Old Time Pictures

A visit to the Old West is never complete until you let your hair down and snap a picture of what life was like in the "real" Old West.  My hubby and I love to get our pictures taken at a little hole in the wall place called "Jackson Hole's Old Time Photos" located right on the square in Jackson Hole.  They do AMAZING work!  Since this was a family trip we decided to show the many sides of our family.  Although we don't drink and "party" til we drop, we do like to relax and have a good time.  I think I shocked my daughter right out of her socks when I climbed into the tub and started having a good time!  This is what our family is all about, having fun while staying sober.  See, good times can be had even without the use of alcohol!

 After our "gambling" picture debut, we were off to the shops on the square.  This was a first time for my parents and my daughter, but my hubby and I are old pros at the shopping thing.  We have been there so many times that it is enough for us to just be there and experience the wonder of it all.

We helped the "newbies" find the best stores to shop in and we even made new discoveries for ourselves.  Discoveries like - huckleberry!  Yup, my daddy fell in love with the huckleberry lemonade!  My mamma bought huckleberry syrup for french toast (now let me give you a bit of background info on this one.  When planning for the trip, we planned a menu.  NOWHERE on the menu was listed french toast!  We had to change our menu to accommodate the syrup.)

We debated the importance of seeing the silver-dollar laden bar at the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar, but vetoed the idea on account of my underage daughter and the cost of a single glass of soda!  I guess we'll just have to save that adventure for another trip.  But then again, even when I worked in the Jackson area years ago I never entered into the doors of said bar.  I guess it's ok to let some mysteries remain that way!

We opted for "gourmet" ice cream instead.  A bit of advise - stick to the Haagen-Daas just down the street!  

After spending several hours, and a bit of money, we decided that it was time to head for the cabin.  We had shopped till we dropped and needed a break before we headed to the Rodeo that night.  Besides, who can resist a french toast dinner?

To Be Continued....

The Adventure Begins...

The first day of vacation was very uneventful.  Just the usual routine of getting the last minute stuff shoved into a bag and packed into the van.  In my daughter's case, it was a matter of just getting her stuff packed (remember how she packed for girls camp?) 

Our drive was somewhat uneventful, as most long drives are, but we did have some adventures along the way.  We stopped at a park in Idaho, don't ask me the town cuz I just don't know, but at this park there were horses!!  No, not real horses, but the type of horses that you can swing on.  It was great fun to be a kid again!  I think I gave my daughter a heart attack when she saw me jump up on the horse and go for a ride.  We also had a blast climbing on the big toys and sliding down the slides.  I have forgotten just how much fun being a kid can be!  

We also had a bit of fun "playing" with the statue of an anchor.  Now, I really don't know WHY this thing is there, I didn't see an explanation sign around the anchor.  AND keep in mind that Idaho is LAND LOCKED with NO oceans in sight for at least two states away!  Yeah, I'll let you ponder THAT one for a while, if you come up with a great story as to WHY this anchor is here, please share.  I'm always up for a great story!  

There weren't very many people playing in the park that day, but there was this one mamma with an infant strapped to her front in a pouch and a young toddler playing on the jungle gym.  When my daughter and I stared playing on the horses, this poor young mamma quickly gathered up her babies and herded them off the playground.  Now I ask you, am I really that scary?

  At one stop we needed to use the "facilities" and fill the van up with gas.  It was later in the day and we had been driving for FOREVER in a cramped little space.  Things were getting a bit...well, boring.  I needed some chocolate, and, like the responsible and ever prepared person that I am, I um, well, I forgot to pack said chocolate.  I ventured into the quick stop shop in search of chocolate with my daughter in toe.  It never seems to fail that when I take said daughter in a store with me I ALWAYS end up spending way more money than I plan.  Needless to say, we ended up in the frozen isle where she wanted fudge bars - where were we going to keep said fudge bars frozen you ask?  Yeah, we had to quickly devour all of them before they melted.  On the plus side, I got the extra one!  

As we were standing in the checkout lane, I was contemplating which chocolate I wanted for my treat.  I had the box of fudge bars (trying not to freeze my arm off), I had picked up the Milky Way my mamma requested, I even grabbed a bag of M&Ms my daughter wanted, but I couldn't for the life of me decide what I wanted!  As I was standing there contemplating, the checker said "I can help you" and I replied with a "I'm still trying to decide".  When we finally got in line to check out, I laid my purchases on the counter, minus the chocolate for me cuz I just couldn't decide, and the checker commented "Well, someone has a chocolate craving!"  If she only knew the full truth of her statement!
 
After driving 5 hours, we finally arrived at the cabin in beautiful Wilson, Wyoming.  It was a tiny little thing, but well worth the money we paid to experience the quiet west, not to mention the view was amazing!  It came with it's own welcoming committee as well - two dogs that my daughter loved to play with.  They were super friendly and the one dog just loved to play fetch with anything you decided to throw for her.  It was great to come to our temporary home and have such happy, excited greeters!


We spent the evening unpacking, and relaxing in our temporary home.  We couldn't figure out the DVD player, but fortunately we had brought lots of games with us.  We settled into a rousing game of "The Farming Game".  I know it doesn't sound that interesting, BUT it can be.  It is a game where you are a "weekend farmer" trying to grow your farm to make more money than the rest of the players.  It gets very competitive when my hubby and my dad play.  I just sit back and play the "banker" position so they don't cheat.  My dad won, I think.

Because this was a trip to celebrate my daughter's graduation from High School, we had a small "party" for her.  She was a little surprised and made out like a bandit!  She got everything that she always wanted - a hot cocoa maker and a slushy maker.  This way she can think of her grand-mamma all through the year!  

Not too exciting, but every trip needs to have a boring beginning to an exciting grand adventure!  And that is precisely what we had!

To Be Continued......

Took a Little Break

Hello my readers!  I have been out of state enjoying a very relaxing, well deserved, vacation in the beautiful scenery of the West.  I just got back and I am really excited to share my adventures with you.  In the next couple of posts you will be able to find out what I learned on my vacation, as well as experience just a bit of what the "Old West" is like.

I met so many people who were just wonderful!  We had lots of laughs with some of them as well. I even met a gentleman from...well, I can't remember right this second, but I will in a later post, that made me laugh so hard my sides hurt!  He was the most amazing man that taught me that I just need to reach out to others to help them smile and lift others burdens for just a bit.

Then there was the lesson of trust between beast and human that was an incredible experience.....

I also learned to appreciate the beauty of Mother Nature and to respect her for that beauty....

The determination and courage of a cowboy......

Well, I could go on and on about what I learned, but I won't in this post.  I will tell you all about my vacation and what I learned soon.  But first, I am reacquainting myself with my own bed and getting to know my babies again.

Have a great day to each of you.  And remember to keep smiling!