Last day of our trip and probably my favorite. After a stop for our morning coffee we headed to the Canyon Village Visitor center... wanted to catch a new show that was playing there, "Yellowstone land to life" again another awesome movie. Afterwards the kids were antsy to get their Jr Ranger booklet turned in... so that they could earn another patch.

The schedule for today was to view the Canyon area, in the park it's called, "The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone."

And later in the day we hoped to squeeze in Norris Geyser Basin. The last time we visited the park we ran out of time to explore the Canyon Area... I think this is one of my favorite areas of the park. The views leave you breathless... take a look...

The colors... the size... everything was amazing... it felt so "unreal" like we had walked out onto a painting.

Next we headed to the Upper Falls area... loud oh my, the amount of water rushing by... is hard to imagine. As we were taking it all in we noticed an Osprey that was perched on a tree... it took a dive right into the water for a fish... he came up empty handed and circled around again... cool... really cool.

It's hard to see how fast the water it's moving here... I leaned over and got this picture of the water heading over the lower falls.

The next trail was the Lower Falls... it was a trail that dropped 600ft as you went down it... easy going down... breathing hard coming up.

We made it to the bottom...

And looked over the edge... surprised to find snow..

Again the amount of water rushing by... is crazy. I think the numbers were 38,000 gallons of water per second!! Couple more pictures of the area...

Really freaky to think that the only thing protecting you from going over is a chain link fence... kids gripped onto us and we onto them.

Another favorite photo from the area... look at the size of this glacial boulder!!

Loved how the trees just grew around it..

We hit Norris Geyser Basin (a favorite) later in the day... we were tired from the "big hike" so it was nice to walk on the flat boardwalks.

It's not a very popular spot at the park... so it nice to have the quietness as you walk and look. Quiet might not be the best choice of words... for it is never really quiet with two kiddos barreling down the boardwalk... fighting over who gets to use the camera next... and the endless chatter, that's all good in the end but man can they talk sometimes. Few pictures of the area... can tell how tired/sweaty we are??

I handed the camera over to Stewart at Norris... love this picture he got of Ainsley and I chillin' out on the trail..

Late in the day we headed back to Old Faithful for one last "show." We were early so we caught the end of a Ranger program and waited... waited for the next eruption. We had over 30 minutes left to wait... like I said earlier 5 year olds don't wait too well... took silly pictures of Walker to make the time go by fast... these next few just crack me up... so him... so silly!

Finally Old Faithful's time arrived... it was so cool to listen to the kids excitement and squeals as it shot higher and higher in the air. It was the best way to end our Yellowstone trip.

We were up and out early... 8ish. We wanted to hit the whole east side of the lower loop of the park... including Old Faithful, West Thumb, Grant Village, Mud Volcano and Hayden Valley.  It was still relatively cool when we set out... making for an awesome morning sight.

First stop Old Faithful Area... we lucked out and arrived just before it's scheduled time to erupt... with cameras ready we waited... and waited.

Five year olds still don't do the whole waiting thing very well... even though they are stinkin' cute..

We figured we'd just catch the next eruption and continued on the boardwalk path around the area... it's like a 3 hour hike!

Once you get past the main attraction (Old Faithful) and there's a break in the number of people on the boardwalk, it's very peaceful, serene and eerie all at the same time..

Here's a variety of pictures of the area...

Love the name on this one... Ear Spring!

Great texture on this one...

Love the contrast of the colors to the landscaping...

Castle geyser... it put on a little show for us as we stopped to take a break and drink some water. Originally when I checked the weather it was going to be rainy and cool in the 60's. So NOT the case... it was in the 80's! I packed everyone with both kinds of clothes... shorts and pants. Me, since I'm always cold decided just pants would be my best bet... so at this point I'm dying of hotness... and we are trying to keep up a steady pace back to Old Faithful since it was scheduled to erupt again.

Well, we didn't walk fast enough back... we missed Old Faithful again!!!

We saw Beehive erupt from across the park... look how small and wet everyone is getting!

Took a little lunch break and then headed to Grant Village for a Ranger program ( the kiddos were working on their Jr Ranger badges again and part of the requirements is to attend a Ranger program) we all love them though and try to attend as many as possible... that and the visitor center movies are wonderful. So the first program of our trip was called "Wildlife Wonders." We sat on the back deck of the visitor center lodge over looking Yellowstone Lake... (truly amazing in itself) learning all about Bears, Buffalo and Elk and what to do when you come upon them out on a trail.

