Sunday, July 12, 2015

Dear William (71 months)

Dear William,
Today you are 71 months old!

You have done SO MANY THINGS this month.

First off, you helped me crew your dad in the Quad Rock 50 Mile.

Then, we took a trip out west.  We made a stop in Idaho, where mommy ran a marathon, and you got to hang out with your friends Anton and Julius.  You showed them our tent.
Playing with friends
You have been friends with Anton since before you were born.

Then we went to Yellowstone National Park!  We hiked along the Yellowstone River Trail.
Yellowstone River trail

It was beautiful.
Yellowstone River

There were bison walking around in our campground that night!
Campsite bison


You really liked the bison.
Bison

Daddy liked the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.
Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone

We also enjoyed the hot springs.
Mammoth Hot Springs
Mammoth Hot Springs

And the geysers.
Norris geyser basin

Old Faithful.

You became a Junior Ranger.  You were so thrilled with that.  You decided that when you grow up, you want to be a park ranger and an astronaut.


We left Yellowstone and headed into Grand Teton National Park.
Jackson Lake and Teton Range

It was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G.
Tetons

Our first campground had a lot of mosquitoes, and some ill-mannered people.
Snake River mosquito-fest
Snake River.
Then we went to Jenny Lake.
Grand Teton NP campsite


You ate well during our trip.

And you were great at helping clean up.


On our last day, you hiked a little with me while daddy ran.


We had so much fun on our camping trip that we went on another camping trip to Gould the very next weekend.
You are my orchid child.

Hungry after a busy day.

This time, I brought vegan marshmallows and you and daddy made a fire so we could roast them.
Roasting

We stayed up late and watched the stars twinkle to light in the darkening sky, one by one.  You love anything that has to do with space, but you so rarely see the stars.  In summer, it gets dark so late that you are already asleep when the stars come out.  And in the winter, it is too cold.  On our camping trip to Gould, we saw Venus and Jupiter around the time that they converged in the sky, and that was really neat.

I love this summer, William.  This is the summer of adventure and wilderness and being in the landscape and "meh, we'll shower when we're old."

Smores
Making up for the lost years when we lived in a crumbling-brick jungle.

As much as we love being outdoors, after our back-to-back epic camping trips, it was nice to sleep in our own beds again, and have indoor plumbing.

On 4th of July, we went to the parade in the morning.
Storm trooper with American flag.
And the fireworks in the evening!
At City Park for the fireworks

Boom

This month you also had fun taking swim lessons.



And eagerly waiting for your grandparents to arrive.
Map watching
Watching their progress
You ran a kids' race at Lory State Park right after your grandparents got here.  You got very nervous while you were standing on the start line and wanted me to run with you and hold your hand the whole time (1 mile).
Kids Run


You hit a few dark patches towards the middle.
Kids Run


But you powered through and finished strong.
Finishing strong


You recovered enough by the afternoon to take your grandparents on a bike ride to the pool.


William, this has been such a great month.  I love all the memories we have made this summer, and I am already excited for the next adventures we have planned.

Love always,
Mama

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

WILLIAM! do YOU know, you are the same number age we are! ?? ok. yours is in MONTHS as opposed to ours in YEARS!! how bout that! what an amazing month this has been for,you!! so many fun adventures! Loved your pictures!! so proud of you with becoming a Junior Park Ranger!! and for completing swimming lessons!! yeaaaa!! we will be looking forward to next months adventures! with you!! it will be very special. as it will be on your 6th birthday!!! wow!!! have fun with your grandparents!! we. love you and miss you😘pawpaw and grama nan