Author: Stephen and Jodi

"Purr"fect Friends


“Kittay, kittay. Come Here Kittay.” Olivia has two new friends, Aerial and Socks, our cats. She is an eager friend, willing to chase them however far they want to roam. Remember Darla from “Finding Nemo”? As soon as she captures her “kittay” she hugs it with a one handed hold, feeling so proud. This makes us all smile!

Dare Devil Day


On the 4th of July we setup the “Red Neck” water slide at Grandpa Parker’s house. It is a great way to cool off and has become a family tradition. I tried going down laying on my back head first, on my stomach, surfing style, standing at the top and jumping in the air until I hit the slide, and in a train with my cousins. My favorite part was seeing how far I could go. Can’t wait ’till next year.

Cats Rule


Dad and Mom finally let us get some cats. Mom said she likes cats more than she does mice. Dad said we could have them as long as they don’t eat the birds or the rabbits. Mason and I are doing good taking care of them. We give them water and feed them every day. Mason named one of the kittens Socks. I named the other one Aerial. They ate a bird the other day – and left a bone at the back door.

Parker Family meets Laurel Lake


So, we talked about going on a fun hike with the family – one all the family could enjoy. The talk was of probably going to Jenny’s Lake. Feeling adventurous and unconventional Stephen went to google earth where he spotted a Lake near Jenny – this one with the name of Laurel. He claimed it was only steep for a quarter of a mile, and wanted to go there instead. I asked, “are you sure? We really want everyone to like hiking.” He reassured me and we went on our way. We canoed across String Lake, got out, and scrambled up the mountain to find the trail to Laurel Lake. After a while we found the trail through the midst of Lily’s screams and wailings. I have to say, I didn’t blame her – the weeds were almost as tall as her! According to Stephen’s GPS, we gained almost 2000 feet of elevation in less than a half of mile! Lucky for her, Uncle Paul was there and packed her on his back the rest of the vertical way. Once at the Lake the crazy ones (Paul, Stephen, Lex, Mason, and Bruce) jumped in and took a dip from the hot hike. Apparently it was icy cold. After that – Life was good again and we started down the trail. Going down was much better than going up, perhaps because we knew what we were in for this time? When all was said and done, we all had to thank Stephen for the amazing view of the Tetons and gorgeous landscape of the lakes and trees. Lily learned a good lesson – sometimes the journey is long and hard, but once you reach the end it is always worth it.