And she's off!

This spring I told Calla that one of the things we should do this summer was take the training wheels off her bike. 

And then we moved and she didn't do a lot of bike riding and we kind of forgot.

Until yesterday.  We were camping in Yellowstone and she was riding all over having a grand time at the camp ground while we were all packing up to leave.  I mentioned that we should take her training wheels off pretty soon.

Apparently she heard "now" and went to tell her daddy that they needed to come off.  Now.

After a brief discussion about how once they came off they weren't going back on and she needed to try them first NOT on the pavement, daddy got to work.

Calla got on.  Daddy gave her a little push . . .

And . . . .

. . . Calla was off . . . 

. . . through a campsite . . .

. . . onto the pavement . . .

. . . around the bathrooms . . .

. . . back off the pavement . . .

. . . through another campsite . . .

. . . and . . .

 . . .back onto the pavement and stopped without even so much as a wobble.

I was laughing so hard I was crying.  But honestly, I had an inkling that might happen. 

She's thrilled and now there is one less thing stopping her. 

Two years ago we threw that bike in the back of the truck and her first attempt at riding it was at Yellowstone.  And this week she got to take her training wheels off at Yellowstone.  Yellowstone is good for this kid. 

In honor of International Babywearing Week

For any of you who have been reading my blog this summer, it's been a little busy around here. To give you an idea, my husband sat down in his chair a couple weeks ago and said, "I'm kind of looking forward to being snowed in. This summer has been busy. And it started with moving."

He's right. But the raw truth is that over the last few months we have had more fun going and seeing and doing as a family than I think some families have over a lifetime. Not that we're not a fun family, but we have been liberated from so much stuff that has been stewing for about the last thirteen years that we had some catching up to do.

And we did it all with our girls. All three of them. Ages one year to six years.

But I was thinking this last week about everything that we did. Then I went back through my blog and found more things we did that I had forgotten about. And I realized that without baby carriers and the practice of babywearing, most of the stuff we did would have been much more difficult if not impossible.

So, in honor of International Babywearing Week, I'll recap most of our babywearing summer.

Ready?

The following program is brought to you by Babywearing. The practice of holding your baby close to you using some sort of cloth carrier. Remember, just like every other product out there, there are quality, comfortable version, and there are uncomfortable versions that make you want to run back to the camper and take a hot shower. And then you can't get out of bed in the morning without some sort of pain killer. Do your research. Find the good ones. And don't give up if you don't find a good one on the first try! It's worth finding a good one or two or half dozen.

The following program is also brought to you by an average, ordinary, everyday mom. Please note that this mom is not the most slender mom on the planet. Nor is she the most fit mom on the planet. That is important to remember because she did the great majority of her activities this summer while packing on her back a little person weighing between twenty and twenty-five pounds. This mom also has a sensitive lower back and hasn't been to the chiropractor since she moved to Idaho in April.

On with the program.

You can't go to Yellowstone, or really anywhere NEAR Yellowstone without seeing Old Faithful and the rest of that geyser basin. You just shouldn't go to Yellowstone and not go there. It's just not right.

Note that it was raining. But I was certain that my baby was warm and comfortable. Because when they are Close Enough to Kiss, you can keep pretty good tabs on them. And daddy's sweatshirt helps.



It was a good hike. Up and down and around.



Lower Geyser Basin brought to you by two of my favorite Geese: Granola Goose and Earth Circles on tan.

Mammoth Hotsprings and the million and one steps to get to the top. Or was it a billion? I lost track.



There is NO WAY that experience would have happened had it not been for our carriers. Little 3-year-old legs get pretty tired going up that many steps, too.



Mammoth Hotsprings brought to you by: Granola Goose and Earth Circles on tan Silly Goose Baby.

Mud Volcano. Pretty cool. But the coolest thing we saw on that loop up and over the hill?



Wolf tracks.

That experience brought to you by Ball Baby and nap time.



