Nothing to fear, the Happys are
here: Nick, Clarise, Emma P., David, Emily F., William, Bailey, Kendrick, Madilyn,
Caroline W., Ashleigh, Sophie, and Tyler. We finally got to “sleep in” until
6:45!!! YAY! We arose from our deep, deep slumber to the frigid cold inside of
Ponderosa Campground. After tarping our
stuff, and dreading the cold water waiting for us, we headed off to go white-water
rafting. The company buses picked us up at 7:30, and we rode to the dropoff at
the Shoshone River. It was about a chilling 50 degrees when we arrived, and the
water was around 47 degrees. Everyone began to question their decisions after
feeling the cold, but the excitement led us forward. We got into our rafts
(with about 9 people in each) and began heading down the river. We rafted through beautiful scenery and some got to see hawks and deer watching over the river. One of the river
guides quickly became famous for wearing jorts (cut off jean shorts) on our
morning adventure.
The rapids moved quickly, and caused the front row to regret
their seating decisions due to big splashes of freezing water to the face. We ended our journey 12 miles down the freezing rapids
with frozen toes, but everyone thoroughly enjoyed the experience.
We made our way back to the
campground where a gourmet, hot breakfast prepared by Heather, Grant, and
Vickie awaited us. After our feast of eggs, grits, sausage, and toast, we all
took warm showers, did laundry, and got to call home.
After our free period, we all got
dressed for the rodeo. We decked out in our USA gear of headbands, tattoos,
glasses, shirts, shorts, bandanas, (mainly from Walmart) and let’s not forget
the 5x3 foot flag. Then we took plenty of pictures showing off our looks; even
the staff got a little festive with their outfits. Kendall was a little extra
with his outfit and went all out as a cowboy (it’s essential that you see the
pictures to understand). Though he may have been the most decked out, we all
were proudly representing the U.S.A. in complete red, white, and blue.
Once we headed on over to the
rodeo, we each took our turns on the mechanical bull and many of us also chose
to purchase some authentic cowboy hats. Between the laughs, cheers, and
handfuls of popcorn, we all thoroughly enjoyed the display of the “cowboy
lifestyle.” We held our breaths as men held on to bulls and broncos as tightly
as they could, and cheered as women expertly maneuvered their horses around barrels.
By the time the show ended, we were all wishing that it could continue for
longer. Tonight some of us went to Dairy Queen, and then we all went to a big hill to watch the fireworks. Happy 4th! Tomorrow, we are on to Mt. Rushmore!! See ya then, and stay happy with the Happys!
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| White Water rafting early in the AM! |
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| Heather, Vickie and Grant cooking breakfast while the kiddos are white water rafting |
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| Our campground... Ponderosa Campground in Cody, Wyoming! |
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| Everyone smiles for breakfasts that aren't pop-tarts or muffins! |
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| EVERYONE loves the breakfast!! |
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| The amazing Vicky, Grant, and Heather served us a delicious breakfast (eggs, grits, sausage, and toast)! |
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| The cooks at Walmart buying lunch and dinner for today |
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| All the lads and their American attire! |
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| Riley, Caroline, Emma, and Madilyn |
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| Hayden, Abby, and Bryce |
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| Happy 4th!!! |
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| Heather and Whitney's outfits are no match for Jackson and Will's outfits |
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| Peyton, Vickie, and Ann Scott show off their tutus |
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| Claire, Connor, and Megan match necklaces |
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| Lauren had the Preamble "tattooed" across her arm! She is alongside Hiley and Ashleigh. |
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| Brice and Sam show off their glasses and staches! |
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| Happy 4th from Cody, Wyoming |
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| The cool kids! |
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| Our amazing staff looking good! |
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| We took on the rodeo with our crazy outfits and loud chants! |
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| Hayden taking on the bull! |
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| I wanna be a cowboy, baby! |
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| Emma takes a big fall off the bull |
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| Abbey crushes the mechanical bull! |
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| Heather destroyed the mechanical bull! |
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| Heather shows how she doesn't even need to see which way the bull goes |
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| Riley rocks out on the bull! |
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| Cowgirls started the rodeo by running american flags throughout the arena |
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| A cowgirl chases a steer into the pen after it was wrestled to the ground. |
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| The cowboys are getting ready to wrangle the bulls. |
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| All of us are cheesin' at the rodeo in our patriotic gear! |
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| All smiles at the rodeo |
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| We repped America outside our campground after the rodeo by getting cars to honk for us! |
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| The cooks prepared a delicious dinner of Hot-dogs, watermelon, and really really cheesy mac and cheese. |
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| Grant, Audrey, Whitney, Henry, Gabe, and Haven prepare meals for tomorrows long ride |
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| We waited for a long long time for the fireworks to start! |
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| Chris, Peyton, and Mary shared research about about the Shoshone River, the rodeo, and the city of Cody, Wyoming |
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| Once the fireworks started we were blessed with a beautiful 30 minute show, Most would say that this was the best firework show they had seen. |
