Paris and S'mores Pie

My mom really wanted to go to Paris to see the beautiful tabernacle there. We have been there before, but it was still a joy to visit.

We learned a couple of new stories about the building, well, actually- about the Bear Lake area. Apparently back in the 1860's Brigham Young asked specific families to go to the Bear Lake area and settle the area. After one year, these families went back to Salt Lake and told President Young they could not survive there- it was WAY too cold- they were almost frozen to death, and it was impossible to grow crops. Right then and there, President Young made a promise to the saints: That if they would return to Bear Lake, the Lord would "temper the winters" to not be as cold so that they could grow crops and thrive. The saints returned, and the winters were, indeed, tempered. I have to admit- I don't know if I would go back! I so hate being cold, that would have taken a lot of faith! But still a beautiful story, and out of that this beautiful tabernacle was built.

There is an elementary school (it services at least 4 small towns) right next to the tabernacle, so after the tour we walked over to let the kids play. It was a little chilly, but none of the kids minded.

 I love this one of mom and Bridger:

The girls loved this old school ride:

Then, for a special dessert for our last night together, I made a S'mores pie. It's a layer of chocolate chips, chocolate pudding, more chocolate chips, and marshmallows broiled in the oven, then taking graham crackers to dip. It turned out OK- not my favorite, but the kids sure seemed to enjoy it.

Off to Bear Lake!

After Bear Lake, Steph and her kids, and my mom and I and my kids headed to Bear Lake.

My in-laws were very kind to let us use their cabin, and it was wonderful. There was plenty of room so we didn't feel like we were stepping all over each other, and it was just fantastic accommodations. Thank you Mac and Ann for letting us stay in your beautiful home!

As mentioned earlier, my best friend Danielle and her boys were able to meet us. It was so great to see how well all of the kids played together!

 Claire found this log and thought it was the greatest thing- she kept moving it around using it for all kinds of different things:

 Camille wanted to get as muddy as possible. She succeeded:

 Austin loved the sand, I think:

 Katie and Audra:

Claire commandeered the canoe for pretty much the entire day. She would, however, let others ride- as long as she got to row:

Aubrey and the boys loving life:

 I love this one of Camille:

After our long day at the beach, my mom treated us all to shakes and Jake's Shakes. My family decided that chocolate raspberry was the best:

Blackfoot

I am really not quite sure where to start- the last 11 days have been simply fantastic. Family, food, friends, fireworks, and more. I can't help but feel extremely blessed.

A few months ago, I started organizing a road trip for me and the girls. I knew Ben would probably not be able to go because of work, but I really felt like the girls are becoming great road warriors, and they LOVE Bear Lake. I thought I might be able to convince my family to meet me in Bear Lake, and have us not to go to Seattle this summer. It worked! And, as an added bonus- my best friend was able to meet us there as well.

Before we headed to Bear Lake, however, we stopped in Blackfoot to see our extended family. My last remaining grandparent is nearing 90, and I wanted to get my kids over there to see him so perhaps they can remember him when they are older.

I loaded the kids up bright and early and we headed out. They did fabulous with the drive, especially since they knew there was a hotel stay at the end.

My parents, sister Steph and her kids, and Isaac met us in Blackfoot.

Unfortunately- my dad was not there to see the grandkids. He came for a Caterpillar. Not the animal- the tractor. A tractor that hasn't run in 45 years because my dad destroyed the motor back when he was a teenager. Now he has come to take it back to WA for a lawn ornament.

Some lovin' from Aunt Stephanie:

Relaxing in front of Grandpa's house. So many memories of hanging out in Grandma and Grandpa's front yard!

And, playing at the tank park. These are actual tanks from WWII. I also remember playing at this park as a kid- and these kids also LOVED this park. All they wanted to do was climb the tanks.

And, we went to Grandma's gravesite:

And then, as a last Blackfoot hurrah, my cousin's wife Tammy organized a big family BBQ. Lots of family who I haven't seen for decades were there- it was really special.

We stopped at Grandpa's on the way out, and he showed us a number of his WWII naval artifacts. It was really special. The whole trip was special- he told me lots of stories that I had never heard before. Family really is the most important thing in the world- and I am so grateful for mine.

Clubhouse

We got to enjoy some quality time at the clubhouse for the HOA where the cabin is. The girls LOVED playing there! I was a bit surprised because there are no slides or sprinklers or anything, but all they wanted was a big space to practice their mad swim skills. It also helped that Aunt Stephanie brought snorkeling gear that all the kids thoroughly enjoyed, and fought over.

Limber Pine Trail

After a fantastic day at the beach, we decided to spend a little more relaxing day going on a hike and spending some time at the clubhouse.

We looked up kid friendly hikes in the Bear Lake area, and Limber Pine Trail kept popping up. We decided to give it a go.

It turned out to be a fabulous hike- perfect for kids. Except the silk worms. Weird, right? Hundreds and hundreds of silk worms were hanging from the trees, and it was impossible not to run into them constantly- it was like walking into cobwebs, but then having worms still stuck on you afterwards. They did, unfortunately, distract from the overall beauty of the hike- and it was a gorgeous hike.

I had to research this tree because there are some mixed opinions about this tree. It was once thought to be the oldest tree in North America. However, it has since been discovered that this tree is about 600  years old, but they thought it was older because it does have a lot of rings. Why so many rings? Because it is actually five trees that grew together. At any rate, it was a very cool tree.

Camille started out really strong. The snacks and her cousins helped her immensely. But, eventually she wore out and I had to carry her a bit. Here's the two sides of Camille:

To cheer her up, I let her take a picture of me. It almost turned out. But, as you can see, the views were incredible.

Me and my girls. It was really special to spend such great quality time with these three. They are such great kids- Ben and I really lucked out to get such awesome kiddos. I love them so much!

Aubrey, Claire, and Audra: