Square Ice Cream Cones

So today has been a really nice day. I had planned on waking up around 6:00 and going for an easy 16 mile run. However when my alarm went off, I decided to take advantage of the opportunity I had to sleep in. So Ellie and I slept in until just after 9:00. We got ready for church, and then ate some breakfast before heading off to church. While we were eating breakfast I was talking to Grandma about the two things I wanted to do before we left - go to the Rexburg temple and get a square ice cream cone in Swan Valley. Grandma let me know that she could only go to Swan Valley today, so we made the decision to go to Swan Valley today after church.

Church was nice. The talks were all on the temples. It was a continuation of the talks I heard last week, and the testimonies that were born the week before that. Ellie on the other hand was a handful to say the least. However, we managed to get through sacrament meeting without too much fanfare. After that it was back to the grandparents house, where we all changed our clothes, ate some lunch and then we piled back into my grandparents mini-van. First stop, the Rexburg temple.


Grandpa for whatever reason doesn't think the Rexburg temple is particularly nice, but I really like it. I think it is similar to Twin Falls, but there is a lot more stained glass work, which isn't my favorite thing. However the center portion of the stained glass has an image of wheat, as a tribute to the wheat industry in the area, which I thought was neat. Anyway, Ellie, Grandma and I wandered around the grounds and took a bunch of pictures. Grandpa was a stick in the mud and sat in the car for the entire 20 minutes we were there. Hopefully he got high score on his Yahtzee game. :)

After that, we were off to Swan Valley. While we were driving, Grandma told us if we wanted to drive a little longer we could drive to Jackson, Wyoming. I figured it was better to enjoy a nice drive with my grandparents, than watch Tiger choke in the PGA Championship today, so I agreed. The drive to Jackson took about an hour, and it was beautiful. I am not sure I have ever been to Jackson, but it is beautiful. The drive over the Teton Pass was incredible. The only bad thing, was it was cloudy, and so we didn't get any good views of the mountain peaks, but the valley Jackson is in, was beautiful. Ellie slept most of the way to Jackson, so I was unable to get any pictures of her in Jackson, but she has been to another state!


We stopped in Jackson for a quick bathroom break, and to get some pictures. Then it was another 50 miles to Swan Valley. Instead of taking the faster way, we took the back way,which follows the Snake River around the hills. On the way into Swan Valley, we drove by the Palisades Reservoir, where Grandma and Grandpa used to bring me when I was a kid. I even recognized the spot we always camped out, which was kind of neat. We eventually made it to Swan Valley, where we stopped at the local store for their world-famous ice cream cones that are square-shaped. The cones aren't square shaped, but the ice cream scoops are. The ice cream isn't anything special, in fact it leaves something to be desired as it is grainy, but I don't know of another place in the world where you can get square ice cream cones. I got a double scoop - Chocolate and Cookie Dough. Ellie got a scoop of chocolate. I think she can now say she has officially been to Southeastern Idaho.

After that, we drove home, Grandma made a great dinner of steak and homemade fries with fresh tomatoes. I am loving the fresh tomatoes. Now we are getting ready to enjoy the rest of our evening.

Today's stats - 1 state, 1 temple, 4 hour drive, 210 miles and square ice cream cones for everyone!