Sugar Loaf Haven

I took the 3 youngers to see our Sugar Loaf Haven up in Wyoming.

It was our first time being there in the Summer time and

boy was it HEAVENLY!!

I wish we all could have gone together, but we are 

in the dividing and conquering phases of life, it seems.

Good morning, sky!

Early morning flights can be brutal, but when that sun comes up

they turn into something magical!

 

Lindi ran into her friend, Scarlett at the airport!

She was on our flight heading up to visit cousins. 

We had not done any school shopping.

School was the very next week!

We swung by the mall in Idaho Falls.

I do not buy anything these days without them trying it on first.

Once we knew everything fit perfectly, I ordered it online 

so we didn't have to haul the bags home on the plane!

We made it! 

Their first stop is always the swings on the back porch.

 Dinner on the deck.

With a visit from our friendly deer.

They love this spot to graze at.

A good morning workout sesh to start the day~

Followed by some pickleball

We stopped to play in the Snake river 

before driving over the bridge to the hot springs.

The weather was moody, with it sprinkling off and on.

Normally I would be bugged, but it set a perfect atmosphere

for the relaxing aspect of the hot springs.

The kids gleefully jumped from pool to pool.

I'm pretty sure this mountain backdrop is fake.

The earth can be absolutely breathtaking.

Such a soothing place.

 

The river rafters would pull over to hop in the warm water overflow.

Why does this scene melt my mama heart?

They all dared each other to jump into the cold plunge pool!

Dinner at one of our favorites, Bull Moose Lodge

Spotted a rainbow

It's nice having all of the ice cream shops open!

Last time we were here it was winter and definitely off season for ice cream! 

With the biggest scoops to boot.

A day in Jackson Hole at Snow King mountain.

Rusty doing a practice round before he left with the older group to

do the adult course.

Once the girls were done, we walked up to watch him for a bit.

Town Square was BUSTLING!

So many fancy people walking around with very expensive cowboy boots.

I don't think you can have a bad meal in Jackson Hole.

Any restaurant looks promising!

We decided we better hike one of the days since

that is why people come far and wide to Star Valley!

Intermittent Springs in Afton is one of 3 intermittent springs in the world.

The water typically stops flowing after running for around 18 minutes, then remains

inactive for roughly 15-20 minutes before restarting its cycle.

It was a perfect first hike for us!

Not long or hard at all.

Mostly just a beautiful scenic walk along the flowing river.

There it is behind us.

I guess the intermittent part is mostly noticeable from late August to May.

We missed it by a few weeks.

It was still wonderful to explore and play in!

   

The squirrels loved our popcorn!

We drove into town to see the worlds largest arch made of elk antlers!

And to see the temple!

Dinner at Red Baron.

This place felt like it should be in a movie!

The food was top notch diner vibe, with the best ice cream choices!

My favorite part of the trip was snuggling on the 

couch watching shows together each night.

Very rarely do we get to do this.

Lots of friendly deer on our drives.

Welp, the trip home didn't go as expected.

At the airport, we found out about the Microsoft computer crash.

It effected mostly every airline in the nation, including US!!!

No flights going out at all.

 What do we do??

Anna's wedding was the next day and we could NOT miss it!

I looked into driving into SLC, then catching a flight home.

But no flights were leaving there, either.

We could risk catching a flight the next morning, but nobody knew when

the computer issue would be fixed.

And most likely every flight would be already full.

Our only for sure option getting us home in time would be 

to drive, aghhhh!!!

Luckily they had a car available.

We basically returned the one we had been using, then checked another one out.

The counter lady was so helpful, getting us a more comfortable car with good

gas mileage.

And with that, our 14 hour impromptu road trip began!!

My sidekick road buddies!

I have to praise them.

They did SO good.

Not one ounce of complaining did I ever hear from them.

We counted listening to Shaboozey, Tipsy,  about 20 times on the radio.

Lots of Dr. Pepper stops.

Nielsens was an added bonus.

Driving sure makes you appreciate airplanes.

Right as we should have been landing at home, is

when we just got started on our longggg  journey.

Crazy to think about!

We made it home around midnight.

I think we made pretty good timing.

And really, it wasn't so bad getting to spend extra bonus time

with them. It was a trip we will never forget!