Tag: Abby

Christmas Vacation In Montana… Our Final Day and Heading Home

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As the saying goes, “All good things must come to an end” and that includes wonderful vacations with family and friends. Our final day in Bozeman was pretty relaxed and unplanned. My mom, my sister and myself headed over to the mall to do a bit of shopping together while my dad watched the girls. Shaun went to the condo to start organizing our things so we could get the car packed later that night. Shaun wanted to go for a skate around the large pond in town that has been turned into a skating track, but unfortunately the gel in he skates froze up to the point that he couldn’t get his feet in.


That night we went to dinner and shared one last night of fun and family. Afterwards, Abby and Ellie stayed with my parents while Shaun and I headed back to the condo to pack up our bags and then pack the car. I know I did all of this with a heavy heart. I was having such a wonderful time, I really didn’t want to go.

The following morning we headed over to pick up the girls. We said our goodbyes and I tried really hard not to cry, but its me and I did. We took a different way home, which is the route I take during the summer when I come up to visit. Most of it was dry and easy going, until we hit the cut off into Island Park, Idaho. We barely made the turn from the stop sign because it was so icy but we made it. It was slow going until we hit Ashton, Idaho.


From there we were snow free and making good time. We stopped in Beaver, Utah that night for a much needed rest and did the final stretch home the following morning. The girls were excellent travelers and I think we were all happy to get home and sleep in our own beds. Now its time to unpack, settle back into our normal routine and wait to take a vacation from our vacation. Until next time Montana!

Christmas Vacation in Montana… Snow Fun and Travel Through Yellowstone

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After an amazing dinner and a great nights sleep, Shaun and I woke up and headed back in to Yellowstone for the day. What a difference there was between this winter and last. For starters it was a balmy 28 degrees out as opposed to -10 degrees last year. The snow pack on the road was very thin to non existent. In most spots through the park, we could still see pavement.

The unseasonably warm weather did keep many of the animals away though. So no wolves for me this year. We had been told about several animal carcasses that the wolves had been frequenting for food but to no avail. We did see the usual bison throughout the park and even a long trail of them heading out to Hayden Valley. We also had the chance to catch two coyotes trying to catch mice in the shallow snow and grass.




The only road open in the park to vehicles is the road from the North Entrance at Mammoth to the Northeast Entrance in Cooke City. Shaun and I decided to drive the entire road and it was beautiful! On the way back we stopped to eat the sandwiches we bought before coming into the park. We hadn’t been stopped more then twenty minutes, so when we tried to start the car and it didn’t we were completely baffled. It was our battery and we were stuck in Yellowstone, with cell phones that did not work, and only a few people near by. Luckily one of the few people sitting at the lookout waiting to a glimpse of a wolf had a portable jumper kit.

Once the car was running, we got back on the road and decided to head back to my parents house just to be safe. The drive through Paradise Valley was beautiful at sunset, despite having to keep our eyes on the sides of the road in anticipation of deer, which were everywhere. We had such a wonderful time but it was nice to get back and see the girls. They were somewhat excited to see us, but you could tell they had a great time with Grandma, Grandpa and Auntie Jillian.




During the day Abby and Ellie watched movies and played. When Ellie took a nap, Grandpa took Abby outside to play in the snow. She had a great time, rolling up snow balls, making snow angels and enjoying what was left of the snowfall from a few days ago. She even sat and what was left from their snowman for a picture. I good day was had by all, that’s for sure!

Christmas Vacation In Montana… Cookies and Mommy/Daddy Time

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Our first day away, Shaun and I took advantage of being child free. What did we do? Slept in of course! Its not something we get to do often, if ever so it was really nice have some extra sleep. Our day was pretty simple. Once we were up and out of the house we drove around town and then headed out to a little place called The Coffee Pot. Its a small little cafe and pottery studio. The pottery they make on site is beautiful, so much so that I wanted to take everything home. Unfortunately their pieces were a bit on the expensive side, so I had to leave most of what they made there.



