Bear Town

My family goes to Bear Lake every year; always has. Tradition. This all started because some of my British ancestors settled there. There is a sign about one of them somewhere in Idaho that Grandma Argyle used to take me and some of the other grandkids to see. While I haven't visited the sign in years, I very easily tracked it down via the web and pasted it here. It's kind of an abbreviated version of the story, but very cool.  Read it.

It's always been neat to know that I am part of such a faithful lineage, with several pioneer ancestors making the journey West (Braggy Braggerson). Anyway, so that is the "Why" of our trip to Bear Lake. And the rest of this post is the "What" (we did on our recent trip).

The past few years we've gone up a day early with Ryan and Dren. We keep it real.  We stay in Logan, Utah! There, we attempt to discover all the city's hidden gems.

This time we ate at the recommended steak house, Hamilton's. The Bananas Foster, prepared tableside, was sweet. And so was the new Winnie the Pooh movie we saw later that night. Sweet, but seriously???  8 bones to watch a 60 minute cartoon!?! I had a hard time keeping my mind off of Harry Potter, which was showing in the next theatre over. But I digress...Pooh rules!


The next morning we visited Willow Park Zoo. Darling; small and quaint, but had quite a few animals.
 Afterwards, the kids cooled off with a Sno Shack and spent some time playing at a nearby park. The adults sat in awe watching and listening to the entertainment provided by a local church. "Jesus es mi amigo," is one tune I won't soon forget.
 Last, we hit the Bluebird Cafe for lunch, where we met up with my parents and my other two brothers. My BLT lacked, but it's always fun eating at such an old, haunted joint.
After a quick shopping trip to Walmart (to get our goods for the next few days) we were on our way.

***The Lake***

Cole had his first introduction to the beach. He thought sand was mostly for eating. He was wrong and was locked up in a tent as punishment. Just joking, he was really locked up in a Baby Hut for both fun and safety purposes, and only for some of the time.

The Relaxation Station. That tube is ALL it's cracked up to be! Love. It was brought by my sister, and was enjoyed by the likes of kids and adults. It was great sitting in the middle of the lake without a worry in the world; except for maybe the worry that Cole might be giving Grandma Sherrie grief back on land. But, after all was said and done, both she and my child survived.

Look how this one has grown:

Sunset on the beach:

Two love birds on one bike for a whole hour Doesn't get much better:

Chicka, Chicka, Boom Boom!:

Throw the golf ball to its correct destination; this is how Miss Kate does it:


More Shave Ice:


Condo time (this year we got a semi-updated one, thank you Dave and your phone call to the manager):









And, of course, a pic in front of our family's favorite:


See, Dave, Bear Lake IS a good time (he needs frequent reminders). Hooray for TRADITION!

Oh, Goody!

The carnie came to town and we came to the carnie. As we perused the grounds, Dave and I both had the thought to snap pictures of all the creepy Lake People, but then what kind of people would we be? Or maybe, such an act would be just too darn dangerous!

Kate no longer liked the kiddie rides, but sadly, wasn’t tall enough for most of the grown-up rides. She rode the Gee Whiz twice since that was the most thrilling for someone of her size.

Want to know Kate’s (and Dave’s) most exciting moment of the night? Winning a gold fish.

I’ll say it again, “Oh, goody…”

The winning toss

The proud new owner

The next morning we gave ‘Swim’ a proper home. At first, I he had no will to live. He wouldn’t actually swim and refused to eat. Alas, the old boy has come around and seems to like his new digs (that is, when Kate doesn’t taunt him by tapping the glass or putting her hand in his bowl).

Love these last two pics of Kate naturally pressing her nose up against the glass to get a good look. She sure likes her new pet so I guess I’m thrilled to have him. Another successful trip to the carnie…