Time for One More Trip

Thursday morning we prepared to head north to Cheryl's. They had a couple of little things they wanted Roy to look at, so off we headed. I love the drive to Cheryl's especially when we go through Star Valley. After having dinner with the Kimber's and playing with Ben outside, we went to Rigby Lake for an evening stroll. It was a perfect evening.

Friday morning Roy and I left Nate with Cheryl and we headed to Yellowstone. After stopping for breakfast in West Yellowstone, we went to the Park. We hiked to Morning Glory Pool and around the geyser basin. While I went into the gift shop, Roy went to the registration desk to check to see if there were any cancellations. "Yes" we got a room for the night at Old Faithful Inn.

Old Faithful Inn

Morning Glory Pool
Castle Geyser
Beehive Geyser
Grotto Geyser
Giant Geyser

We drove over to Hayden Valley to see lots of wildlife. Lots of Bison, some right next to the road. A stop at Canyon for an ice cream cone and then back to Old Faithful. (There was a lot of traffic on the road to and from Canyon and rangers directing traffic so we weren't able to take any pictures of bison, but if you don't know what a bison looks like, come up and see them at the state park.)

Our evening's plan was a hike up to Observation Point to watch Old Faithful erupt. What a wonderful view and dinner in the dining room ended the day in perfect fashion.

The best hiking partner in the world

Old Faithful erupting from Observation Point

A beautiful sunset in the most beautiful place in the world

Saturday we drove back to Rigby and after I went to Carma's for a quick visit, we headed home.

Sunday the summer really ended with a trip to airport so Roy could fly back to Florida to go back to work. Nate started school on Monday, so the summer really was over.

I have plenty to keep me busy this fall and winter. While the weather is still nice, I will ride my bike out to the state park and take care of the yards. Then I have lots of scrapbooking and journaling to do to help me remember this wonderful summer.

Bear Lake Adventure

Dave and his family, Chelley and Jon came up Saturday morning to begin the exciting long weekend at Bear Lake. We meet Cheryl, Jason, and Ben at the lake on that chilly windy Saturday afternoon ready for some lake fun.

Evan though the weather was as nice as we would have liked, everyone seemed to have a great time. There were two swimming pools with hot tubs, a great playground for the kids, old and young to enjoy, a large open area perfect for games of catch, a basketball hoop, miniature golf, which we didn't have time for, bike rentals, and the lake.

After the kids were put to bed, the Wii came out and Dave, Jason, Jon, and Nate played some fun games well into the night.

What is a trip to Bear Lake if you don't try Raspberry shakes. They were delicious. The boys went to three different places and decided that "Merlins" was the best.

Sunday we spent time at the pool and then the boys went out for ice cream and Cheryl and Summer put the little one's down for a nap and Chelley and I rented bikes for an hour. Then we all wandered down to the lake for a while.

Sunday night Chelley and Jon said good-bye, Jon had to go to work, Monday. We missed them, but were glad they could come up for a while.

Monday we all headed up to Minatonka Cave. That was an amazing place. It was well worth the time and the drive was so beautiful. We had pizza for lunch and then back to the pool and hot tub and later to the lake. The boys played catch and basketball while the little ones went to the playground. Roy and I took a nice relaxing walk around the resort while parents put kids to bed.

Before we knew it it was Tuesday morning and time to pack up. Ideal Beach Resort was a great place for a vacation and it was fun to find a place where we could all be together.

Roy, Nate, and I took the long way home through Montepelier, Cokeville, and then home. It had been a perfect vacation. Now it was time to get ready for another adventure.

Catch up Time--Vacations are Over

Whew!! Nate is back in school and I have a lot of blogging to catch up on.

The last blog I posted tells of our tales to Albuquerque. We arrived safely and left Allyson with her mom and dad on August 6 at 9:30 pm. Chelley and I checked into a hotel to get some much needed rest.

Friday, August 7 was a restful, but some what busy day. We traveled over to the New Mexico Turner home and hung out with them for a bit and did some laundry. Chelley and I drove over to Old Town while Evan took a nap and then caravaned to the "Hot Air Balloon" museum. The kids have been there enough to know everything there is to know about hot air balloon so they were our tour guides. It is an interesting place--I didn't know there was so much to know about hot air balloons.

Pat and Phil Catherall, Summer's parents met us and we all headed out to dinner at a wonderful Mexican restaurant. The food was delicious. ( I can't remember the name of the place, but I certainly want to go back.)

