End of Summer Trip to LaGrande!

Kind of last minute we decided to head to Oregon at the end of July to visit my parents and take a vacation. Robby took the last few days of painting off so he could have a little more time and some days to relax after we got back from Oregon.  We headed up on Tuesday morning and went to the Dinosaur Museum at Thanksgiving point that afternoon when we got up there.  It was perfect for our dinosaur loving little boy and Clara was loving it too! Everywhere he looked there was a new and exciting dinosaur skeleton to see.  It was pretty amazing to see how big they actually were compared to us!  

Checking out an armored dinosaur.  We can't remember the name of what this one was. 

One of the big plant eating long necks.  We think it was brachiosaurus.  They had two really big ones in this room.
You can see the other one behind this one. 

Checking out the triceratops. 

Calin's favorite was the Tylosaurus 

Getting a little up close and personal with the Tylosaurus 

At the end of the museum they had sang areas where the kids could "dig" for fossils.  Both Clara and Calin loved this part! 

 After the museum Erich and Allie were kind enough to drive up to a park that was close to the museum so we could see them for a little bit.  We played at the park with them for a while.  The kids were happy to run and play at a new park and with Erich and Allie.

After the park we drove through too much traffic to meet up with Aunt Becca.  She had picked up dinner for us and we ate at her house and hung out there.  The kids also went out to play at the playground at her apartment complex.  Calin was quite excited about this and still talks about playing at Becca's playground.  After hanging out with Becca for a little while we headed over to my Uncle and Aunt Scott and Laurie's house to stay there for the night.  They were so nice to let us stay there for the night.  We got up early the next morning and continued on our trek to Oregon. 

Thankfully both kids took a nap during a chunk of our drive to help the time pass more quickly.  They were excellent travelers.  We stopped for lunch in Meridian but otherwise kept driving all day.  

We got there Wednesday afternoon just in time for the fair parade that evening.  We went down to watch Grandpa walk in the parade with EOU.  The kids were excited to see him and get some candy while they watched the parade.  

 We did all kinds of fun things with Grandma and Grandpa while we were in LaGrande.  Here is a picture sampling of some of the things we did on our trip.

We went to story time at the library where Clara decided to stack all the mats after story time was over. 

Collecting/Shopping for their books with this cart is way too much fun! 

Spinning at the park.   

Bouncing cuties! 

Friday afternoon/evening we went to the county fair.  It was HOT which was sad since we'd wanted to escape the heat  coming to Oregon.  We watched the dog show that the kids really enjoyed.  They got to see the dogs up close and pet them after the show.  Clara loves those dogs! 

After the dog show we went to see all the animals that were on show.  The kids loved seeing the animals even though it was hot and stinky.  Calin especially loved this new llama friend he made.  I can't believe he got as close as he did and that the llama didn't bite his nose or spit at him or something.

Clara loved all the animals and would try to reach out and touch them until they got close and then she'd pull away really fast and giggle like she's doing in this picture.  After the animals we tried to get Calin to ride a fair ride but he was not interested at all.  That was probably better anyway since it was hot and time to head home for dinner. 

Clara and Calin both loved running and playing in circles going around the living room to the kitchen and back again.  So many fun games to play running around and around.  They loved having grandma and grandpa to play and read to them! 

Saturday we loaded all of us in my parents car and drove out to Catherine Creek for a picnic, playing in the creek, ladder ball, and enjoying the little bit of cooler weather up there. 

Enjoying stories with Grandpa! 

Worn out he crashed on Robby after one of our outings with no nap.  

They had fun one afternoon playing in the hose outside.  Calin looks mad in this pic but it was mid excited scream.
I just like Clara in this picture. 

Nothing like a warm summer evening playing in the hose! 

And drinking from it!! 

This Fort Bravo was my bothers toy when they were growing up.  Calin had a lot of fun putting it together and playing with all the guys while we were there.  He also loved the BIG dinosaurs Grandma and Grandpa have at their house! 

We played Old Maid and this was probably only the 1st or 2nd time playing and he had already figured out how to stick the Old Maid card up above the rest so that we would pick that one.  Sneaky smart guy!  

Riding the tire horse at D&B! 

Grandma took us to D&B to get the kids some cowboy boots.  We were all pretty excited! 

Kate drove through LaGrande on her way back to Western Oregon from Boise.  So glad she was able to stop so I could meet her cute kids and see her for a short time. 

Clara enjoying some corn on the cob...

...and an ice cream cone! 

Sadly our trip had to come to an end and we had to head back on Tuesday.  So glad for all the fun things we got to do though and so that we could stay a week and enjoy time with my parents! 

We made great time on the way back with only one stop in Burley for gas and bathroom.  

Since we made such good time and had no plans for Tuesday evening we decided to take the kids to the zoo.  It was lots of fun and we were glad we got to stop and go.  They loved seeing all the animals.  

And a bonus was that they were doing a special  dinosaur exhibit and had dinosaurs all over the park to see as well as the animals.  Calin was quite nervous as they were big and looked fairly real with sound effects and movement.  Once we got past the first meat eater though he warmed up to all the plant eaters we were seeing. 

Checking out the lazy sleepy lions. 

Elephants! 

So excited to sit up on the dinosaur. 

This picture is nice since Calin is posing, smiling and looking at the camera.  He rarely does that. 

Up close with the bears! 

Enjoying another cook dinosaur.  I believe this one was an ankylosaurus. 

Calin was TERRIFIED of the T-rex.  You can't tell in this picture but he is clinging and clawing Robby trying to get Robby to take him away form the T-rex.  We couldn't convince him that it was ok to get close to it.  

Zebras! 

Clara loved this bird dinosaur thing and kept running back over to it.  

Look up! 

Cooling off in the fountains.  We were at the zoo around closing time and it was not crowded at all.  It was so nice! 

Rhinos! 

These dinosaurs spit at you when you walked by.  Quite humorous.  

After the zoo we went and had dinner with Becca at her house again and let the kids play some more.  Then we headed to Scott and Lauries to sleep for the night again.  Clara fell asleep in the car but then was wide awake once we got to the house. She and I laid there for a while trying to get her to sleep.  :( 

In the morning we stopped at BYU to visit Erich and Allie on campus and so I could show Robby and the kids around my old stomping ground.  This was at Erich's work where he showed us the Robot's he's been working on.  

Runnign thgout a tunnel at the Maiser Building.  They could have done this all day! 

Love the Y! It was fun to be back and visit! 

Allie found Clara a pretty flower on our way over to the Art Museum to check out Allie's work and walk through the exhibits.  It was a great end to our vacation before we headed back home!