It's about an eight hour drive for us so we drove half way on Wednesday night and half way on Thursday morning. The slower trip let us stop in Thermopolis to visit the Wyoming Dinosaur Museum. Most dinosaur skeletons/fossils found in North America have been found in Wyoming. I thought Daniel would be scared of the skeletons, but he loved them! And knew exactly which ones were which --- T-rex, Diplotocaus, Stegosaraus, Triceratops -- He's very smart!
We stayed at the Cody KOA. They have camping cabins so we weren't really roughing it. And they had wi-fi and served Starbucks coffee. But we still had to cook outside and go shower in the ablution block. The first day was very cold, windy and rainy and we all moped around thinking it was going to be a repeat of last year. The weather was so bad, Patrick and my dad canceled their golf tee time! We spent the cold day in town for lunch where we all had buffalo and elk sandwiches -- yum! -- and went to a small museum because they had model trains -- one of Daniel's favorite things!
Caleb all bundled up for the cold weather.On Saturday, the weather cleared and was perfect the rest of the stay. Patrick and Dad got their golf game in. Mom took the boys to town. And I got to read and play Sudoku! In the afternoon, Patrick, Daniel and I went for a hike at Heart Mountain, but I forgot the camera so no pictures... but it was gorgeous! I really think Wyoming is one the most beautiful states. And there is a horse for every ten acres so I love that! That night we had a wonderful cookout of steak, corn, salad, mom's mango and pineapple (that's a whole other blog) and s'mores.
Daniel eating s'mores... yummy!We decided to go to Yellowstone on Sunday. And all I can say is this -- If you have never been to Yellowstone, YOU MUST GO! Yellowstone is the coolest place in the world and I wish we had spent a week there. I think we are going to stay closer to the park next year so we can see more things. There is just no other place like it. We saw a moutain goat, moose, elk, deer, cyote and buffalo. No grizzlies... although it is a little weird walking around and knowing they are there...
Mommy and Daniel (who can't be slowed down to pose) in front of Yellowstone Lake. Because most of Yellowstone sits in a volcano's caldera, the sand around the lake is very black. It's very pretty!The highlight of Yellowstone for sure, was seeing Old Faithful. It was so amazing to see something you have heard about your whole life. She is grand, spectacular and beautiful and there is just nothing else like it! We showed up just as she was blowing and had to wait another 70 minutes. The park can predict within 10 minutes when she will go off and post it so you know when to be at the grandstand. We took bets on the actual time and there is still dispute as to whether Patrick or Mom is the winner. There are about 150 geyers in the park and the area around Old Faithful is covered with small geyers and boiling caldrons. They were beautiful with crystal clear bubbling water.
Patrick looking at the Morning Star cauldron
A crystal blue, steaming lagoon -- these lagoons were everywhere and we really wanted to jump in one and go for a soak.
One, two, three! We finally got to see Old Faithful from beginning to end. The whole show lasts about five minutes. Before the big spout goes off, she throws a couple, short teaser spouts in the air. Everytime she did that, Daniel would turn to Patrick and say, "Geyser broken, Daddy. It's broken." Three weeks later and he is still very concerned about the 'broken' geyser. 
