Ruth Lake

Marcus and I wanted to get in one last camping/backpacking trip before this baby comes.  We decided the 24th would be a good time to go.  We hiked to Ruth Lake again, since it is only one mile and a pretty easy hike.  It is also gorgeous up there.  The wild flowers were everywhere and just amazing.  

Pack weights:

Asher: 3 pounds

Me: 9 pounds

Marcus: 55 pounds

Asher loved carrying his backpack and hiking by himself.  He wanted to be in the front the whole time and kept getting after Marcus if he would pass him.  He carried his own bear, blanket, snacks and a carton of milk.  He didn't complain once and completely impressed Marcus and me.

Asher loved exploring, walking around the lake, finding wildflowers and collecting sticks for the fire.  He loved his gummi bears and sour patch kids, and we had fun sitting by the campfire and making s'mores.  Of course Asher liked his as long as he didn't have to hold it...that thing was way too sticky for him.  He slept really well - he went right to bed after dark and then slept all night long.  I tossed and turned on that thin little pad in a squishy tiny two man tent...but was glad Asher slept away.  

The weather was cooler - it was so nice to be up in the mountains away from the heat.  We found a moose and a couple of cute little marmots.  There is definitely something magical about seeing Asher up there, exploring, happy, and loving being outside.    

Big Boy Bed

Just after getting back from New York we decided it was time to switch Asher to a regular bed.  He still loved his crib, and had never once tried to get out, but he is almost three and we were going to need the crib soon for the new baby.  

We'd been talking about his bed a lot, and he was really excited, so we hoped the transition would go smoothly.

Here he is for his first nap - he was so thrilled to sleep in that bed.  He didn't get out once and a few minutes later he was fast asleep.  

When he woke up he came running out of his room, yelling, "mom, mom, I woke up!  I came out by myself!"

For the most part he has been so great.  He goes to bed and sleeps great still.  He still takes his usual naps but lets himself out when he wakes up.  

We did have one funny little incident.  It was a Saturday night, and our neighbors were all outside playing bocce ball.  I put Asher to bed, waited a few minutes, and then locked the front and garage doors.  I left the back door unlocked since we were out back.  A few minutes later Marcus points and we see Asher shooting out of the back door, grab his scooter, and seriously take off.  It was pretty funny.  I think he was riding for his life!  

Once we threatened to put a door lock on his door he cried a little, begged us not to, and said he wouldn't get up again.  And we really haven't had a problem since.

I'm proud of this little boy and how well he has done with this transition.  It made me a little sad to not have him in his crib anymore, and each day I just realize how old he is seeming.  But I know it was time and am glad we were able to do it a few months before the new baby is coming.

New York New York

July 3-6

We had a whirlwind of a weekend visiting Scott and Julie in NYC.  Our flight ended up being delayed in Chicago for over 8 hours, and we missed our show to Newsies that we already had tickets for, but we had a wonderful weekend regardless.  Because of that delay we only had two full days in the city, so we practically ran around from one thing to the next until we were so exhausted and I could hardly move.  

It was so much fun to see where Scott and Julie lived, where they worked, and just a little bit of what their lives are like there in Manhattan.  I wished I had gotten a picture of their adorable studio apartment.

And now...pictures.

Day 1.

^^We got bagels for breakfast and walked through Central Park.  It was cool and rainy on Friday and not crowded at all.  Such a beautiful park to walk through. 

^^So much fun at this toy store.

^^The most amazing, amazing Chocolate {blob} cookies at Levain's Bakery.  Chocolate heaven.  

^^The highline was beautiful.  I loved being up there with all the greenery but seeing it next to all of those buildings and railroad tracks.  

We wandered through Chelsea Market and Eataly, which were both so fun.

We popped in the American Museum of Natural History because it was raining pretty hard in the afternoon, and enjoyed wandering around there and seeing a few of the exhibits, including the massive, life sized whale.

We watched fireworks by the Brooklyn Bridge and then headed to Time Square.  Time Square was seriously insane to me...I could not believe all of the buildings, advertisements, and most of all, PEOPLE! 

Day 2.

For some crazy reason, we decided to get up early and go wait in line at the Dominique Ansel Bakery for a Cronut.  Something about how we didn't know when the next time we'd be in New York was and we might as well.  We all woke up, realized we slept in a little, threw on some clothes and got ourselves to the Bakery as fast as we could.  We got in line about 6:45 and got our cronuts about two hours later.  Hence the reason we all look so tired and makeup-less this day.  And they truly were amazing and worth the wait.

^^The 9/11 Memorial was really amazing.  I loved seeing it and thought it was done perfectly.

^^Ferry ride out to Staten Island to see the Statue of Liberty.  Marcus had warned me that the statue wasn't as big as I was probably imagining, but I was very impressed.

^^Amazing, amazing pizza at Juliana's.  I think it would have been amazing anyway, but it helped that we had walked miles for it and were all famished by this point.

^^After some delicious ice cream from the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory

^^I loved walking across the Brooklyn Bridge.  It was hot and sweaty but pretty amazing.  I loved seeing the view. Eating pizza, ice cream and walking that bridge was probably one of my favorite parts of the trip.

^^Beautiful public library.

^^Most fabulous tour guides ever.

^^We ended our last night at the Empire State Building around 10:30.  The line was soo long and I was exhausted.  We decided instead to head to Sprinkles, pick up some cupcakes to take back to Scott and Julie's and call it a night.

Not pictured:  Rockefeller Center, Bryant Park, the flat iron building, seeing the temple, popping in stores like Century 21, Zara, Nike, and Anthropology to do a little bit of shopping.  And of course we had to try Shake Shack.

We left bright and early Sunday morning to head home, but it was so much fun to see New York.  Thanks Scott and Julie for having us!

Lake Powell

June 17-22

What a beautiful, fun place. We were able to stay in Page and head out to the lake every day for a long day of fun on the beach, boat and wave runners. We missed Tierra, Nate and Ryan and really wished they could have been there. 

We celebrated my mom's birthday the last night we were there. Happy birthday mom! 

Thanks mom and dad for such a fun trip!