Sunday, May 9, 2010- Mother's Day

Today the weather was really nice; we even opened the windows. Jon flew out of Bozeman airport yesterday. Daddy drove him there and then he met Jenn, Pat, the kids and I at Chico Hot Springs Stables to watch Sofia ride a horse. She requested a brown horse. It was a good thing that was the color of the horse the stables had picked out for her! She knows her colors! Because she is so young they gave her the oldest, gentlest horse called Romeo. He was loving it because he was able to eat the freshly grown grass outside the paddock instead of the dried up hay the younger horses were given. He is also picked on by the younger horses- he is bitten and kicked; so he deserved to be able to come out. They told us that always happens with the older horses. Sofia did really well riding. She sat up straight and tall and wasn't in the least bit afraid. In fact she asked for another ride and they complied. I will get a chance to ride this week before we leave here.
Jenn, Pat and the kids left this morning for Bozeman airport to fly home. I think they all had a really good time. Jon has exceptionally good vision. He spied bears and wolves and moose before the rest of us saw them. He said he had just gotten his contacts adjusted. I wish that happened to me when mine are! Yellowstone is such a phenomenal place to visit; they'll never forget this vacation.
Last time we were here was 16 years ago in February and March on snowmobiles. Last Friday the guys went to the east entrance to Yellowstone which is Cody, Wyoming. This was the first day it was open. The snow was really high. We understand why it opens so late. The south entrance doesn't open until Memorial Day weekend; so we won't get a chance to see that one. You enter it from Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The guys went to Cody and took pictures of places that we have pictures of from 16 years ago-the avalanche sign, Pahaska Tepee where we stayed, the phone booth that I had to lay on the snow and reach down into because we were walking on 6 foot of snow and then the spot where I dropped the camera and Jon had to get off the snowmobile and pick it up right in front of a buffalo. The buffalo looked harmless, but they aren't. People have been gored by them and they can run 30 mph- 3 times faster than we can run!
Today was a lazy day and a day to catch up on sleep! We have been on the go constantly into the park almost every day they were here. Check out their pictures! Jenn's camera can do so much more than mine can.
Tomorrow we need to take a load of things into Billings to the camper to load it before they start working on it. From there we will drive to Buffalo, Wyoming to see Pop Pop's cousin, Mel and his wife, Doris Gerholdt. He is a Western artist and has lived out in the west for 40 years or more. We will probably hit some other historical spots on the way.