On the plus side I did get to enjoy one thing they are famous for besides pottery, their biscuits and gravy. Before I say anything else, I want to state for the record that I have never been a huge fan of biscuits and gravy. It never really appealed to me and the few times I had tried them I wasn’t impressed. I now realized its because I have never had anything that was good enough or worthy of eating. Until today. Shaun, who is very hard to impress when it comes to good food told me they were the best he had ever had after he took his first bite. I knew I had to at least try them and I am so glad I did. WOW… I cant describe them, but it was amazing. So bad for me but worth it.


After our yummy little excursion we headed to the one place I had a feeling we would end up going to… Yellowstone! Shaun was able to get a last minute reservation at our favorite hotel in Gardiner so we headed out. After we arrived and settled into our room, we drove up to Mammoth Hot Springs for dinner and it was amazing. Perfect weather, perfect food and all of it inside one of the places on earth that makes me very very happy.

While we were away that day the girls had a blast. Abby and Auntie Jillian made cookies and luckily Grandpa Jerry caught a few great pictures for us! Jillian says Abby was an excellent helper, especially when it came time to clean up the beater!





Our first day away was a huge success! The girls had a great time and Shaun and I had the chance to relax and enjoy each other, a wonderful city and head out to one of my happy places.

Christmas Vacation in Montana…. Happy New Year and Happy 18 Months to Ellie!

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Happy New Year! Goodbye 2011 and Hello 2012! The girls both made it to midnight and rang in the New Year with all of us. I cant believe it, but then again these girls would stay up all night if they could. They are experts at the “do anything you can to stay awake” tactic. Also, not only is it the start to a new year but a milestone for Ellie. Once we hit midnight Ellie turns 18 months! She is now only six months away from turning two! Like I have said before, where does all the time go? Happy 18 months to you Ellie!

After we celebrated the passing of the old and bringing in the new, we packed up the girls into the car and headed back to the condo. We ended up taking a drive around town in order to get them to fall asleep and that was quite the adventure. Main Street and the Downtown area of Bozeman was crawling with party-goers and plenty of guys and girls who needed a few extra hands to help them home. Oh how I do not miss those days…then again, I don’t think I ever celebrated like that on New Year’s Eve.





In the morning we gathered together with Great Aunt Diane, Uncle Barry and Great Grandma Prueter for our traditional Eggs Benedict Brunch. We were missing two other important people from this lovely tradition, one we have done since I was old enough to remember it, but I ate some Eggs Benedict in their honor. Missed you David and Mike!




The remainder of the day we visited with family, watched some hockey and football and relaxed (something that vacation is all about). The girls have grown a lot since our last visit, so we decided to take another picture with the four generations of Prueter family girls. Its amazing to have these photos. I feel blessed that my girls have had the chance to meet and get to know their Great Grandmas.

Shaun and I left that evening and the girls stayed behind with Grandma, Grandpa and Auntie Jillian. We had decided that during our time in Montana we would take a few days for the two us and give the girls some one on one time with their Aunt and Grandparents. We didnt know exactly what we wanted to do but we were excited to have some time alone.

Christmas Vacation In Montana… A Trip to the Museum and the Last Night of 2011

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Its the last day of 2011! Can you believe it?! Where did the year go? Instead of dwelling on how quickly the year passed we decided to take the girls and head on over with my parents and sister to the Museum of the Rockies. The girls and I visited the museum back in May when we were in town for Jillian’s graduation and they had a great exhibit on frogs. This time there were two exhibits, both of which were very interesting.

The first was a photo gallery of music legends taken from the works of many famous photographers and photo journalists. All of the adults found it to be very interesting but the girls didn’t share our sentiments. The second was called “Mayan Gold” and it displayed artifacts found in a Mayan burial site in Panama. For those who are thinking it, no nothing was mentioned regarding the “Mayan Prophecy or Doomsday theories” as it was completely irrelevant to the site. Instead it was able to give the public some insight on how the Mayan culture viewed death, burial and the afterlife. Their ability to work with gold, other precious metals and gemstones was impressive. Once again the adults really seemed to enjoy it but the girls, BORED TO DEATH!