And the hike to the brink of the Lower Falls of the Yellowstone River. On this hike there is a 600 foot elevation change. But totally worth it. Brent had the pleasure of wearing the baby down the 600 feet.



And I wore her the rest of the way up, because she wanted to nurse.



Calla was ready for a ride up, too. And she actually fell asleep on the way.

This super amazing hike and view brought to you by: Ball Baby and Earth Circles on tan Silly Goose and nursing in a baby carrier.

More hikes in Yellowstone--off the beaten path.

We would have missed this view:



These tracks:



And this hike to find pools and a warm stream off the Fire Hole Lake drive:



Those three hikes brought to you by Ellville Zara Candy and a Goose Pockets, nap time and nursing in a carrier.

You can mine for garnets and sapphires with your kids while the baby naps.



And let's not forget the week at Vacation Bible School.



And the trip to Oregon on a plane with three kids by myself. Not for the faint of heart. But absolutely do-able with the proper tools and skills--baby carriers and babywearing!

To list in case you weren't paying attention:
1. Old Faithful in the rain and the Lower Geyser basin
2. Mammoth Hotsprings
3. Wolf Tracks at Mud Volcano
4. Brink of the Lower Falls
5. Yellowstone Lake view from the top of a hill
6. Duck lake and animal tracks on the shore
7. Fire Hole Lake Drive path
8. Mining for Garnets during nap time.
9. Vacation Bible School for a whole week
10. Airplane trip to Grandma's house

That's ten. The list is probably endless, actually. But for sure, all of our summer activites were so much easier thanks to babywearing. Not only was the baby happy, the preschooler was happy. When they got tired, they were carried and both were comfortable enough to just go to sleep. And anyone who is a parent knows that naptime is sacred. It's essential. A good nap sets the tone for the whole next portion of the day.

I believe in babywearing. I believe all the studies showing that babies are happier, healthier, smarter, safer, etc. But even if all of that wasn't on the table, the pure and simple truth is that it makes the lives of moms and dads and entire families easier and more enjoyable and therefore it makes our world that much better. And isn't that our job as parents and grandparents? We are charged with taking these little people and molding them into happy, healthy big people. And the more happy, healthy big people we have in the world, the better our world is.

What better time to start then when they are small. Keep them close. Close enough to kiss. It's where they want to be. It's where they belong. And it's easy, convenient and comfortable with the right tools. The right carriers. And the right information.

If you want more information about babywearing and what it can do for you and your family, contact me or go visit Babywearing International. There are babywearing groups popping up all over the world. There's a pretty good chance that there is one near you.

Happy Babywearing! Spread the word!

Yellowstone treasures

On our way out we decided to swing through one of our favorite spots. The Fire Hole Lake Drive has never disappointed us. The first time we went through Grace saw her first geyser. The second time we went through, on a different trip, we saw about four geysers going off--two right by each other. And there is a geyser there that I would love to see go off. But so far the times posted have not been convenient. So we thought we'd check again.

But alas, we'd have to wait for "between 8pm and 12am." Still not convenient.

But it was getting on to lunch, so we parked and noticed a trail. We weren't quite hungry enough for lunch, so, we took it.

And look what we found!



Hot springs! Without a big boardwalk or even a fence or sign around them. Fun! And yes, those two are plugging their noses.

And look at this. There were bones in this one. Some sort of animal fell in.



Or, as Brent theorized, a bear was cooking a rabbit.

This whole little ravine was teeming with hot springs and other stuff. And there was this little creek flowing through it. I wondered if it was warm or cold. So they checked.



The verdict? You wouldn't want to fall in there. It was definitely warm. Warmer than a hot tub.

I wanted to see if we could walk farther in and find the source. We hadn't had lunch yet, but we were still okay.

But look what happened to our trail.



It was obvious that the trail was under there. But it certainly made things more interesting.



Oh, but thanks to babywearing, we were undaunted! And we pressed on.

