Our Yelowstone Weekend

Last weekend we drove up to Rexburg to meet our friends, the Barkers, and from there we ventured to Yellowstone Nat'l Park for two days of fun! This was Logan's debut road trip, so of course we had to get a picture of him driving.

Our first stop was the Paint Pots and along the trail there was a really cool uprooted tree. I am leaning against the bottom of the roots.

This is the Prismatic Spring. The hike that we took (referenced fur ther down) went on a trail behind this spring,against that mountain you see in the background.

Here we are at Black Spring and that is Yellowstone Lake in the background. The people in the picture are Nate Barker, Ben, and Kali Barker.

Here are the kids, Logan (4 mo) and Mackay (6 mo). It was a lot more windy than we thought it would be, so they were bundled up the whole weekend (do you like the hat Katie?), and we kept getting them in and out of the car, strolling them around on bumpy boardwalks, and since we were on the road for 2 days most of their diaper changes happened in the back of our cars, in the cold, wind, and rain. But despite all of that, these guys were troopers the whole time.

We stopped at the Fire Falls Swimming Hole, assuming it would be warm and boy were we wrong! It was actually cold, but it wasn't too bad for wading around in. We were there at sunset and the fish were going crazy, leaping out of
the water for the may flies that were just hatching. Ben was so excited about all the fish he sounded like a boy on Christmas morning.

The next day we went for a 5 mi round trip hike to Fairy Falls. Ben carried Logan on his back while I carried the water and a few essentials.

The girls on the hike: Myself and Kali. It was really neat to see all of the regrowth in the part of the forest that had burned down in the 80's (I think it was the 80's?).

These are the Fairy Falls and the hike was worth every minute to see this place. You can't help but recognize God's hand in all creations, especially when you see amazing things like this. (By the way, Ben and I are way down in the bottom right-hand corner of the picture.)

Just Ben and Logie, hanging out at the falls. I think Logie was getting his first nature lecture of many to come from Dad.

Little did Dad know that Logan was poopy. To make a really long and funny story short, lots of poop everywhere, no extra clothes, 1 diaper that was one size to small, no place to change a diaper, a screaming child getting a diaper change on a footbridge while people are trying to cross, no handsoap or even hand sanitizer for mom or dad... just a good ol' stream to rinse everything out in.

The end result: mom packing out dirty clothes and a very poopy diaper and poor Logan wearing nothing but his jacket, a diaper too small for him and socks. And then top it all off, it started to rain on the way out Let's just say that Ben was mad and I couldn't stop laughing.

The babies hanging out while the adults eat lunch after the hike. For some reason Mackay was very entertained by a Dorritos bag.

So...I realize this is a very boring picture, but you can't go to Yellowstone and not take a picture of a buffalo...right?

Last picture of the trip...I promise. This is Ben and the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone behind him. So beautiful!

Grass, Grass Everywhere

A couple of Sundays ago we put Logan down in our yard (now that we finally have one this summer!) for the first time. He loved it! For a while he just layed there, very still and unsure what to make of this cold, poky stuff, staring up at the trees and the sky. Then he began kicking and smiling like he normally does, pausing every few moments to stare again and take in his surroundings. It was hilarious to watch him.

Swingin' Sunday

We have a tree swing in our back yard that Logan isn't too sure what to think of yet. We have played with it a few times and each time he just sits wide-eyed (and wide-mouthed) watching everything around him. But from the looks of this picture he seems to be having a grand time.

Here We Are!

Just by way of introduction, we are the Parkers! Ben and I have been married for 5 years now and just had Logan this past May. He is the highlight of our lives right now and we love him to pieces! This picture was taken on his blessing day, June 17,2007. He was a very good sport the whole day and looked very handsome in his little white outfit.