Today was an interesting study in what it’s like to live without internet. Our service was interrupted by a construction mistake. It is shocking how much I rely on internet for so many things. Emmy’s monitor didn’t work, I had to put an old iPhone in her room for her nap since we normally use an Echo Dot. We had no access to television as we don’t have cable and of course both Cory and I couldn’t work. I did feel very grateful to have my cell service to check what I needed to.

We started our day with a trip down to Denver to help my parents return the RV they rented. I am so so happy we have our mini-van now so we can fit everyone in!

I wanted something really easy for lunch so I threw this evol meal in the microwave and made the kiddos Annie’s mac n cheese.

Cannon relaxed with his tablet while Emmy napped, he is looking (and sometimes acting) more and more like a teenager.

When we got our Halloween decorations out Emmy fell in love with a dog skeleton that we have had for years. I would think it would be scary to her but she loves it. She tells it how cute it is, carries it around, pets it and named it Puppy.

Today she was feeding it her sparkly slipper….kids are funny.

Later Cannon and I shared an apple, Honey Crisp apples are the best right now.

Do you cut up your apple or just leave it whole? I got in the habit of always cutting up my apples when I wore braces for four and a half years and it has just stuck with me. Cory never cuts his up.

When Emmy got up we met some friends at a park for an after school play date. I am relishing any time I get to see my friends and their kids.

I had to cancel my Statistics class for the evening since there was no internet, I feel bad having to cancel on my students. We did get to enjoy more family time. Cesar salad kit and rotisserie chicken thanks to Costco for dinner.

We then got Emmy’s Halloween costume in the mail, she was very happy to try it on.

She even had to FaceTime Grandma to show it off.

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How often does your internet go out?

Ours has been out a few times this year, it was too bad today because lots of people were trying to work from home and students were supposed to be distance learning, they ended up having the equivalent of a “snow day”

Today was full back to reality and I was so grateful that Cannon didn’t have school this Monday. I got up before the kiddos to run on the treadmill. I don’t know if it’s age or the addition of two kids but it has been taking me a FULL hour between getting up and starting to run. Feels like such a waste of time but also it feels like cement in my veins for so long in the morning.

When I finally got to the treadmill I started watching Ratched on Netflix.

A creepy show seems fitting for the season. I have never watched or read One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest but maybe I will need to now.

After running we took our morning fairly slowly, just trying to get back to our normal routine, the kids are just so happy to be home with all of their toys, they have been super easy the last couple days. I bet that won’t last much longer. We got ourselves out to Costco and the grocery store to refill our shelves.

I am super into Emmy’s new sweat suit. Also I am going to miss Cannon so much when he starts school four days a week. I have really gotten used to all this extra time with him. I can’t even think about Emmy starting pre-school next year.

I ran myself out of creamer so it was a Starbucks day (there are two children with cake pops behind me). Also it’s been almost nine months since I have had my hair cut, this may need to happen ASAP, I don’t know how much longer I can take it.

When we got home we made homemade “lunchables” for the kids

I was really craving eggs for some reason so I had a breakfast burrito for lunch.

The rest of the day was naps, cuddles and hanging out (no complaints!) but I do really need to get myself to bed earlier so I am not so tired in the afternoon.

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Watched anything great recently?

Do you match your shows to the season? I tend to, I don’t like spooky things past Halloween, only cheesy happy holiday movies.

We spent the day trying to recover from our trip. Do you ever get home from vacation and need an assistant? We were glad we had an extra day to settle back in and try to get back to normal. The only thing we had on the schedule was Cannon’s soccer game.

I got a couple shake out miles in and then spent the rest of the day unpacking, doing dishes, and climbing mount laundry. I did nine loads of laundry….I am almost done.

In the afternoon we got out our Halloween decorations. Is it acceptable even though it’s not October yet? I hope so the kids are LOVING it.

It was raining and cool in the evening so it seemed perfect to watch a Halloween movie and make pumpkin soup. We added apple slices and chicken sausage.

