More Ayla Mae

For those of you anxiously awaiting more pics of baby girl, here are a few. These are the ones taken by the professional photographers (Bella Baby) at the hospital.

oh, how sad!

sorry, couldn't help myself with the prop. ;)

The Halo of Light Around the Moon

Ayla Mae ('Ayla' means the halo of light around the moon) was born on 8/16/2015, healthy and cute. Due to her position, she had to be delivered via c-section but momma and baby are recovering just fine. 

As far as babies go, she seems pretty easy going...so far. She eats, poops (a lot), pees on daddy when he changes her diaper (every time), and cries occasionally. She makes a lot of noises and we are trying to decide if she sounds more like a chipmunk, mouse, dinosaur, or pig. Big brother votes 'pig' and he might be right.

Big brother is making the adjustment, slowly but surely. He is going to be the best big brother ever! Speaking of big brothers, my brother and I are three years and four days apart (July) and so are Kye and Ayla. Weird coincidence!

A bunch of pics won't upload to blogger so you get only a few here. Technical difficulties!

Local Pleasures

We are not very good at hanging out inactively in our hometown area in the summertime. But since baby could come at any point (really, come on now!), we have been doing just that, trying to enjoy local tourist spots and events.

The Big Wheel on the pier

Nice views but a bit slow, you know.

We picnicked and watched the Blue Angels from a park in downtown.

Blue Angel Kye

Grange Fest at the Nursery, with Anne M.

Enjoying watermelon at our favorite river spot, Olallie State Park.

And here, our big boy on his 3rd birthday.

The Best RV Park Ever!

Doctors orders were to 'avoid travel', so we cancelled our trip to Glacier and the Bitteroot area of Montana. We decided a nice compromise was to hang out at the RV pad at my dad's place in Coeur d'Alene.

80 acres, panoramic views of the lake, and loads of quiet except for the noises of various birds, honey bees, grasshoppers, frogs, and the occasional elk bugling. Plus some time with grandma and grandpa. Not too bad, right?!

My amazing hubby surprised me with a birthday present of a 'spa day' at the Coeur d'Alene Inn: a pregnancy massage, facial, and pedicure. I've never done a true 'spa' experience and it was pretty awesome. That evening, we enjoyed a nice dinner on the back patio with a lovely sunset. I'm looking forward to another great year.

While in town, we got a couple visits in with my best childhood friend and her fun family. Here, we enjoyed playing and swimming at the Mica Beach.

[K is pretty sweet on this little girl]

[the clan with K & I...me looking ridiculously huge and uncomfortable
(did a little too much that day).]

[K thought it was awesome to have a bunch of kids in his Airstream room. 

Five kids in one tiny space!]

[The kids get a lesson on honeybees from Grandpa Dale.]

We also enjoyed an evening kayak and paddle board session at Loff's Bay, unpictured as we don't have dry bags for our camera yet.

Paddling around the marshy ends of this lake are some of my best memories as a child. I sat in the middle of my grandparents' large aluminum canoe while they paddled. I imagined myself to be a little 'Indian' girl (that was the term we used back then). We were quiet as we looked and listened for birds and wildlife. Thirty-plus years later, K sat quietly in front of me, while we dipped our paddles in quietly and looked and listened. We saw a little turtle, a heron, some geese, and a few fish.

On another day, B went fishing on the St. Joe (also unpictured...sorry). It turned out to be quite a long drive but he enjoyed himself anyway. We will try to go back there to camp and fish more. While he was away, I played in the shop with the router and scroll saw, making a sign for a friend's yard.

[K occupied himself with a 'construction project'.]

[the almost finished trail sign]

Priest Lake

Having spent a lot of time in Northern Idaho in my lifetime, it is somewhat funny that I've never been to Priest Lake. I guess we always figured that we had a beautiful lake to play in, so why go to a different one?

After years of hearing about the clear waters and unpopulated shores, I wanted to check it out. Being quite pregnant, it sounded like a great trip, since I can no longer do long hikes, mountain bike rides, or rock climb due to premature labor concerns. We made the short drive from CD'A to Priest Lake and settled into our campsite. With a little time before dinner, we decided to do a short hike out of the campground to a viewpoint.

K was slow to start but became highly motivated to hike once we found huckleberries. I'd go a little ahead and he'd say, "Momma, did you find some?!" When I replied 'yes', he was quick to come up the trail behind me. 

In this fashion, he hiked on his own 2 miles with some elevation gain too. 

It was a muggy night, but the coolest weather we would see the whole trip; hiking, even short distances, became out of the question once the heat set in. And so, we spent our days chilling by and in the water, which is truly crystal clear.

 Trying out the new paddle board

Where are the hordes of people?!?

(They did come on the weekend, but week-days looked like this.)

We really enjoyed the Indian Creek Campground and would like to go back again with a large family/friend group. The beach is spectacular, the little campground store (5 minutes walking) sells ice cream, and there is something for everyone: beach volleyball, horseshoes, frisbee golf, and 'nature education' programs too. Plus, after you got all grubby with sunscreen and sweat, the free, hot showers were appreciated.

Happy 4th of July!

(think he's a bit too hot...sorry, no smile)