September 20 - 30, 2016 - 2 years 2 months

Kadin took this photo of Mama and su cafecito.

This is another shot of Kadito the photographer.

Kadin put this sticker on his nose in a silly moment, which was perfect, because poor Mia was in the hospital on her birthday and we sent her this photo to cheer her up.  Happy Birthday!!  Hope you are healed up soon Mia!

Kadin, practicing his tree pose.

Namaste.

My friend Leighan painting a gorgeous sandhill crane on my wall.  It's Kadin's growth chart.

Putting the finishing touches on the crane… 

Now you see me...

Now you don't!

I think he was removing the rock from the road, 

Mi cocinero made scrambled eggs this morning, from getting the eggs out of the fridge, cracking them, mixing them, pouring it into the pan, scrambling them and serving them onto a plate.  The only thing I did was light the stove and help hold the heavy cast iron skillet!

Yay! Biking and high bush cranberries!

I'm going in!  Brrr… it's a bit chillier than last month's swim.  Didn't stop him though!

Since Kadito went in, his Mama had to follow suit, both in our birthday suits, of course!

Video of Kadin biking down a hill, making funny faces.

Here's the link: https://youtu.be/ujIryQOFeLg

September 16 - 19, 2016 - 2 years 2 months

Every evening when I pick him up from daycare, Kadin begs for a snack and then falls asleep in the car,  snack in hand (and usually all over the carseat too).

My friend Heather couldn't use her cabin reservation at Byer's Lake and asked if Kadin and I would like to go instead… I certainly was in the mood to escape life for a bit so I took her up on the offer…
 Yay!  A few phone calls later, appointments were re-arranged, and I threw a bunch of gear into the car and off we went.  Kadin is ready to go!

Here's our rig - a packraft set up with my backpack strapped down in front, the sleeping pad in the back, and the two of us squished in the middle.  Kadin enjoys it for the most part, but starts to get antsy after a bit.  Then we stop, look for feathers and leaves floating on the water, or have a snack, and all is good again.

Exploring and hiking around the cabin in the evening.  Kadin took a sudden liking to the ferns along the trail and I showed him how to put them behind his ear… like a cute little forest elf.

Kadin found a loon's feather down by the lake.  So pretty!  And we could see the loons on the lake, doing their crazy calls.  

Short trip, just one night, and back into the raft and on the lake 

It was a misty, drizzly day, giving the lake a completely different mood than yesterday.

The rain didn't stop Kadin from having a good time! 

September 1 - 15, 2016 - 2 years 2 months

Kadin wanted to play with a hairband and loved trying to see himself in the mirror with a ponytail. 

We went berrying picking and there weren't any left because someone had arrived before us!  I actually got to see the black bear briefly as he/she was sneaking by, trying to avoid us.

Kadin slept through most of the berry picking and bear sighting!

As we made our way home, Kadin had a big tantrum about something… can't even remember what.  

Best cure for the tantrum blues…. SNACKTIME!

Kadito, el cocinero.  Kadin loves anything to do with cooking!

Kadin and Farah running around naked together… what cute little tooshies!

My mini garden - chives and sorrel!  

Kadin helps in the office at daycare.

More blueberry picking!  This time, we were up on the tundra.  It was still late in the season and we didn't get enough to keep us happy for the whole winter, but it certainly was fun!  Kadin has learned that instead of picking them and eating them, he can just confiscate our jar and eat and eat and eat!!!

It's autumm and all the plants are turning.  This is Kadin's favorite… high bush cranberry.

Kadin "wearing" his undies!   

Gorgeous double rainbow made my day when everything else happening was rotten. Can't have rainbows without rain, right?!

Kadin enjoying the rainbow.

Short attention span! Been there, done that, time to go home now Mama...

Best buds, snuggling at bedtime.

The video is of Kadin chasing a laser pointer… and figuring out it's just a speck of light. 

Here's the link for the video if you can't watch it on the blog: https://youtu.be/GTHtbHjiDkY 

August 28 - 30, 2016 – Backpacking in Denali State Park! (Part 2)

Kadin and I went on a 3 day, 2 night backpacking trip up Troublesome Creek trail in Denali State Park.  We might have only gone a few miles each day, but we had a great time shwacking through the ferns and tall grasses, setting up camp, and eating yummy food.

Pre-planning yummy and easy meals was key!  Kadin really wanted to "help" with the cooking and lighting of the stove.  Meal times were probably the most dangerous part of the whole trip!

And we're off.  My hiking pole was a perfect size for him when it was fully collapsed.  He insisted on it any time he was hiking on the trail. 

Needless to say, it was slow going.  Kadin can walk pretty fast, but is distracting every 20 seconds by neat things along the way… birds, leaves, twigs, the river, etc…  I think he is pointing out the river in this photo.

I tried to wipe his face a bit before heading into bear country, but obviously wasn't too successful.  I certainly did get it clean before bed though! 

He usually started the day hiking, then ended up in the carrier.  Then out of the carrier to walk 5 feet, then up, up up.  Then out, out, out.  Over and over.  Here, we just got into our camp for the night.

A river with lots of rocks and sticks on the shore was a perfect distraction for him as I unpacked and set up the tent.
And it was just a few yards away, with a shallow section, so I didn't have to be too worried (still watched him like a hawk though!).

I think he looks like my brother Mark in this photo!  Something about the expression on his face reminds me of one of Mark's baby photos.

And here he is just adorable smiley Mr. Kadin.  Love you.

Ha!  Not just a bear-proof canister… it's Kadin proof too!  Drove him nuts, trying to get to all the snack and lunch foods!

That's my sleep pad he's playing with.  I went super light weight for this trip since I had an extra 30 pounds of Kadin plus his diapers and clothes, 2 sleeping bags, and of course, his Curious George and a book for bedtime.

Kadin found this bee first, and somehow it landed on my hand.  After a summer of swatting mosquitoes, he tries to swat or stomp on any type of insect, and I have to tell him these are our friends.  Amiga, Kadin, la abeja es nuestra amiga.  

Kadin is such a helper and after breakfast at our second camp, where there is no river nearby, he runs over right away to help me break down the tent in the morning. ;-) 

And then, it was time to relax and have some snacks.  I mean, it's been at least 1/2 hour since he's eaten.  Of course he's hungry!

Our last day hiking and Kadin finally is able to nap despite the constant bear calling.  It took him 3 days to get used to me hollering out every few minutes.  He'd say, "No!" and I'd explain that we have to say hi to all the animals as we hike so we don't scare them as we pass through.  He'd still say, "No!" every time I called.

The whole hike was forested and the trail was often overgrown and narrow like this section here, so it was a bit tough for Kadin to hike sometimes, but it was overall a big success.

And the link, if you can't watch the video in the blog:

https://youtu.be/pFwsYuhUnxI