Chelley and I headed back to the hotel where we were staying for the rest of the weekend, hung out at the pool and waited for Roy and Nate to get in. It was good to see them; Roy hadn't been home since the 4 th of July, so I was really glad to see him and share my adventures.

Saturday was Ryan's special day. He was going to be baptized. We were glad we could all make the trip and make it safely.

Allyson gave a wonderful talk on baptism; she did a great job, better than some adults have done. I was proud of both Ryan and Allyson that fine summer afternoon.

After the baptism, we all headed back to the Turner homestead to celebrate Evan's birthday, albeit, a couple of days early.

After a brief rest we headed to Isotope Field to take in a baseball game. What fun is a beautiful Saturday evening, if you can't go to a ball game. The kids shared their knowledge of baseball with us all evening long. Way to go!! Summer and Dave, you have taught your children well.

The ballgame was a lot of fun and the Isotopes won. Sunday morning was get ready to head home day. We would liked to have stayed longer, but Dave and Summer had plans and we needed to get home to get ready for our next adventure.

Nate was with Chelley and me for the ride home. We stayed the night in Moab and went into Arches to do some hiking there, again. Nate told us that Arches is his favorite National Park.

After breakfast at the "Jail House Cafe" it was time to get home. We dropped Chelley off and made it safely home to Evanston Monday afternoon.

Tuesday, August 11, Nate registered for school, his senior year, and I started to get ready for the next weekend and our family trip to Bear Lake. I picked Roy up at the airport Friday night and we were ready for a great time.

Mesa Verde National Park & on to Albuquerque

This was the last true day of our vacation with Allyson as we would stop for the night in Albuquerque. After leaving Arches and after our stop at "Hole in the Rock" we did travel on to Cortez, CO. We got our hotel room, ate dinner, splashed in the pool, (Ma Turner was a party pooper cause I didn't get into the pool) and then finished the night with ice cream. What else could we do, Dairy Queen was across the street.

We were up early, before eight and headed for the short drive to Mesa Verde. Now I didn't know too much about this park before we got there, so I learned a lot on this day.

Our first stop after entering the park was the Park Point Overlook. You can see for hundreds of miles up there. It is the highest point in the park at 8572 feet.

We then traveled on to the Visitor Center, looked at the exhibits there and headed off on another long adventure. Let me just say that Allyson was the best traveler we could have had. She went hiking with us and didn't complain too much about our long days.

We then took the long twisty road to the Wetherill Mesa, named after the ranchers who discovered the ruins found here. We took the tram to the "Badger House" community which are a group of four ruins from different time periods.

We caught the tram again and the driver, a very knowledgeable park service employee, stopped at a couple of other sites, namely the Kodak House and the Long House.

Then back on the road to the Chapin Mesa which is the most developed area of the park. We stopped at the Chapin Mesa museum which was very informative, saw the Spruce Tree House, from a distance, Took the Mesa Top Loop, and then finished up with the Cliff palace Loop which had numerous stops and lots of dwellings built under the mountain overhangs.

It is certainly a place I want to visit again, in cooler weather, to do hiking and visit the different houses that have been found.

After leaving Mesa Verde our destination was "Four corners" where Allyson wanted to be in four states at one time. However, we forgot to stop and get some cash and the Interagency Indian Council does not take debit cards, so didn't get to stop there. So we headed south to Shiprock, Farmington, Bloomington, and Cuba, arriving in Albuquerque at 9:30 Thursday night.

And so ended Allyson's Adventure with Grandma Turner. We would have more fun times during our stay in Albuquerque, but this special time I had with Allyson and Michelle on our journey will always be a special memory for me. Thanks guys.

Arches

(What the hikers)

Wednesday was our trip to Arches. Michelle and I have been to Arches, but Allyson didn't think she had been there. Time for another adventure. We first stopped at the Visitor Center which was new since my last visit. There is so much to see at the Visitor Center you could spend all day there, but we had exploring to do.

Some of the places we stopped and hike around and to were: Balanced Rock, Double Arch, Delicate Arch Viewpoint, (Delicate Arch hike will have to wait until a cooler time of year), and the Fiery Furnace viewpoint. We also stopped at Skyline Arch for a quick picture.

