And summer begins!: Bears, Beets, Battlestar Galactica

Okay, so maybe when we were in Idaho we didn't watch (or play?) Battlestar Galactica, but we sure saw TONS of bears over at Bear World (as well as sampled the delicious fudge available). My adventurous mom even ate Great Aunt Nikki's pickled beets. Personally, I think that the only thing that should be pickled are pickles . . . or cucumbers. But anyway, at least Nikki knows how to store food. She has an awesome room full of food storage and normal storage. I have about a two-foot storage space next to my heater. Yeah, my heater. Sometimes I pray that the apartment won't burn down while I'm at school.

At Bear World, there were also other animals like an ALBINO elk. There were some deer and pigs, too. Here are the pictures:

Cute baby deer!

The famous white elk.

This is also an elk, but just because he isn't white doesn't mean he isn't cool. :)

My favorite bear at the park. I named him Honey.

A playful black bear. Right after I took this picture, he licked his paw.

This bear was super sleepy.

A couple of wolves.

Two young bucks, I believe.

Black bear cub. So cute! I think this one's name is Havoc and he sure was wild.

A peacock standing on a roof.

One of the things I love most about visiting Idaho is the country! I love spending tons of time outdoors watching birds, playing with the new kittens (not this time), enjoying the pond, and going to Bear World. My great aunt's house is perfect for this type of relaxation. It has an amazing front and back garden, with little grass trails, a pond, and a hidden playground. It's kind of like a mini Stourhead in Wiltshire, England (miss that!) Someday I would like to take a trip to Jackson Hole, Wyoming and/or Yellowstone Park. The only time I have been to either was when I was very young.

As a child, my favorite park of Aunt Nikki's great garden was this huge teeter-totter that also swung around in a circle. We would have one of our second cousins (my mother's age) push the teeter-totter so that we would swing in a circle while pushing up and down. Now I know why I love thrill rides so much! Anyway, I took some pictures with me and the girls on it.

From left to right: Me, Julie, Jessica, and Jessica's friend (Lauren)

Brandon in front of Nikki's house.

Lately, I have also been getting into some major family history. I mean major. A couple months ago I was searching through my grandma's line (mother's side) and hit on a jackpot. Every Sunday I sit for a few hours in the morning and just enter in names and reserve temple ordinances. Brandon and I try to get to the temple at least once a week, but even at that rate we can't get all the names done. We actually have to enlist the ward to help. Crazy! Anyway, since we were in Idaho, we went to Rigby and took a quick picture of my great-grandma's house. Here it is:

Pretty sad picture of my great-grandma Lucille's house.
Justin and I used to catch locusts here.

Lastly, one of the best reasons to go to Idaho is to eat at Shari's. It's definitely not the best restaurant in town (Olive Garden was across the street), but my family and I used to eat there all of the time when we lived in Oregon.