Lower Mesa Falls on a cliffside looking down to the raging water.  It was a site to see!

All in all it was a perfect place to explore.  The scenic by-way was beautiful and the actual canyon was also beautiful.

Hidden Falls and beyond!

Today we ventured up Big Cottonwood Canyon to find Hidden Falls.  We parked near the S Curve and found our way to the falls pretty quickly...like in 10 minutes!  We didn't realize that it was literally across the street from the parking lot.  We also found an old mine, but didn't explore too much due to the caution signs and the wetness inside the mine.   So after that we decided that we should hike up in the canyon a little more to enjoy the beautiful canyon!

We hiked up and around the Olympus Wilderness area.  It was a beautiful spot in the canyon...but it was hot!  There wasn't a lot of shade and we were there right around 1pm, so it was hot!  

The kids stopped at the creek on the way down and dunked their feet and later their heads in the cold stream.  That was a real refresher!

Fourth of July fireworks!

This year we decided that we would like off some fireworks to celebrate the Fourth of July.  McKinley didn't have many memories of our firework get togethers from Texas (those were epic!) so we got together with our neighbors and set off some fireworks together.  It was fun to go and pick out the ones we wanted and then gather together and light them all off!  

Sparklers are still one of my favorites fireworks to do.  It's so fun to swirl and sway the lighted sparkler around in the air.  Of course we write our names and spell things out!  They are just simply fun!

Thanks to the Pope's for letting us set them off at their house...just in case the fire department came!  We had a good time!

McKinley is 10!

McKinley's birthday was a happy occasion as always.  She was very excited to celebrate another year and to celebrate turning 10!  We love seeing our little girl so happy and excited.  She is such a joy to our family!

We started off with presents and ended the day with cake and ice cream with lots of family!  Her smile says it all...it was a good day!

Now we're all so excited that we are all double digits!  McKinley says that will only last until "Dad turns 100"...so we've got some time.  Until then we'll keep celebrating every year!  Happy Birthday McKinley!

He did it! Graduation!!

Yesterday was graduation day for Austin!  Phew...he made it!  What an amazing journey the last four years have been for Austin.  New friends, new teachers, new experience, new failures, many successes, hard work, and determination...HE IS FINISHED!

 It was such a great day to celebrate.  I am so glad I no longer need to encourage him to get things down and make sure he has everything in for his grades.  I'm so glad he's proven me wrong again...you really can get things done in the last 2 weeks of school!

 So this day...we celebrated!  We smiled, we remembered the good times, we look forward to the future!

 Family and friends and teachers!  Everyone in our "village" that has helped through all the years.  It was time to say Thanks and to say "We're so glad that's over"

 I think I even got a "Thanks Mom!" out of the moment!  And that made it all so worth it!

 Now, the future...WOW...it looks great!  A summer of hard work ahead and then out of the nest to see how far he will fly.  I think he'll soar and never look back!

 High school was a great time for Austin because of some great friends...a lot of friends!  A great big thank you to all of them.  They are truly amazing friends...

Look at this guy...he's going places!  You're going to make your mark on the world Austin.  We love you!