I'm baaaack....

And feeling so good! My trip out west was just what the doctor ordered. We had such a good time.

Y'all, I've never in my life seen such gorgeous scenery. I still can't get over it. We flew into Billings, Montana, and over the course of a week, circled Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park before flying back home (at 6:00!) yesterday morning.

The weather was warmer than we expected - they would have a heat wave the week we roll into town - but it was still pleasant. The lack of humidity was a wonderful thing. My hair actually stayed straight everyday instead of turning into a big frizzball like it does down here.

I can't begin to describe the landscape. Everywhere we went was so different. One day we'd be looking at rolling fields of wildflowers in front of a mountain backdrop, then the next day would be an uninhabitable terrain of boiling water and bubbling mud pits. Still another day was an arid landscape of red rocks jutting from bare earth. I, personally, really enjoyed the Tetons, which were still capped with snow in some areas.

As a family, we shared a lot of laughs over the week (mostly at each other's expense - at least we can joke on each other). It was wonderful to spend a week with my little brother, who is growing up faster than I'd like to admit. I got to see, first hand, how smart (and goofy) he is becoming.

I'm sure I could ramble on and on about my time out there, but it wouldn't do it any justice. So, without further ado, here are a few pictures from my trip. I'll try to get a Flickr page up and going soon with the rest - I don't want to bog Blogger down with too many right now.

The Tetons

The Tetons

South of Cody, Wyoming

My mom and stepdad

We saw SO many of these guys - one even crossed the road in front of us.

Elk - we actually saw a lot of wildlife. We saw antelope, bison, big horn sheep, a wolf, grizzly bear, mule deer, bald eagle, moose... and probably lots more that I'm not thinking of right now.

Old Trail Town in Cody, Wyoming - home to several old cabins, stores and saloons from the days of Jeremiah Johnson, Buffalo Bill Cody, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

During a hike in Alta, Wyoming

Lower Falls at the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone

The canyon

Part of the Yellowstone River

Outside the Museum of the Rockies in Bozeman, Montana