We spent the first two weeks of July in Idaho! We thoroughly enjoyed our trip except maybe all the driving. We had so much time with family and cousins and so many fun memories made.
We started off on a Friday and the girls did great in the car. I was a little worried about McCall since she is not a fan of the car, but she did amazing and Paige was an incredible help with sisters on both sides of her.
We made it to Boise for our first night. We stayed in a hotel that was right in downtown and you could see the capitol building just down the street. We ended up walking to dinner to Mod Pizza and then back for swimming. The water was freezing, but the girls still had fun.
We had an amazing view from our hotel window and the sunset was incredible! Paige and Baylor shared a queen size bed and did great. McCall slept on the floor next to me and did great for being in a new place though I didn't sleep the greatest since it felt like I checked on her a million times to make sure she was okay. The next day was a shorter drive, but seemed to last forever and drag on since we were all just ready to be done and get there.
Saturday we arrive around 4 and the original plan was to go up to St. Anthony for Parker's birthday, but we were done with being in the car. Erika was kind enough to pack everything up and had the party at my parent's house so that we could be there and join in the fun. She brought a big blow up water inflatable which the girls would have loved, but a summer storm blew in so it was cold along with cold hose water so my girls were not having it. I convinced Paige to go down the slide once if I would roll around in the water and she reluctantly agreed. For Grace and Parker, the weather didn't stop them one bit from getting wet and having some fun.
Birthday Fun!
One of Nate and I's favorite things to do when we are in Idaho is go on an evening walk and we went on our first one and Erika joined us after the birthday celebrations were over. We ended up getting soaking wet by the rain, but it was worth it.
We decided while we were in Idaho to go to church with Derek and Amy's family so the girls would have cousins to go to class with. Their church doesn't start until noon so we had lots of down time in the morning and Paige and Baylor enjoyed some time outside with the animals. (It is one of their favorite things about being at Grandma and Poppy's house! They love playing with the kittens, feeding the chicken grass, gathering the eggs every evening with Poppy, and this time there were baby cows in the pasture to enjoy.)
After church, we visited with Derek and Amy for a bit before heading to Idaho Falls for dinner. Gary and Dana recently moved there so we took this opportunity to visit with some of our Smith side while in Idaho. Nate's cousin, Michelle, lives in Rexburg and she has two girls and so it was a fun Smith family dinner and we celebrated Gary's birthday and the girls had lots of fun together.
Monday morning we went with my Mom to the elementary school I went to as a child. I knew that they had changed the playground so I wanted to go check it out and I knew the girls would have fun trying it out too. It was fun to share some memories with Nate and the girls about my time there.
We found a baby bird just resting on the playground. I was surprised when it didn't try to fly away and so the girls gave it a little pet and they helped Grandma rescue it and put it back in the trees.
The monkey bars that I fell off of and split my head open are still there so they all got that story even though I don't remember much of it since I blacked out. I even did a couple of the monkey bars, but I'm definitely not as young and agile as I used to be.
We drove around by my middle school and high school and I shared a few more memories before heading home for lunch. The rest of the afternoon was pretty quiet with McCall taking a nap and the older girls playing out in the yard and of course more animal time.
Then Derek and Amy's family came over for dinner, FHE, playing out in the yard, and smores.
The next day was the 4th of July. That day will have its own post since it was a day filled with fun, family, and fireworks!
Wednesday we went to Kress Creek with my parents. This is the place they got engaged all those years ago and we haven't gone up there since Paige was a baby. It is a beautiful walk, but it was pretty hot and there isn't much shade. The little part of the trail we did was paved which was nice so McCall could be in the stroller.
We spent most of our time by this little creek in the shade and played in the water for a bit.
Then we walked up to the lookout point to see the incredible view.
Same bridge, 11 years later.
Then we went to Heise which was nearby and has lots of trees and picnic tables to have our lunch. Then we were driving home and the car stopped working so we made it to Ririe for it to get looked at. My dad stayed with the car while the rest of us walked to a nearby park to keep ourselves entertained until Derek came to rescue us. We left the car in Rigby and then we were at Derek and Amy's for the rest of the evening and the girls played in the pool and we had dinner with them.
