Getting Caught Up - Part 2

Now, this part, just this paragraph, is out of order. Defending my procrastination. I got home a week ago, on Tuesday. Thursday night my youngest son and his girlfriend showed up for a visit. I knew they were coming, I just didn't remember they were coming. Do you know what I mean? Anyway, they really aren't much trouble to have around. But. Sunday her parents were coming to pick my son and his girlfriend up. She and her family are Jets fans and they were all going to see the Chargers and Jets play at Qualcom Stadium. Football. But. This was a first time meeting for us parents. Do you know what I mean? I mean, I like the girlfriend, she's smart and funny and into crafty things (tho not knitting, yet) and very nice, but, they've only been going out for barely a year. Do us parents really need to meet yet? Since maybe these would be people we might know for a long time, I decided to make food, and do extra cleaning. Which is a really long way of saying, "I'm sorry, I was slightly distracted." I thought the meeting went fine, all 75 minutes of it. Extra cleaning is never a bad thing, and by extra I mean things that should've been cleaned anyway. And we'll eat our way through the food, eventually.

So. Rowyn and I drove to Idaho, the southern end of the Teton Valley, for a visit with my brother (and his dog) and my sister and brother-in-law and 2 cousins from New York. The first part of the trip goes through the desert, towards Las Vegas. Just this side (west) of Vegas, we found a huge puddle in the desert

left over from the rains that washed out 2 miles of Interstate 15 on the other side of Vegas, just a few days earlier. Lake Mead National Recreation Area was offering a waived entrance fee for vehicles wanting to detour around the washout, and I decided to take them up on it. I've decided it is much nicer to drive around Las Vegas than through it. I didn't see much of Lake Mead, but I did see lots of red rock, and at one point, 2 (desert bighorn?) sheep crossed the road ahead of us. It was a delightful and peaceful drive.

After staying in Provo, UT for the night, Rowyn and I stopped by Bridal Veil Falls. Just a few minutes outside of Provo.

We headed east on I80, and made a short stop to admire Echo Canyon.

Look Ma, more red rocks!

Later that day, the desert became mountains, and we met up with my family at Grand Teton Brewing Company. There is a nice grassy area outside the tasting room, perfect for enjoying the scenery, a beverage, and letting the dogs run and play.