Montana Banana Banana

Eila has loved reading Trumpet of the Swans this year (E.B. White) and the setting for a key part of the story is in Montana...which is Eila's longed after summer vacationing spot where Gigi and Grandad have a cabin on the Swan River. One part of the book says says...Montana, Banana, Banana which always makes Eila laugh...so that is our title this year for our annual vacation posting to Montana.

 At Norm's News ("the old fashioned candy shop") with Gigi and Grandad

 Monkeying around with cousins ...for hours and hours!

 Going fishin' with Grandad

 Casting onto Loon Lake- Grandad, Cimi and Eila

 The girl's tea party at Chris's Tea Cottage in Bigfork

 Keya and Eila- investigating the "catch of the day"

 Rainbow on the Going to the Sun Road in Glacier National Park

 Little hail stones on the hike

 Playing in the snow on the Glacier Park hike

 The crew- Erika (and "bob jr" -hidden by the cold weather gear), Bob, Kushang, Eila, Kari and Sonja

 Bear hat view

 very tame chipmunk

 Us at the top!

 The mountain goats

 Snow angel!

A little meditation

 A deer bum

 Eila and Baelie at Swan Lake- gearing up for the boat ride

 Eila driving Grandad's boat

 Eating cookies with mommy and Gigi

 Petting a goose

 Eila making silly faces with Chuni (left) and Bella (right)

 Candy shop surprises!

On to this years vacation highlights as we have just returned from our 2 week summer getaway to the mountains. We had a wonderful, but all too fleeting, visit with many friends and family members. We saw Gigi and Grandad and Baelie (the favorite family dog), auntie Cindy (but somehow have not found our pictures with Cindy:(--Cindy can you help us with this!), cousins Keya and Cimeren and Michael mama and Bindi mami for the first week of craziness with a little hiking, tea partying, intertube tripping down the Swan River and jungle gym mania, and then we saw uncle Bob and auntie Erika (who has a baby belly that Eila calls "bob junior" now growing at mach speed--due 11/11/11) and auntie Sonja who came all the way from Denmark!  We had some great hiking in Glacier National Park and some wonderful cherry pie made by Gigi and Eila got to drive Grandad's new boat on Swan Lake. We are already ready for next year!