This last month has been a tough one for my Dad. His brother Scott passed away in April, they moved to Utah, and then his brother Paul passed away in May. His dad isn't doing well either. My dad went from being the oldest to the only child in a matter of 4 weeks. Andrew and I decided to go to Boise for the funeral to support my dad and our cousins.
We left really early Thursday morning and arrived around 11:00 in the morning. My parents picked us up at the airport. We went out to lunch at Zupas and then went to the sight of the Old Idaho Penitentiary. Drew and I saw a trail and a hillside, so we headed off on a quick 1/2 hour hike.
Along the dusty path we stopped to take a picture.
This area we were hiking was called "Table Rock." There is a 60 foot cross up at the top. We would have gone all the way to the top, but our parents were waiting down below to tour the penitentiary.
The view from the high point. It was a pretty hike!
We found our parents and started a self-guided tour of the prison.
Here's my dad in the Women's Ward. When the prison first opened the women were housed with the men. (Which we didn't think was probably a good idea).
With the landscaping, the prison grounds almost look like a college campus.
We took some pictures.
Andrew and I.
My mom and dad.
We also dressed up and posed for our mug shots.
Just call me Chief Crazy Horse and Drew, Two Gun Farrel.
We got locked behind the bars.
The youngest inmate was a 10 year-old who killed his mother when she asked him to do the laundry. Yikes!
The benches were for guards only.
The safe in the warden's office.
After exploring, we headed to Nampa to check into the hotel and rest for a while. Drew and I had a nice chat that afternoon and then we went to dinner at Texas Roadhouse with my parents. They were celebrating their anniversary. After dinner we were trying to find a place to walk/run in the morning. We could see that the Boise River was only about 4 miles away so we drove down there to see if there were any trails to walk along.
Sure enough, we found the river and found a beautiful trail to walk/run on in the morning.
The next morning we got up early and drove down to the Star River Walk.
It was a beautiful morning and we didn't see anyone else on the trail.
It was a peaceful time as the sun was rising to think about my Uncle Paul.
After our adventure, we headed back to the hotel to get ready and have breakfast. Then we headed to the church for the viewing and the funeral. I was asked to play the piano for the service, I accompanied a cousin's daughter and played a piano solo.
It was great to catch up with cousins I hadn't seen in a while, but sad at the same time too. I also enjoyed learning more about my Uncle Paul. He was a special man who had a great influence on his family. He will be missed!
Keith, Paul, Lindsay, Ethan, Mark, Aunt Patricia, Bobbi, and Carrie
The flowers that were sent from Kevin and Kellie and our family.
Friday afternoon we dropped Drew off at the airport to fly back to CA and my parents and I drove to Utah for me to see their new house and spend another couple of days with them. They have a beautiful new house and were excited to show it to me. Saturday, my dad and I went on a walk, went to Charlie's soccer game, went to Abby's bake sale for the refugees, went out to lunch, visited with my Grandpa,visited with Kevin and Kellie, and met Robert and Melanee for dinner. It was a busy but great day. Sunday, we went to church and the Kevin took me to the airport so I could head home. I'm glad that I was able to go spend that time with my parents and Drew.
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