After trying to enjoy the first two exhibits as best we could, we headed to some spots that the girls would enjoy. The girls had the chance to play and build with some Lincoln Logs as well as see Abby’s favorite spot, the Dinosaurs!


After enjoying the Dinosaurs we took the girls to the place we knew Abby was waiting for, The Yellowstone Trail which is a play area for children that teaches all about Yellowstone and the outdoors. The girls had a blast! Ellie enjoyed the toddler section, rolling and jumping around on the mats that are meant to look like the Lower Yellowstone falls. She found a few favorite toys as well and made a couple of friends. Abby took off and did a bit of fishing and watching through binoculars at the fire lookout. She even started to get a little bossy with the other kids, collecting all of the binoculars and keeping several little boys from taking them. She told them it was time to clean up and they couldn’t have them. Gee, where did she get that from? It took one of the little boys telling Grandpa Jerry that she wasn’t sharing before giving them back. Oh Abby…



Before we knew it the museum was closing and it was time for us to head back to Grandma and Grandpa’s house. We still had a whole night a head of us and the New Year to ring in. Now it was time for the girls to take a nap and Shaun and I to rest. The rest of the evening was spent watching TV, talking with family and eating our traditional Chinese food.



Its getting close to midnight and the girls are still going! Shaun and I are ready for bed but I think the girls are on their second or third wind. I hope they can make it to midnight and then pass out as soon as we get into the car!

Christmas Vacation In Montana… Christmas, Birthdays and a Little White Surprise

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As our trip continues, so does the fun and excitement. The next morning was spent at Grandma and Grandpa’s again. We started everything off with a tradition I remember as a little girl, German Pancake brunch. After brunch the girls dug in to another round of presents. Santa made another stop! Abby and Ellie had a ton to open and boy did they enjoy it. By this point, Ellie had gift opening down to a science. Well, as much of a science as a 17 month old can have. Boy are these girls lucky. Santa brought them a lot of neat toys and clothes!






After all of the presents were opened we took some time again to relax and enjoy the afternoon. It also gave us time to let our yummy brunch digest. The girls watched some TV and napped for a bit, while Shaun and I spent time talking and catching up with my parents. As evening approached we made ourselves presentable and headed out to Three Forks for a lovely dinner at the Sacajawea Inn. Dinner was a belated birthday gift to Shaun and boy was it tasty! Shaun was even honored with a birthday dessert. Luckily he was spared the singing and official embarrassment that comes with a birthday dinner. Dont worry Shaun, there are plenty more birthdays down the road for us to embarrass you.







As we left Three Forks the weather began to change. First it was raining, then a bit of slush, which then turned into grapple, and then finally turned into snow as we reached city limits in Bozeman. Abby was finally going to get some snow!

Abby fell asleep during the car ride back to Grandma and Grandpa’s house, but she was pleasantly surprised to wake up to all of that white stuff falling from the sky. She was dressed and ready to play within minutes and once outside, she jumped right in… literally. Out of nowhere she fell backwards into the snow and started making snow angels. By the time I came back out to see her, she was having Shaun push into the snow instead of falling on her own. Abby threw a few snowballs and because the snow was falling so fast and in large flakes, she helped daddy write her name in the middle of the street. Then to end the night, Abby helped Grandpa build a snowman. It wasn’t a complete snowman, due in part to the stickiness of the snow and the fact that it was pulling up grass as they rolled it, but Abby loved it.



Lucky for us the snow finally fell and Abby got her wish! She had so much fun that she was asleep the minute our car started rolling back to the condo. What a wonderful end to the day.

Christmas Vacation In Montana… The First Three Days

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If you know how far California is from Montana, then you know it takes at least a day and a half to get there by car with two children under the age of four. It was an adventurous trip with an unlikely run in with a local from Dillon Montana. Needless to say we were happy to arrive in Bozeman safe, sound and somewhat sane. After settling into our condo rental we headed over to Grandma and Grandpa Taylor’s house for dinner and a chance to catch up. As you can tell, dinner was yummy.



