Hello and welcome to another Fabulous Friday!
Being on vacation made the week go by even faster than normal!
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We had such a wonderful time, but are glad to be back home!
If you missed last week’s post and want to know where we went on the first half of our vacation, click here!
Today we are sharing the highlights of the second half of our trip!
What we’ve been up to this week
Graduation Day
We started the week in Bozeman Montana!
Last Friday afternoon was our son’s graduation day from Montana State University!
It’s official, he graduated Summa Cum Laude with an Earth Science/Paleontology Track degree!
After the ceremony, we went to John and Dawn Ripley’s home!
Their Daughter Anna also graduated and they hosted a party for the kid’s family and friends!
They are the most gracious hosts and treated Harrison like an adopted son for the last four years!! We are so thankful for their presence in our life!
While we were there, we visited the paleontology lab Harrison works in, enjoyed Mother’s Day touring the Museum of the Rockies, went bird-watching in one of his favorite local parks, and took a day trip to Yellowstone National Park!
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone is my favorite national park! There are so many different kinds of natural wonders that you feel like you’re on another planet!
Here are a few of the highlights in case you’ve never been there!
Hot Springs
Gorgeous deep aqua-blue pools of extremely hot water surrounded by orange, brown, and terra cotta-colored bacteria!
Mudpots
Boilng and bubbling mud is quite a sight to see!
Travertine terraces
Hot water and limestone interact underground and create chalk-white terraces on the surface.
Geysers
These interesting features erupt with steaming hot water.
This one is small, but the largest we saw was Old Faithful, it erupts several times daily.
We have pictures of it, but the steam is so thick, you can’t see the water, that’s why we decided to show the smaller one instead!
Lakes
Notice the snow-covered mountains behind the frozen lake and the boiling hot pots on the edge.
There are stories of fishermen in the 1800s catching fish and then cooking them in a hot pot before removing them from their fishing line! How amazing is that?
Waterfalls
Here is a small waterfall! We were not able to see the largest one in the park because the road was still closed with snow.
Wildlife
One of my favorite things about this park is the wildlife viewing!
We got to see elk, pronghorn, and bighorn sheep!
Here are a few pictures of other animals we encountered!
We saw bison in many areas of the park!
Here, we got an up-close view as they walked down the road right beside our car!
We were lucky to see baby calves, nicknamed “red dogs” for their color!
The most exciting part of the day was seeing this MaMa bear with her two babies!
Don’t worry, we were in our car and they were very far away from us, Harrison took this picture with a zoom lens.
But then, a few minutes later, we spotted another grizzly bear on the edge of the road!
Thank goodness we were in our car because it was so close to us!!
Isn’t this an amazing picture??
If you enjoy seeing pictures of wildlife (mostly birds) follow Harrison’s Instagram account, he’s a great photographer!
Wow! It was a fabulous 11 days of travel, family, friends, and amazing scenery!
Thanks for letting us share it with you!
Now it’s back to reality and the daily grind, lol!!
What we’ve been up to on the blog
As soon as we returned home, we participated in the Fabulous Friday Garden Blog Hop, where we shared how to make these adorable garden markers!
Are you ready for some garden inspiration???
Click to see our garden marker tutorial and 11 other garden-related posts!
Fabulous Finds
Speaking of gardening, here are some fabulous garden finds we spotted online this week!
Fabulous Friday Link Party
Welcome to the Fabulous Friday Link Party
The Fabulous Friday Link Party is where we celebrate everything about the home.
You will find inspiration from dozens of bloggers, including recipes, home DIY, gardening, decor, and more.
As a courtesy to the hosts, we ask that you follow every host on at least one social media platform. If you find something that makes you smile, please pin it and add a comment telling them you love their work.
WE WOULD LOVE TO SEE WHAT YOU’RE UP TO ON YOUR BLOGS, SO PLEASE JOIN IN AND SHARE YOUR INSPIRATIONS IN THE LINK BELOW
YOU MAY BE OUR NEXT FEATURE!
