In a big country

July 31, 2007 on 8:47 pm | In Travel | No Comments | Written by Jenn
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This is what happens when you didn’t get back to the lodge for naptime. Most days we made it, but not this time.

Remember us? We’re the fools who took a nine month old hiking around several canyons on the Erosion tour of 2005, and then took a 20-month-old to France…this time we spent 2 weeks in Grand Teton, Yellowstone, and Glacier-Waterton national parks. (No title has caught on as well as Erosion seemed to fit our tour of Zion, Bryce and Grand Canyons…”Geothermal” and “Glacial,” while geologically apt, aren’t too sexy.) Leda was once again a champion traveler, game for hiking (at least, always game for the first half of a hike), swimming in chilly mountain lakes, searching for wildlife. Her good nature may have had something to do with our traveling companions, Grandma Lynn and Papa, who were always willing to entertain her: playing hide and seek on the trails, discovering wildflowers, and singing along with her. They even got Toby to return to a place from his past, the R Lazy S dude ranch:

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We took a lot of pictures, but here’s what we’ll remember: Vistas that you can’t possibly fit into your camera’s lens, even if you have one of those dopey panoramic ones…bowl lakes of turquoise water ringed by jagged peaks…moose, elk, bison, bald eagles, and bears closer than you expect them to be…good times in the van listening to Gene Autry, Frankie Valli, and Neil and Johnny…and most of all, two little girls smiling, laughing, and taking it all in. Can’t wait for the next vacation.


Cousins!

July 11, 2007 on 8:32 pm | In Leda and Cleo | No Comments | Written by Jenn
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Alaina, Trey and Andrew came to visit (with their parents Aunt Maya and Uncle Tommy), and the cousins had a terrific time. Down the shore, in the swamp, in New York City, at various playgrounds and in the playroom, it was a blast. One important lesson learned: five kids is a heckuva lot. Another: never, ever forget to pack a snack.

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Leda is a huge admirer of her cousin Alaina, who is now the standard for all that is good and holy. Can Alaina wear underwear? Indeed she can. Can she run in flip-flops? Is her hair in pigtails?  Does _she_ have to eat her vegetables? If Alaina could use sharp knives (Leda’s metric for independent adulthood), I think Leda’s head might explode from awe and admiration.

Here are a couple of photos from the visit…lots more in the album.

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