But, alas, the source of the hot water creek was not to be discovered by us. But, someday, I intend to find it. I will. Baby on my back or not. Note to self: ask the guy at church if he knows what's up that trail. Everyone tells me he knows most everything about Yellowstone. All those years as a guide (I think) would do that.

So we headed back. Over the bridge, that coincidently is also babywearing friendly.



And through the woods.



To the truck for lunch and then headed towards home. And this time NOT through Jackson. That got us in trouble last time. And it took quite a bit longer.

Now, on the road we came upon some stopped cars. And the reason for stopping was big. See it in there?



A big bull elk was just standing in the middle of the road. Just standing there. Sometimes I think maybe they are getting a commission for standing there posing for the tourists--like us. People were flocking to get photos. I stayed in the truck.

Then he crossed the road and I realized why he was just standing there.



Seems there was a cow elk in the river. Just standing in the river. And it was a big waiting game.

She's waiting for him to go away. He's waiting for her to change her mind. It is that season.



And the whole thing just cracked me up.

"Honey, come on, please?"

"Um, no. Not in front of all these people. Are you crazy?"

"But do you see this rack I have?"

"Are you kidding me?"

"But I'm one of the treasures of Yellowstone."

"You obviously have an ego that's bigger than that stupid rack of yours."


Wildlife. It's what it's all about.


Okay. Not really, but Yellowstone sure is fun!

Another hike, another lake

Sunday morning after we got packed up and headed out, we stopped for another hike. There's a little lake on the south end of Yellowstone Lake that is its own caldera. It's about a 1/2 mile hike up and over a little hill to the shore. We heard it was an easy hike, so we thought we'd give it a try.

Grace and Calla were ready.



And it was a neat little lake. A sandy shore on the north end of it.



And up and down the shore was the treasure of the hike. Elk and wolf prints.



We walked up and down the shore looking at them. There's just something wild about seeing sites like that. And we were all alone on the shore. Didn't see another person on the trail. But who knows, maybe we had company . . .

The girls picked up sticks and tossed them in. It was quite pleasant. And the hike was through the trees. Trees that were new from the 1988 fires. The perspective is different than from the road.

At the peak of the hill we could see all directions. Duck Lake . . .



Yellowstone Lake and, oh look! The hill we climbed yesterday!



A good little hike. And once again, made possible by babywearing. Violet slept through the whole thing. I love that.

Some things are just universal

After our hike we actually got back to camp early enough that we felt like we could really sit and enjoy the evening. We made a fire and then made dinner while the girls played Bison farmer.



The bison was greenish and kind of weirded me out.



We were looking forward to sitting around the fire roasting marshmallows and melting chocolate on graham crackers. And we were tired, so we were planning to take advantage of that and go to bed early.

While we were eating dinner, an RV with obviously European license plates pulled into the spot next to us. Later a little blond head popped out. And it kept popping out. And getting called back in. And popping out. And getting called back in.

We cleaned up dinner and started our roasting preparations. Daddy asked Grace if she wanted a pink marshmallow (the strawberry ones roast up quite nicely, actually), or a white one.

Pink, please.

I thought so. You are a pink girl.

And you want white. Because you are a white boy.

I thought Brent might split a gut.

Mean time, this cute little blond head kept popping out of the RV next door. I think mom finally gave up trying to get her to eat her dinner and they came over for a visit.

So we met Jule (pronounced You-la) and her mom and dad. Jule is about Calla's age. And she's been on holiday for nearly 5 months with her mom and dad. They started in Eastern Canada, drove to Alaska, worked their way down the coast, and now were headed back east. With six weeks left of their trip, they admitted it was time for them to go home.

Since we were roasting marshmallows, we offered to share. "Pink or white?" Brent asked.

PINK!

Apparently pink is a universal favorite of little girls.



Chocolate, however, is not. Because Jule didn't want to have anything to do with the chocolate.

