More memories....

I love flowers.  Have I ever mentioned that before?

And when I see something particularly beautiful, I really cannot resist a photo.

(I'll spare you the 5 others of the same pot of pansies.)  

 But as much as I love flowers, my most favorite things have a variety of heights,

abilities, shapes,

  and attitudes! 

 All of them love Grandpa's "airplane" rides, though the older ones are now too

big for Grandpa to swing around.  

 It's so fun to spend a week or two together--getting to see what Nellie's hair

looks like first thing in the morning,

and how genial she is as she rubs her 2-year-old eyes in waking up.

After six months of skyping and telephoning, it is still eye-opening to see family dynamics in person.  

Now I know what a certain mom means when she mentions

a certain child and the challenges or joys accompanying that child.  I can understand and empathize.

And if they want advice, I mostly just say, "I'm glad you're the one raising them.  You'll do fine."

(At least that's what I plan on saying.  I'm sure at times I have offered more advice than was wanted.)

***  

And it's not just the grandkids who fill my heart... 

Twins--only born 13 years apart.

Random Idaho Happenings

What would we have done without the magic kit?  It entertained 7 munchkins for hours and hours

and gave them an opportunity to develop showmanship.

Thanks, Jamie!

 For Kevin, "vacation" means catching up on projects at his mom's house.  She's

84 years old and getting closer to the day when she'll no longer be able

to take care of the farm.  For a couple of days Kevin's brother was there as well, and

then!  Did the projects ever start to fly.  There's nothing better than a couple

of engineers doing plumbing.

 It was just a temporary hold while they ran to the hardware store for a different fitting. 

For me, being in America means shopping at Walmart, Target, Kohl's, and so on.

For Kevin, it means getting to go to the hardware store. 

And he loves having a project to do.

 And more projects for the kids.  I was amazed at how long they could entertain

themselves with drawing, coloring and cutting. 

With a few games of Bocce thrown in so everyone could relax a bit.  

Vacation time was so helpful in getting A & E together with their siblings.

Visiting Yellowstone

 Growing up in Idaho, my family lived about two hours from Yellowstone Park, 

and so we visited at least once a summer, if not more often. 

As we were talking about a drive through Yellowstone with some of our grandkids, Kevin's mom

spoke up.  "You know the earthquake that hit Yellowstone in 1959?  We were going to stay that night at the campground that was wiped out, but Don (Kevin's dad) decided he would just do some fishing and then we'd leave because the campground was full. Twenty-eight people died there."   

(At that time their family lived in Utah, several hours away).  

So we decided to visit Quake Lake at the beginning of our day, and see where

Kevin very nearly ended his life at 4 years of age.  (And we're SO glad he didn't!)  

Four generations!  My mom, (age 92), sister, daughters, son-in-law, and grandchildren.

  I love mountains!  I love rolling waters.

I especially love the smell of pine trees!

And being there with family just makes it all the more fun.

 Grandchild:  "Ooh!  What's that smell?  Yuck. Rotten eggs!"

But I'd have to say, I don't mind the smells of Yellowstone at all.

All that sulfur makes things so colorful.

 Yes, Kevin was there too.  And my mom is just amazing. She is as sharp as ever, and

only this past year began using a cane for stability.  Her bones are wearing out but she's still game.

I hope I've inherited her longevity!

 One of our wishes was to wade in Yellowstone Lake.  We spent a lot of time in the cars--by the end of the day, we had 400 miles on the odometer--driving from this geyser to that mud pot, 

and the young ones needed some time to run.  (So did the rest of us.)  We found the perfect spot!

 As we played on the black sand beach, we recognized it as the place we had picnicked, many years earlier on the very same date in July--Justin's birthday!  

It would have been fun to have him along again, but he was being a supportive husband and father with a 2-week-old son.  The generations continue on...

 And miraculously, no one got SO wet that they couldn't just sit on a towel

when it was time to get back in the car.  Well, maybe a couple had to change clothes.

During my childhood visits we always we saw bears, lots of bears.  

Yogi Bear was on TV, and we'd make a contest (as children do who have to turn everything into sibling rivalry) to see who could spot more "Yogi's" and "Boo Boo's".

(For the uninitiated, those would be the adult and cub bears.)

Our counts would climb, with real sightings, into the 50's and 60's, since

bears would often sit by the side of the road hoping for a hand-out.  We even started

making categories of black-colored, cinnamon-colored, twins, and so on!

It's been quite awhile since I've seen any bears, and we almost made it through the park

without seeing much wildlife of any kind.  

Fortunately, by late afternoon, more animals were out and about.  

A great day, great scenery, great experiences together,

topped off with ice cream at West Yellowstone--ALWAYS the perfect ending!

The Lane and other memories...

There is a lane, actually a quarter-mile gravel track, into  the main home at the Bailey's.  It's great for an evening walk in the cooling air,

 

 with the sounds of irrigating sprinklers, and nearly-ripe grain waving in the breeze.

 At the end of the lane, by the country road, 

 there's a canal filled with water from the mountains.  

 The entire family enjoys dipping their feet, or floating on innertubes from an upstream bridge,

or just wading (it's just over knee-deep).

Of course, little A. had new stitches on his forehead (due to chasing a cousin around and running into a suddenly-opened car door) and couldn't swim, so squirt guns became the way to cool off.

 And then again, there are the Idaho clouds.

All these will I miss!