Beach Baby Turned Nine Months

Dalai Lama (Dolly became Dalai - you get it) turned nine months in September.  At her checkup, she weighed in at 16 lbs, 1 oz, putting her in the 6th percentile.  She was in the 45th percentile for height and - ever the brainiac - the 75th percentile for head circumference.  She's following her growth curve just fine. 

We had some hot weather in September and went to the beach a couple of times within a week or so.  We pretty much NEVER go to the beach.  Well, Jim goes once in a while to surf.  I never go, and we never go together (aside from our brief visit on the 4th of July).  I don't ever desire to go because 1) I'm anti the sun, given my aversion to any more freckles or wrinkles or skin cancer; 2) the water is cold; 3) the air is cold; and 4) putting sunscreen on myself is bad enough, but putting sunscreen on an infant is one of my least favorite things in the world.  Nonetheless, Jim came home one day and said the water and the weather were unusually warm, so off we went.  And then we went again.  Both times, Jim hung out with Dolly while I went for a quick run down the beach and then took a dip in the ocean.  The water felt amazing.  I wondered if maybe I don't hate the (California) beach so much, after all.  (I know - I'm a big beach snob.  Blame my birthplace.)  Jim really wants to be a beach family, so he was very pleased.  

Dolly seemed to enjoy touching the water.

She also had her first sand-eating experience.  She wasn't sure about it at first but ultimately decided it wasn't too bad.

One of Dolly's favorite things to do is to crawl around (or otherwise move about) while sucking on my chapstick.

Drool gets everywhere.  Sometimes she sucks the chapstick in and out a little bit.  Mamo noted in DC (posts coming soon) that the lid could be a choking hazard.  Thus, maybe not the best toy, but she loves it so.  It holds her attention much longer than most things.  

Hastings Reunion in Ashton, ID - Part 6 (The End)

Friday was a relaxy-taxi day.  This is Dean upon waking: 

After a couple of nights, Jim and I moved into Bag Lady's room and shared the top bunk, leaving Dolly with her own room.  Weird, I know.  We liked not having to worry about waking her and not hearing her little night sounds.  For some reason, Dolly's room got extra cold at night.  Since she's not old enough to have loose things like blankets in the crib (or, in this case, the pack n' play), we had to bundle her up.  I put her in clothes, then her sleeper, then this yellow sweater knit by the wife of Neil Martin (partner at work), then a sleeveless sleep sack.  I also put a beanie on her head and socks on her hands, but those didn't usually stay on long.  She was so cold in the morning (and all through the night, I'm sure) but didn't fuss about it. 

The brethren played golf in the morning, and Lucy tagged along.  The rest of us hung out back at the ranch.  The kiddies entertained themselves by playing dress-up:

Then we went back to Mack's Inn and floated the river.  We left Mamo, Everest, and the Dee/Shandie fam here by the inn:

The rest of us intended to drive a short distance, find a little road that cut down to the river, and have a short float trip.  We had an unexpectedly difficult time finding a way to cut over to the river and ended up driving all over roads meant for ATVs, not cars.  It wasted quite a bit of time but was pretty funny.  Finally we found a place to park and put in, thanks in part to a group of pedestrians leaving the river who told us where to go. 

We had a nice, short float and met everyone else back at Mack's.  When we were ready to head home, Clarence had to be torn from her balance beam (inspired by the Olympics, apparently):

Saturday, Bags mandated a family photo (taken via the self-timer) before people started leaving.  Aside from Dolly's digging for lice, it turned out pretty well:

We got some shots of the grandkeiki:

Despite her diminutive size, Dalai tried to bully Betsy:

Then we finished packing up and said goodbye to the wonderul Mesa Falls Lodge:

Dee and Shandie had to head straight to Salt Lake to catch their flight out.  Mamo and Papo graciously dropped the rest of us off for one final river float near our cabin.  They met us at the end for a picnic. 

Dolly got to indulge her love of bags and crinkly things by playing with Doritos:

Practicing what he preaches ("Waste not; want not!"), Pod had packed the leftover ice cream in the cooler.  The two-plus hours we floated did not treat it well.  Nevertheless, Pod showed Lucy how to scoop it up with delicious cookies by Udon:

(Rob had brought six batches of frozen cookie dough to the cabin.  Bless him.)  No drop of melted ice cream was wasted:



Pod is nothing if not classy.

Our family is the best.   

Hastings Reunion in Ashton, ID - Part 5 (Yellowstone Again)

Thursday we went to Yellowstone again to do the northern loop.  We were much more prepared for crowds and potential separation. It turned out not to be too much of a problem, though, because the hoards focus on the southern loop.  Before we left, Betsy tapped into her Wyoming roots:


First we stopped at Roaring Mountain.  Jim and I had to tag-team a diaper in the trunk as soon as we stopped.

Others are referring to Roaring Mountain as "Mount Doom" - a Lord of the Rings reference that I don't fully appreciate because I don't remember that movie (or those movies) and never read the book(s).

Everdeen taught Betsy the art of shenaniquining.  Planning the shot:

And hitting it:

Next stop was Sheepeater Cliff:

Dolly was eating or sleeping or something at that point, so Jim and I stayed at the car with her while these people walked to this place:

Then we hit up Mammoth Springs, which was really nifty.



 

Betsy had some trials . . .

. . . but recovered:

We had a picnic lunch at a spot near Mammoth Springs and then dropped into a little museum at the end of the block. 



We went on a wildlife drive and didn't see any wildlife, but we did see some elsewhere. 

 

At one point, the car in front of our caravan stopped in the middle of the road, and a lady jumped out, pointing and running after a coyote.  When you don't get to see any bears, I guess you get excited about coyotes.  

We stopped along the road and looked down on a couple lovely little lakes.

 

We also stopped briefly at a burn zone . . .

. . . and some waterfalls.



We went back to the Canyon and looked out at Upper Yellowstone Falls. 

I was told that on day 1 of Yellowstone, we nonlost went to the lookout at the top of the waterfall on the right-hand side of these pictures.  I trust it's true, although I wasn't driving and didn't have a map or bother to pay much attention to where we were stopping.  You can barely see the tiny people: 



Then some of us climbed the 328 steps down Uncle Tom's Trail to view Lower Yellowstone Falls. 



Jim and Chavalyn (Chava Lynn?  I haven't decided) had another Michael Jackson moment:



The way up was a little daunting, especially because I was carrying Chava.  (Funny how Jim seems to end up always carrying her on the easy parts.)



We did it, though, with a stop or two for pictures or a breather. 



At the top, Mamo took pictures of a squirrel - her favorite wildlife of all:

The penultimate stop was the lookout at Artist Point.

The paparazzi were out in force:

Awkward family photos were taken:

Lucy and, to a lesser extent, Clarice, got their dance on:

Last stop was Geyser Basin. 



  

Babies were exchanged:



Geysers were viewed:





We headed out . . .

Betsy was excited to be done for the day.

. . . and then realized we were missing this guy:

 

Christian and Shandra went running back and found him still down by the geyser, a little scared but being watched over by some concerned Asian tourists.  Relief.