Birthday Part 1

Ravenna Playground

Playground options were somewhat limited this summer, as Ravenna Playground, just 2 blocks from our house, was undergoing renovations. Cara still got plenty of playground time, as Ms. A was diligent about getting the girls out and about every day, and we explored the many other playgrounds in the area. But it wasn't quite the same as having our playground.

By mid-August things were taking shape, and in one wonderful weekend the primary play structures were installed. Much of the neighborhood came out for the "playground raising"; C and I put in about 12 hours between the two of us. We still had to wait a few weeks for the finishing touches, but by early September the new playground was open for business.

As we helped put the playground together we thought it looked like it would be tons of fun, and Cara definitely seems to think so. It is fun watching her gradually figure out how to climb on different parts of the structure and grow more comfortable going down the slides. More and more we here "self!" as she exerts her growing independence and ability.

Halloween

Last year Cara was too young to much appreciate Halloween. But this year we decided to start her Halloween tradition, introducing Cara to the joys of pumpkins, ghosts and costumes, skipping only the gut-busting candy consumption. She'll have plenty of time for that later.

We started with the pumpkin, and Cara was very happy to help her mom scoop out the seeds and pulp. She was intrigued by the slippery strings but was mostly happy to use a spoon for the task at hand. Given her penchant for smearing food around, mom was surprised at how little mess resulted from the process!



We weren't sure how Halloween night itself would go, since Cara had been resistant to previous attempts to put her costume on. She definitely wasn't thrilled about having the lion costume pulled over her head. Some tears were initially shed. We considered aborting the whole attempt, with a backup plan of having Cara go as a lion tamer, carrying the lion costume. But a little distraction in the form of a basket and some of our own candy supply to go in it and the tears dried up. Soon Cara and mom were ready to join the neighborhood kids for some trick-or-treating, with a rendezvous at the street.



Cara wasn't quite sure to make of all the kids (and some adults) dressed up in funny costumes. She was willing to walk to a few of the houses, but mostly wanted to be carried. Taking a piece of candy from the proffered bowl was not, however, a problem. She even managed to say "trick" a few times and always said "thank you"! Her little basket soon filled up, and given that we were rapidly approaching bedtime, mom decided to end things on a happy note and head home. Once at her own front door, Cara thought she should get some more pieces of candy from the bowl Daddy had!





The biggest surprise of the evening was how attached Cara was to her basket of candy. She hasn't eaten any yet, so it wasn't even the anticipation of the sweets. But she loved the brightly colored, crinkly packages and kept the basket close for her bedtime routine of stories and teeth-brushing. It took a little gentle persuasion on convince her to relinquish the basket, and last bag of M&M's, to get int her crib, but fortunately no tears were shed.

Breckenridge Part 2

We had a mellow day on Wednesday, with grandma and J's aunt going to pick up some bikes in the morning, leaving grandpa and J to take Cara out for a walk along the river in town. Cara and her grandparents bonded over playdoh and cookies in the afternoon, while J took off for a short run, exploring some of the local trails. At dinner in a local Mexican restaurant, Cara stole the show and was remarkably well behaved. Tortilla chips were a huge hit.


On Thursday we decided to try for more excitement, a nearby hike on Spruce Creek Trail. Cara slept for most of the hike it and, finding ourselves less than a mile from Mayflower Lake with Cara still in good spirits, we decided to make it a somewhat longer than expected trip. The extra time and considerable extra effort was well worth it, as we had Mayflower Lake and views of the surrounding peaks to ourselves. Luckily J's aunt brought extra goodies, since we had only packed snacks for our supposed morning outing!


After some food, the adults rested, enjoyed the scenery and watched Cara's delight in exploring the muddy shore of the lake. She pulled up rocks and happily splatted mud everywhere. What could be a better reason to hike! The only complaint was when Mom finally decided it was time to go and took Cara out to a slightly deeper spot for a good rinse. But Cara soon recovered her good spirits and consented to start scampering back down the trail, holding Mom's hand for the rough spots. Throwing sticks for the two dogs, and chasing the sticks herself, helped keep Cara amused for much of the return trip down the trail.


