Happy 4th of July!

Lauren's home from her Geology Field class!!  And she had THE BEST TIME..EVER!!!!!!( her words.)  Really, she was so excited when she got home. Her enthusiasm was bubbling over!  She couldn't say enough great things about the experience.  Loved the camping, the hiking (wants to hike EVERYWHERE), the flora, the fauna, the people, etc., etc.!

I was so relieved.  You may recall how I shed a tear or two when she pulled out of the driveway because it was very obvious to me that she DID NOT WANT TO GO. But, it turns out that most of the fear was from not really knowing anyone and just the UNKNOWN.  But, as usual, Lauren stepped up to the plate and forged ahead.  It also helped that everyone on the trip was great, too!!

 Here are a few pictures that I stole from her Facebook album. Not necessarily in chronological order.

  Here she is on a mountain somewhere on Wyoming! Lots of suntan lotion, water, hat and well broken-in hiking boots was the fashion of the day.

Lauren with the presidents at Rushmore. The Beloit group explored the Badlands, the Black Hills, Mt. Rushmore, Devils Tower...so many awesome sights. Then into Wyoming to the Big Horn Mountains, Sheep Mountain, Crazy Woman Canyon, Sinks Cave, and the Seminoe Mountains. Just to name a few...

Here's Devil's Tower behind a goofy Lauren.

This is their campsite at the Seminoe Mountains. (I think) Anyway, it is how they camped every night!

Lauren's caption with this photo explaining how many trees are in Wyoming...

This is the final mapping of the area in the Seminoe Mountains.  This is a week's worth of work using tools and methods of geological mapping.
Lauren was very excited about future geology trips...Colorado, Hawaii.  Who wouldn't be excited!?
So, I guess we better enjoy our time with her while we can...