The Party runs from Friday @ 8:00 am (EST) through Monday @ 12 Noon
Let’s Meet Our Hosts & Check Out This Week’s Features
Please Follow the Hosts on 1 Social Platform
- Rich & Donna – AN ORGANIZED SEASON | FB | IG | PINTEREST
- Diane – SOUTH HOUSE DESIGNS | FB | IG | PINTEREST
- Lynn – LIVING LARGE IN A SMALL HOUSE | FB | IG | PINTEREST
- Michele – VINTAGE HOME DESIGNS | FB | IG | PINTEREST
- Amy – AMY SADLER DESIGNS | FB | IG | PINTEREST
- Wendy – WMDESIGN HOUSE | FB | IG | PINTEREST
Top Viewed
We love all the fabulous moss craft projects that have been showing up lately. Coco from The Crowned Goat Repurposed an old silver urn by covering it with moss for a lovely summer vase.
Very Popular
Susan from Hen and Horse Design has a fantastic summer salad recipe with a homemade orange, honey, and walnut vinegarette that is easy to make in under 30 minutes.
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Barbara from Mantel and Table whipped up this incredible appetizer. Not only will this look amazing on your table, but it is delicious with a touch of whipped ricotta and balsamic vinegar.
You will want to make one of these flags if you have excess corks for the upcoming Memorial Day holiday. Niky from The House on Silverado made this box and added corks to create a festive flag.
Editor’s Choice
I love anything garden-related, so my choice this week was, hands down, this darling wreath from Lora @ Lora Bloomquist. I have made flower pot wreaths before, but using the peat pots was brilliant!
Let’s Get This Party Started
We are excited to see your Elegant Home Decor, Crafts & DIY Projects, Vintage & Antiques, Gardens & Outdoor Spaces, and Seasonal Decor.
Now it’s your turn to link away
- Please follow all of our hosts on social media and say hello!
- Add up to 3 family-friendly posts. NO Etsy shops, adult sites, advertising round-ups, other link parties, or sales promotions. We appreciate it.
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- It’s not a party if you aren’t mingling! Visit others. Caring is sharing. Like, comment, and pin posts.
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- By linking to the Fabulous Friday’s Link Party, you let us share your post and images on our blogs and social media. We will always give proper credit to photos and link back.
The Party runs from Friday @ 8:00 am (EST) through Monday @ 12 Noon
Let the Party Begin
**Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, we will receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. We appreciate your support. (disclosure policy)
What an amazing trip, Donna! The way you captured the details of your trip is fabulous and what a fun way to celebrate graduation too. It’s such a big deal. Thank you so much for featuring my moss urn this week, I really appreciate it! Big hugs and thank yous, CoCo
You are so welcome, Coco! We appreciate you stopping by and participating in the link party each Friday! We had such a wonderful celebration and vacation!
Hey Donna!
Looks like you had a fabulous trip!! Yellowstone is SO fun, isn’t it?! That bear is crazy!!! What an amazing picture. Thanks so much for hosting…fun features this week! Enjoy the weekend ahead!
I know Rachel, it was so great to actually see bears and thankful our son got such great pictures! Yellowstone is awe inspiring!
Thanks so much for featuring my strawberry crostini, Donna! You guys are so sweet! And I love catching up with your family – CONGRATULATIONS to the graduate, and what a wonderful vacation! Wow, those are fabulous photos – of the bear closeup especially! I’m going to check out his IG for sure. Thanks again for the feature – I can’t wait to see what everyone’s up to this week!
Hi Barbara and thank you for your kind words! I need to take photography lessons from my son, lol! His IG has some amazing pictures, I think you will really enjoy it! Thanks for linking up, we appreciate you being here!
What a wonderful trip, Donna, and congratulations to Harrison! I know you and Rich are so proud! Thanks so much for hosting this fabulous party, and I hope you have a lovely week!
Hi Kim! Thanks for coming to the party and linking up! We had such a wonderful time, it’s hard getting back into our everyday routine! Hope you have a great week too!