Then down to the lake to dip our toes in..(left camera in car)

Over to West Thumb and was able to snag another Ranger program that talked about the past and present of the West Thumb Geyser Basin.

Here's a view from West Thumb area... lake Yellowstone in the background..

The springs and pools all tend to look the same after awhile so I won't bore you with all of those but here's a couple from this area that I thought was interesting... a geyser under the lake...

And this one is just plain CREEPY... something you'd see in a horror movie...

Next Mud Volcano area... it's always been one of our favorite areas... the wildlife is always around you and the sound that comes from the Dragon's mouth is cool. Can you tell how excited little Bug is??

Here's the Dragon's Mouth... it growls... sprays out water and hisses... too cool!

We were busy walking along... heard some munching... looked up to see this..

Headed up the steep path and around the corner to where the game trail goes right under the boardwalk. And came across a couple of Buffalo right there eating! It's always fun to see... but a bit intimidating as well... they are so large... and it's easy to forget that they are WILD creatures. We snuck around and continued down the path.

Back in the car and through Hayden Valley... best place to spot wildlife... crazy to all of a sudden come to a stop for Buffalo are on the road..

Saw a HUGE heard of Elk 50+ (sorry for the crappy picture... it was getting dark)

Headed home late... 2 tired kiddos... 2 tired parents... 1 burnt scalp (yeah that was me... I also forgot a hat!)...a truly wonderful day in Yellowstone!

After we set up camp we immediately headed out... had planned to stop at the same location as we had 2 years previously but that whole area is under road construction and you cannot stop... anywhere along the Gibbon Falls. So with that in mind we headed down to Lower Geyser Basin. First pulling over to check out the Firehole Falls.

We walked down to check out the Falls closer and the kiddos put their hands in the water... still chilly! The sounds here are amazing... the Falls are so loud... you have to shout to have someone hear you... and the smell... nothing beats that outdoor pine tree smell!

We stopped at the Fountain Paint Pots... where Walker was the leader of the boardwalk... and always asking, "When is the geyser going to explode?"

Love the paint pots... found it interesting that they change consistency with the weather... this time they were really liquidy due to the wet season the last time we visited they were barely moving and very thick.

Red Spouter..

We did a lot of this here... so stinky and when the winds change all that steam... makes you gasp.

We ran into a few Buffalo along the way...

Next stop Mid Geyser Basin... hoped to get a good shot of the Grand Prismatic spring... it's always under a thick steam. As we walked along Walker says, "That sure looks like Bacon!" Ha...

Grand Prismatic Spring once again was hard to photograph... think I'll just buy a postcard next time...

Love how the Buffalo just walk right out out to the areas at any given time...

Other favorites in this area... Black Opal Spring... just so different from the others.

Turquoise Pool... this pictures doesn't do it justice... it is amazing!

I thought the Bacterial Mats were also pretty cool... each color is a different type/temperature of bacteria.

I decided that Ainsley was old enough to use my little camera... she was so excited to take "real" pictures. I couldn't wait to "see" what she found interesting. She and Walker took about 350 pictures.

She too found the Buffalo prints interesting...

Herself...

Her brother DID NOT find this fun...

Spent the last of the day walking along the Madison river (at the campground)

Following trails... and chasing ground squirrels.

We had a great time at Yellowstone... took 1070 pictures... my camera alone! Have yet to check out what the kids took pictures of. I'll be back later with more pictures and notes about our trip. Here's the last picture of the trip... fitting that's it's Old faithful...

Look how little they were the last time we visited Yellowstone!

Hard to believe it's been 2 years since we've been to Yellowstone... looking forward to capturing some great pictures and making more memories at one of our favorite parks.

I've been pitting cherries lately...

I had big plans for dried cherries... started the dehydrator last night... the directions said 18-22 hours for cherries. I let it run overnight... for 12 hours and this morning when I checked them... they were done... too done... more like crispy.

I'll try again today... unless the birds get to the rest of the cherries before I do.

Hope everyone has a wonderful and safe holiday!

At any given time... this can be found... Batman lurking around the corner.

and then "BAM" Batman pops out at you...

Finally... the other front tooth fell out... leaving the "gap".

Just about every week the kiddos put on a little play for us... usually it's Ainsley idea... and reluctantly Walker goes along... if he doesn't have to dress up like a girl.   This weeks play... the Cheerleader and the Firefighter!

They did the usual song and dance, but this time after the 10 minute show... they signed autographs!