After dinner and a few laps around my parents house the girls were finally ready to go to sleep, which means Shaun and I were well past that point. The following morning we slept in as best we could and then headed over to Grandma and Grandpa’s to hang out. Shaun and I had the chance to sneak off for a bit to spend a few hours to ourselves too! The girls had the chance to open Christmas gifts from Aunt Diane, Uncle Barry and Great Grandma Prueter and we had an amazing dinner at Santa Fe Red’s, a Mexican Restaurant in Bozeman.







It was a casual day but that’s how vacations are supposed to be. Shaun and I had time to ourselves, the girls had time with family and we had time to relax. The only thing missing was snow. Yup… not a single flake in the air or on the ground. Its been an unusually warm winter in Montana so far. I am now doing a snow dance so that Abby can play in the snow she keeps talking on and on about. Fingers crossed!

Christmas Day 2011

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Merry Christmas everyone! It was a wonderful Christmas in the Wharton house full of presents, love and yummy treats. Santa came to our house and the girls were certainly excited to see all of the goodies underneath our tree. Santa also left a lot in our sttockings, which were “hung by the TV with care”. We don’t have a fireplace, so this was the next best place to put them.

Abby was excited to open presents at first but then I think became a little overwhelmed by it all. We have to remember that she is only three and while she understands a lot there is still plenty that she doesn’t understand. But, she was very thrilled with the Sleeping Beauty Doll and the Leap Pad Explorer that Santa brought. Ellie enjoyed it all and really got the hang of opening presents, so much so that I think she liked opening them more then playing with the actual present itself.







After presents we ate a bit of the brunch Daddy made, cleaned up the aftermath of present opening and headed over to Grandpa and Nana’s house for Christmas dinner and a few more presents. Fiona’s father, Neal joined us for dinner as well. It was very nice to see him again and catch up! It was his first time meeting Ellie and Abby has grown by leaps and bounds since we saw him last.



Dinner was fantastic! Nana Fiona made the most amazing creamed corn I have ever had! Everything else was delicious too, from the green bean casserole to the cauliflower with cheese and the very tasty ham. After dinner we opened presents while we waited to make room for a yummy dessert. Abby and Ellie were given a princess kitchen by Grandpa, Nana and Uncle James and shopping carts for each of them from Aunt Brittany. I think those items were the hit of the day!

When presents had been opened and our tummies found enough room for a little bit more to eat, we enjoyed a lovely cake from Portos Bakery thanks to Aunt Brittany. The rest of the evening was spent visiting, enjoying presents and taking in as much as we could before Christmas passed us by. Once it had, the next items on our list was to get ready for our trip to Montana. So Merry Christmas everyone and here is to Montana!

Cute Christmas Memories

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After I put the girls to bed tonight I sat in our room to wrap some presents and start packing for our trip. The girls were still chattering away and you could tell the excitement of Christmas was getting to them. Jack was outside on the back patio and started to bark at one thing or another. From the girls room I hear Abby say…

” Ellie did you hear that? It must be Santa! Jack is barking at Santa! Quick go to sleep!”

I could not help but giggle. What a cutie! I love that this is the first year that Abby is really getting the idea of Christmas and Santa Claus. It’s still a bit overwhelming for her at times, but she is excited for it and hasn’t stopped talking about Santa, trees, lights and presents since I decorated the house back in November. Boy will I cherish these moments! Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve in 2011… The Relaxing Whartons

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Christmas came upon us fast again. It was Thanksgiving and then before I knew it… it was Christmas Eve! Even though I felt ahead of the game several weeks before Christmas, I still felt rushed once it was here. Luckily our Christmas Eve was quiet and relaxed. Grandma Zoe came over to spend the evening with us eating a lovely dinner and opening lots of presents. The girls were very blessed by Santa and Grandma Zoe. From adorable Peppa Pig toys and clothes from Europe to books and art items the girls have a lot of new and lovely things.

