More Trip Fun

There were a lot of things that happened on our trip that didn't have pictures to go with the stories.

First of all, Annalee and Violatte were so good on this trip. I was very surprised! They rode so well in the car. (It helped that we had a DVD Player with us.) They were so patient with all the driving that we did. They were really good to play with toys and to read books and keep each other company, also. It made the trip a lot of fun.

In Idaho, we got to see my Dad play the main role of Harold Hill in "The Music Man." He did such a good job and Violatte loved watching, but every now and then she just couldn't hold in anymore and would yell out, "Hello, Grandpa!" Annalee didn't quite have the patience to sit through it all but she loved the music and wanted to dance to it. Both girls loved the popcorn the most. They would share it (with some reminding) and just munched away happily on both the regular popcorn and the carmel popcorn. It was so fun to do that as a family.

Another fun thing we got to do together was the 24th of July parade in St. Anthony. It's such a great parade with lots of beautiful floats, and horses, and all sorts of things to see. The girls' favorite part is that most people in the parade through candy. She loved scooping it up and putting it in her bag. She would get so excited, too, each time she added to her collection. The girls really loved the horses, too, especially the miniature horses. My favorite part was that they handed out chocolate milk (another great tradition!)

Jim took Violatte on a canoe trip with a lot of my cousins and relatives as part of the Howard family reunion. Violatte had a really good time and Jim enjoyed it, too.

Jim and I were also able to go up to Macks' Inn (where I worked for a summer) and spend some time up there -- including a canoe trip. It was beautiful! It was so relaxing just floating along and looking at the scenery. Two different times we came upon moose that were just at the edge of the water -- a few feet away from us. It was so fun. We both ended up getting pretty sunburned, especially Jim, but I loved it anyway.

One of the other fun things we did in Idaho was going to a farm to see some of the farm animals. My Dad was milking the cow for the farm owner while they were away on vacation so Violatte was able to see a cow be milked. We also saw chickens, and a mommy and baby pigs, and a dog and her new puppies. I absolutely loved those puppies! They were Golden Retrievers and the most beautiful golden-red color I have ever seen! I would have taken one home right away if I could have!

I have to say that this trip has given me a great appreciation for some things. The first is cold tap water! It is so yummy and I just love it!!! We don't have cold tap water in Ridgecrest most of the year because it is so hot that the water just can't get cold. If you want cold water, you have to get it out of a pitcher from the fridge. The other thing I have a great appreciation for is the dry weather in Ridgecrest because there are no mosquitos!! After being eaten alive in Idaho I was very grateful to return back to dry-as-a-bone Ridgecrest!

A really cute thing the girls did on this trip was that they loved to sleep together. In Idaho, where we first stayed, we were sleeping in a tent trailer and the girls had a big queen bed that they slept in. They would drive each other crazy and fight for space (even though it was huge) and fight, but if we tried to separate them they would get so mad at us. Even when we slept at my Grandma's condo where they could have slept in different parts of the room, they still wanted to sleep by eachother, even though they were so squished. They sure do love eachother.

Violatte was probably the person who loved the trip the most. Each day, she would ask if we were going on a trip! She just loved to travel!

At my parents' house, we had pancakes with whipped cream and fruit. Instead of pancakes and whipped cream, she called it "cakes and ice cream." That is her new favorite breakfast. She thinks she is luckiest girl in the world.

We had such a great time on the trip. The girls really miss their Grandpas and Grandmas.