Pocatello, ID

This weekend we relaxed a little bit. Friday I got my new computer!! It is AMAZING! And not just because it works. :P I did end up getting the HP Slimline desktop. It's about a third of the size of Philip's desktop. It does not heat up at all because the fans are amazing and it's super quiet.

Saturday I went to downtown Idaho Falls which is really neat. It has an older look to it. It reminds me of what towns would look like in the 20s or 30s. I went to a thrift store there to look for some long skirts. Philip told me to pack summer clothes so I didn't bring any. It turns out summer has not quite gotten to Idaho yet. I did find a few skirts and they are awesome! I got a long denim skirt that looks brand new for $4! When I got back, Philip and I worked on moving our things from the trailer into John and Ellen's house because they're leaving for convention today. I also found out some interesting differences in what guys and girls find important that I thought were funny during our move. The first thing I brought over was my clothes and shoes. The first thing Philip brought over was his computer. Saturday evening, John and Ellen treated us to dinner.

Sunday we had union meeting and a potluck afterward. It was really nice being able to meet some more people around the area and getting to know the people we already knew better. Plus, there was some pretty fabulous food. After we got back to the house, Philip and I got ready to go hiking in Pocatello with John and Ellen's son Tyler. At the time I didn't know what I was in for. If I did, I probably wouldn't have worn heels to meeting that morning.

This is a stream at the beginning of the trail that is about 2/3 melted snow.

This is where we're lower on the mountain we were climbing. At this point, I was already starting to feel the burn in my calves. But of course I wanted to look tough to the guys I was hiking with so I tried to quietly deal with it.

Here's another view I believe at the same height.

We saw tons of gorgeous wildflowers so we started picking them and putting them in my hair.

Even higher up.

Tyler and Philip pointed at this part saying that I just had to make it to this point and I'd be done. After we got there, they decided we should just go to the top while we were at it.

Tyler's dog Sonny came with us and this is how I got up part of the way. Sonny gave me just the boost I needed to make it. And then he started going a little too fast and I had to let go.

The trail got more wooded as we reached the top.

Some weird bendy tree.

Tyler and Sonny at the top!

I made it! I almost didn't put this picture up because of how horrible I look, but the background is amazing.

Philip, Sonny and me with storm clouds in the distance. Oh and if you're wondering, Sonny is part German Shepherd part lab. I think he's gorgeous.

Mountains

Hurrying down so we wouldn't get caught in the storm.

It's hard to see and I don't know how to point to it here, but you can see part of the trail we came up. It's in the middle of the picture on the hill to the left right below the one we're on. It's a very faint line through the trees.

Me being goofy. Go figure.

Okay so when we were going down the mountain I slid a couple times and fell on my rear so we joked that this sign was posted just for me.

You know you're out of shape when a 32 year old is this far ahead of you...

Maybe I can still blame the altitude. :P

Done!

This was really funny. Philip told us there was a deer and I thought he was pointing to the deer sign, but he was pointing at the actual deer. If we had just backed up a few feet, I could have gotten a picture with the deer and the deer sign.

So after we went hiking, we were driving around and Tyler decided to see how his Montero did on trails so we did a little off-roading. But I don't know if it's actually considered off-roading if you're on a trail. Anyways, we drove over some pretty high bumps and splashed through some puddles. It was tons of fun. Poor Sonny didn't seem to enjoy himself too much though.

Part of the drive.

When we got deep enough into the mountains, Tyler let us try shooting his pistol into a tree. I had never shot a gun before, but I didn't do too bad. I was able to hit close to the same spot two times in a row. And I said I was aiming for this one spot and totally nailed it. It was awesome. Don't think I could go hunting though. I would feel bad for the deer or whatever else we were hunting for.

For your entertainment, I shot a little video of some of our drive on the way back. I should have started filming later because we hit some pretty big bumps in the road and it was great.