Because we are heading to Montana in just a few days, we decided to keep dinner simple and ordered and pre-made meal from Marie Calendars. I have to say… pretty tasty for a dinner that came out of a giant box! I liked it a lot and it was pretty mess free.









After wonderful food, lots of gifts and time spent together with Grandma the girls headed off to bed. Before snuggling in for the night Shaun and I checked NORAD to see where Santa was. At that moment he was in Northwest Territories, Canada! Not too far from California! So, we rushed them quickly to bed so that Santa wouldn’t miss our house. The excitement kept them up for a bit, but eventually they fell asleep.


Once the girls were out, the tree was turned back on and filled with gifts from Santa and Mommy and Daddy. I went to bed excited by the idea that in the morning the girls, especially Abby, would wake up excited to see what was under the tree! One of the many joys of being a mom of young children. Merry Christmas everyone!

One Last Time… Disneyland with Grandma Zoe!

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I am sure I will get a few jokes about the amount of time we spend at Disneyland, but oh well! We love the Magic Kingdom! Yesterday we headed to Disneyland but this time Grandma Zoe came with. Grandma has not been to Disneyland since Shaun was a kid, so this was pretty exciting as a lot has changed at Disneyland since then!

We arrived in the afternoon ready to have a lot of fun. Abby was very excited! We walked around Main Street, giving Grandma the chance to take everything in and enjoy all of the Christmas decorations. After a walk through the castle, we stopped into the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique to get the two little princesses their proper tiaras. Once they were adorned with their new royal head decorations we wheeled on over to Big Thunder Ranch to get a picture with Santa Clause.





I was worried about the picture with Santa, knowing how children freak out when they see a fat man with a face full of hair but the girls were great! Abby sat right on his lap and when he asked what she wanted for Christmas she was eager to tell him… “A Sleeping Beauty Doll”. Ellie didn’t cry and seemed okay with Santa, but you could tell she planned on keeping an eye on this guy.

When we finished with pictures we headed back to Fantasyland. Abby is now tall enough to ride a few roller coasters and it was time for her to give one a try. She has been asking for a few months now but we needed to wait for a time when Daddy could go. If she became scared or overwhelmed we knew Daddy was the best person for her to ride with. But, she didn’t get scared at all! As the ride first started she screamed just like she hears other people do and when we got to the top she put her arms up! She even got to see the Abominable Snow Man!


After a Disneyland first for Abby, we headed over to California Adventure for more rides! After The Little Mermaid, almost all of the rides in a Bugs Land, and Monsters Inc. we made our way to the Disneyland Hotel for a very special dinner at Goofy’s Kitchen! Abby has never been before and we knew she would enjoy having dinner and seeing a lot of the Disney characters, which we did. Goofy, Pluto, Snow White, Chip and Dale, Baloo, and Minnie Mouse all came by and took pictures with both of the girls. Dinner was yummy and I am sure Abby appreciated being at a place where getting out of your chair during dinner to dance and play is actually encouraged! Ellie was a little apprehensive of most of the characters but when it came to Minnie, she was very excited and had no problem giving her a big kiss on the nose.





After dinner, we headed back into the park but decided to take the Monorail over. This was Abby and Ellie’s first ride on the monorail and they loved it. Mommy and Daddy, however, had a ton of fun getting on and off. What a hassle! For those of you with double strollers, don’t take the monorail! Apparently, California State Law requires that all strollers be completely folded up in order to ride the monorail. Most double strollers dont fold up easily, especially when loaded with diaper bags, food and all the crud you drag with you to a day at Disneyland. I am sure plenty of people where laughing at us as they watched us get on and off, but I know Shaun and I were not. Oh well, the girls enjoyed the ride and that’s all that matters.

When we arrived back into the park, we headed off for a few more rides. We made sure to get on Its A Small World because Ellie loves this one and Grandma Zoe has never seen it all done up for the holidays. From there we found a few more rides to go on and then slowly made our way back to the car. The girls were passed out in the stoller and ready to head to bed. Abby went with Grandma to have a slumber party at her house and fun was had by all. It was the perfecting ending to our last trip to Disneyland in 2011! Until next year!