Things to do around Idaho

We are in the middle of winter, surrounded by snow for a long time.  While you may be enjoying all the winter sports, like we are, you may be itching for something new and cool to do with your family.  This website offers great family activities to do around our neck of the woods and all around Idaho.  I'm already planning our summer activity list!

www.visitidaho.org/thingstodo/

What a quick get-away to Sun Valley?

Check out this great article by the NY Times on what to in SV in 36 hours:

http://travel.nytimes.com/2010/12/12/travel/12hours.html?src=dayp

The boys of fall

Every fall, my husband takes my oldest son to a BSU game.  It is the ultimate highlight of the year for our little guy.  Literally, the entire town dresses up in blue and orange on game days.  I didn't understand the magnitude of it until I was actually in Boise on one of the game days.  Wow!  I am a spirited person, but have never seen such school spirit come from a town.  Pretty neat to see!  So, if you have caught some Bronco fever, then get yourself to a game.  Make sure to bundle up since it's getting mighty cold out there.

Go BSU!

Football - 2010 Schedule Season 2016-172015-162014-152013-142012-132011-122010-112009-102008-092007-082006-072005-062004-052003-042002-032001-022000-011999-001998-991997-981996-97 Share|

Date Opponent BSU Rank Opp Rank Location Time (MST) Results Media   Mon, Sep 06  Virginia Tech 5 6 at Fed Ex Field   6:00 pm 33 - 30 (W)  ESPN    Sat, Sep 18  Wyoming 3 - at Laramie, WY   6:00 pm 51 - 6 (W)  CBS College Sports    Sat, Sep 25  Oregon State 3 24 Bronco Stadium   6:00 pm 37 - 24 (W)  ABC/ESPN     Sat, Oct 02  New Mexico State * 3 - at Las Cruces, NM   6:00 pm 59 - 0 (W)  KTVB    Sat, Oct 09  Toledo 4 - Bronco Stadium   6:00 pm 57 - 14 (W)  KTVB    Sat, Oct 16  San Jose State * 2 - at San Jose, CA   6:00 pm 48 - 0 (W)  KTVB    Tue, Oct 26  Louisiana Tech * 2 - Bronco Stadium   6:00 pm 49 - 20 (W)  ESPN 2     Sat, Nov 06  Hawai'i * 4 - Bronco Stadium   1:30 pm 42 - 7 (W)  ESPNU     Fri, Nov 12  Idaho * - - at Moscow, ID   7:00 pm 52 - 14 (W)  ESPN 2    Fri, Nov 19  Fresno State * 3 - Bronco Stadium   7:30 pm 51 - 0 (W)  ESPN 2     Fri, Nov 26  Nevada * - - at Reno, NV   8:15 pm ESPN2    Sat, Dec 04  Utah State * - - Bronco Stadium   1:00 pm KTVB

* Conference Games

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Portland with kids

I just got back from a whirlwind trip to Portland (literally one night) and really enjoyed being a part of a big city again.  Something refreshing and intriguing about that city.

If you are looking for a easy family trip, Portland is a great choice.  You can drive 9 hours from Sun Valley or hop an easy 1 hour flight from Boise.

While there, you MUST visit the Portland Zoo. We are a big zoo family and that zoo is my favorite of all time, especially the elephant exhibit.  www.oregonzoo.com

Perfectly enough, right across the parking lot, is the fantastic Portland Children's Museum where kids can explore and imagine all day long.  www.portlandcm.org

Both of those venues can offer a day full of family fun time that every parent dreams about.

Now that I'm back and Thanksgiving is almost here, I'm super excited about Christmas in our dream town of Sun Valley. As much as I cherish and adore summertime, this is the most magical time of year around here.  The snow, the lights, the events.  Plus, now that Sun Valley is celebrating its 75th year (Happy Birthday!) it should be one of the best years ever.

