Day 4: Muffy's Ranch

For Labor Day we drove about an hour and a half into the mountains to Muffy's Ranch where my Aunt Brenda works during the summers. She takes care of the ranch their and when Muffy and her family aren't there (they live in New York) our family gets to enjoy it! It was a cold rainy day but we still managed to have some fun!

A beautiful setting in the Crazy Mountains.

This is the barn. Above the barn there is a two bedroom apartment for the caretakers where any of us who come up to help open and close the ranch have stayed. When I lived in Montana after my first year of college I cam e up here with my aunties and cousins and we stayed for the weekend and worked and had a blast. There's a small pond and a large pond, a hot tub which is set right into the field overlooking the mountains, trails, teepees and so many beautiful things to take pictures of!


Mike and Andrew took a hike up Target Rock, which is right behind Muffy's. The last time Andrew went up there he hiked by himself and was trailed by a pack of wolves!

Brady fished with Grandpa and Uncle Mike but her didn'c catch anything. He had so much fun though and fed the ducks too!

This is the dinner bell! We always eat out on the front porch! What a perfect place to sit back and enjoy and wonderful meal!!

On the front porch there are two of these awesome swings! We love to sit here and talk and play!

Brady and Grammie did some target shooting with the 22. I even took a shot and hit the target! Not too bad for only my second time ever shooting a gun!

Olivia kept herself busy by exploring. She found these little chairs just perfect for her!

Can you tell that made her happy???

When she wasn't exploring she was with Aunty Donna!!

Or being a rascal!!! She kept stealing food and biting into it and she followed this barn cat all around saying "meow, meow"..."Kitty, kitty"

Megan and Brady swinging in the woods overlooking the big pond! If it had been nice out we could have gone swimming and boating. They have one of those big water trampolines, a zip-line, canoes, kayaks and pontoon boats!

I walked around and took a few pictures, of course!

Day 5: Grotto Falls

One of the days in Montana we weren't doing very much so I decided to take a hike up to Grotto Falls which is in Hyalite Canyon- a beautiful camping and recreational area. My dad and Andrew came with me and the kids! It was a nice hike, but yet again, I wore sandals, which didn't help!

Olivia refuses to hold your hand when she walks and she refused to get into the baby carrier so most of the time either my dad or I had to hold her since she would try to wander away from us. In mountain lion country that's not a good idea!

There's a log across the stream that's fun to cross. On the other side there's a trail that you can climb to the top of the falls. Andrew went across and up to the top and then he came down the other side and brought Brady up.

We left our mark at the "mini-city of rocks" as Brady called it! He and Andrew built a rock tower together! I think it was the best one there!

Beautiful Montana!

Montana is such a beautiful state! I love the wide open spaces that allow you to see the beauty ALL around you! Here are a few pictures that I either took or one of my cousins took:

Gallatin Valley- where Bozeman and most of my family is