I am definitely loving the weather cooling and it feeling like fall. I am excited for fall but a little unsure what the holidays will look like this year. Will there be trick or treating? What will that look like? We had to make an appointment to go to our favorite pumpkin patch this year and weekends are already mostly sold out!

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Is it feeling like fall where you live?

On our last day in Yellowstone we had to pack up the travel trailer, it is harder than it should be packing up while also trying to keep two little kids entertained. It was cold and rainy so we had to keep them inside with us. Luckily the rain cleared up when we were headed out. We decided to take a slightly longer route home and visit Yellowstone one last time. We visited West Thumb, an area that we hadn’t been to yet.

It was a gorgeous area with steaming hot springs right next to cold Yellowstone Lake. The kids loved being out of the car and enjoyed a hike.

We drove south through the Grand Tetons and colors were even better than they were earlier in the week!

We were going to take the boat across Jenny Lake, hike and spend one more night in Jackson Hole but the boat was going to stop running right about when we arrived. We decided then to just push home and enjoy a day to clean and tackle piles of laundry.

Our logic was that it would be easier on the kids because they would fall asleep for the night and would miss the last hours of driving. We arrived safe at home around two am ready to crash into our beds.

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Traveling is amazing, but is there anything better than coming home?

For our third day in Yellowstone we all piled into the van and visited together. We had four dogs with us so we couldn’t make too long of hikes. We took turns staying back with the dogs while others saw the sites.

My favorite of the day was seeing Old Faithful erupt. It started right as we arrived, we didn’t think we would see it at all so felt very lucky. All my photos are on my DSLR camera so I can’t load pictures until we get home.

We did enjoy some short hikes, visiting water falls and the paint pots. The kids loved being with their family.

Now it’s time to pack up and head home! Back to reality of school and soccer and lots of laundry.

For our second day in Yellowstone we decided to start before sunrise to get the most out of our day.

We got to see beautiful geysers and waterfalls in the morning chill.

Our next stop was the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. The views were breathtaking!

After the canyons we headed north to the Mamouth Hot Springs. The travertine terraces were incredible.

We drove a most of the Loop but the east side was closed so we had to circle back. We saw so many Elk, Bison and Eagles, it was awesome.

There is not enough time or wifi bandwidth here to describe how amazing Yellowstone is. It almost seems unfair that so much beauty exists in one place.

We enjoyed seeing geysers and hot springs

Cannon’s favorite was the boiling mud.

And Emmy loves all the waterfalls.

We also saw Elk, Bison and Bald Eagles.

We were in the park so long and there was still so much to see! We were even slowed down for a bear sighting!

For our fourth day we traveled from the Grand Tetons to West Yellowstone. I would have thought it would have been a boring but Needed day. Turns out it was amazing.

We saw three moose on our drive, a bull, a cow and their baby. We pulled over and enjoyed the view. We felt very lucky!

We then got settled in our new campground and played at the playground. We then found a beautiful restaurant right in the river to enjoy dinner.

After dinner we took a walk along the river, such a nice way to end the evening.

We loved visiting Grand Tetons National Park, the beauty there completely blew my expectations out of the water.

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We drove up from Jackson into the park and enjoyed the close views of the Tetons.

We didn’t get to do much hiking because we had our dogs with us, dogs are not allowed outside of the parking areas of most national parks. We are already planning another trip us here when we can leave Humphry with family.

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We did the full 42 mile loop and stopped lots to see the sites.

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We downloaded the app GyPSy which has an audio tour. You don’t need cell service to use it. I wasn’t sure about it but it made the trip SO much more enjoyable. We got to learn about the history of the region, geology and much more. It’s as like having a guided bus tour in the comfort of our own car. Completely recommend it if you visit any National Parks!

we started our day with a trip down to the snake river. We had lunch and enjoyed a hike. It was so gorgeous with the leaves turning colors.

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Later we went into downtown Jackson and found a sweet little ice cream shop.

back at our RVs we celebrated my brother’s birthday.

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We were all exhausted and ready for bed, so glad we are getting to share this trip together.