Halloween at the Boise Zoo

If you are looking for a road trip or will already be in Boise, be sure not to miss Boo at the Zoo on Saturday, October 30th from 10:00am-5:00pm.  It's a great family activity at the Boise Zoo and will definitely get you in the holiday mood.

Dress up your little darlings in their cute costumes and enjoy trick or treating around the zoo, plus a costume contest, a bat toss, pumpkin patch photos, and face painting all while checking at the animals at the zoo.

Cost is $7 for adults, $4.25 for children (ages 4-11), $4.50 for seniors (62 and over) and free for children under age 3.  Of course, if you are a Friends of Zoo Boise Annual Pass holder (highly recommend it for the future) you may enter free and have a special entrance gate!

We went to this event last year and our kids had a blast.  There will be  A LOT of people there, so plan ahead.

Eastern State Fair

Our goal for yesterday was to make it over to Blackfoot, Idaho for the Eastern Idaho State Fair. After taking a quick look at the weather, we realized that it was going to be mighty windy there yesterday, so we had a quick change of plans and headed to Twin Falls  for the Filer Fair.  Unfortunately, the Filer Fair ends TODAY, but the Eastern Idaho State Fair goes until September 11th, so you have plenty of time to make it over for some carnival games and elephant ears.  Oh, carnival food....so good, yet so bad.  Going to the fair is not a cheap family outing.  We were quite conservative in our spending and still spent $60 for the five of us, but by the big smiles on the kids faces, it was worth it!

For more info on the fair, click HERE

Day trip to Custer City

Earlier this summer, we heard about Custer City and have been waiting for the perfect weekend to make a visit.  Custer City is an old mining town that has now turned into a Ghost Town tucked away in a beautiful canyon, one that makes you fall in love with Idaho even more.  Custer City is very well preserved and has a lot of volunteers to make your experience even more enriching.  

The ride up to Custer City is just as enchanting as the old town.  You travel along the Salmon River for a majority of your trip.  The town is located about 23 miles from Stanley.

This dredge is an old metal/wood boat that back in the 50's basically gobbled up a good portion of the Salmon River looking for gold.  They found over $1,000,000 worth of gold!  It's rumored to be more gold than found in California. The tour of the dredge was fascinating, but went right over the kid's heads.  

This is the view from Custer City---just lovely! 

 They still have quite a few of the original houses decorated with the original furniture.  Lots of old stories are posted and told around the town and I kept wanting to learn more and more.  It's a very fascinating town, probably one of the best ghost towns that I have ever visited.  

Panning for gold was one of our favorite activities. A nice volunteer helped us find our spec of gold.  The kids were hoping for large chunks of gold, but were satisfied with their spec.  It made us realize that searching for gold is not as easy as it would seem.

You can actually walk a long distance checking out old ruins and marker sites. Since the location is so nice, it makes for a great time.  All the volunteers were very knowledgable and friendly.

By the time you are done with Custer City, you may be hungry.  Luckily for you, Grumpy's North just opened up at Sunbeam which is on your way back to Stanley.  

We chose to sit outside surrounded by pinetrees,  overlooking the highway and the river. Grumpy's, which is only open on weekends during the summer, was a perfect way to end our day trip.

Directions to Custer City:  10 miles from Highway 75 on Forest Road 013.  If you are coming from Stanley, once you see Grumpy's North, turn left and continue on down the road.

A fun outing on the way up to Redfish

(photo courtesy of Google Images)

Last weekend, we spent our day at Redfish Lake--one of my favorite summer activities.  On our way up, we decided to stop at the Sawtooth Fish Hatchery.  What a pleasant surprise!  I was expecting tiny little gray fish, but instead we encountered hundreds and hundreds of salmon!  Not growing up in the NW, I'm still in awe of salmon.  We were even able to experience adult salmon swimming up stream in the Salmon River.  I wish I could have recorded my kids constant giggles after watching the salmon jump.  Unfortunately, I even forgot my camera for this trip!

