Bar J Chuckwagon

One night Don's parents took all the adults to the Bar J Chuck wagon in Jackson Hole.  We went with Don's brother Doug, his wife Diane, and Aunt Betty Jo up to the Bar J early to get our tickets.  It was fun to spend some time walking around and visiting.

Don and his brother Doug took some cute pictures!

I love this picture of Doug, Don, and their Aunt Betty Jo.  She was visiting from Alabama.  She is a great lady.  We just love her.  She makes us laugh and is a ton of fun.  It was a special treat to have her with us in Idaho!  She even gave us some Brasier Family Southern Recipes!  Oh baby, that was special!  You don't even know!  For her to give up those recipes was huge!

Don and Doug helped save some settlers from a bear!

We ate some great food!  Let me tell you, it was wonderful.  Then the show started.  I was totally impressed.  It was a great show.  We loved it!  It was a fun night.

Square Ice Cream!

O.k. you Idaho people, don't even laugh!!!!!  You know you go there!  It is so funny that every time I talk to people from Idaho, they talk about getting square ice cream in Swan Valley.  Every time we go and get fireworks or go to Jackson, we have to stop and get some.  It is so good.  We love it.  Just so people know, on the 4th of July they served 19,384 ice cream cones.  Oh yes they did!

The Tetons

There is something about the Teton Mountains.  They are so pretty.  They kind of  just draw you in.  They are amazing.  A while back, Don saw this picture of the Tetons with these barns.  He just fell in love with those prints.  Then we learned that they are the Mormon Barns.  Here is some info on them.

Mormon Row is a line of homestead complexes along the Jackson-Moran Road near the southeast corner of Grand Teton National Park, in the valley called Jackson Hole. The rural historic landscape's period of significance includes the construction of the Andy Chambers, T.A. Moulton and John Moulton farms from 1908 to the 1950s. Six building clusters and a separate ruin illustrate Mormon settlement in the area and comprise such features as drainage systems, barns, fields and corrals.Apart from John and T.A. Moulton, other settlers in the area were Joseph Eggleston, Albert Gunther, Henry May, Thomas Murphy and George Riniker.  The area is also known as Antelope Flats, situated between the towns of Moose and Kelly. It is a popular destination for tourists and photographers on account of the historic buildings, the herds of bison, and the spectacular Teton Range rising in the background. The alluvial soil to the east of Blacktail Butte was more suitable than most locations in Jackson Hole for farming, somewhat hampered by a lack of readily available water. The Mormon homesteaders began to arrive in the 1890s from Idaho, creating a community called "Grovont," with a total of 27 homesteads. The Mormon settlers tended to create clustered communities, in contrast to the isolated homesteads more typical of Jackson Hole.  Mormon Row was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997.

Well, we really didn't know where they were.  While we were in Jackson we stopped in a photography studio to look at some prints.  While we were there, some people told us where the barns were.  Don was so excited to go there.  Sure enough, we found Mormon Row. While we were there, there was a wedding going on.  What a pretty place to have a wedding!

At Mormon Row, there was a herd of Bison!  Oh you know who was happy!!!!  Ian was thrilled.  Yes, after all these years he still loves Bison!

Jackson Hole, Wyoming

We took a few family trips.  It was fun to go and be alone with our kids.  One of the things we did was go to Jackson Hole, Wyoming.  Austin wanted to go before he went to EFY.  One thing the children wanted to do at Jackson Hole is ride the alpine slide.  We have gone four times and every time we go the alpine slide closes because of the weather.  Man, it is frustrating!!!  So here we go, we thought we would try it again!  Can you believe it?  The weather was perfect, we got to go on the slide!!!!  Oh happy day!

Austin

Don

Ian

Aubrey

Jackson is known for these antler arches.  Don't worry, no animals were harmed.  These antlers are collected by scouts.  They get them from the elk refuge.  These are antlers that have fallen on the ground.

Trip To Idaho!

We went to Idaho for a week and a half.  We went so that Austin could go to Especially For Youth at BYU-Idaho and to visit family.  We had a wonderful time.  It was so much fun.  We celebrated Pioneer Day with Don's brother Doug.  His Stake does a 5K race and breakfast.  We loved going there and participating.  Notice how Austin and I wore Centennial shirts.

I hate how I look when people take pictures of me running!

This is my niece Megan!

The kids had to share a bed.  They all decided they wanted to sleep in the same bed.  I am sure that was crowded, but it is what they wanted to  do. 

Austin got stuck in Grandma and Grandpa's swing set.  He is a little too big to swing on it now.  When he was a little boy, he spent hours swinging on it.

The kids loved being with their cousins.

We have four nephews that are around 2 years old.  They are all blond.  They are the cutest boys ever!!!  They just run around and get into everything!  Don and I just sit back and laugh.  We remember those days well.  These two little ones were trying to get into the house.  They kept knocking at the door trying to get in.  Grandma wouldn't let them in!!!!

So, they decided to get into Grandma's garden.  Grandma wasn't too pleased about that.

That's o.k. because Don and his brothers went and fixed the damage!

The weather was wonderful.  We only had one night when it stormed.  Oh, believe me that rain was cold!

Uncle Doug had some fireworks left over!  We got to watch them light them off.  That was fun!

Most importantly, it was a wonderful time for Don and I to spend time with our nieces and nephews.  Oh my gosh, they are the cutest!!!!  It is fun to see Don with little ones. 

Poor Grandma, I think we wore her out.  She had to take naps where she could!