ID/CO Summer Roadtrip

It is time again for my favorite holiday! There is still no comparison to spending the 4th of July in Idaho Falls with my family and the Riverfest/Melaleuca Freedom Celebration.

This year ended up being a much bigger trip than we had originally planned though. Due to some family needs we ended up driving to Idaho Falls a week earlier than planned and spent two weeks in glorious weather! Thankfully the family needs all turned out well, so it ended up being a great extended trip.

In addition to all the wonderful 4th of July activities, we decided to drive home through Colorado! Granted Colorado is NOT on the way home, but we were able to see family and go to the Colorado Renaissance Festival to see Jacque de Whipper!!

Idaho Falls / 4th of July

~ Use arrows on the left or right to see the full album, or select “Open in new window” to view in Google Photos ~

The first week we were in Idaho Falls wasn’t all that exciting. Not in a bad way, but we were working and spending time with family so there wasn’t too much excitement.

We did a good long run around the falls which was hard, but beautiful, and amazing weather!

Staying at the Home2 Idaho Falls was also a great setup. They had fantastic staff and hotel amenities but having a full kitchen setup was so incredibly helpful with my unique diet.

I was able to make my breakfast every morning on a hot plate and store leftovers for lunch and dinner in the full-size fridge/freezer.

We have always talked about the concept of living in a hotel to travel or in an RV and this was a good way to test things out, and it passed!

The days passed quickly and it was time for the 4th of July!

The day started early with my mom and I heading to the parade route, with family. meeting us there to hang out in our spot for a few hours before the parade starts at 9 am. Nathan ended up walking over and joining us just in time for the floats to start.

It is always the little things that make this experience so much fun. This year we had a few cute/fun things happen:

1) Our spot was next to this little flower with a little sign and fence to protect it.

We became its unappointed protectors and made sure that the masses of people, floats, candy, etc. never touched it!

We later met the owner of the house behind us, which was adorable and I wanted to live there. They were a fun couple that gave out watermelon after the parade and we were happy to protect the flower for them.

The wife plants them in lots of places as a fun little thing, and I love it!

2) Everything was SOAKED after the sprinklers ran that evening, no big deal we just had different blankets for the day use vs saving. However, there was a lady next to us trying to wipe it away with her hand and a napkin. Sometimes you have to wonder about people 🤦🏻‍♀️.

3) They had bomb dogs walking the parade route before everything got started. Safety first!

4) Most floats are throwing candy and such for the viewers.

There was an adorable little girl who clearly wanted to throw stuff too. So she was taking handfuls of the bale of hay next to her and throwing that instead.

So cute!!

5) My favorite float was one of the last ones, and it had such fun and creative outfits!

They didn’t have any particular meaning but they looked like fun festive amoebas 🤣!

After the parade, we switched locations and met my dad at the river for the fireworks later that night. We like to spend the day hanging out with family, chatting, taking naps and eating good food.

We grabbed lunch from the dozens of food vendors and since I had been craving this corn dog for the last year it was a must-have choice!

Now, I have to add some detail to truly understand the importance here.

First, this corn dog is the best we have ever had. They are a Food Truck in Idaho – The Corn Dog Company (Facebook Page).

You get to cover it in honey, and they have other delicious choices like cheese, Snickers, or Milky Way candy.

Second, for medical reasons, I am on a new diet (low-FODMAP for those familiar). This means no bread, onion, or garlic. All of which were in this corn dog and I did not care. This was my one cheat and I was going to have it!

The good news is it was delicious! The bad news is that I did get sick but it was totally worth it 😜.

It was a beautiful day, and then it was time for fireworks! Melaleuca (our old company) sponsors this show, and it was 31 minutes long with coordinated music and countless fireworks. The largest fireworks show west of the Mississippi!

Now there are tons of pictures and videos in the Google Photos album, so definately open that in a different tab so you can see them all, including the amazing finale!

The next day when we went to start our drive to Colorado, we got a fun surprise from BMW too!

Colorado Renaissance Festival

We spent the next day driving from Idaho Falls, Idaho to Denver, Colorado. The drive was pretty easy and quiet and gave us lots of time to listen to A Court of Mist and Fury (ACOTAR Book 2).

We were able to get to Denver in time for dinner with family and get to bed early so we could go to the Renaissance Festival the next day!

The Phoenix RenFest has become a favorite spring activity, and more and more we want to explore what other festivals have. This was our first opportunity to go to the one in Colorado and it did not disappoint!

~ Use arrows on the left or right to see the full album, or select “Open in new window” to view in Google Photos ~

The first thing we noticed is that it seemed way busier than the one in Phoneix. I am not sure if that is because it was a holiday weekend, and free kids entry or what but it was packed!

It didn’t feel like as many people dressed up as in Phoenix, but there were still a good number.

I am thinking we might try and dress up starting next year, but we will see if I can find a good outfit at a reasonable price.

My favorite costume find was this lady carrying around a homemade dandelion. It was genius and awesome!

Our first show was Dragonfire at the Celestial Stage. Playing with fire is always cool, but he was a kooky old guy that very much fit the traveling circus vibes.

Then we saw the Elephant Experience, which was actually really cool! It was a new show, so I was excited to see a first-year act and they were fascinating to watch!

If you open the Google Photos album you can watch a video of them walking into the fenced area!

After the Elephant Experience we decided to grab some lunch. We of course had to get a turkey leg and they had fresh-cut fries, which were a large portion and delicious! I wish ours had those too, we only have a baked potato.

We hung out for a bit and saw a mermaid, and then it was time for some of our family to head out to other plans they had that evening. Sadly they missed out on Jaque de Whipper, but maybe next year!

It was almost time for his show so we made our way over there and the crowd was insane!

Not only could we barely see the stage or hear him, but we were standing in the sun and it was getting quite warm in the afternoon.

So we decided to go watch some other shows in the area and come back earlier for his next show.

The Celtic Legacy was a fun band and the Kamikazee Fireflies did a little bit of everything from juggling, fire, acrobats, etc. They reminded me a bit of Barely Balanced from our RenFest.

After that, we decided we would go see Blades and Bravery and then already have seats at the same theatre for Jaque de Whipper after. Funny enough we ended up being an hour early to Blades and Bravery which meant Jaque de Whipper was already on stage!

We were able to get better standing spots this time and we decided to stick with it!

Blades and Bravery was a good show as well, and I highly recommend opening the Google Photos album to see all the videos of them.

Ultimately we wanted to see Jaque de Whipper, and he 100% delivered! He was just as funny in person as he is online and in his interviews. I hope one day he can come out to Phoenix, otherwise I will happily go to Colorado to see him and his show!

Thanks for reading about our adventures!