Now is the perfect time of year to visit Sawtooth Fish Hatchery and learn a few lessons about these beautiful fish.  When we went, the visitor center was closed, but we were still allowed access to view all the fish.

One section of the hatchery contains the adult salmon and the other section has all the babies. I don't know which one was more fun to watch.  Seriously, the kids were constantly laughing!   We got a kick out of all of it.  In between both sections, there is a children's fishing pond.  One of these days, we are going to go back and take the kids fishing there.  So glad that we stopped by the Sawtooth Fish Hatchery for a little diversion during our drive to Redfish, it made our day even more special!


For more info on the hatchery, click HERE

Traveling to Spokane?

If you are traveling to Spokane, Washington and are looking for some outdoor activities for your family, check out this cool new blog created by an old college friend.

http://spokanesunflowersociety.blogspot.com/

I think he's on to something!

Family Visit to the Boise Capital Building

One day, the kids and I had around one hour in downtown Boise to kill.  I saw the Boise Capital Building and knew that this was our chance to check it out.  So glad that we did!  Right when we walked in, the beauty of the building took my breath away.  The Capital Building just recently underwent reconstruction and it is stunning. From floor to ceiling, it is pristine marble.

For the most part, the building was rather quiet since  group tours won't begin until closer to the new year.   One of these days, I would love to take a group tour and learn more about the fascinating history. Yet, we were able to go around the whole building and check everything out.  We even got to peak into the Governor's office, which excited all of us!

For more free or cheap family activities around Boise, click HERE

Redfish Lake

Summer for our family  means a trip north to Redfish Lake.  Redfish is located about one hour from Ketchum and a tad south of Stanley.  The trip up to the lake is simply gorgeous. This time of year, everything is as green as can be, there are some wildflowers on the side of the road, and the peaks of the mountain are still covered in snow.

No wonder Yahoo! Travel just named Redfish Lake as one of America's best swimming holes.   With Redfish's clean and clear water, it doesn't surprise me.  Check it out HERE

For our family, we like to park near the main lodge.  That is where the majority of people are also parked, but it makes for more fun.  Plus, you have easy access to the restrooms and the food.

The main lodge also boasts sweet rocking chairs on their front porch and a large grass area for family and kids to play.  There is also a sit down estaurant inside that we have never tried.

If you do get hungry and ran out of your snacks, head on over to the cabana next to the lodge.  There you will find quick pre-made food and delicious (and cheap) ice cream cones.  Never can go wrong with one of their ice cream cones.  We usually buy ice cream and then take a walk around the lake.

There are a lot of camping options all around the lake.  You can pretty much be guaranteed an amazing view. If camping isn't your thing, then Redfish has quite a few cabins that you can rent. They range from very nice on the lake cabins, to very basic cabins.  These two cabins shown above are literally across the path from the lake and just steps from the lodge.  One of these days, I am hoping to rent one of these and enjoy the entire weekend up at Redfish.  For more information on the cabins or just on Redfish, click HERE

Every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, the lodge hosts live music on it's lawn.  So, don't forget your chairs, towels and your dancing shoes!  We love to end our day with a some music on the lawn.

One small glitch about Redfish....the water is pretty darn cold! The mountain snow is melting off into the lake.  This is about as far as I could get into the water.  Typically, by the end of summer, the water is much warmer and swimmable.  Still, it's never a bad time to go to Redfish.  They rent out a wide range of water crafts----paddle boats, water bikes, etc.  Highly recommend bringing your own and renting one at the lake.  It will allow you to enjoy the pristine waters of Redfish even more.

Hope you enjoy your trip to Redfish and don't forget the sunscreen.  We will be there quite a few more weekends this summer, so we will see you on the water.

Idaho's Wildest Rodeo this Saturday

If you are looking for a rooting tooting good time, then make the drive over to Mackay for their 65th Annual Rodeo on Saturday, June 19th.    It will definitely get you in the mood for summer and rodeo season.  

