JENNY LAKE

We had the best time in Wyoming. One of our favorite days was going to Jenny Lake in the Grand Teton National Park.

We took a ferry to the other side of the lake so we could hike to a waterfall and then to an overlook.

It was a beautiful day and a fun hike.  When we go back, we will definitely plan to spend a whole day there. We would have loved to stay longer and rent canoes and kayaks.

BANDON BEACH

We love this beach!  All the drift wood, huge rocks to climb, beautiful rocks to collect - it's an easy beach to spend hours and hours playing.  And of course, the view Bandon offers is spectacular.

Cousin photo

SAFARI TIME

We took the boys to the Wildlife Safari in Winston and they loved every moment of it.  It's gorgeous and we saw so many animals!  After you drive the 4.5 mile safari village, which you can go through twice, there is a cute petting zoo and a few extras you can do with some animals.

Seeing the bears was one of our favorite parts.  It made us super excited for Wyoming.

The cheetahs have to be sectioned off for successful mating.  The sign said they get stressed out.  I loved the Lover's Lane sign.

The Elephant Car Wash wasn't open until later in the afternoon, so we missed it.  Next time, we'll make sure we plan for that.

Landon, Lach and Laird wanted to ride the camel.  I told them I want MY first camel ride to be in Egypt.  It could happen....

They have a cute train ride for the kids.  You wouldn't drive out here just for the train ride, but it's only $2 and the wee ones thought it was wonderful.

A super fun part is the bird cage.  It's free to enter but if you want a seed stick, it's only $1.  Lots of really colorful, playful birds.  They sit on your head, try to get into your purse and pockets - one tried getting into Larry J's shirt sleeve.  I was worried we might get pooped on but we stayed poop free - whew!

When you go, take extra money for the little excursions they offer.  Most are very reasonably priced so that a family can take advantage of the experience.  Garaffe feeding, baby cheetah playing, tug of war with a lion - really cool things!

Some of the more expensive ones would be an amazing birthday present.  Lion feeding, a half day with a ranger, etc...

We loved our day at the safari.  It received a man clan two thumbs up!

{ ANCESTRY.COM GIVEAWAY }

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This giveaway is to help you discover your family history and start a family tree.

The winner will receive an ancestry.com genealogy kit, which includes a 6 month U.S. Deluxe Membership and a copy of Family Tree Maker 2012 for either a PC or Mac.

Leave a comment on this post, telling us a favorite memory you have of an ancestor or a family history discovery.  (One comment per person.)

The winner will be drawn at random.  I'll announce the lucky winner Monday.  Good luck!

UPDATE - Congratulations to Sherri!

QUINOA SALAD

This is a yummy, no fail salad.  You can use any vegetables you have on hand and it will be turn out fantastic.

1 cup cooked quinoa*
2/3 cup edamame
1/4 cup cucumber
1/4 cup carrots
I like to add tomatoes, corn and broccoli too.

Dressing:
2 tsp rice vinegar
2 tsp sesame oil
1/4 tsp fresh ginger
1/4 tsp fresh garlic
Salt and pepper to taste

*If you have never cooked quinoa before, it's super easy!  1 cup dry makes 3 cups to eat.  I use a 1:1 ratio.

Rinse 1 cup quinoa under water until you don't see "suds".  If you don't rinse, your quinoa will taste bitter.
Put in a pot with 1 cup vegetable broth, bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 30 minutes.  Fluff with a fork and it's ready.

If I'm eating it as a breakfast cereal or adding it to a sweeter dish, I cook it with water.

PS - I got this salad recipe from Jenny at The Cozy Project.  Take a looksee at her Etsy shop.  Her cozies are environmentally friendly, made for hot and cold drinks and adorable!

MY MOTHER-IN-LAW HAS A FUN LITTLE TREASURE

of her father's. Two kitchen knifes.

These knifes are about 80 years old and they are still in use in the kitchen.

Her father was a handyman.  When one of the rivets came out of the knife, he replaced it with a copper rivet.  That's my favorite part of the knife.

Robert McConnell was also an inventor and didn't even know it.  One awesome memory my mother-in-law has, is that they had an automatic garage door opener before they were invented.

I love hearing stories about him. I can see that Larry inherited some of his characteristics.

If Larry and I lived in his time, I could completely imagine me making a comment about getting wet and cold when I had to open the garage.  Larry would get an idea and whip something up in no time to surprise me.  Viola!  An opener for the garage.  Just push the button.  Problem solved, easy peasy.

Larry has an amazing brain.  It's fun to see where he gets some of his tinkering ideas from.

SKYDIVING WAS OUR PRESENT TO EACH OTHER FOR OUR ANNIVERSARY

and today was the day of our jump.  We had a blast!

We went to Skydive Oregon and they are incredible.

From start to finish, it was a friendly, enjoyable, fun, professional atmosphere.

We had a perfect blue sky - it was a great jumping day!

When we were up in the plane, we had incredible views of Mount Hood, Jefferson, Adams and Mount St. Helens. We jumped at 13,000 feet!

Our jumping instructors were awesome! 

Larry had Rich and I jumped with Josiah.

Larry and I had our first jump 17 years ago.  I was pregnant with Larry J but didn't know it.  We splurged on our first jump and got photos and a video, so we didn't do it this time.

If you are going for your first jump, pay the extra for the photos.  You'll be SO glad you did.

Here is Larry and I on our first jump, at Skydive Oregon, in February 1995.

We had the best afternoon celebrating 19 years of marriage.

AS THE OCEAN IS NEVER FULL OF WATER, SO IS THE HEART NEVER FULL OF LOVE

My man clan make my heart ooze with warm fuzzies.  I'm a little biased, but they're the best!