Green Kids Sleepover

The other night we had all three Green kids sleep over.  We started the night with dinner on the deck and ended it with smores and games.

Dinner on the Deck

Four Square

Roasting Marshmallows for Smores

Playing the Game Lucie Created

Jenga Before Bed

Connect Four before Bed

Reading Early in the Morning

Sourdough Pancakes

It was great to be with Lucie, Dillon, and Caden again!

Settling In

We seem to be settling into the routine of the summer;  floats, rides, runs, play, pool, etc.  I took Connor and Maggie down the river the other day.  We saw a momma moose with two babies and two muskrats.  Connor learned to cast a fly rod and is a natural. 

My ship

Buxton to Bates

 Nancy and the kids rode bikes down to the Friday Farmer's Market.  They came back with an assortment of fruits, vegetables, and TWR beef.  Dinner that night was remarkable and we had smores and a fire on the deck after.

Heading to the Farmer's Market

Roasting Marshmallows for Smores

Ending the Night by the Fire

Targhee opened this weekend and we wasted no time taking advantage of the all the amenities they have to offer.

Summer is in Full Swing!

We are all here now

On the plane

I picked up Nancy and the kids on Wednesday at the Salt Lake City airport.  Their connection in Chicago (MDW) was tight because of a "software" problem on the plane in Boston, but they held the plane in Chicago and were able to make the connection.
The kids fell asleep in the car on the 5 hour ride back to Driggs.  We woke them in time to have dinner at my favorite burger place in the Valley, The Brakeman.

A good catch

Best burger in the Valley

After dinner, we settled into the cabin with some front porch sitting. I had made this section of buck and rail fence to hold the bird houses the kids have made and put it at the start of our driveway to greet them.   It's great to all be together again.

If I Had a Boat...

Driving off the lot

Well, now I do.  I picked up my drift boat from Clackacraft in Idaho Falls on Thursday.  I proceeded to drive home, fill the boat with all the essentials, and head straight to the Teton River for it's maiden voyage.

Shuttle Vehicle

First time in the water

Done with one of many more float trips

The float was a huge success: one beaver, two moose, and no fish.  The water is high and and off color, but it was a great float. I've been thinking about getting a drift boat for a long time.  Now all she needs is a name.  Suggestions?

Back in the Valley

After a long winter, we're back in the valley...well almost.  I was able to leave Andover the day after our last faculty meeting, June 8th.  Nancy and the kids will join me when I pick them up at the SLC airport on June 20th.

The drive west cleared my mind.  It's the first time I've done the drive alone since the fall of '96, when I was heading back east.  I took the easy/normal/boring route of I-90/80, but it felt different this time.  I loaded up my iPhone with a ton of Podcast that Nancy and the kids never would have let me listen too and got in the zone.  I put in just over 1000 miles a day, about 18 hours.  The first day I got about 60 miles west of Chicago.  Crossing the Mississippi River in the early morning was great.  Then through Iowa, Nebraska, and into WYO.  I spent the second (cold) night in Muddy Gap.  The next morning I had coffee at a new coffee shop in Lander (in the building that used to be a drug store across from the Noble and the bank).  I shopped for provisions at Mr. D's and headed to Driggs.

The cold that I experienced in the desert of Muddy Gap translated into a dusting a snow on Togwotee Pass.  Just my luck as I'm driving along I see a brown spot in the willows and stop to watch.  A momma griz and two cubs walked right by.  First bear I've seen on the Pass.  I got to Jackson just in time to tune in the Red Sox game on the radio.  After another stop at Hungry Jacks (for forgotten provisions) I was dropping into Pierre's Hole before noon.