Monday, August 28, 2017

Vera's Fashion Sense

Vera has more fashion sense than I did/do. Plus, she has taken over all of the 70s shirts that I collected while I was in college. 



Potter Party - Gus Turns 6!

Happy Birthday, Gus! So excited when he declared that he wanted a Harry Potter themed birthday (which I threw before our road trip). At that point he had only heard Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and watched the first movie. Randomly, Harry Potter is what got us through our road trip, the kiddos listened to book 2, 3, and 4.  

I made the Sorting Hat! I used cardboard, a cereal box, and my sister's spray paint...thanks Sis!


Decorations included Hedwig, Owl Post (made by my sis), and the Hogwart's Welcome Letters flying out of the fireplace. 

The Chocolate Frog Boxes were used to give the kids jelly beans (Bertie Bott's) and wizard cards as take home presents. 


One of the games was to use the wands that I made for each kid to keep balloon Hedwig up in the air. 


My Little Potter:


A birthday cake just like in the books...thank you Vera for decorating.



Ha, ha!


Gus and his buddy. Vera and K standing by the 9 3/4 platform. :)




Sunday, August 27, 2017

Road Trip 2017 - Utah Olympic Park

After Mount Rushmore we reached a point in our trip where another National Park, Forest, or Monument wasn't going to wow us. We needed pure fun...Utah Olympic Park delivered. The crazy part, to get there from South Dakota we had a full day driving. Then, we spent the entire day ziplining, tubing, and completing aerial courses.  










I didn't know that to practice ski jumping, they land in a pool!


We spent the night back at our hotel in Heber, Utah...woke up the next morning and spent all day driving home. So good to sleep in our own beds with cats warming our feet.

Road Trip 2017 - Mount Rushmore


I have wanted to go to Mount Rushmore for a long, long time. Ha, so I had to laugh when we walk up and the above is the view we had of the four famous presidents. J and I were surprised on this trip often. We thought we were going to be sweating and hot for two weeks, instead sweatshirts, thunderstorms, and fog were all on our agenda. 

The monument peeking through the fog was pretty in its own unique way. 


Pearl was obsessed with making funny faces in every pose. 



One of my favorite photos from the entire trip:



We had to go back at night for the Ranger talk and lighting ceremony.


Very impressed with Whispering Winds Cottages and Cabins, the extra space (we rented the family cabin) was exactly what our family needed at this point in the trip.


Road Trip 2017 - Mesa Falls

We went to Mesa Falls our first day at Aunt Nikki's. After long days in the car, it was a quick jaunt to this National Forest for gorgeous views. 















Road Trip 2017 - Devil's Tower Monument

So worth the drive off the beaten path to see this volcano that didn't happen.