Scotland: Last Day

During our last day in Scotland we spent some time at the sports court to run around and have some fun.  The boys had fun shoot baskets and trying to dribble the ball.  We also brought a soccer ball and kicked it around.  

I love how the boys love sports.  Canyon's cute little pose cracks me up and I love the determination in Emerson's face.

We had a great time in Scotland.  It was so nice to get away and spend some time together.  No work, no distractions, just fun and family.

Ben-ye-Vrackie

While we were in Scotland we had planned on hiking Ben Nevis, which is the tallest peak in Scotland, but when the weather forecast said to was going to be really rainy and yucky we had a change of plans.  Stephen did some research and we found a hike up a mountain that was much closer to where we were staying and it was also not as long of a walk, just incase the weather got bad.

They boys were both troopers and started the hike walking.  They were both fascinated by everything - the water, trees, dirt, rocks, sticks, and SLUGS!  Emerson thought the slugs we so cool that we took a picture of one of them.  He spent most of the hike pointing out all the black slugs as we walked past them.

Canyon hanging out in the backpack.  As you can see from these pictures it was very foggy/misty that day.  It was somewhat eeire walking along and not being able to see very far in front of you.  When we walked past the lake pictured below I thought of how it looked more like how I was expecting Loch Ness to be.  

We didn't make it to the top.  We got pretty close but the weather wasn't getting any better and the hike was getting a lot steeper.  We decided to take a break and have some lunch before heading down the mountain.

Eleanor was such a trooper.  She did great in the baby carrier and was so comfy that she slept most the time we were on our hike.  She is our youngest hiker thus far (just a little something to hold over her brothers heads later on).

Little ice crystals on Stephen's hair and eyebrows.  Though it wasn't Ben Nevis we had a great time going for a walk as a family up Ben-ye-Vrackie.  (I think it was probably my favorite day of our trip in Scotland.)

Scotland Day 4 or 5?

During one of the days in Scotland we spent the afternoon playing around.  We first had fun playing a little mini golf.  The boys enjoyed golfing.  Emerson golfed all by himself and did relatively well.

Stephen had a couple of issues at some of the holes and I managed to hit mine off of the course once or twice.

After finishing about half of the holes Emerson and Canyon got distracted by a playground nearby.

Then after a little while at the playground they got distracted by an even bigger playground/obstacle course.

We all enjoyed this nice relaxing day spending some quality time together playing around outside.

Scotland: Day Three

Our third day in Scotland was Sunday.  We drove for a couple hours to Inverness and went to church there.  (I should have taken pictures.  It was the smallest church building I've ever seen and it was right next to a beautiful river.)  After church we went a found a quite spot at Loch Ness to have lunch.  It was a very beautiful and sunny day.  (Which was wonderful, but on such a beautiful sunny day it was hard to believe that there was a sea monster living in the depths of that lake.)  

After lunch the boys had fun throwing rocks in the lake.

Before leaving Loch Ness we took these photos of the three kiddos.  It was so lush and beautiful I couldn't resist.

Scotland Trip: First Two Days

We got to our house in Scotland in the afternoon and after unloading the car and eating some dinner Stephen and the boys went for a walk down to the river.  They had a lot of fun throwing rocks into the water and seeing how big of a splash they could make.

Above: Emerson blowing a flower.  Below: Canyon's fruit smoothie mustache.

The next morning Stephen and the boys had some fun after breakfast throwing the football around.  Canyon and Emerson kept throwing it over the deck and making daddy run around to try and get it.

Eleanor relaxing on the couch.

After we went swimming the boys fed some ducks that were walking past our house.  They had a lot of fun watching the ducks scurry around trying to get the bread.  Emerson asked me later that day if I thought the ducks would be back tomorrow so that they could feed them again.  Unfortunately they didn't return.

The rest of our second day in Scotland we spent enjoying the sunshine and going for little walks.  

Preston Temple

On our way to Scotland we spent the night at the temple in Preston.

The next morning we spent a little time walking around the temple grounds and taking a couple pictures of our family before continuing our journey to Scotland.

It was a very special feeling to be at the temple for the first time with Eleanor.