Violet on the other hand just wanted the chocolate and probably ate enough for both of them.



If you are wondering, she is covered in camping. Chocolate, dirt, dinner, and boogers. Good times!

So we watched the four girls eat and/or burn marshmallows and play while we visited with Jule's parents. Such nice people. I think they have the right idea. She told me they work hard for a few years and then take several months off and travel the world. They've done this for over 20 years and it suits them well. And we're the typical American family--three kids, a big RV and weekend warriors.

Jule understands quite a lot of English, but other than "pink" and "thank you," she didn't speak much of it. However, it was obvious that fun is a universal language among kids. The next morning after breakfast, they were at it again.



Taking turns and everything.



There's something about giggling girls. It makes my insides swell with happy. I think that's universal, too.

Dirt might make the list as well. And boogers. though I have no proof of that from the trip because my kid was the only one with boogers. You'd never know that Violet did in fact have a bath the night before.



When we got home, Calla kept telling me that she wanted Jule to come live at our house when we move again. I'm not sure how to explain that to a 3-year-old. That and why we aren't planning to move again for many, many years. She has it in her head now that when we move again she wants to move to Montana. I suspect she's expecting it any day now.

We may have scarred her for life.

Off the boardwalk

We decided to try something different after lunch on Saturday. The ranger at the visitor center recommended a couple hikes to us. Kid friendly hikes. We chose to do the Lake Overlook hike. About 2 miles up and back. It said 400 feet elevation gain, but she said it really wasn't a bad hike.

So off we headed into the woods. Violet was definitely ready for her afternoon nap.



The first few hundred yards we saw two bull elk in the trees. They looked like they weren't very old. No points on their antlers, but still, it was pretty fabulous to see.



We were actually the only ones standing there watching them. That was a bit of a change from our viewing of wildlife with the crowds from the road and boardwalks. It was nice.



Yes, he carriers both of the kids. It's what he does.

It was afternoon. The weather was perfect. Not hot, not cold. Sun was shining. Air was clear.

Calla was tired and crabby.

Violet needed a nap.

But the hill was beckoning. And Grace was now ready to walk.



Thank goodness for babywearing! There was no way we could have made it without our carriers. And a big girl who walked nearly the whole way up and back.



The view was spectacular.



We sat up there for quite some time. There was an osprey nest down the trail a ways. And logs to walk on. And did I mention the view?

A couple of retired teachers joined us at the top. We visited for a bit, took each other's picture. Stood for a while longer taking in the view, and headed back down.

It was a very pleasant afternoon, to say the least. And we got back in plenty of time to make dinner and enjoy the evening at the campsite around the campfire.

The moral of the story? The view is better at the top. And the only way to the top involves a couple carriers.

Happy Babywearing!

Yellowstone Lake

This trip we camped at the Grant Campground on the south end of Yellowstone Lake. There is a geyser basin down there on the lake shore and we hadn't seen it yet. Calla kept asking, "Are we going to the geyser basin?" That strikes me as funny coming from a three year old.

Apparently this geyser basin at one point was the most famous of them all. Now it's nearly forgotten. We didn't see any erupting geysers, but it has some really neat sites.

Most notably, the fact that it is right on the shore. Gorgeous day. A bit chilly, but gorgeous.



A handful of the geysers are actually in the water. At certain times during the year they actually go under water.



One of them is called Fishing Cone. Apparently people used to stand on it and fish. When they caught a fish, they would just cook it in the hot water of the cone.

While we were standing there a group of kayakers paddled by. What a great way to see the sites.



This picture makes me smile. There is steam in the background, but I don't know if you can see it.



Violet decided she didn't want to be in a carrier any more, so daddy took over.



Apparently he's more fun anyway. All she did was giggle.

Anyway, it was a nice little walk. The lake is gorgeous. And then we went back and had lunch before our hike in the afternoon. But I'll tell you about that later.

Happy babywearing!