Strawberry Hill Hike - Learning to slow down

Last Sunday we drove about 9 miles east of Miles City to Strawberry Hill. Sean was in the mood to exert some energy and Emerson was in a paleontologist digging kind of mood. Fortunately, I was in a very slow walking mood as well, so Emerson and I strolled, well, mostly stopped to dig, while Sean hiked to the top of Strawberry Hill. Emerson kept picking up sticks and saying, "I found a dinosaur bone! Daddy gonna be so excited when he sees it!"

It can be a little challenging to get Em to move when he's in this kind of mood. I tell him, "C'mon, stop dilly dallying," and he starts cracking up at the words dilly dally. This is usually what I need when I start to get worked up about some trivial matter. It seems like I have to learn this lesson daily; I don't have anywhere to be that is crucial to our survival...relax. And so the lesson continues. Maybe tomorrow I'll learn it, at least for a moment. It has gotten easier and for that I'm relieved. When our trip first started I was wound up pretty tightly, always thinking about what needed to be done. I'm starting to feel less focused on what's next and more interested in right now. It's funny, though, even without a job, I still review my little to-do list in my mind.

Ashtyn and Emerson

We watched Ashtyn on Thursday and experienced a little of what having two kids will feel like. There was a lot of "Mine!" and "No I don't want to share!" going on, mainly from Emerson. Beyond the "Mines," they had a lot of fun together.

I had to take a picture in their Montana t-shirts, which were gifts from a patient of Sean's.

Heading west itinerary

Well we're getting close (three weeks) to heading back to the central coast for
a few months.We've had a great stay in MT and we're looking forward to the
next leg of our journey...
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&saddr=Miles+City,+MT&daddr=44.715514,-110.302734+to:Yellowstone+NP,+WY,+Fishing+Bridge+Campground+to:Smoot,+WY+to:Moab,+UT+to:Las+Vegas,+NV+to:San+Luis+Obispo,+CA&hl=en&geocode=%3B%3BFZX-pwIdd-lr-SHVihnhbiAQ3A%3B%3B%3B%3B&mra=dme&mrcr=0&mrsp=1&sz=5&via=1&sll=40.640505,-113.27843&sspn=17.149871,28.300781&ie=UTF8&z=5
In a nutshell, we'll be through Yellowstone and Grand Teton NP's for a
quicker than optimum visit. Then down to eastern Utah to Moab for a week
of camping. We'll be near Arches and Canyonlands NP's and also Slickrock
trail(a pilgrimage for any Mt biker; http://www.utah.com/bike/trails/slickrock.htm)
and a spectacular disc golf course along the Colorado river. Then we're back
to SLO sometime the week of Oct 20th to secure lodging, for Jamie's midwife
appointments (we're getting closer to Nov 18th!!) and generally get settled and
start work in Morro Bay the 27th.
Hope all who read this are happy and well.
-sw

The Museum of the Rockies Bozeman

Our Super T-Rex, Emerson, was pretty excited to see the life-sized, cast bronze T-Rex at the entrance to the Museum of the Rockies in Bozeman.


Montana is famous for its dinosaur fossils. Paleontologists have discovered seventy-five different species of dinosaurs in Montana, more than any other state in America. The oldest dinosaur fossils are found in rocks of the Jurassic Period, which are 155 million years old. They include the gigantic Diplodocus, the plated tegosaurus, and the fearsome Allosaurus. http://mathscience.mt.gov/Dinosaurcountry.html


Emerson was in heaven, growling, walking on his "claws" and asking, "How big is Emmy compared to this dinosaur?" Is it a boy prerequisite to love dinosaurs?

Bozeman, MT

We took a 4 1/2 hour drive west to Bozeman, MT last weekend. Western Montana is so much different than where we are here, in eastern Montana. It's a lot more mountainous and green.

First Outing with the Tent Trailer

We took the tent trailer out for the first time a couple of weekends ago. Saturday was rainy and cold (39!) so we snuggled inside and watched movies. Not the typical camping trip, but definitely fun.


This is the Tongue River about 10 miles outside of Miles City.

Deadwood, South Dakota

More Sights in Custer State Park, South Dakota

Custer State Park

We hiked to the top of this rock on Sylvan Lake in Custer State Park. It was a cool day, after days of 95 degrees, with a nice breeze in the air.


Emerson's favorite place is surely outside. He's content just looking for animals, sticks and his surroundings.


I'm carrying the infamous stick Emerson dubbed "The 'Y' (s)tick" that left him a nasty scratch on his cheek. So that's why kids shouldn't hike with sharp sticks. Just like us, he has to learn first hand to understand.


The Black Hills of South Dakota are green and beautiful, but Custer State Park was spectacular.


More Sylvan Lake...beautiful.

The Mystery House

No trip would be complete without a stop (or 20) to the Mystery House. Fortunately this one was right behind our cabin. When we were at our cabin, Emerson asked, "Want to go see the mystery house?" every hour or two.


Nothing goes better with a mystery house in the woods than a coonskin hat.


"Gaga" and "Gon-ka" seemed to enjoy themselves too. It's tough realizing that Sean and I are not the ones they drove 1200 miles to be near.


I look at this picture and see a huge kid, not my little bean. The good thing is that as he grows he becomes more fun to be around.

Mount Rushmore

My mom and Nick drove out to see us during the last week in August. We took a 4 1/2 hour drive to South Dakota and did a lot of sight-seeing. Standing below Mount Rushmore monument made me want to sculpt a head out of granite. Hmm...Christmas is just around the corner. Granite sculptures (a.k.a. rocks) for everyone.