Thursday we went to Bear World with Erika and her two kids and Amy and her girls. Erika's bishop and his wife came with us to be in the two cars since they have season passes so we got in free which was awesome. This was Nate and Baylor's first time going and they both loved driving through the animals the most.
We started off driving through to see all the animals. The bears are so fun to see especially when they are out and playing.
Then some Bear World fun with lots of pictures, feeding the ducks and fish, feeding the goats and deer, and just wandering around and seeing everything.
Next we all got to see their new exhibit all with dinosaurs. It was all of our first time seeing it and it was pretty cool to see. The dinosaurs moved and made noise. 
Then we did the rides which was a lot of fun. Nate and Baylor weren't big fans, but they did enjoy the ferris wheel and train. I loved the roller coaster and did it with a few of the other kids since my girls were not interested. Paige and Juliette loved the ferris wheel the most and went on it quite a few times.
We then drove through the animals again and each of our cars counted the bears and there were over 60! We went back home and then Derek and Amy came over for dinner again and Emily and Juliette had a sleepover.
Juliette and Paige joined us for our evening walk and McCall has pretty much joined us every night in the stroller.
Such a cute little face that I just want to kiss all day.
Paige and Juliette shared the bedroom and went to bed at a decent hour, but then stayed up until 11 talking. It was fun for them to do this though they were both pretty tired the next day. Emily and Baylor slept out in the living room together and were also awake until around 11 and then up at 5 to build a fort and then supposedly they went back to sleep in it for a little bit. There were some tired emotions the next day, but they had fun sleeping with cousins.
Friday we decided to take a rest day since we had been doing a lot of going and driving. The girls enjoyed the day at the house with cousins with lots of playing out in the yard.
The neighbor's goat got out and it was a wonderful surprise as it wandered into the yard when we were all out playing. The girls loved it and gave it lots of pets and were trying to keep it in one area and get it a drink of water. I got brave enough to carry it back over and we got it safe and secure until the neighbors got back home.
We went to to Rupes for dinner with Derek and Amy's family and Grandma and Poppy.
Saturday we made the drive down to Wellsville, Utah for Emmett's baptism. My parents had Paige, Juliette, and Charlotte in their car. We went with Derek and Amy and had Baylor, Emily, and McCall. It gave us quite a few hours of visiting with Derek and Amy. The baptism was sweet and I always love seeing little 8 years old's when they get baptized. So young in the gospel and it is a decision that can affect their whole lives. We had a nice lunch at Sharolyn and Tyler's house afterward and it was great to visit more with family before heading home.
We then went to Derek and Amy's and had some lunch with them. Then we went through all of Amy's clothes and got rid of 4 garbage bags stuffed full. Charlotte and Paige really enjoyed the process much to Amy's expense and I got some new clothes and shoes out of it. :) We then went to Gary and Dana's again for Sunday dinner and it was just us this time and it was nice to visit with them. One of the my favorite moments from the whole trip happened right before we left. I found out that Gary had color blind glasses and so I asked if Nate could try them on. It was a moment that I will never forget and the fact that Gary was there with Nate through it all made it even more memorable. I think in Nate's mind, he thought there wasn't going to be much difference, but you could tell that he was a little shocked. Gary would tell him certain things to look at and it was fun listening to their conversation. Dana and I just sat back and laughed. You could tell that Nate was in a little disbelief over it all and after awhile he said he had to be done because his brain and eyes weren't used to seeing it that way. Colors were so much more vibrant than he ever thought they were and it was overstimulating to him.
Amy left Sunday evening to go to Chicago for training for work for the week and Derek had his internship and was gone most days during the week so we had their girls with us a lot and our girls loved the extra time with them.
Monday the girls joined us for our adventures into Idaho Falls and our first stop was the Idaho Falls Zoo. Dana was able to join us for the most of the day which was fun to have bonus time with her.