After touring Arches, we stopped for a picnic lunch and then Allyson and I toured the "Hole in the Rock" which is a home chiseled into a home. Very interesting, but I don't think I could live there. (It is the ultimate tourist trap.)

Canyonlands

Allyson and I spent Monday getting everything ready for our trip to Albuquerque. I'm sure Allyson thought we would never be ready to go, but I wanted to mow the grass and do the laundry before we headed south. We decided to go to Chelley's and spend Monday night and then get a good start Tuesday morning. We had a great time playing with Tinkerbelle and the cats before turning in for the night.

Tuesday we drove to Canyonlands to see what that park had to offer. What a splendid place. The views are indescribable. We visited the "Island in the Sky" district which is the northern most district of Canyonlands.

This rock formation is named "The Monitor and Merrimac". We stopped at the Visitor Center and picked up a cd that tells about the park and all the stops and sights to see. We stopped at every turn out and took a lot of pictures.

This is "Mesa Arch" and as you climb to the point underneath the arch, you can see another smaller arch called "Washer Woman Arch". When we finished our journey through Canyonlands, we went on to Moab where we ate dinner and splashed in the motel pool. Tomorrow on to Arches and then Cortez, CO.

Allyson Adventures with Grandma has come to an End

Yes, it is true. Our Adventure is over, but we had a great time. Let me share some of the memorable experiences and some pictures.

Allyson and I dropped Nate off a the airport on Friday, July 31; stopped in Riverdale to pick up my Dad and headed north. The trip to Idaho was routine, nothing spectacular. After dropping Dad off in Rigby, Allyson and I were ready for a fun camping trip with Cheryl, Jason, and Ben. We were not disappointed.

Cheryl and Jason had the camp all set up and dessert cooking. Jason makes a mean cherry cobbler which tastes even better for breakfast.

After breaking camp we all headed to Big Springs. Ben loved looking at the fish, ducks, and there were even a couple of muskrats joining in the fun.

We wandered over to the Johny Sack cabin for a look inside the house he built. He was 4'11" tall so everything looks tiny. What a lucky guy he was to have a cabin in such a wonderful spot. Then it was on to West Yellowstone and the Grizzly Wolf Discovery Center and then to Yellowstone and Old Faithful. While we waited for the geyser to go off, we did some shopping at the General Store.

After sitting in the hot Wyoming sun and watching the geyser go, we headed back to Cheryl's where we enjoyed pizza for dinner, a visit from my sister, Carma, and my Dad, and watched Ben and Allyson play. After this busy day, I was ready for a good night sleep.

Sunday we attended Sacrament meeting in Cheryl's ward then headed to Grand Teton for a picnic with Carma and Dad. Allyson and I stopped at the Craig Thomas Visitor Center then traveled to String Lake for a picnic. We stopped to see a moose bedded down in the willows for an afternoon nap.

Allyson had a great time splashing in the lake while lunch cooked and then we all enjoyed the refreshing water after lunch.

Then it was time to head back to Evanston to get ready for the trip to Albuquerque.

What Day Is It??

We are still having lots of fun. We have played in the river Wednesday morning. I will share some more pictures later. Wednesday evening we spent an hour out on the "ice ponds" in a pedal boat. That was lots of fun. And of course, afterwards we went to the "Scoop" for ice cream. At the end of Allyson's Adventure she will tell us which flavor she liked best; each day she has had a different flavor.
Thursday the State Park was closed for paving so we went back to the ice ponds for some more pedal boating. (My legs will be in great shape, that's for sure.) It rained on us to begin, but Allyson wasn't scared of a little rain. We enjoyed our time pedaling. The evening's activity was bowling at a real bowling alley. Just let me say, we are much better at Wii bowling. Afterwards, more ice cream and to end the evening more wii bowling.
Today we take Nate to the airport for his flight to Baltimore where he meets up with Roy for a weekend of frolicking in the York area. Sunday night they fly back to Tampa for some play with work sprinkled in. Friday night we all meet up in Albuquerque.
After getting rid of the boy, Allyson and I will stop in Riverdale to pick up my Dad and we will head north. We will drop Dad off at Carma's and then head to the Ashton area for a camping trip. Saturday we will head to Yellowstone and Sunday we will have a picnic with Carma in Grand Teton before heading back to Evanston to wash clothes and get ready to head to Albuquerque. Chelley is going to ride to ALB with us. We are so excited.

