Long Time, No Blog: Update #3 (I'm still making stuff)

I've made more things than a hat these last few months. 

(I knit socks through three national parks!)

(I knit stockings for my cousin and his bride.)

(I knit mini rockets for my nephew Ellis's third birthday!)

(I made a quick baby hat for my dear Hannah's new baby.)

(I finished a long-gestating cross stitch project for Mr. Cool.)

(I made a great little cross-stitch project my sister gave me for my birthday.)

Long Time, No Blog: Update #2 (The New Cool Went to School!)

We have a schoolboy?!  It has been amazing to see Lincoln blossom and grow at kindergarten, although it is still terrible getting him up each morning.  I'm not really looking forward to the teen years!

(First day!)

(First in line!)

(The center is his first homework assignment!)

Long Time, No Blog: Update #1 (We went to South Dakota again!)

In August we ran up to the eastern side of South Dakota for the beautiful and fun wedding of my cousin Paul to his lovely and creative bride Alli.

Then, continuing our National Park visiting goal, we camped and hiked in the Badlands.

(A friendly group of Sturgis bikers snapped this picture!)

(The best thing about the Badlands is that you can hike all over!)

(Lincoln liked the sabercat skull with teeth marks.)

(We watched the super moon from our campsite!)

And then, we treated Lincoln to his third trip to Mt. Rushmore!

(He had to improvise binoculars.)

It was a great last trip of the summer, before we sent Lincoln off to school!

Yellowstone Trip Souvenir Hat

When we arrived in Jackson, WY prior to our trip into Grand Teton and Yellowstone, I had the boys drop me off at the local yarn shop.

It was a delightful little shop, and I found a lovely Wyoming made yarn, in the colorway Grass--a perfect choice, as we had been blown away by the gorgeous green grass we found in a wetter Wyoming.

I found a pattern I loved--and it was called the antelope hat--another perfect choice, as we had seen plenty on our tour!  And now it's done--and I'm ready for winter!

National Park Road Trip 2014: Van Camping

We learned that four months out is way too late to plan to sleep in cabins in Yellowstone--they are all booked.  Campsites, however, are available.  Our problem?  Tent camping and I are not friends.  So, Mr. Cool got to work on turning our van into a serviceable camper--at least for sleeping!

He built Lincoln a sleeping platform in the back of the van.

We would sleep on a full mattress filling up the rest of the back--which worked pretty well, although there was a bit of a slant.

All our stuff (not all here, in this pic) was crammed up front.

Lincoln slept the best!  It wasn't a perfect set-up--tweaks are needed.  Or we just need a real camper!

Our campsite, however, was perfect--Madison campground.  Just a short walk away from the Madison River--

And a magical place where our picky eater ate a fire-toasted hot dog with pleasure!

It was a great adventure!

Our little camping home!

A note:  bison wandered through the campsites one afternoon, but the good pictures are all on Mr. Cool's phone--I will try to add one later!

National Park Road Trip 2014: Yellowstone Highlights

Mr. Cool had visited Yellowstone the summer he turned 7, and I hadn't been since I was 10.  We were surprised by the new stuff, and the memories that came flooding back--we hope the same for Lincoln in his future visits.

The boys wait for Old Faithful.  We were able to see it erupt twice!

We really explored a lot of the thermal features--and Lincoln loved the paint pots, especially Artist's Paint Pots .  He sat and watched it for over ten minutes!

Mr. Cool and I loved the brilliantly colored thermal pools, although Lincoln didn't love the smell!

Grand Prismatic Spring was my favorite.

We saw loads of bison--always neat and imposing to see in person.

National Park Road Trip 2014: Grand Teton Highlights

Neither Mark or had a big memory of Grand Teton from our childhood trips, so the sudden pop of mountains as we drove north from Jackson took our breath away.

Our first stop was Jenny Lake, where Lincoln experienced his first boat ride across the lake to our Hidden Falls hike.

We loved the small Episcopal Chapel with amazing views--what a place to worship!

I would probably struggle with paying attention to sermons!

Our cute little cabin at Colter Bay was our base for exploring Jackson Lake.

Our beautiful hike on the Lakeshore Trail took us all around Jackson Lake--and all by our little family's self!

We toured some other views across Jenny Lake--stunning.

And in our afternoons and evenings, Lincoln was able to indulge in his favorite lake pastime--throwing rocks!  And I was able to knit and soak on the grandeur of these amazing mountains!

We loved Grand Teton, and can't wait to go back!