a good, busy saturday

i got up early this morning to get ready for the day and admired how long my hair is getting

it's so weird for me to have long hair

but i still like it so it's not going anywhere too soon

michael took the kids to get breakfast while i went to a 9am appointment to give blood

it went well and i'm always glad to be able to give

(you know, in between pregnancies every other year)

afterward we tried to go to a park by the river

and it was closed off for a triathalon AGAIN

this happened a few weeks ago, too

come on! 

so instead we went to the old penitentiary

it's a prison nearby that was in operation from 1873 to 1972

it's way old and kind of creepy but it was super interesting 

hazel refused to dress up or get her picture taken with these two adorable inmates :)

 just a little underground punishment cell

 exploring some of the bunk cells

 this one had four floors

 the conditions were not great

and it seemed pretty crazy that inmates were there as recently as the 70's

 death row

 it was a little hard to explain to the kids what "death row" and "death penalty" were

but noah swears he's going to be super good from now on :)

this is a picture of the trap door they used for hangings until the 1950's

(sorry about the reflection)

 there was a super interesting weapons museum there, too

olive was way in to these pole arms

 a sweet watch tower

 solitary confinement 

it said they didn't really cool it in the summer or heat it in the winter

and there would be ice on the walls

some people were in there for days and some up to a year

given 1-2 meals a day and a weekly shower

 the women's ward was finally opened after female prisoners were getting pregnant...

it was pretty funny and lax 

there was a sewing machine inside, and other things for them to develop hobbies

most of them weren't sentenced very long

 afterward we stopped for treats and lunch

because we were all hot and hungry

this italian ice was way good

 we drove to a state park that had a little man made lake to eat our lunch

and the kids got in wearing their normal clothes since we hadn't planned on going there

so we didn't pack swimsuits or towels

it was pretty awesome though

 and to top it off henry is three months today!

he's such a doll!

 and michael mowed the state of idaho into our backyard tonight

so there's that

now he's pretending he's dying while avoiding writing a talk for church tomorrow..

better him than me!