The Summer of a Lifetime Part 3: Texarkana and the World Series

Last spring was Owen's first season of junior league baseball. He had a great time and even ended up making all-stars. 

After eating a giant cucumber...

His all-star team went on to win both region and state...

It was a great team, great coaches, great families, great experiences. And we thought it was done...until we found out that they were going to host the junior league 6U world series in Texarkana, Arkansas!!!

We thought we were all done road tripping but just a couple of short weeks after we got back from out west, we were hitting the road again!

Owen discovered a new "face" on the way. He's so silly.

We made a pit stop at Duck Commander in Louisiana!

Owen was ready to represent GA in the world series!

Opening ceremonies...

Waiting around for the games to begin!

Baseball moms ready to cheer our boys on...

Owen played his heart out. His team won one game and lost two by one run each. They went home with their heads high!

AK was thrilled with the whole experience.

Doing some squats and lunges before enjoying a slushie from Sonic on the way home...

I have loved watching this boy do what he loves.

 

The Summer of a Lifetime Part 2: Yellowstone

 We arrived in Big Sky, MT late Saturday night and enjoyed a leisurely day with Uncle Bo, Aunt Bonnie, and Justice on Sunday. Then for the next three days we explored Yellowstone. The sights were unbelievable, the company was so enjoyable, and the memories were unforgettable.

Sweet AK let Owen borrow her butterfly sweatshirt when he was cold...

We interrupt this Yellowstone adventure to bring you the Night of the Bat. At 2:00 AM I got a phone call from my brother, who was in the bedroom next door to ours in the condo. "Hello?" I croaked. Panicked, he answered, "Is Spencer awake???" And so ensued the next couple of hours in which Spencer tried to get a bat out of Bo and Bonnie's room while Bo acted very brave while somehow refusing to go back into the room to help, we heard yells and thuds coming from inside, and Bonnie videoed the whole thing. Finally Bo did go back in with a rake and a sheet, and the story ended happily ever after for all, including the bat who flew out of the window.

Back to Yellowstone.

One of my personal favorite things was watching everyone else's faces while they watched the wonders of Yellowstone. These next few were from Old Faithful.

Bo and Spencer went mountain biking and also posed for some pictures before leaving.

Thursday was one of my favorite days. We hung out at the resort and did lake activities, and then ordered pizza before packing up to make the trek back across the country.

Our family left around 10 PM, drove through the night, and watched the sun rise just before arriving at Mt. Rushmore...

and the Badlands...

The minivan has been so good to us - even though with the bikes on the back like this, the back end rides about an inch and a half off the ground.

The Badlands were so much fun. The kids could just run up and down the dunes as far as the eye could see, and the big-horned sheep were so fun to observe.

And one picture to always remember how we stop on the side of the road and heat up our food over a propane eye.

What a trip. We are so grateful for every opportunity we get to see God's beautiful creation and go on adventures together as a family.