Summer Vacation Day 4: Off to Jackson Hole

We woke up at 7am, showered, packed up the car and headed to Lotus up for coffee and breakfast. Of course, we also saw our favorite local and his buddies, who were playing cards, and had to say goodbye to them. After, we drove to Spearfish and loaded up the Baron. We were sure to thank the airport front desk lady and the man working the line for all their great advice and information on what we should see and do! We loaded up and headed to Jackson Hole, flying over Devil's Tower on the way. I'm sure Devil's Tower is really impressive from the ground, but it is crazy to see it from the air and see how it sticks straight out of the ground when everything around it is flat and totally different! We took a few photos and then continued on our 2-hour flight, flying over Yellowstone and Grand Tetons National Parks along the way. It was unbelievably beautiful and it felt like a movie backdrop instead of something real!

We landed and the Tetons were even more majestic from the ground. We got in our SUV and drove 20 minutes or so to Teton Village, which is actually a ski resort during the winter, but was equally crowded and very beautiful. We stayed at the Snake River Lodge which was gorgeous and directly across from the Village's horse stables! The girls thought it was meant to be! We were all hungry and after we unloaded all of things in our little room overlooking the pool, we headed out to explore the various restaurants. We ended up eating at a little Italian restaurant, with CK and me splitting a salad and pizza and the girls each getting a kids cheese pizza. The food was actually amazing, even if the service wasn't. While we waited for our food to arrive, Olivia FaceTimed with Marisa, telling her every detail of our trail ride and how amazing galloping feels! It was so cute. Sofia read, of course and our friends from Washington DC, Karina and Dave, stopped by to say Hi. Karina, Dave and their four kids, ages 13 through 4, rented a house about 10 minutes from Teton Village for the month! They have made the most of their extended visit and we looked forward to connecting with them later for dinner.

After our delicious Italian lunch, we went down to swim in the pool, which was heated (thankfully) and really cool. After a while the girls "headed upstairs" and we realized that neither of them had a key! So, after about 30 minutes, when they didn't return to the pool, we headed out looking for them. I suspected they were over with the horses, but they were not there. CK went to check in the room, but I thought there would be no way they could get in..sure enough, they were hanging out on their bed watching Walking with Dinosaurs! They explained that they got the our room and realized they didn't have a room key, so they visited the front desk, gave the clerk our name and room number and got a key! I couldn't believe it!

We relaxed for a while and then we walked to the Mangy Moose where we met Karina, Dave, Annalise and Sonya for dinner. We had the nicest server ever who was super helpful and did a great job. The food was also fantastic! I had the trout and salad which was very good and CK, Karina and Dave all had the prime rib which was huge and looked great. After diner we split a mud pie, which was always a favorite of mine when I was younger and I haven't had in years. The girls asked for some money and headed downstairs to play the video games and hang out. It was so cute. After we lingered after dinner, we headed outside where it was chilly! We talked for a bit, although it was too cold to stand around too long. The four girls climbed all over the rocks lining the stream and played with their bouncy balls that they had all won at the little arcade downstairs. They had a great time together and Sofia and Annalise immediately hit it off, while Sonya and Olivia had fun together. It was really a perfect situation for all the girls! We said our good nights, looking forward to seeing them all for our rafting trip together followed by a bbq and then fireworks!

Loaded up and ready to go in Spearfish, SD.

Devil's Tower from the air

Close-up of Devil's Tower.

Flying into the mountains....

Girls are ready for our next adventure!

Yellowstone National Park and Yellowstone Lake

Flying over Yellowstone Lake

Looking back toward Yellowstone National Park and the lake

Teton National Park

Our view of Teton Village, where we stayed, from the air.

Turning toward the airport.

The Tetons from the airport!

We made it to Jackson Hole and can't wait to explore.

The stables directly across from our hotel. The girls love it!

The views of Teton Village, which are incredible!

Summer Vacation Day 3: Andy's Trail Rides

We returned to our little stinky hotel room and changed into jeans and tennis shoes, although Sofia had brought her boots, so she looked like a "real rider." The girls were beyond excited and couldn't wait to get to Andy's Trail Rides and get on a horse! It was a short drive to Andy's and his place was very rustic. We were his only riders for the 2-hour ride and we would be going with Andy! There was another foursome who arrived just after us, but one of Andy's helpers would be leading them on their ride. We were so lucky to go solo with Andy. Andy and the young ladies who helped him selected horses for each of us. Sofia was given Indy, Olivia rode on Annie, CK was on Babe and I rode Sasha. Once we were all mounted, we headed out from the barn following Andy. Within minutes we were in a clearing with a spectacular view of the area around us, which was beautiful. The girls were giddy, they were so excited! We started walking on a path through the trees and Andy explained the area as we continued through the meadow and up a hill. I rode in the back since Sasha was a bit slow, but it allowed for some great picture taking as we rode. He led us through a huge cut made in the granite and explained that it was made by hand by Chinese works who built the railroad that served the area in the 1850/60s. We walked along what was the original rail line for a good portion of our ride. It was a huge undertaking, even by today's standards. I couldn't imagine what it took to create the rail line without the use of modern tools.

We continued on our way after several photos and before long, we were trotting and then galloping! The girls LOVED it! They couldn't believe they had "actually galloped" and Olivia couldn't wait to tell her friend Marisa, who she had just completed horse camp with the week before. The ride lasted the full two hours and we spent equal time walking, trotting, and galloping! It was so much fun! At one point, Andy told us we had to copy him as he rode - and he held both arms straight out as we cantered. It was so invigorating and fun. Along the ride, we saw several deer. Andy also had both girls take turns leading our group and gave them pointers on how to make sure each of their horses responded to them.

