*Part 2* Mesa Falls & Big Springs

Before you read any further, if you haven't read *Part 1* of my family vacation, Read it Here.  Good!  Now you're all caught up and ready for the next phase of the vacation.  These pictures took place on Sunday after church.  What better way to spend a beautiful Sunday than walking along side clear natural springs and huge waterfalls?

I'm also including a few flashbacks from our vacation last year to show how much our family has grown!  (Or in some cases, how much some of us have lost weight!)   :)

It was great to have Cassity with us so everyone in the family could be in the picture.

*Pic From Last Year*...

Look at those little boys, and tiny girls in strollers!  And no baby Katelyn yet. :)

I really wanted to swim in that water.  Then Cass reminded me it wouldn't be beautiful, clear spring water if people were swimming in it.  Yeah, well... I still wanted to jump in.

We're even kind of color coordinated!  And Schmeether is pregnant. :)

I love how much Ari & Cam squeal when they're together.

*Pic From Last Year*...

Bahaha!  Their personalities are totally the same. :)  p.s.  Ari looks so much better with curls!

*Pic From Last Year*...

Eeeewwww.  Haha.  Gross.  I am not cute.  It took me a year to improve that a little.

The boys wanted to hold my hands constantly!  Almost drove me nuts a little, but I had to stop and think how cute it really was, and they won't always be that sweet. :)

Everyone can take a moment to make fun of Matty's sunglasses.  Hahahaha.

Grandpa and his little men.  So cute.

This was Nathan's jimmy-rigging job to keep the sun out of Katelyn's eyes.  Uhhh.  As much as I love BYU, I thought it was a little much and took up the whole sidewalk. :)  It didn't last long.

Another fun family pic as it started to sprinkle.

I really loved all this fun family time.

Roommate photo shoot!

It was so pretty.  I felt like we were in Ireland or something!

I like the goofy happiness of this one.

Bryan makes me proud when he sports the bandanna. :)  Our horseback riding guide gave him that bandanna and he carried it with him the rest of the week!

Dad's little sunshine girl. :)

I looked up to see Mom standing like this, so I made her stay like that for the picture.  Haha.  Look at those skinny legs!  Looking good, lady!

"All Because Two People Fell In love"...

Do I look like her?  Some people think I do but I always thought I looked like my Dad.

I love this calling in life!  "Favorite Aunt" role is the best.

Stay tuned for *Part 3* which will cover the day trip to Yellowstone, with a bonus trip to West Yellowstone main street shopping. :) 

Wedding Photographer

I went to a wedding at the Salt Lake temple on Friday and attended the reception later that evening.  It was a gorgeous day.  My friends Jessica and Luke are both beautiful and ridiculously photogenic.  They looked so happy together and I felt a seriously great vibe being around them.  I'm super close to Jessica's family and loved hanging around them and feeling like another sister in the wedding party.  The reception ice cream bar was delicious and the decorations were unique and elegant.  But do you want to know what my favorite part of the whole wedding day was?

The photographer!  *Whitney Lewis Photography*

Whitney Lewis was super impressive to me, right from the start.  At the temple she was totally in charge and knew exactly what she was doing.  Jess had given her a list of the pictures she wanted (group, immediate families, friends, etc.) and Whitney knew what was expected of her.  But lots of times-- at other weddings I've attended-- the photographer is just kind of in the background and timidly tries to position people and take a few good shots.  Not this girl.  She was outspoken and confident and actually pretty entertaining.  

There was a moment when she was taking a shot of the families up on the steps next to the temple, and all of a sudden her husband, Thomas, hoisted her onto his shoulder like it was nothing:

It was funny to see all of us by-standers with our cameras turn and take pictures of them rather than the wedding party. :)  Also, I later learned that Whitney and Thomas met through swing dancing, soooo  that might explain the smooth "hoist on the shoulder" move.

Whitney seemed to already know the personality and style of Jess and Luke and knew the kinds of backgrounds and settings to use for their pictures.  I like that she didn't take all the pictures against the temple, but moved the group over onto the grass where there were trees, benches, and flowers to include in the photos.  I just kept thinking, "Wow, this girl is good" and felt happy that Jess & Luke had a great photographer to capture their wedding day.