My family has gone a few times and the rodeo always promises a good time or some good people watching!  One year, a bull broke loose and ran onto the adjacent golf course.  It gave some golfers the scare of their life and the rodeo spectators something to talk about for months!

Adults (13 and older):  $8

Kids (6 -12 ):  $4

For tickets or more information, call:  (208) 588-3027

Shoneshone Falls

If you are looking for a simple day trip of need an extra activity to entertain your kids while you are in Twin Falls, then may I suggest a visit Shoshone Falls.  Our family took a trip there the other day and never realized what a great natural beauty we have not too far from home.  With all the rain we have been having lately, now is a perfect time to visit the Falls.

Many call the Shoshone Falls "the Niagara Falls of the West".  A title it is worthy of.

It costs $3 per car to enter the park.  On your way in, be sure to keep your eyes open for the elk farm.  We were fortunate to have 3 elk right at the fence when we drove in.  Plenty of tourists were around, so it was neat to see how popular Shoshone Falls is.

After viewing the falls and playing "I spy" with the kids, we decided to walk around Dierks Lake.  It's about a 2 mile walk that goes around the entire lake.  We saw fisherman, kayakers, kids playing in the water, rock climbers, and a handful of hikers.  The lake walk is a scenic walk with lots of things for kids to do along the way.

There is a good size fenced off swimming hole with a lifeguard at the lake.  They even have a smaller section for non-swimmers to waddle in the water and play in the sand.  Even though the day was mild and cloudy, families were still enjoying that.

After the hike, the kids played for awhile at the playground near the entrance of Dierks Lake, but we didn't last long there since all of our bellies were growling!  A trip to Twin Falls is never complete without a trip to Cafe Rio on Blue Lakes!

To learn more about Shoshone Falls,  click HERE or www.visitidaho.org.

We're back!

We thoroughly enjoyed our road trip to Arizona.  Lots of driving in the car, which wasn't so enjoyable, but always an adventure.

Oh, the Arizona warmth and being with the family does a body good.

I was expecting all the snow to be gone (wishful thinking) when we got back, so I was a little bummed to see a yard still full of the white stuff.  Yet, we have spotted the robins, so spring is on it's way!

I will spare you all the details about our road trip and all the cool things we did in Arizona, but I do want to mention one a great day trip option to Thanksgiving Point, Utah.

http://www.thanksgivingpoint.com/

Geepers, that place is awesome and so perfect for families.  We were on a time crunch, so we could only explore the Dinosaur Museum, but next time, we will definitely venture to the farm and the garden and perhaps some shopping for me!

The  museum is hands-on for kids and kept our toddler, preschooler and kindergarten thoroughly entertained for more than 2 hours.

Seeing how big the dinosaurs actually were, was an amazing sight!

Also, the museum was very educational for me.  They had an actual palentoligist in the museum and we watched him work on reconstructing an actual dinosaur whose bones were discovered in Colorado.

In one area of the museum, they had a large water and sand table that took up the entire room.  Little kids were having a grand ball having their mini- dinos tramp around all the water and sand. It was a little boy mecca.

Literally, within walking distance is the farm, the shopping, and the hotel that we stayed at.  I believe you have to drive a little ways to the garden.

Thanksgiving Point is a new" must visit again" spot for our family!  Only down fall?  Target is a distance away, but I was still able to make a quick visit!

Are you ready?

Spring break is almost here!  One of the first things I noticed about this valley is how many of us actually go away for spring break. The spring break love never died, even as we have gotten older.  Even a trip to Boise is worth getting excited for! It's spring break and it's time to P-L-A-Y!

This year, we are driving down to AZ.  Yes, I said driving.  That means about 17 hours in the car, each way.  This is what I will be looking at most 1/8 of the time.

