An Idaho Vacation (Part 2)

Tuesday morning we woke up without any plans, so we decided to meet Jake's younger sister for lunch and then check out a local playground, which was awesome. Seriously, why didn't stuff like this exist when we were kids?

 After we wore the kids out at the playground, we grabbed some ice cream and went to visit Gigi (Jake's maternal grandmother). Since it had been nearly 3 years since we had been back to visit, she was excited to see Jake and I - and even more excited to meet Taylor for the first time!

That evening, we headed to Shoshone Falls for a picnic with the family. Unfortunately, there wasn't much water running off the falls, but with a view like this we didn't really care. The sun setting over the river was absolutely gorgeous, so we made sure to capture some family photos before it went down. 

Wednesday morning, we set out for the south hills in search of an adventure. Our girl loves being outdoors, so we knew she'd have a blast exploring whatever we came across. We set up camp, roasted hot dogs and marshmallows for lunch, then stopped at a creek to play before heading back to town. The creek water was so cold, but Taylor and Will (and Jake) had a blast splashing around regardless. We headed home with rosy cheeks, dirty feet, and tired bodies, all signs that the day was a success.

 

That night, Jake and I enjoyed a kid-free dinner at a restaurant overlooking Snake River Canyon (thanks again, Mindy!). The food was good, but the view was definitely the best part. After dinner, we walked around the edge of the canyon and couldn't help but take a terrible selfie to capture the moment. Later that evening, we met up with Jake's aunt and uncle and his youngest sister and her husband for ice cream at Dairy Queen (a long-standing family tradition) where Taylor entertained the entire table with multiple rounds of "Let it Go" and by being her typical off-the-wall self.

Thursday was a pretty low-key day. We spent the majority of the morning walking around the canyon, touring the visitor's center (where Taylor was quick to find herself a souvenir or two), watched a few base jumpers jump off the Perrine Bridge, and then made our way to the Love Lock Fence where we added a lock of our own and then threw our key into the canyon for good measure. For anyone in the Idaho region, my sister-in-law has an awesome blog, The Idaho Bucket List, that follows attractions all throughout the state. She's an extremely talented individual, so I highly recommend checking out her site. You won't be sorry.
 

 

That evening, we had dinner with the family at Maxie's, a local favorite, and then headed down to Centennial Park to snap a few more photos before the sun went down. With a background like this, how could we not?

 

And then Taylor showed off her brute strength and burned off some energy at the playground. She is seriously one freakishly strong child.

Friday morning, we packed our bags, said our goodbyes, and made the 3 hour drive back to Salt Lake. We spent the night with our good friends again and then began our journey back home entirely too early the next morning. Saturday made for a long day of travel, but it was all worth it once we finally pulled into our driveway around 9:00 that night. We put the tot straight to bed and then melted in the couch, leaving our suitcases and piles of laundry for another day. Overall, our trip was a huge success. The tot did much better than I ever would've imagined but constantly being on the go wore all of us out. In fact, I'm still recovering.

Thanks for the memories, Idaho. It was so great seeing everyone but next time you all come to us!