We drove up to Rexburg on Tuesday, the day of Jake's graduation. McKay got to stay at our house and come with us, so that made the trip more fun for the kids. We made it with a little time to spare, so we headed to Hannah and Jake's apartment. They had been living in Idaho for the last 3 months for Hannah's job, but were unable to get a sub-leaser for their apartment, so they had to pay rent all the way through their contract. It was an awful situation for them, but it sure came in handy when we all needed a place to stay. The apartment was completely empty, so we brought food, sleeping bags and pillows, and even toilet paper so that we could stay for a few days.
Commencement was that night at 5pm. I knew the kids wouldn't appreciate it (or behave well), so Jonathon volunteered to stay behind and play games with them while my parents, Hannah and Jake, Tom and Eryn, and I went to it. I haven't had a lot of chances to see BYU-I, so it was fun to attend the I-Center with them. Graduation was a lot more formal and reverent than the ones I have been to at BYU. Everyone was asked to come in church dress, and the tone was just a bit different. I think it was just another example of the slight differences between the two schools. The speakers were wonderful, and it was fun to get to see Jake walk down the aisle with his graduating class.
Directly following the commencement was Jake's convocation. He graduated in English from the department of Arts and Letters. It was a fairly small group of graduates, so the ceremony was held in one of the rooms that was used as a chapel on campus. The kids were a bit wiggly (especially Hyrum), but luckily, the entire thing lasted less than an hour. Afterward, we ate pizza at Jake's sister's house, and then headed back to the apartment.
The next morning, we got up early and headed for Yellowstone. We decided to take two cars so that we wouldn't be too crammed in all day. It ended up being a good thing so that the adults could take turns having a few minutes away from the crazy kids:) It was only about a 45 minute drive from Rexburg, but getting into the park was slow-going. There was a pretty big line of cars, driving very slowly. I guess it was to be expected since it was prime season for National Parks visits. The entrance fee was $35 per car, but we lucked out and had a free National Parks pass because Andrew was a 4th grader. After about an hour, we finally got through the gate and to our first stop, Grand Prismatic Spring.
Of all the amazing things we saw on our trip, Grand Prismatic Spring was my absolute favorite. It was breathtakingly beautiful! I could hardly believe the colors were real and took picture after picture. It was basically a hot water spring that always has watering boiling up. The different minerals in the soil and water created crazy colorful effects. There was also steam that came up from the springs making it even more picturesque. Since the water was hot and the land was unstable, you had to walk on a wooden path. We took our time along the walkway and absorbed the grandeur.
After Grand Prismatic Spring, we decided to head to Old Faithful to eat lunch and watch it erupt. We packed our lunch in and found an empty bench were we could eat. Then we headed over to get a good spot in front of the geyser. We only had to wait for a few minutes before it erupted. It wasn't as huge as I remembered it as a kid, but I was surprised by how long it lasted. Old Faithful is something every kids should see at least once in their life. Then we hit the gift shop and headed out.
Our next stop was West Thumb at Yellowstone Lake. Half the car was asleep, so the few of us that were awake got out and walked around. We saw a bunch more colorful hot springs, some little mud pots, and the lake.
Next we drove through Hayden Valley, which is where most of the wildlife are seen. By this point, the kids had woken up from their naps, so everyone was on animal watch. It was pretty slow at first, but then we passed a buffalo that was right on the side of the road, about 10 feet from our car. It was enormous, and everyone got a good look. A little while later we passed a bunch of elk sitting out in a meadow. Everyone was driving really slowly, so we had plenty of time to take pictures and admire them.
The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone was next. It was an enormous canyon with an amazing waterfall. When we first arrived, a man ran by us and said, "Did you just see the bear? It ran by right in front of you guys." We had arrived just a minute or two too late and didn't get to see it. We were pretty bummed, but we went to look at the waterfall.
As we were getting done, another person came by and told us the bear was in an open meadow just a little bit down the path. We all hurried down the path and were able to see a black bear grazing. We didn't get too close, but we could see it really well through the trees. The boys thought that was the coolest part of the entire trip! We watched for several minutes and then headed back to the car.
We made one more stop at the Norris geyser, but it was a little lackluster compared to what we had already seen, so it was a quick stop. From there, it was time to start heading back. When we first planned the trip, I was worried that we wouldn't be able to see everything that we wanted in just one day, but we all left feeling completely satisfied with our trip. It was a great day that had exceeded all of our expectations. When we got back to Rexburg, we grabbed some dinner at the T-Rexburger hamburger stop, which Christian declared the best burger he had ever eaten.
Then we went back to the apartment and went to bed. We were all exhausted, but happy. We drove home the next morning. It was a fast trip, but it was really wonderful. I'm so glad we got to experience Yellowstone together as a family.
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