The other 7/8 of the time, I will be breaking up arguments, passing back food/water and singing silly songs to keep the kids entertained.  

Yet, it will all be worth it, because after those 17 hours, this is what I will be looking at...

Did I mention that the current temperature is 80 degrees and how fabulous the Arizona shopping is.  Or did I tell you all about the delicious Mexican food?

Here's to some amazing, memory making spring break trips wherever you may be headed! Safe Travels.

If you are staying local, that is also the new current cool thing to do as well.  I have a few tidbits on local happenings that I will be sharing in the very near future.

Stay tuned!

Boise play center

If you are headed to Boise with the kids, be sure to check out this fun play center:

http://rafikiplay.com/

We just heard about this cool place, so we have yet to try it, but it's on our "must-see" next time we are at the City of Trees.

If you go, please be sure to tell me all about it.

Dinosaur Land

If you have a dinosaur lover in your family, then a trip to Ogden, Utah's Dinosaur Park is a must see.  We went there last year and the kids have been begging to go back.

When you first enter Dinosaur Park, it is a large indoor building that is dimly lit.  This set the mood for the scary dinosaurs.  You will find dinosaur bones, dinosaur replicas--like a large T-Rex, and a cool talking exhibit that scared our oldest son. The indoor portion of the park is modern and up to date.  We were enjoying our time looking at everything, but the kids really wanted to get outside to run around and see the "dinosaurs".

The outdoor park is more out dated and the dinosaurs could use a fresh coat of paint, but the kids didn't seem to care at all.  They loved racing to and discovering each dinosaur.  When the weather is beautiful, you can spend hours there, plus the surrounding view is gorgeous! A highlight for the kids was the sandpit.  They could dig for dinosaur bones and just be kids.

The entire park wasn't crowded at all and we were there right before a holiday weekend.  They have a playground for kids to also play on.

Our dinosaur loving kids really were into the whole park and I would highly recommend it.  Our kids were all under the age of 5 when we went, but older kids would also enjoy the experience!

Click here to check out their website for more details. It's a cool website that your kids might enjoy as well.

As for the town of Ogden, I wasn't too impressed, but I'm sure there is much more for us to discover there.  If all else fails, there is a Target!

We stayed at the Hampton Inn and Suites in downtown Ogden and it was a very nice hotel. We got a corner room that was extremely spacious and clean.  Huge bonus!

www.hamptoninn.com

Happy Travels!

Trip to Boise

I love our town, I really do.  Yet, sometimes, we have to venture out and explore the rest of the great world (or our state).
We wanted to take our kids on a fun play day, so we went to the Boise Zoo first.

We are big fans of the zoo.  This time around, we decided to become zoo members and our membership is valid at over 100 zoos and aquariums in the United States.  It will take us two trips to the zoo for the membership to pay for itself. Since we frequent quite a bit of zoos, it's worth it for us.

The Boise Zoo is the perfect size for toddlers and preschoolers to run around and play.  We make it around the entire zoo in less than hour and there is never a huge crowd.   They mainly have smaller animals, but they do have lions, tigers and giraffes. Oh my!  One of our favorites is the pengiun exhibit, even though it reminds me of Happy Feet every time.

From the zoo, we went to Chuck E. Cheese.

This was our first time there since I was a little girl and I must admit that it was very overwhelming.  Loud noises, flashing lights, unsupervised kids running around screaming and video game after video game.  Have I sold you on it yet?

The kids did have a great time at Chuck E. Cheese though, so that made it worth it and now we can say that we have gone.

For the 2+ hour car ride home, it was pure silence for 3 little kids.

Sun Valley ski tickets

Cheap deal of the day...

Costco has 2 day Sun Valley lift tickets for $128! That's only $64/day instead of $85! 

Come visit Sun Valley--for cheap!

Hot Deal for a Cool Place

  Horizon Air  is now offering non-stop flights from LA to Sun Valley starting at $99!