The National Parks

Since my last blog was about a video showing a Red Fox hunting mice in Yellowstone and I mentioned my OBSESSION with National Parks I thought I would let you know of the few National Parks I have already visited.
 
So here's a list of the ones I (and my family) have visited so far:

Yellowstone National Park  - we stayed 2 nights and 3 days here at Lake Lodge cabins.  Next time we go we are going to stay in a couple different housing options to give us more time in different sections of the park.  We are hoping to go back in 2012 – and then when the kids get older I think we might try to go there during Christmas one year!

Yellowstone Falls August 2008

 

Mommie and the boys at Mammoth Hot Springs

The boys after eating Lunch in a small river side park in Yellowstone but also right inside of Montana

Thar She Blows!  Old Faithful was an awesome sight to see!

Brian withe boys after Old Faithful finished erupting.  The crowd thinned quite quickly.

Me and the boys standing at the Continental Divide.  SO COOL!

If you want to see Old Faithful erupt but can't make it to Yellowstone right now you can go visit their webcams...Old Faithful Webcams another one of my internet obsessiongs....watching for Old Faithful to erupt!

Grand Teton National Park – okay so we really only drove through this because it is on the south side of Yellowstone and that is the direction we were coming from but I still count it as visiting and maybe when we go back to Yellowstone we can figure out a way to stay in this park longer.  Although we did have a potty break at this park so it truly has been visited by my family.

Look closely and you can see the Grand Tetons

Mount Rushmore National Park – Absolutely LOVED it!  My boys got “obsessed” with Mount Rushmore when we knew we were going to go there and so we started talking about it and showing them pictures.  So when we got there OMG!  And there are 250 steps that you can “climb” around the walkway to get a closer look.  And my boys climbed ALL of them by themselves and did awesome (they were 4 and 2 at the time).  Can’t wait to return and show Lili.  She was there, well in my tummy, but we will go back :)

Can you name the faces?  We can!

Effigy Mounds National Park – this National Park is in Iowa near Marquette on the Mississippi River and it’s WONDERFUL.  It’s only about a 3 hr drive from home Brian and I have been there twice and the last time we had all three kids with us – Lili was 5 months old but she was carried through the 2 mile hike.

Mommie and the kids overlooking the Mississippi River, July 2009

Daddy and the Boys, July 2009

Mississippi River from an overlook spot

Herbert Hoover National Historic Site – we haven’t been to his Birthplace home but we have been to the Presidential Museum and hope to get down to the Birthplace/Gravesite, etc this summer.  It was December 29, 2007 when we went and there was a lot of snow on the ground when we went so needless to say walking around outside was not on our agenda.  (But we'll do that this summer) And I think my mother-in-law appreciated that. ;)

The family (as of Dec. 2007) at the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum

Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore - we did this on a stop during our tour of Michigan last summer.  We had left Appleton, WI drove up to the Upper Pennisula of Michigan and down to Lansing (visiting the capital) and then continuing home.  One our way home we realized we were driving within a couple of miles of this Lakeshore so we decided to make a pitstop.  My kids have never seen a beach (well BJ, my oldest, was 9 months old when he saw the Gulf of Mexico and Key West, FL) so we decided to show them what a beach was like. 

Mommie, Lili and BJ at the beach

Hank didn't want to go at first....after seeing us on the beach he wanted to feel it

So these are the National Parks that we've already seen.  We've driven "by" Devils Tower in Wyoming...but we were far enough away that I can't even try to count it as visiting....plus I want to go back and REALLY see it.  But here's what it looked like from our drive...

Devil's Tower from a FAR AWAY INTERSTATE!