sequoia national park

After Yosemite, we spent one day in sequoia national park. My advice to anyone visiting this national park: don't go on the weekend. We found out if you do go on the weekend some roads and cool sites (like the tree you can drive through) are closed and so you have to get really lucky on a parking spot or take the shuttle around. With Perry, the shuttle was not an option for us. We figured out, a little too late, that we could've gotten a temporary parking pass to allow us to park closer for the day. But, as it was, we struggled a bit, but it all worked out.

The first time we stopped at one of the visitors centers, we were right next to a deer. Do you see it in the bushes there?

We were excited to see General Sherman. We had heard this was wheelchair accessible. And I guess it is, but because we didn't have the handicap parking pass with us so we parked at the general parking. To get from the general parking to see General Sherman the path is paved, but there are lots of stairs and it is more steep than not (we didn't know this when we started out). We just had to keep lifting the stroller, but we did it. And then we got up close to stand at the base of General Sherman. Looking up at that thing made me feel small, in a good way, and left me with a sense of awe and wonderment.

We also got to climb up to Moro Rock. Perry was having a rough day so we didn't want to push him to climb up the 400 steps with us. So we divided up. Eric took Layla and Kacin on the shuttle and they climbed to the top. When they returned, Kyler and and I took our turn to venture to the top. My favorite thing was that Kyler and I decided to skip the shuttle back and took the hiking trail instead. It felt so good to be out hiking and stretching our legs, if only for a short time. I made Kyler run part of the way, too and he loved that (ha ha). Anyways, Moro rock had amazing, breathtaking views!

 









Just like Yosemite, it would've been so great to stay longer at sequoia national park and explore a little more, but with the time we had we enjoyed our visit immensely.

yosemite

After we left San Francisco, we drove to Yosemite. It was our first time enjoying that beautiful place. But I probably would've enjoyed it more if we had stayed there overnight instead of driving in, then driving two hours back to a hotel, then driving two hours to get back in the next morning. But when a frugal husband makes the plans (last minute plans so there is no camping available), that's what you do. ;)

The first thing we did was stop at Bridalveil Fall.

Like I mentioned in my last post, we celebrated Layla's 6th birthday while we were there.

We spent time playing at Sentinel Beach.

We walked along the trails in the valley.

We stopped at the visitors center and watched the movie about Yosemite in the theater.

Isn't this so sweet? Little Layla taking care of her dear brother, Perry.

We enjoyed Lower Yosemite Fall.

Other snippets of our time there:
-Layla got her first splinter during one of our walks. She screamed like no other and would not calm down about it, but refused to let us use tweezers to get it out. We eventually convinced/tricked her to let us use the tweezers and got it out in one second and so she learned tweezers are our friend.
-Parking there was a beast, especially on Friday.
-I was still incredibly grateful for that stroller that allowed us to do things that otherwise would've been super challenging.

-Eric took Layla and the older boys over the rocks to get closer to each waterfall.
-The river water was cold, but so much fun to play in. Probably everyone's favorite thing we did!
-We ate lunch on a bench in the Yosemite cemetery.
-We ate dinner on a table surrounded by huge flies. Gross.
-Driving through the park with the windows down surrounded by all that beauty!

There were so many things we didn't get to do while we were there, but we got our feet wet and now we know so we can plan our next trip there.

a trip to Boise

The day after school got out, I loaded up the car with three of my kids and drove to Boise.

Do you know how sad I was to leave my littlest boy behind? I almost couldn't do it. Except I knew I couldn't survive a road trip by myself with all four kids and a break would be good for me, but I love that sweet boy and worried about how he would do at home without me. Especially once he realized L, K, and K were gone, too. We drummed it up that he was getting "boy time" with daddy. And, what do you know, he did just fine all weekend. Kacin took this picture for him while on the road.

Once in Boise, we met up with our friends, the Richardson's, who moved there a few months ago. I never did get a picture with all of the kids together, but we played in her neighborhood for a little while before meeting up with my parents.

L insisted on bringing in her own stuff to the hotel.

We spent two nights with my parents swimming, eating, watching movies, shopping, and playing miniature golf.

This is how Layla golfed.

 Sometimes we convinced her not to use her hands.

But hands was her preferred method.

I broke my no wal-mart streak of over two years when we had to run in for two things.

On Sunday morning we said goodbye. I gave big hugs to Kyler who was heading back to Wyoming with my parents to spend a week with them. He was so excited to have a week with his grandparents.

Kacin, Layla and I got back in the car to drive home. Since it was Sunday, I had thought about finding a church along the way to go to sacrament meeting. While it varies from building to building, church services are usually held at 9am, 11am, and 1pm. The morning passed by and it just didn't come together to find a church.

It was 1pm and Layla was desperate for a break from her car seat. I told her we would find a park to play at. We approached Ellensburg and I looked to my right and saw a church building in the distance. I love how LDS church buildings look so similar so when I saw the brick building and white steeple, I was looking at something familiar.

We got off the freeway and I gave Layla the choice between church and the park. She chose church! I had to prepare her for no nursery and no Ava at this church though. And really possibly no church at all if there wasn't a ward that met there at that time. We found the building and pulled into the parking lot. And we changed right there in the car. I threw on a skirt and Kacin put his church clothes on (white shirt over his orange t-shirt!) and we went in.

We found out this ward met at 12:30 so were at the tail end of sacrament meeting. We sat in the foyer and I was so glad to be at church. I love that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the same no matter where you go. You always feel welcome. I was glad the building was so visible and inviting. I felt welcomed by some sweet members who noticed us in the foyer when they came out to quiet children or take them to the bathroom and introduced themselves. I felt the spirit as I sat in that foyer listening to the last speaker of the meeting and singing a closing hymn. I was grateful for the speaker's wisdom and testimony (I couldn't see him, but I pictured him as a wise old man as he spoke to us about comforting and loving others, about reacting to criticism, and testified of the truthfulness of this restored gospel).

We could've finished our long drive and never stopped and gotten home 30-45 min earlier and I probably wouldn't have noticed anything. But when I went to church I felt something so good. It was nourishing and refreshing for my soul and I knew the church building was a special place.  It's like a pineapple dole whip at Disneyland. I went to Disneyland for years and years without ever tasting one of those things and never knowing what I was missing. And then I tried one and I was in heaven! I can not go to Disneyland without partaking of that pineappley, smooth goodness. Just saying, going to church is just like anything else, you never know until you try it. :)

And so that concludes our first trip of the summer.