Once we returned to Andy's barn, we asked where he kept his horses, and he told us that at the end of the day, he and the girls would untack all of the horses and they had freedom throughout the several hundred acres, with access to lush grass and water. Andy explained that he and his girls would arrive the next morning and tack up the horses that arrived "to work." He said if horses stayed away, they wouldn't be ridden that day. It sounded so perfect and obviously the horses were very happy and well taken care of with Andy. It was such a fun ride and the highlight of our trip for the girls!

We were all dirty and happy after our ride and decided to eat dinner at Stamphill, which is right next to our hotel in Lead. The weather was perfect to sit outside and we were lucky enough to get the last table! It was an absolutely perfect evening! The food was great and just what we needed after our fun day! The girls played on the hill next to the small patio after we ate and then we returned to our room and went to bed!

The girls are SO excited to get started!

Olivia on her horse, Annie

Sofia on Indie

Papa on Babe..the only real view of Babe I saw the entire ride!

Our ride begins! It's so beautiful and peaceful!

Heading up the hill.

Love all the ferns.

The four of us...I'm in the shadow of the tree, so it only looks like Sofia, Olivia and CK are on the ride.

The railway gap

Another group photo in the railway gap

Sofia leads the way!

Olivia leads the way!

Dinner outside!

Summer Vacation Day 3: Reptile Gardens and Dinosaur Museum

Today was planned entirely by the girls. We wanted to be sure they got to do some fun things that sounded good to them and so they looked over the map and different brochures we've picked up since we arrived and they decided that we should go to Reptile Gardens, located just outside Rapid City, then visit the Dinosaur Museum right next door and end our day with a visit to one of the many caverns in the area. But, the grand finale was our planned 2-hour horse back ride with Andy's Trail Rides. The girls have been desperate to go for a horseback ride, so yesterday morning I searched on Yelp and found Andy's Trail Rides just a few miles from us in Lead. According to the reviews, Andy was a great leader and it was "not your typical nose-to-butt ride through the trees." Apparently Andy was a big believer in trotting and galloping and the girls were beyond excited!

We started our day at Lotus Up with coffee, muffins and oatmeal and a chat with my new favorite Lead, SD local! After breakfast we headed toward Rapid City and Reptile Gardens, about 1.5 hours away. Reptile Gardens was actually really amazing and incredibly landscaped. It was really surprising. We first headed to the main building that contained a whole lot of snakes! There were turtles, iguanas and other reptiles, but really a ton of snakes! Olivia and I were a little quicker through the snakes than CK and Sofia, who took their sweet time looking at each and every snake. There really are some beautiful snakes but also so amazingly big and scary looking snakes! After the snakes and other reptiles, we headed over to see the giant tortoises, the bald eagle and prairie dogs. The girls were able to touch the tortoises and watch them lumber around which was pretty cool. The bald eagle was injured in the wild and no longer able to fly, so he now lives at Reptile Gardens. The prairie dogs had a little view bubble that the girls were able to look through as if they were with them. It was pretty cool. Throughout the entire visit, Sofia kept saying "Liam would love this place..." or "Liam told me about this snake and he knows so much about it..." She ended up taking a ton of pictures of snakes, the bald eagle, etc. to show Liam after we got home. At first she was sending them in texts to Mikaela, but I convinced her that maybe we should wait and show him after we get home. Liam would really love this place though! I just couldn't get over how beautiful the grounds are and before we left we got a pretzel and friend cheese curds, as a snack. Of course, we had to buy souvenirs "for Liam" and Olivia bought a little horse for Marisa. The girls also got a little turtle (Olivia) and snake (Sofia) for themselves. Originally, I wasn't terribly excited about our plan to go to Reptile Gardens, but it ended up being a highlight of our visit! What an incredible place!

We headed next door to the Dinosaur Museum, and Sofia was beside herself excited! She loved it from the minute we walked in and took another 50 pictures "to show Liam when we get home." The entire museum was indoors and felt a little dark and like the ceiling should be much taller, but it was a well-done museum and we were the only ones in there for most of our visit. Again, CK and Sofia stuck together and read every single placard of each dinosaur. Halfway through was a mirror maze that the girls just loved! They went through it several times and took a video of them going through it. I went through it with them and it was really difficult to see where the path was! At the end of the museum they had a little movie room that showed "Walking with Dinosaurs" which was a BBC documentary that Sofia LOVED! Even though she'd seen the particular episode being played, she was totally mesmerized and wanted to get back into Walking with Dinosaurs after we left the museum.

We were starting to run out of time and needed to get back to Lead to change and head out to our horse ride! So, we loaded up in the car and decided to grab a quick lunch on the way. We soon discovered that there wasn't really any fast food restaurants, so we ended up stopping at some weird little convenience store in the middle of nowhere. CK and the girls got peanuts and Oreos and I ended up getting a Lunchable, which I've literally never had before. The girls made fun of me because they know how much I hate lunchables and think they are complete crap food. It wasn't the best, but it was fine in a pinch. I ended up taking a nap on our drive home, so I was refreshed and ready for our trail ride!

We made it to Reptile Gardens!

Heading into the main building to look at more snakes than one can imagine.

Rose Quarts rock garden.

One of MANY reptile photos taken by Sofia.

A snake skeleton.

A prehistoric turtle fossils. Olivia for size reference!

Fun crazy mirrors.

Riding a dinosaur!

Checking out the prairie dogs! Love those crazy little animals!

One of several giant land tortoises!

Just amazing landscaping and a beautiful day!

At the Dinosaur Museum!

Oh no! A T-Rex!!!

The super cool mirror maze - a huge favorite!