Days 2, 3, & 4

Allyson and I are having so much fun it is hard to find time to blog. Let me catch you up on the activities.

Sunday after church, where I was sustained to be a cub scout worker, and after dinner, Allyson and I rode up into the mountains. I am always up for a ride into the mountains. We drove up to Mirror Lake with the intent to take the hike around the lake. Just as we pulled into the parking lot it started to rain. End of hike around Mirror Lake.

We then headed back toward Evanston, but took the turn-off into Christmas Meadows, which is my favorite place after Yellowstone. We have taken many camping trips there and lots of hikes, too.

Allyson and I started off at the trailhead, but quickly turned back to spray on bug spray. As we got to the car, the rain came, again, so we headed back home. After ice cream and a drive through the state park, it was bed time.

Monday the day started out with fixing the flat tire on Nate's car. After that was taken care of, we headed to the bowling alley to do some real bowling. (Sunday night Allyson and I played lots of wii bowling.) The bowling alley is closed until Thurs. We then went to the county fair. Allyson played a dart game and won a cute little stuffed panda. After more wii bowling, we headed to the ice ponds to do some pedal boating, but because they were working on the road, no pedal boating. We went out for more ice cream.

Tuesday was our day to take Nate to Orem so Chelley could take him to look at UVU. While they did that, Allyson and I headed to the Beane museum at BYU. That always is a favorite place. We then visited the BYU Bookstore and then met Chelley and Nate at Golden Corral for a late lunch. Then it was back to Chelley's to play with Tinkerbelle. After the drive home it was time for more

bowling and ice cream.

Here's some of the pictures from our short hike (pictures that Allyson took) and Allyson's new stuffed friend.

My vacation with Allyson

My long awaited vacation with Allyson began today with a trip to the zoo. I met Summer, Pat, Allyson, and the boys in the morning for a fun time viewing the animals. It was a very good time and by noon time, I could look at Evan and he wouldn't hide his face. Small achievements. We then traveled a little way up Emigration Canyon to a fine little diner named "Ruth's Diner". We had to wait a while to get a table, but it was worth the wait. The kids were very patient and very well behaved.

Allyson and I then traveled home by way of Emigration Canyon to East Canyon. A very beautiful drive. Allyson and I stopped at the house long enough to drop off her belongings and then headed to the state park for a little walk and to play in the river. Allyson had a great time getting into the river. After a stop at the grocery store and MacDonald's for some ice cream, it was beddy bye time for Allyson. We have lots of fun things planned for the next two weeks.

Summer time Fun

I can't believe how quickly the time has passed. Is it really July-almost the end of July already. Let me recount what has been happening.

June: Nate and I made a trip to Rigby in mid-June and made a wonderful trip through Yellowstone with my sister, Carma. I really enjoy driving through Island Park, Yellowstone, and Grand Teton. We saw bison in Yellowstone and a couple of moose in Grand Teton. There was still snow on the ground in a couple of spots.

Roy was home the first weekend in June to complete the brake repair on Nate's car. I was glad they got everything fixed. (I don't know what we would have done if that car hadn't gotten fixed.)

July: The 4th of July is always a good time in Evanston. We have 5 firework stands and it is legal to shoot off fireworks beginning the 3rd of July. My favorite memory of this year's fireworks display at the Turner home was watching Jason, Stewart, Nate, and Jon all lined up on the front sidewalk and each of them lighting off a roman candle. This was after attending the Evans reunion in Clinton earlier in the day and the boys trip into the hills to shoot the .22 rifle and the .357 magnum pistol. We had lots of good food and homemade raspberry ice cream.

I had the privilege of watching Michelle's little Tinkerbelle puppy for a week while they went on vacation with Carolyn and Stew.

This past weekend, Nate and I traveled to ID, again. Our purpose was to go to Tiffany Merrifield's wedding reception. That was a lot of fun. It was good to see all the Merrifield family and celebrate Tiff's marriage.

Saturday morning, Cheryl, Nate, Ben,and I headed to the St. Anthony Sand Dunes for some fun. Cheryl demonstrated the fine art of Dune jumping and she and Nate performed the stunt for Ben and me. The evening entertainment was a trip to the "riot Zone" where Cheryl, Jason, and Nate drove race cars and bumper boats. They seemed to have a great time. Jason and Nate then played minature golf while Cheryl and I took Ben home to go to bed.

Sunday morning Nate and I headed back home.