Yellowstone National Park

Where did we go today????

This video cracks me up! We were at Fountain Paint Pots in Yellowstone National Park. It is a mouthful to say and Hali gave it her best and I love her smile at the end! The paint pots looked like bubbling mud.

My mom & dad and sister came up for the weekend. Since Kari has never been to Yellowstone, my dad thought it was time she went and invited us to go along. It's been a long time since I was there and the kids have never been. As we entered the park, the ranger gave all the kids a picture list of animals and birds to look for throughout the park. The kids took this so serious! Carter said a few times, "I didn't know Yellowstone would be so fun!"

This was the coolest spring! The water was a deep blue and so clear. The kids were so fascinated by the steam, or "smoke" as Paige called it. When ever we walked through the steam, it smelled like boiled eggs and we didn't like that so much.

This spring was huge! The wind was blowing the direction of the path and it was a little hike to the top of the geyser. By the time we got around it, we were all a little wet and Carter's glasses were fogged up most of the way. It was entertaining!

By the time we got to Old Faithful, Paige's little legs were done. She loved the piggy-back ride!


Old Faithful was awesome! The kids were so enthralled and learned more about the pressure inside the earth.

We saw some elk and buffalo, but to the kid's disappointment, no bears.

We entered the park in West Yellowstone and came out on the south end and came home through Jackson, WY. It ws an all day trip and we had a great time. We enjoyed spending the day with Grandpa and Kari!

Take Me Out To The Ballgame

Carter's baseball season ended the first part of June and we have really missed those evening outings to the ballpark. Each player in the Cal Ripken League was given a free ticket to the Chukars Minor League baseball game for tonight. So Todd, Carter and I went to the game and had such a great time! All the players lined up by the 1st base and when each team was called, they ran along the sidelines toward 3rd base.

Carter is the 3rd one from the front and wears the #8 jersey.

It was so neat to see all the teams lined up along the sideline! The players and coaches all had the biggest smiles. It was great!

After the parade, all the teams exited the field and watched the "big boys" warm-up. When it was time for the National Anthem, the Chukars and Ghosts (from Casper, WY) lined up in front of their dugouts and the little kids got to run across the field and were stopped on their way across to salute the flag. It was an awesome sight!

Carter loved watching the game and never seemed to get bored. I asked him a few times if he was ready to go yet and he shook his head quickly and said, "No." The Chukars won 7-4. Todd and I enjoyed spending time just with Carter. He's ready to go again!

Gone Fishin'

Carter went fishing today for his first time! He has been waiting for this day for a few months now. He went with his scout group to the greatest pond, where only kids under 14 can fish. They don't have to have a license and neither do parents. Parents cannot fish but can help the kids. We had a great time! He caught a fish and as soon as it was being lifted up out of the water, it wiggled off the hook and swam away. Carter was so disappointed. It took him another 45 minutes to catch another one. He only believes he caught one fish, not two. I guess he doesn't believe in catch and release. When it came time to divide up the fish between the boys, Carter said he didn't want to eat the fish but still wanted to take it home. Not sure what he wanted to do with it! Maybe mount it? It was a prize and he was so happy.

Not Just a Stubbed Toe

I was getting ready for the day yesterday when Carter walked in, actually hobbled in, and sat on the stool and told me he had stubbed his toe on his door. Like a sympathetic mom, I looked it over then wiggled it. That's what you are supposed to do to make sure it's not broken, right? WRONG. He hollered, "That hurts!" I suggested that he go rest on the couch until his toe felt better. I really didn't think he would do it, but he did. Then to make matters worse, he stubbed it on his bed post last night.

By the evening, it was starting to turn colors and by today it was blue and purple. He walks on his heel which he says is pretty sore now too. He has been very tough through it all, never once crying.

Carter's Favorite Pastime

One thing I really enjoy about this time of year is baseball games. I love being outside sitting along the sidelines watching Carter play ball. He has been playing in the Cal Ripken league this Spring, his first year in the competitive league. He is on the NY Mets and it has become his life! He has 2 games a week and they practice twice a week as well. On the off day, he has had scouts. He keeps us going! The older he gets, we are finding that sports are more and more stressful on the parents. He pitched tonight for the first time and we found ourselves saying, "Please don't hit anyone. Please don't walk everyone." Stressful! The league has been doing some machine pitch, and some coach pitch up to this point. But tonight they started the kids pitching. Carter started out the game and actually did really well. In the 1st inning, he had the bases loaded with 2 outs and the batter had a full count and Carter threw a strike to end the inning. I don't think he realized the pressure he was under. He had one play tonight that I didn't get on camera that I wish I would have. He caught a fly ball when he was pitcher and the player on 1st base ran. Carter threw it to 1st and got a double play. He was so excited! It was fun to see him having a great night.

He also likes playing 1st base. He has more hustle in him than he had last year. He's learning more and more each game. He even played catcher one game, and I have to say, it was a learning experience. He stood clear back by the backstop! Who's kid does that? Todd said it was a good thing the backstop was there or he would have been in the bleachers! He has not been put in as catcher since then. Phew!

He got a new bat this season and he's had a hard time adjusting to it. Occassionally he hits a good one. He had one this season that was a line drive to second base and hit the baseman in the arm. In the video, you can see him flailing his arm. It's a little funny.

Hali's New Talent

Hali finished up a 6 week Smart Start Golf class last week. They use oversized clubs, tees and balls and focus on technique. She was eager and quick to learn and loved it! She is so self-motivated and does a great job with everything she tries. We went to Grandma & Grandpa Sanderson's over Memorial Day Weekend and Grandpa took us all to the driving range. Hali has inherited Carter's old clubs and was excited to use them. They were definately different from the clubs they used in class, but she adjusted quickly and did really well. I even did better than I have ever done. I guess the class paid off for both of us! Hopefully we'll have a family foursome one of these days!

Sweet Rewards

Every year, usually around Christmas time, my mom gets together with her neighbor (the professional candy maker) and makes chocolates. Growing up, I would go over and watch and sometimes sample. They did all the work and we got to enjoy the fruits of their labors! It worked out well. And these are not amateur chocolates. These are as good, if not better, as the ones you buy in fine chocolate stores. They are so yummy, they just melt in your mouth. Last night, we got together and Mom taught us how to make caramels. It took us about 5 hours from start to finish and boy was it worth it! It took about 1 hour to cook the caramel to a soft ball stage with constant stirring. It was a good thing we had lots of hands to switch off with! This is the chocolate we used and it smelled so good! It was sitting on my counter for a day and they kids loved to open the bag and just smell it. Talk about pure torture! We still have 1/2 the block left and I think we'll learn how to do cream centers next time. I can hardly wait!

After the caramel cooled and was firm, we cut it into pieces. Occassionally there was an end that was to small and it just had to be eaten! This stuff is so yummy even without the chocoloate! The chocolate makers consisted of Chelsea (my cousin), my Aunts Mary Louise and Kathy, and Tatum (my sister-in-law).

We had a great time dipping the caramels. Mom taught us well. She showed us how to do it and then hurried around getting the caramel, melting chocolate, shuffling pans around and holding Kolby when need be. Our's looked nothing like her's, but they sure tasted good. And we each had a gazillion to take home to our ever so happy families. And the best thing, it's not even Christmas! And I just have to say, I come from the greatest family! We have more fun when we are together. My Grandparents and Aunts & Uncles did a great job of planning lots of family get togethers when all us kids were growing up. It's harder now that we are all so spread out, but we still manage to get together and we love it! There's nothing better than family.