Back

We are back in Colfax now. The return plane rides went well and it is good to be back. We had a lot of fun visiting Becky, though we both got sick at the end. The one truly sunny day was the day I got on the plane to leave. We don't have internet at home and don't have a lot of time to write now. Hopefully I will have more later
Layden:
Six teeth.
waving.
clapping.
10 months old.
cute.
beautiful.
absolutely amazing.

Oli:
Tired.
Made me a pretty box.
Wonderful.

Me.
Full bottle of wine fell of fridge onto my big toe, very painful.
Wine spilled all over floor, sad, I wanted to drink it.

Sitka 3

It is very beautiful here in Sitka. The near constant precipitation keeps everything beautifully green. The fog/clouds wreathing the mountains has its own special beauty. And the oppressively constant cloud cover makes the moments of sunshine that much more lovely. There is all the hiking, biking, kayaking, and canoeing anyone could ask for but I don't think I would like to live here. I like the seasons, I like the hot summers that make you appreciate stormier winters for their variety and the cold winters that make you appreciate the warm sun in the summer and the winters and summers that make the transitions of spring and fall the best times of the year.

Yesterday we hiked to Beaver Lake. It is a great hike, hard enough to make you feel like you did something but not so hard that you wonder if it will ever end. The trail traveled through the muskeg and some stunted forest. Very beautiful in its own way. Hopefully the photos will turn out because it was a bit dim. Then we took a loop around the little lake, partly compose of large creating stepping stones in the lake itself, a couple of which seem to have sunken a bit.

Almost

Well I almost went kayaking today. I learned how to wet exit last night, turns out I am very good at tipping the kayak. Then I got up bright and early at 6:45, on my vacation, got dressed, ate breakfast, got Layden ready, drove on to campus, found out the trip was cancelled. Too windy and foggy. Oh well. Maybe I will just take a nap with Layden today. The weather here continues to be rainy, I am hoping for atleast one clear day while I am here.

Sitka 2

We have been having fun here in Sitka. We went on a very short hike to Thimbleberry lake, strolled around the shops downtown and last night we went to choir practice and the party afterwards. Layden has, of course been much admired, how could they not. We have seen quite a few other people with the same (ergo) baby carrier as we have. It is very strange because until Sitka I hadn't seen any at all. Becky (everyone here calls her Rebecca and looked at me strange when I said Becky) is busy until this afternoon. So this morning I think Layden and I will go try one of the hike since it isn't raining heavily, then he will probably take a nap and I might sit in the hot tub. Then I don't really know what we will do this afternoon. There are some warm cute little sheepskin booties I might get him for this winter but I haven't decided yet. When it gets cold in Pullman I don't think socks will be enough when we go outside.
Tonight I will be learning how to do a wet exit from a kayak and then tomorrow I will probably be going kayaking. I am really excited. Kayaking just sounds like fun. Maybe later today I will stop by Becky's room and work on getting some pictures online.

Sitka

Becky was late picking me up but only about 10 min, she fell asleep :). The staff was out of there before we were all loaded up, one of them had offfered to give me a ride but I had no idea where to get a ride to :).
The plane ride went well. He thought the plane was very interesting, slept through the whole second flight (2:22) and then was pretty drowsy for the third, but we were sitting next to a guy from north of Anchorage who has a 8 month old so we had fun talking, comparing of course. I didn't use a third of the stuff I brought to entertain him, most of the trip the plane, especially the window and reading lights were entertaining enough. I think all of our fellow passengers were very happy about how good he was. All three planes were very empty so we always had an empty seat next to us.
In the Juneau airport there were various stuffed birds that Layden thought were very cool. The great blue heron was especially impressive. In SeaTac we ended up arriving at the international gates in the south satellite so I had to take all of the trains to get over to the C gates. Our carseat was damaged on the flight and is missing some styrafoam and I haven't figured out what to do about that quite yet. I will probably give the airline a call today, when I reallized last night it was too late.
The house we are staying in is very nice, it has a beautiful view, though it is a bit foggy this morning. There is a cat, which Layden has discovered on the other side of the glass sliding door, very exciting. Robert got back early yesterday so I will be meeting him today, I will give you all the scoop.If I can get it figured out I will put some pictures online on flickr.
Layden is climbing the spiral stairs so I had better go.

Where's Daddy?

This is a photo from a recent hike up Kamiak Butte that Layden, Lynda, Oli and I took. They view was amazing and I can't wait to go back up at a prettier, less hazy time of year. We had a good hike, definitely burning some calories. Day before yesterday we went on a longer 5.6 mile hike over in Idaho (Little Boulder or Boulder Creek or Something Like That). The gain in elevation was as much (only 300 ft) but it took us a good bit longer. It was and hour drive over, leaving Pullman at 3:45, so by the time we were finishing the loop it was getting just a little bit dark. The hike was sorta spur of the moment so unfortunately we didn't have our camera with us.

I have a new hair cut and will hopefully get pictures of it posted at some point. Layden is beginning to need a haircut. It is growing over his eyes and ears. I will get around to that at some point. He is now up to a grand total of 4 teeth, 2 on top and 2 on bottom. He seems to enjoy them and has bit Oli and I couple of times which was not impressive, but angry no's just seem to make him smile. Layden is really enjoying peek-a-boo and was playing with daddy under the door to the basement (there is a couple inch gap underneath it). He lays on his tummy, peeks under the door to see daddy, then giggles. Then he sits up, looks at me smiles, then gets down on his belly, sees daddy and giggles. Soooo cute. Oli wanted to know how he was supposed to get work done when our baby is so cute. We have another game we like to play. When Oli is in a different room I will say "Layden, where's daddy?" Layden looks around. Not in here mommy. Then Oli calls Layden, who smiles when he hears daddy and crawls off to find him. Once again, sooo cute.
The house is coming along. Hopefully tomorrow I will get pictures of the living room with the floor done, furniture out and pictures on the wall. Also some pictures of the light and boards in the kitchen and depending on what gets done maybe, just maybe, a shelf in the kitchen.
Today was busy. I got up, showered, ate a couple biscuits, oli got up, he showered, went to breakfast (omelet with the works, hashbrowns, toast), Layden played peek-a-boo with daddy, then took a nap on my lap, Oli put up crown molding in the bedroom (big surprise, it isn't square so he didn't get too far), Oli went to work, Layden and I went to visit Dieter then got groceries, then Layden had a snack, then I had a snack, then we walked, then Lynda and I made pear crisp, then we watched "RV" (Layden sleep on my lap again), then we ate pear crisp, then we went home. Now I am typing this and waiting for Oli to get home (soon hopefully) then I will go to bed.

So Sorry

I am terribly sorry but I have no new Layden pictures for you but I figured I should probably post anyway. Some new photos from our visit with Grammy can be seen here. Unfortunately I have been unable to find the USB cord to upload some new photos. Layden just keeps getting bigger and smarter and cuter. He can now drink from a cup on his own when the motivation is sufficient. We learned this the hard way when at 9:00 pm Layden had a sip of Daddy's coffee with out spilling a drop (the mug was set on the floor in the midst of watching a movie). I was so proud and so horrified all at once. Layden also enjoys tea and will eat any tea bag that is left lying about. He also loves it when I share my mint tea with him, so yummy.
We visited Grammy on Saturday at the quilt retreat on Lake Cour d'Alene. It was very fun visiting with my mom and Aunt Karla. Layden also had a little girl to play with while we were there. She was 7 months old and not crawling quite yet. Surprisingly they played a bit and didn't rip each others faces off, though Layden did use her for a stepping stool. Uh oh break is over.