Yellowstone

We decided to go to Yellowstone National Park while we were already up in Idaho Falls (because it's only about 2 hours away from there) and Tyler had the Monday  following the July 4th weekend off of work. I had been to Yellowstone with my family- but honestly- all I knew of the park was Old Faithful- and Tyler promised me that it was possible to see actual wildlife while there!

We had wanted to plan a hiking/camping trip- but didn't know how Jordy would do- so Yellowstone seemed like a good "starter" (getting to drive around a bunch and get out for short walks when we wanted) So we drove up there on Saturday afternoon and were going to see as much as we could before finding someplace to set up a tent. However, we went on one of the busiest weekends and all the campgrounds near the park were full. Our brother-in-law's parents have a cabin about 25 min. from West Yellowstone and had said we could put our tent up there, however, it was already late and we knew we wanted to be back in the park early the next morning to do a hike- SO...we ended up just sleeping in our car. Yup. Not the most comfortable for Tyler and I (I was holding Jordy in the backseat- he was by far the most comfortable!) But- we were willing to do it for one night and were back in the park by 6 am. We then drove back to Idaho Falls later that afternoon-- so it was once again a LOT to do and see in just over 24 hours...but I think it was worth it!
Jordy was such a trooper with all the getting in and out of the car throughout the park. We were actually able to see a lot of the park- we'll just have to go back soon when Jordy will appreciate all we saw! :)

We took TONS of pictures --I'm not going to try uploading all of them, but I warn you- there will be a LOT. I don't really know the best way to organize them- so this is YELLOWSTONE! :)

This was the first thing I saw when we got into West Yellowstone...a Packers Bar! :)
So THAT'S what people come to Yellowstone for! 

Firehole Falls

In Lower Geyser Basin

Tyler and the mini stroller :)

In front of Old Faithful before it went off

"There she blows!"

Jordy letting out some steam in front of Old Faithful after it blew! :) 

In front of Keppler Cascades

Grand Prismatic Spring

Just chillin with the bison!

Gibbon Falls

Artists Paintpots

Pretty sunset in the land of Christmas trees! :) We didn't want to stay too much later because we were all alone and didn't want any bears to eat us! 

Happy Camper in front of the Lower Falls of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone

Yellowstone River in the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone...truly a breathtaking sight- especially first thing in the morning! AMAZING! 

Upper Falls

Jordy going up another mountain! This time to Mt. Washburn :) We started early in the day to avoid the major heat- but we still weren't expecting to see snow! We actually had to walk through quite a bit of snow. It was a 3 mile hike to the top. The sign said to plan on 4-5 hours...but we had too much to see after- so we were booking it to the top! (We made it up in 1.5 hours!) Jordy took a nice little nap on the way up!

We made it!  

It was an amazing view of the park from the firetower that we hiked to!  

Beautiful!

Tower Falls

Undine Falls

Last stop: Mammoth Hot Springs. We were all pretty tired and hot at this point!

Tyler had promised I would see wildlife while in Yellowstone...and we were actually pretty lucky- we definitely saw some! 

We had seen bison in several places as we were driving through the park but early in the morning when we were near the viewpoints for the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone- we saw this guy across the parking lot just getting a back rub! 

On our hike to Mt. Washburn

We had to walk through a herd of these big horn sheep to get to the fire tower on top of Mt. Washburn!

Elk outside the Mammoth Hot Springs Village area.

This was taken from the car- so it's not very good- but that is in fact a black bear cub rolling around in the grass! 

Coyote crossing the street! 

We were able to sleep in a little on Monday morning and then we headed back to Provo.

Poor Jordy needed a little break as we were getting back into Utah- then he decided he'd get us the rest of the way home! :)

We stopped in Salt Lake to see Carly and Brad in their new apartment and meet their little puppy! 

It was a fun weekend to end a VERY fun week! We were grateful Tyler had saved up his days off and that we were able to be with family and get a little hiking in as well! We were also very grateful to make it back safely and to be home again! :)

6 months

I feel silly posting this so late...now that Jordy is a week away from being 7 months...oops! :)

I guess I'll keep it short then- otherwise the list will be almost identical- but from what I can remember...

At 6 months old:

-Jordy is one HAPPY boy (usually! If he's been fed and had a few naps. And doesn't have pink-eye :( Poor guy...he got it twice in less than a month)
- Weighed 17.5 lbs (47th percentile) and was 27 1/4 inches long (70th percentile) and has a head circumference in the 90th percentile! :)
- He is getting the hang of eating single-grain cereals (rice and oatmeal) (developing patience for being spoon-fed rather than having everything come immediately with a bottle)
- CAN SIT UP ALL BY HIMSELF! (prefers sitting over laying down usually)
- Can roll back and forth between his stomach and back- but sometimes he still gets pretty frustrated when he's on his tummy (he ends up just rotating around...not really doing any crawling motions yet. In fact- if anything, he ends up going more backwards than forward!)
- Likes standing up on our laps (but only likes the jumper-roo for a limited time)
- Can put his whole pacifier in his mouth and often prefers it that way than sucking on it! (he's also started eating his toes)
- Is the biggest flirt! He is always smiling at people *He just started acting a little "shy" though...he'll smile at someone new and then burrow his face into us- which is just funny because he's been around new people ever since he's been really little...but it kind of makes us feel good that he acts like he likes us occasionally :)
- Still just does little laughs every once in awhile. He's more smiles than anything right now!
- LOVES playing in the water! (Bath time and when I'm doing anything around the sink)
- He likes holding his bottle himself while he's eating (just don't ever try taking it away from him or moving it/him while he's eating. YIKES! He definitely lets us know when he's ready to eat!)
- Likes biting on his bottom lip and also spitting...a lot! :(
- Still is pretty bald and no teeth...just lots and lots and lots of drool!
- LOVES ripping paper. He'll be sitting by me while I'm trying to "work" or do anything with a book and he literally lunges for it...even when he's surrounded by his toys!
- Sneezes every time he is in the sun (he's actually done this since he was a little baby but I just remembered to add it to the list)
- Sleeps through the whole night! (usually about 9 hours)
- Likes listening to Primary songs (they were a life-saver on our long car trip to Idaho!)
- Makes us so so happy he's part of our family! :)

The best part about being a mom:

Loving every present moment with Jordy but also looking forward to what he will become and what he'll be able to accomplish in the near future. Being at the family reunion with other kids ranging from 13 years old to 13 months old all in one place was a neat way to see the different stages Jordy will soon be going through. It's already amazing to look back and see how much he's grown and what he's learned in just 6 months. I don't want him to grow up too fast- but at the same time, I am so excited to see what he'll be like as a little toddler or a little boy going to his first day of school or how he'll look going into middle school. I want so much for him-- for him to be able to be happy and laugh every day, to play hard and meet new friends while learning from his mistakes and experiences. There are so many unknowns in the future-- but I'm trying to remember this: "The future is as bright as your faith!"