Reunions

So I mentioned that we went to a couple of family reunions last week.

The first was my family's annual gathering at a little Forest Service cabin in the Island Park area. It is situated at the old fish hatchery on the Warm River where the Warm Springs come gushing out of the mountain. It's near Mesa Falls.

My parents have rented this little place every year for the last dozen years or so and shared it with my siblings and I and our families. It really is a spectacular place. It's so gorgeous up there. The fishing is amazing. The hiking is great. This year my dad brought his 4-wheeler along and I took it out and followed the nearby ATV trail on a 30-mile round trip through some of the most amazing country in the world. The trail follows the old railroad that went to Yellowstone. We always have a great time. ElKiddo caught his 1st fish on the bridge near the cabin this year. Ok, so Daddy mostly caught it, but that's how 2-year-olds catch their first fish, right? ElBoyo caught his first fish a couple of years ago in the creek that runs past the cabin. That's when being a dad is really great.

We left that reunion a bit early to avoid cleanup. Just kidding, we left early to go to ElGirlo's extended family reunion. This is her Mom's siblings and family. It was held at a big church camp in Garden Valley, ID near Boise. It is a beautiful place. Pam's aunt and a cousin put it together this year and did a great job. We went whitewater rafting down the Payette River. It was a run that Pam and I have done many times back when we lived over that way. It was guided by an old friend of ours. So it was fun to do that. The boys had a blast playing with cousins. They made fast friends, and were so so sad to say goodbye. I, of course, already blogged about the trip home, which was wonderful in spite of my gripes.

The way over was also a great time. We stopped in Twin Falls and saw Shoshone Falls. Very beautiful. There, we changed into our Sunday Best and drove to the new temple for the open house. What a priviledge it was to go through the House of the Lord with my wife and children. We were able to go the the Rexburg Temple open house with the boys back in January. We feel so blessed. I remember my folks taking me to the Boise Temple open house back when I was a boy. The Twin Falls Temple had a mural painted in one of the rooms that depicted Shoshone Falls. The boys thought that was pretty amazing after seeing the real thing.

Anyway, we had a great time. It was so nice to get away for a while.