I loved it when McCall would see an animal. Her cute little finger and her pointing and excitement were so cute to watch.
McCall was content in the stroller pretty much the entire time and it was fun to lift her stroller up when it was a spot that she couldn't see. All of her cousins and sisters were very helpful with pushing the stroller, lifting her up, and pointing out animals to her.
Same lion drinking fountain, 9 years later.
Then some time in the petting zoo.
We were about to leave when we saw they were setting up a little animal display and it was perfect timing for us. The girls got to pet some snakes and an armadillo.
A must picture whenever you go to the Idaho Fall Zoo! Look at all those girls!!!
We then went to Gary and Dana's to be in a AC house for lunch. It was a nice resting spot for a bit and Nate and I were able to sneak away to go shopping at Costco for some reunion food. Then we made a quick stop at the Goodwill in Idaho Falls and then the last thing on our Idaho Falls agenda was stop at the Japanese Friendship Garden.
So many cute girls!!! I love them all so much and it was fun having so much extra time with these girls. I'm sure Nate felt outnumbered the entire trip, but he's used to it and is amazing as always.
Then our last full day of fun before our next adventure (The Peterson family reunion) we spent in Rexburg. Our first stop was BYU-Idaho and went and walked through the gardens. It is always beautiful to wander through and we even played some hide and seek while we waited for my mom and the other girls to arrive.
Same place in the gardens, 14 years later. We took our engagement pictures in the gardens and we were just little babies back then. It is fun to go back to where it all started.
Our timing on campus was a little off because devotional. They close everything down for it so our walking around campus was cut a little short and we didn't want to wait around. We did go into the BYU-Idaho Center while devotional was happening which was pretty cool to see. The artwork in that building is incredible and the girls loved seeing what it looked like. We got to hear a beautiful musical number and one of the speakers happened to be one of the professors that I had lots of my Family and Consumer Science classes with.
We then went to Porter Park and McCall was able to get a little nap in while we ate lunch and met up with Erika, Parker, and Grace.
Then it was splash pad fun! Baylor was timid with it, but Paige and Juliette had a blast!
Warming up on the hot cement.
McCall even got a little water time in.
And of course when you are at Porter Park, you go on the carousel. It was McCall's first time and she loved it.
A few pictures of pure joy and happiness from Baylor!
These girls!!! I love these pictures. You can tell they were seizing the moment and having so much fun together.
Paige and Baylor went on it a second time and it was the sweetest thing to watch. They would find McCall each time around and wave and give her the biggest smiles and McCall would just light up and get so excited to see them.
We made a quick stop at Smith Park to get a picture of the "party wagon". This is the wagon that Nate and I spent lots of time at when we were dating. We had many conversations here and would just sit and talk and eat Oreos. This is where we got engaged and it is always memorable to go back to this place whenever we are in Rexburg. It is amazing to see how far we have come and all that we have overcome and all that we have accomplished together the past 14 years. I'm so grateful that I get to have Nate Smith with me for this life and for eternity!
Mom left with Derek and Amy's girls, but we wanted to finish seeing some more things to Rexburg. We went to the D.I. and then we went back on campus to see a few things that were closed during devotional. The girls ran around the track and we walked through more buildings and got to see the art gallery in the Spori Building.
We walked through the Clarke Building because Nate and I both spent so much time in this building. It was fun to tell the girls about classes we had and other memories made. We then drove past where we lived and told the girls more stories. Paige loved them all and Baylor probably could care less.
Then we made a quick stop in Rigby to get some Artic Circle and fry sauce for dinner. We also enjoyed some ice cream and then picked up my parent's car that finally got fixed.
Our last stop for the day was to go give Grandma and Grandpa Walker a visit. I wanted to see their headstone since Grandma had been added. This was our first trip there where we didn't go see Grandma Walker and it was kind of sad. We always loved our time at Grandma Walker's house and I miss her joy and happiness. I'm glad we made the stop before heading home.
Nate and I got the girls to bed and had our last nightly walk. It was such a great trip and we made so many fun memories!
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