May 13 was our 10th anniversary. It is so hard to believe that we've been married that long. Where has the time gone?? It's been a happy 10 years and I'm confident the next 10 will be even better! Mom and Dad offered to watch the kids for us while we did something fun, so we took them up on it. On Friday morning, the 14th, we packed up the 3 little boys we'd been watching for the week and dropped them off at school (another family was picking them up that afternoon, and the boys were staying with them until their parents got home). We quickly got our stuff together, then threw everything in the car and drove to Mom and Dad's. The kids were happy to stay (although Ruby did cry a bit when we left - she sure loves her Mommy these days). Then we were off to Yellowstone! We stopped in Gardiner to pick up some lunch, then stopped for a picnic on our way to Old Faithful. Here is Jason enjoying some sunshine and a sandwich, and the fact that all we had to do was eat - not convince anybody else to eat, discipline anybody while we were trying to eat, or clean up anybody afterwards. What a treat!
First we drove down to the lake, thinking we'd take a little walk around a part of it. Low and behold, the lake was frozen, and there was ample snow all over. So, nixed that plan and continued on to Old Faithful.
We did stop along the way and enjoyed a waterfall:
We stayed at the Old Faithful Inn (pictures below). We checked in, then went out to explore all the geysers and hot pools in the area. Though we have done this many times before, this time was particularly fun. We weren't in any hurry, and it was so nice outside we made sure to take our time. Here is a picture of me in front of Morning Glory Pool:
The Old Faithful Inn where we stayed. This is a pretty historic building; we felt lucky to get a room in the old portion of it. Someone must have cancelled last minute!
Our room. These have been recently remodeled, and were quite nice. It had a sink, but the bathroom was down the hall. Not a big deal - those bathrooms were ultra-clean, and one of the men's showers even had a window in it! I wasn't that lucky, but still, pretty nice. Our only complaint was that the walls were paper-thin. Our neighbors must not have known this, b/c they were rather obnoxious, especially when they came in late at night. Grr.
After our geyser walk we went to dinner at the Old Faithful Dining Room. We were sure excited about it, but in the end it was rather unmemorable. Since nothing on the menu sounded that great we ended up going with the buffet, which was prime rib. It was good, but since we only went through once it probably wasn't worth the price. Still, it was fun.
Here is a photo of Jason in the hotel. This place really is pretty neat - the photo doesn't do it justice:
After dinner we took a hike up a hill so we could watch Old Faithful erupt from the top. Along the way we spied a coyote. He must have had a paid position there at the park because he ran from us, but only to the top of a rock where he sat and posed so we could get a picture:
We hung out on a fence for awhile, waiting for Old Faithful. It was a little chilly, but not bad.
Thar she blows!
After this hike we crashed for the night - lots of walking that day! We were so excited to sleep in, but wouldn't you know I wake up at 5:15, my usual wake up time. My body is so programmed it's ridiculous. I forced myself to stay in bed for an hour or so, then went and got us some coffee. For breakfast we went back to the Dining Room for lack of anything else. We had French Toast, but we decided the stuff I make at home is better. Then we ran outside for one last chance to see Old Faithful before we left:
Then we went for a little hike to Harlequin Lake. Here is Jason pretending to be a beaver. we didn't see any beavers, but plenty of evidence that they were active there!
Okay, these are a bit out of order. At one point in our trip we saw an elk with a radio collar:
And back to Harlequin Lake...me at the sign:
Jason got me a wedding band for our anniversary. I have a fancy diamond ring that I love, but I wanted something simpler. I find I'm always taking it off to do something, wash my hands, put on lotion, get dirty with the kids, etc. For whatever reason I feel like I could leave on a band no matter what I was doing. He got me one just like his, though sounds like he had trouble finding it. I totally love it. Thanks Hon!
All in all we had a great anniversary. The kids did great at Gramma and Papa's...maybe we will have to do this again sometime! I think we both have to admit that it went by too fast, and that we weren't quite ready to come home......but it was good to see the kids!
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