Chase goes hiking

Inspired by the amount of walking I did in DC, I decided to go hiking with Chase during the week. We went to Thumb Butte on Wed. Which worked out great because, the temperature was awesome AND parking just so happens to be free on Wednesdays. I guess Wednesdays will become known as hiking day.
Here I decided to take a rest and try to get a decent picture. This is not an easy thing to do when you have to setup the camera and run over before the timer goes off all the while making sure you and your baby don't end up on the ground.

The view.

I was going to attempt another self timed picture. But a hiker asked if they could "help" me.

I have to admit, I was grateful.

The view. The trail is a loop. But the one side is all paved and pretty steep. So I choose to go up and down on the same side.

Joel gave me a day off on Saturday. I needed it! So I asked very kindly for him to take pictures of his and Chase's day. He did not do this simple task. So for now on, he can not complain about how little I use the camera. Oh, for those curious, I spent the day reading a book at wildflower. Yes, it is a very simple but luxurious gift to be able to read a book without being interrupted.

On Sunday we went to the Williamson Valley Trail. This was the first time that either of us had been on this trail. It was gorgeous! Our main problem was not bringing enough water and snacks. The over all trail was probably a medium level. Not easy like the Peavine, but Thumb Butte is definitely steeper. If the trail wasn't so narrow, you could easily bring a stroller.

I don't know if it is the unusual spring weather we have had this year, but there was an incredible amount of century plants blooming back here. I'm planning an entire post solely devoted to the century plants we saw. They are just amazing!

We woke up Chase for this picture.

Us by century plants.

Done with the hike. We took turns carrying Chase.

Chase in the ergo...again just waking up.

Chase goes to Washington

Washington DC that is! Chase and I went for about a week and visited my ever so lovely sister. Again, why does my family have to live so FAR AWAY! Hello...I have a very cute son, you would think that would be enough for them to pick up and move!

Back to the trip. The trip was my mother's day present from Joel. And it was probably the best present he could give me. I LOVED the entire time we were there and am already missing Britt. She better move back to the west. Cause I need her to be closer to me!

Chase did good on the plane. Well, I think he did good in 6 month old terms. He cried, laughed, and slept. From what I have been told the hard time to fly is when they get into the 1-2 year old range. Chase pretty much stole the show wherever we went. He had several waitresses that kept coming by just to say hi to him. :)

As for me. The trip was good. I have successfully flown across the country by myself with a 6 month old. Only a few brave women can say that.

We went to the national zoo on Friday. It was a lot of fun. I didn't bring a stroller with me. So we rented one from the zoo. As you can see, it wasn't made for a 6 month old. So I channeled my inner engineer and came up with this 5 point harness using my ergo (the baby carrier that Chase lived in during the trip).

This was really cool. They had an orangutan crossing, that let the orangutan cross over the walkways. What was so cool, was that we saw him use it!

I added this picture to show just how cool my phone is.

I think Britt is trying to eat Chase.

Not the best picture of me. But, it sums up the weekend. We had a blast Aunt Britt.

He's a Travelin' Man

Well Chase and I have been on the go the past month. We spent time at the cabin, Pahrump, Flagstaff, and DC. I'm ready to take a breather and be home for awhile. And then it all starts up again with Telluride, Elko, Flagstaff, and hopefully a visit to Jamie's.

Pahrump was a blast. It is so nice to get spoiled by your mom! And she did just that! I wish she and the rest of the family was closer. This whole see each other every 3 months is hard. :(

While in Pahrump we took Chase to the swimming pool for the first time. He didn't really like the big pool. But, my mom bought him a really small pool at Walmart that he loved.

Cinco de Mayo

It has become a tradition to meet at the cabin every "Cinco de Mayo" with family and friends. The weekend is filled with a lot of eating, drinking, laughing, and work. Yep, "we" work on the cabin each year to get it through the next year. Last year the guys worked on the fence, this year it was painting the cabin.

We had a blast, I wish I had taken more pictures. I have also decided that we need to go up there a lot more and spend more time, 3 days just doesn't cut it.

Aiden caught the fish. He had several good one liners this trip.

This swing was a big hit! Chase loved it, we had a hard time capturing his smile. But he just kept laughing each time we would push him. Here is the second swing. Ainsley (not sure on the name spelling) was so cute the entire weekend! The kids went from spotless to massive dirt everywhere in 2.2 seconds. All the dirt just brings back memories of camping from when I was little...I LOVE IT!

Rowen was playing with Chase here.

Peyton playing with Chase.

And the kid group shot. I can't believe we are grown ups, and these are our kids!

Chase vs. Peas

Joel is not a vegetable eater. So I was a bit surprised by how fast Chase ate his peas. And yes, Papa, Chase ate them right up! I guess he skipped the Berman gene on this one. Well, at least for right now. I'm sure it will change when he realizes how gross they look.

He likes to grab the spoon and chomp on it. I wish he loved his teething rings this much!

Visit with Nama

Chase and I went down to visit Nama this week. It was great and really nice to just get out of the house for a couple of days. We went to the desert botanical gardens (http://www.dbg.org/). They have a really neat glass exhibit right now. We went during the perfect time of day, but it was a bit hot for the little man.

They also had a butterfly exhibit. AND they had just released new butterflies the day we went!

Chase wasn't to sure about the butterflies. I think in this picture one had just landed on him.

Chase had a hard time that night. I think he was tired and all the flashes (there were alot of people there taking pictures) kinda scared him.

Here is part of the exhibit during the day.

And at night.

This was probably my favorite plant of the whole garden. I know it is just a simple artichoke plant. But one the flower is beautiful and two I had no idea that artichokes bloomed.

We had a blast!

Chase vs. Sweet Potatoes

The verdict is still out.