adventure #1

a couple of weekends ago, david and a group went down to st. george to hike the subway.  we thought it'd be great fun with pace in the hiking backpack we have, but when we read a little more about the hike, we decided it would be way too technical with a baby!  then pace got sick so i stayed home with him.  turned out that was for the best.  david said that was the deepest the water has been in a number of years due to the rain we've had, and it was quite chilly--there were places everyone had to swim or go under logs or rocks, and everyone was chilled to the bone, shivering with blue lips.  

david was about to go under that arch in the water!  

candid shot of david balancing on some rocks--one of our friends thought this shot was hilarious, for some reason, so they replicated it on the hike up timp.

the water on this hike is apparently usually stagnant and very muddy.  this year it's been so rainy and wet that all the pools are full of new water, and are so clear and beautiful!

adventure #2

david hiked timp with a few friends last weekend.  saturday was a perfect day for hiking, as most days in september are.  we thought it would be a super long day for pace, so he and i chilled at home doing laundry.

(this one was staged, unlike the shot in the subway...)

holiday weekends are good for...

watching ants after breakfast:

 

playing with weeds before dada mows the lawn:

playing with mama through the window:

having a good romp outside before bath time and night-night:

watching the birds go night-night:

waving to trucks driving by our house:

making a wish on a dandelion:

snuggling a llama (pace is starting to give his stuffed animals bear hugs with growls--that's why his face is all scrunchy--he's growling...):

telling granny stories:

playing with granny and grandpa's dogs:

riding on dada's shoulders at the zoo:

watching an ostrich eat grass:

watching a giraffe watch us:

bird-watching (because birds flying in the sky are so much more interesting than zoo animals...)

watching a parrot flap its wings:

watching elephants drink water:

phew!  what an action-packed weekend!  bob and eddie made the drive down to spend the holiday weekend with us.  they arrived saturday evening, and pace is now old enough to realize a different face when he sees one.  they drove up, got out of the car, and immediately said, "hi pace!"--all attention on him.  it sort of scared him and he started crying, reached for david, and nestled his head on david's shoulder until he felt safe enough and realized mama and dada weren't going anywhere.  it was really precious.  pace loves anything furry and cuddly, so when he saw granny and grandpa's dogs, he knew they were cool.  by the end of the visit he was snuggling them, as well.    

we had a very full labor day--we went to the zoo in slc, and then came home through park city, so we of course had to stop at tanger outlets.  granny and grandpa had a blast!  pace stuck it out like a champ, and all the other moms were watching him with envy while their kids were screaming and ready to go home.  after such a full day, and one short nap, though, pace reached full meltdown mode when we were about 25 minutes away from home.  he made it through the car ride with granny and grandpa telling him stories in between wails, and he was quickly remedied by changing into his pj's and hitting the sack.  he is recovering today by taking a 2 1/2 hour nap this morning, and going on a 3 1/2 hour nap this afternoon (hence the long blog!).