I also love that Whitney and Thomas worked as a team.  They were both snapping shots all day and Thomas never skipped a beat when she needed him to hold up that big screen thing to alter the lighting, or hold some other little trinket to create a better picture.  I don't know the actual photography lingo. :)

The best part was they were both really personable and interactive all throughout the reception.  They weren't just "wall-flowers" or creepy people with cameras. Haha.  They would stop and talk to us at our table or pause and show us the fun candid picture they caught of our group.  Or if our candid shot didn't turn out too well, we'd stage another good one and keep going until it was a winning shot.  Not only was I impressed with their talent and professionalism, I really just liked them as people.

After chatting with Whitney for a few minutes in some down time, I learned that her dad is currently the mission president of my mission.  Her parents went out to Spokane,Washington 9 months after I came home, and I've heard so many good things about them.  "President Palmer."  How lovely is that?  Such a small world and I was happy to make that connection.  

By the end of the night, they were exhausted and got to sit down and enjoy some ice cream with the rest of us.  You know how sometimes you want to marry someone just because their parents would make great in-laws?  I was thinking, "Crap. I want to get married right now just so Whitney can take my wedding photos!"  I'm totally sold.  I told her I'll try to think up some kind of important life occasion so she can be my photographer, but so far there really isn't anything coming up.  That's why I figured I'd write this blog post in the mean time, so the rest of you can check out her work and maybe use her yourselves. :)  

*Whitney Lewis Photography*

...And here's a few random pictures of the wedding day that were taken with my measly Olympus camera.  :)

Such a sweet and happy couple.  I loved watching them.

Kristi and I confused about who to give all the flowers and boutonnieres to.

If only I had worn a plum colored dress...  :)

Whitney was trying all night long to get a picture of stubborn Alyssa.

I'd never seen an LDS cultural hall decorated so well!  Definitely felt like a reception hall.

Beautiful prints of Jess & Luke on display next to "the line"...

Good friend Kristi and her sweet husband Brandon.  

Well anyway, I enjoy a good wedding.  Especially when you actually know the people and don't have to wander around awkwardly and keep re-filling your plate with more food you didn't really want.  It was a comfortable and happy day for me and I even talked to a cute boy at my table during the reception.  But I won't give details on that one.  This post is just about photography. :)

Family Vacation in Island Park, ID *Part 1*

July 29-August 4, 2011

Last year my family decided we needed to have a REAL vacation.  Something that would allow us to get away and enjoy fun adventures together. This was to include all spouses and children, so lots of people. :)   The end result:  Island Park, Idaho, where the Yospes (Heather's in-laws) have a family cabin.  We loved it so much that we decided to go again this year, and will probably continue going until our family gets too big!

I love it because it is relatively small and rustic.  15 people and 1 bathroom.  Yeeaaah! :)

Look at that fun bunch of people!

This is the tent that Cassity and I got to sleep in.  We called it the castle.

Island Park, ID is located about 30-45 minutes from Yellowstone, surrounded by pine trees, rivers, lakes, and fun 4-wheeling trails.  It is THE perfect vacation for me because I prefer mountains over the beach any day. I love the smell; I love running around in T-shirts and jeans; I love the activities;  I love the starry skies; I love the campfires; I love the isolation from reality; I love the togetherness with family!  And this year my dad suggested Cassity come along with us, so that was fun to have a friend there to go on adventures with!

BIKING 

Biking is probably one of my favorite things to do in Island Park.  There are so many fun dirt trails-- technically for 4-wheelers-- but plenty of little jumps and hills to have fun on.  I would just ride around and literally get myself lost in the woods until eventually I would find my way back to the road or end up at the lake. Either way, I could always find my way back to the cabin! :)  It was fun to ride w/ Cassity, the boys, and even the little girls. :)

We strapped the girls in and took them for a ride.  Cam's helmet would bounce all around and end up covering her eyes.  Haha. :)

I found this old school "cruiser" bike for Cassity and she really liked it!  Then... I tried riding it and the bike chain broke in 2.5 seconds.  Sad day!  Oh well, it was fun for her while it lasted.

HORSEBACK RIDING 

I'm not a huge horse person.  I love the way they smell and look, but I'm totally okay not sitting on them or riding them.  However, this is what the family decided on so I went along with it and I actually loved it!  An hour long scenic ride through the woods and along the lake.  It was beautiful and our guides were excellent.

Hahaha... Cass got stuck on a tiny horse.  Allison asked if it was a pony.  Nope!  :)

My mom and Heather stayed back with the kiddos...