No trip to Breckenridge with children is complete without a hike up to the visiting horse camp. Cara was definitely impressed but couldn't decide if she wanted to pat them or not. She prefers animals a little more on her own scale.



Too soon we had to head back to Denver for our flight home. We gave ourselves time to take the scenic route, heading over Loveland Pass and getting out for a brief walk to take in some of the spectacular views. Unfortunately the wind was as breathtaking as the scenery, so we didn't get as long a walk as we had hoped for. Next time!

Breckenridge Part 1

Cara and mom flew into Denver airport on the last Sunday of August. J's aunt had invited us, as well as J's parents to her condo in Breckenridge, and we were happy to join Aunt L and her two miniature poodles. A week of hiking and visiting seemed like a great way to start September.

While the flight into Colorado and drive out to Breckenridge were uneventful, the first night was a little rough. Cara didn't know what to make of all these people, dogs and strange surroundings. So sleep was a bit challenging.




The first day was spent getting our bearings around the town of Breckenridge, doing some grocery shopping with a late afternoon drive up to Boreas Pass. There we explored the remnants of an old railroad town and admired the amazing views, especially in the low angle evening light. Not surprisingly, Cara was more impressed by logs to climb up on (and jump off). Unfortunately the late hour and brisk breeze drove us back to the car before we could do much exploring. Definitely a spot to return to.




On Tuesday we set off for a real hike, destination Lily Pad Lake. Cara slept for much of the hike in, waking up just as we dropped down to the bigger of the two lakes. We all enjoyed eating lunch at the lake, looking at the view of Buffalo Mountain above us. The dogs, Athena and Murky, kept hoping to get some of Cara's lunch but she wouldn't share. After eating, Cara found the lure of the lake irresistible and had fun splashing around at the water's edge.

Too soon it was time to turn our feet back towards the car. A little short on sleep and still getting used to the altitude, Cara opted for being carried most of the way down. As an added bonus, a loving grandparent gave Cara her first cookie at the end of the hike, which Cara happily consumed. Even with the extra food, our tired girl fell asleep almost soon as she was in her car seat.

Party Time!

(place keeper)

B is for Berry

Early this summer, Cara discovered the joys of fresh berries. After a winter of reading “Jamberry’ (a wonderful story about a rhyming bear and a boy who make their way through a variety of berries) without every having tasted the real article, Cara became rapidly attached to the blueberries and raspberries acquired on our weekly trips to the farmer’s market. “B’s” became one of her early words, and no summertime breakfast was considered complete without a bowl full of her favorite treats.

Himalayan blackberries grow like weeds in Seattle. We nurture blueberry and raspberry bushes, but mercilessly battle blackberry incursions. That said, when the blackberries ripen in late summer, Seattleites can be found diving though the bushes in parks, next to the Burke Gilman bike path, on the roadside and nearly everywhere else (as the bushes pretty much grow everywhere) harvesting buckets full of sweet, juicy berries.



Thus Cara and dad struck it lucky on a hike down the bluff and onto the beach at Discovery Park. We ambled down the trail on a warm, ‘partly sunny’ Seattle day, watching hawks play overhead and marveling at the boats traveling about in Puget Sound. Dad was thinking of a playing with sand and driftwood on the beach, followed by a picnic lunch. Several friendly dogs demanded attention on our walk down the bluff, after which we struck out along a trail that paralleled the beach. Which was where we discovered tracts of blackberry bushes, all bearing lovely, ripe berries. Our timing was perfect- we’d found ripe bushes that had not yet been picked over. After devouring handfuls of berries dad picked for her, Cara decided to pick some herself (‘self’ being a much-used new word to tell mom and dad that their girl wants to try doing something without their help). Although unsure of what to do about the thorns and a little unclear on the concept of ripeness, Cara managed to pick her fill of berries.



Dad filled a small container with berries to be saved for lunchtime and then persuaded Cara to leave the bushes to play on the beach. Although our girl insisted on keeping a berry or two in her hands for the rest of the morning, Cara and dad did manage to enjoy some digging in the sand and a bit of toddler driftwood sculpture. A little lunch, more blackberries, fun with seaweed, more blackberries and then the climb up the bluff and back to the car. All of which left a tired little girl who fell sound asleep in her car seat on the drive home.