Montana Summer

We really do enjoy being able to go to Montana every summer. It's getting a little bit easier to fly with the kids. We don't have the whole flying process down pat yet, but we've made lots of progress since the very first time Spencer and I flew with our kids. This time was a little bit easier because there is now a cheap flight that flies out of LAX. In the past we've driven to Las Vegas to fly to Montana, so our travel time was cut down a ton. Here are Owen and Audrey anxiously waiting for their bags to come down the conveyor at the Kalispel Airport so we can get in the truck and head to the cabin.

Here is the cabin! The boat lift is a new addition this year. Each year my parents do a little bit more work on the house. This year we were able to stay 7 days. It was a nice break and end to our summer.

We love Montana! My kids really love being outdoors. We ride the quads, explore the trails, play in the water and on the dock and hunt for snail shells. (Mostly Audrey hunts for snail shells, but she's totally obsessed). Grandma also has lots of games, toys, coloring and painting books for the days when it's a little too cold to be outside. We had a couple of cooler days and one thunder and lightning storm, which was actually kind of fun. We enjoyed snuggling inside and watching the rain fall.

The water is a little chilly, so the kids don't swim a ton, but it's always fun getting in there with them. They do like the island that we have tied up just off the dock.

Probably the #1 family favorite is being on the boat. Owen got a kick out of Grandpa letting him help drive the boat. Spencer and I love to water-ski. We tried to get our kids out there to try it, but they're still really nervous about it. Oh- well we have lots of summers to try again in the future!

Of course S'mores are always a huge hit with our family! Grandma built this fire pit this summer and we wasted no time breaking it in. We even got these extra large marshmallows. Such a fun night. Another fun summer Montana trip!

After a week at the cabin we packed up and headed to the airport. Once we got there we saw that our flight had been canceled and we wouldn't be able to go home until the next day. Well Spencer wasn't having that because he wanted to get home because he had tickets to the Angels game, so he bought a ticket right then and there at the airport and went home. I was left to fly home by myself the following day with the three kids. Now that was an interesting experience, but I survived. I even survived being picked up at LAX....but that is a whole other story for another day.

Bottom line: Montana was great. We survived the flights there and back, and we enjoyed some great family time!