David's horse was HUGE.  And she tooted a lot during the ride.

Yep, it's a real moose!  Just chillin' in the lake, and then it ran out into the woods, right in front of us!

My horse's name was Simon.  A sweet little guy that tried to eat all the grass in sight.

I really love how Allison and Nathan always match.  It's so fun.  :)

RIVER RAFTING  (Floating)

So last year we went rafting and it was fun and adventurous and even kind of intense in some places.  This year "rafting" was more like a river float... and there were a lot of bugs and it was kind of cold and cloudy.  So not the ideal rafting experience, but still a lot of fun to be together!

You can tell by the look on our faces.  Bugs everywhere... time to be done!

4-Wheeling Adventures 

Jake's family has two 4-wheelers that they let us use when we're up there.  I learned how to do the clutch and what not last year so I was anxious to ride again.  Jake took Cassity and I on a ride that lasted at least an hour.  We went all over the place and we're pretty sure Jake was lost a good amount of the time. :)  But it was awesome riding through huge water/mud puddles, going up steep rocky hills (scary) and bumping up and down along all the little paths and trails we found.  Cass drove it for a little while but preferred just being a passenger more than the driver.  Fine with me! :)

Nathan's face was super dirty.  The consequence of being the second 4-wheeler following the other. haha.

These jumpsuits were great!  You could ride through dirt, mud, and water and your clothes were still clean underneath by the end of the ride.  Also, we look ridiculous. :)

Getting our game faces on.

 It was harder to take these pictures than you might think.  But I love how they turned out!

Swimming

Okay for real-- one of my fears is deep, dark water.  So why would I ever want to swim in a lake?  Good question.  But for some reason I just do it anyway and try not to think about it!  I love the carefree feeling of running into a lake and splashing and swimming around.  Even though the water is generally not clean, it feels refreshing and I can relax and play like a kid again.  Last year I discovered a cool swimming spot and returned there with Nathan, Cassity, and Bryan.  I found a new swimming spot on one of my bike rides and took them there as well.  I love how these areas were secluded from anyone else and we really were surrounded by the beauty of nature!

 Here I was splashing around and JUST about to dive in, when along floats a little dead fish.  GROSS!

 Aren't we such a beautiful brother/sister duo.  :)

 Nathan set up rocks on various branches and we were using the super soaker for target practice. Fun!

 Yeah.  Cass has bigger muscles than I do.

 I called this my funny tennis outfit.  I kept my shoes on because it was rocky on the bottom of the lake and I didn't want to go barefoot.  Also, I would run around the trail loop for a minute and then jump in the water after and swim.  It was like my own mini-triathlon event over and over again... minus the biking. :)

Gorgeous!  I was proud of my swimming spot.

Campfires 

I'm a huge lover of food cooked over the fire.  Give me a hotdog and I'm totally content-- I don't need anything fancy.  But those tinfoil dinners were delicious... even though mine didn't cook all the way through at first and I was super hungry and frustrated.  But it turned out great in the end!  I also love being all together as a family and singing with the guitar.  My dad always requests the most cheesy songs that I've written, and even though we moan and groan, it's fun to sing them anyway.  I always end my "campfires" with "Come Thou Fount".  It's peaceful and beautiful and perfect.  Also, there were bats flying overhead.  That was creepy. :)

 Have you ever seen a more organized process of cooking tinfoil dinners?  Such engineering men.  

 Dad's thinking or trying to keep the smoke out of his face.  Probably both.

 Haha.  Look at my hot dogs verses Brittney's.  I like mine dark!

 I was trying to be creative and show everyone how to make caramel apple treats that cook in the fire.  It wasn't totally successful, but some of us got to enjoy the good ones. :)

 This is what the single person does at night. :)

 My dad is my biggest music fan!

 Singing our lovely harmonies...

 Cute picture of Mom & Dad with the grandkids.

Games in the Cabin 

We are all night owls-- for the most part-- and enjoyed staying up late and playing games.  "Hand & Foot" is a group favorite and we also played things like Scattergories, Settlers, Ticket to Ride, Qwirkle, and more. :)  Growing up, our family would go camping and always play Scrabble by lantern light at the picnic table.  I love that memory and really love playing games with the family, competitive edge and all. :)

More pics and vacation documentation to follow...  

look forward to Parts 2 & 3!