Halloween Ideas, Safe Trick-or-Treating

This coming weekend is Halloween weekend and I thought I would post some things that you could do this weekend.

1. Boo at The Zoo: Oct 28, 29, 30th from 5- 8:30 PM Admission is $4. They have trick or treating around the zoo as well as crafts and costume contests.

2. Trick or Treat Street: Oct 29th 3-6 PM (Go early, it gets crazy) is at Snake River Landing. Kids trick or treat to businesses and RVS.

3. Trick or Treat on the Greenbelt: Oct 30 6-7 PM games and candy is given out along the green belt by the LDS young single adults.

4. Ririe Spooktackular: Oct 30 4:30- 6 PM this is an event that you can go and enjoy the whole time. A fundraiser dinner starts at 4:30 along with hayrides, there is a pumpkin carving contest, a trunk or treat along main street, and a haunted fire house. It's in downtown Ririe.

I know there are more but those are just the ones I know the most about, have a fun Halloween everybody. Below are the pictures of the pumpkins my husband and I carved for our date this week. We got them at the pumpkin patch a few weeks ago.

West Yellowstone, MT - Pizza, Playmill

This was a last minute trip that we made with my sister to meet up with my grandma and her husband before the weather got bad. We didn't go into Yellowstone because it's costs about $25 a car.

The drive was beautiful, about 1 1/2 hours north of Rexburg, just follow highway 20. The town of West Yellowstone is full of cute little touristy shops. There is a Bear and Wolf discovery center and an Imax theater. In the off season (i.e.- not summer) there are quite a few places that are closed, but during the summer it does get pretty busy, so be warned of that.

We ate lunch at Wild West Pizzeria and it was SO SO good. By recommendation we tried a local favorite that had bbq sauce, baked beans, red onions, and beef on it. It was way better than I expected, it was great. We also had the "Sitting Bull" which was basically meat lovers but also so good. It's also right across from the Playmill theater, which was closed for winter, but we'll be going to a show next summer for sure.

We also had ice cream at a place where they mix whatever flavors you want and there was a super cute little candy store with all sorts of old and new candies.

Anyway, it was a fun little trip, I love exploring new places.

Pumpkin Patches and the Rexburg Straw Maze

We had some company this last weekend and their request was to do something "fall-y" there are quite a few Straw or Corn Mazes around here so we choose the Rexburg Straw Maze, which is close to Big Juds where we ate lunch. We made it through the maze pretty fast, but we know it took longer for most people. We also thought it was fun enough to go in again. We did it three times. We opted to go during the day because they haunt it on weekend nights, and I definitely see how it could be scary. I know the weather looks yucky, but it doesn't matter, it stays warm in the maze.

You can buy pumpkins at the maze, but I am a firm believer in going to a real pumpkin patch. Last year we used this website to find a pumpkin patch. We choose Ashland Produce in Jefferson county. It's a cute little farm between Rigby and Ririe where you can either pick pre-picked pumpkins or pick them from the field. From the field they are $.20 a pound and they are beautiful pumpkins.
Look at these beauties:

Also we couldn't resist a few cheesey pics of the baby:

See pictures of our carved pumpkins

Big Juds Home of the Giant Hamburger

This wasn't our whole date, we went to a pumpkin patch and a straw maze the same day, but I figured Big Juds deserved it's own post.

Big Juds is just a little hole in the wall in the middle of nowhere. Lots of grease and fun pictures on the walls--this place is a classic. One of the biggest reasons people go is the seriously giant hamburgers. They even make the buns in cake pans. If you eat a whole burger, fries, and a drink you can get your picture taken and put on the wall. I've been with a few people that have done it but usually my husband and I share one between the two of us. One tip I have is the wait for food is usually a little long (it's a lot of meat to cook) so it's a good place to take card games to play while waiting.

Apparently there are also locations in Ashton and Boise, Idaho- but I've only been to the original in Archer, ID which is a bit south of Rexburg.

New Menu- I kinda liked the old ones better, fit the atmosphere.

Everyone always asks if I have tried the Emily special. This time I did and it was so great.

The baby and the Big Jud for a little size comparison.

Anyway here is a map and some info and here is a Man vs. Food episode about it. Happy eating!

Idaho Falls Annual Chocolate Fest

So I know this was a one day event and I didn't warn anybody about it. I'll try and let people know ahead of time any other time we go to an event for our date. The good news about this Chocolate Fest is that it is going to be an annual event so it'll be back next year.

Basically Chocolate Fest is a fund raiser for COPD. It is free to get into but you can buy taste tickets to sample any of the treats. So much of the food looked great, but we only tried some chocolate covered pretzels and ice cream with chocolate sauce on it. I wanted my husband to try the chocolate covered bacon but he didn't seem too interested.

There are also a bunch of booths from different places around Idaho Falls, I put my name in for an entry to win a night's stay at Destination's Inn and for a massage. The area high schools had displays and there were some beautiful wedding cakes on display.

Look, it could be ours!

Throughout the day there were different contests that had to do with eating chocolates. I entered one where we were given a certain number of chocolate kisses to unwrap and eat to see who could be the fastest, I came in 2nd.

Anyway, for those with kids the highlight would likely be the free bouncy houses.

Next year I will get the word out before the event so you guys can go too.

Mesa Falls, Byways, and Ashton, ID

So I know it's a little bit of a drive (65 miles) but super worth it. Mesa Falls is North East of Ashton along the Mesa Falls Scenic Byway. The Byway is accessible through Ashton or Island Park and is a beautiful drive. Cost to get into the park where Mesa Falls lookout is $5 a car, and for me, it was worth it. The drive there took us a little over 1 1/2 hours, but we stopped at every scenic overlook. We had our picnic lunch and walked around a bit. There are two falls. These are the lower falls but can only be seen from a distance.



A mile up the road are the Upper Falls, which are much more accessible. There is also a neat little visitors center and museum where you can feel all sorts of animal skins and see what it would be like to have antlers.

It's a very family friendly place to visit with lots of easy pathways to see everything from. We had our baby in the front pack which was a little easier than a stroller because there are a few paths that have stairs.

On the way back we stopped in Ashton at a giant root beer float we had seen on the way up.

Frostop's drive-in was a super fun place to stop for a treat on the way home. The Mr. thought it was a super root beer float. I had ice cream because I noticed too late that they had huckleberry milkshakes. But I did notice they had these funny toys there for kids to play on.

Anyway, if you head up that direction there are a lot of other little hikes and things to see along the byway, but we only had a couple hours to stay there. More information can be found at the visit Idaho website.

Date Ideas in Idaho Falls

To Begin...

So I am originally from Portland, Oregon. If you asked me a fun date idea to do there, I could answer you in a second, which would make having a date night with my husband pretty easy. The problem is... we are not in Oregon anymore. Southeast Idaho- yay! I don't want you to think I am being sarcastic, I actually love a lot of things about this area, especially Idaho Falls. The only problem is I don't know as much about the area.

So my goal is to get to know it by enjoying the things the area has to offer with my husband. I am going to try and post once a week about a fun and cheap date or family activity. Some will be area specific and others won't be, but I hope to give others out there some fun ideas of things to do around Idaho Falls (or within a short drive).

Enjoy!