Last Day in Yellowstone

Our Sunday morning started around 6, when Lilly started mooing. Yep, all I could hear was a combination of "mooooo" and "mmmmm-a" as she kissed her bear-bear. It was our last day in Yellowstone, so we had to pack everything up. Ugh, I hate packing. Thankfully I have an amazing husband that did a lot of the hard work.

We spent the morning hiking Norris. I had to miss out on this hike last time, since I had a sprained ankle. I actually really liked this hike. About half way through, Lilly didn't want to be in the backpack anymore, so we strapped on the monkey leash and let her walk with the big kids. We stayed back with grandpa, and that was where the trouble began. As you saw before, she likes to steal canes from sweet, old (not very old, Kevin!) men. She took his cane and had a blast walking down the trail. Unfortunately for her, Kevin actually does need the cane, so we had to take it from her. Oh man, did that make her mad! In true good grandpa fashion, Kevin hurried to make her her very own walking stick from a branch. He may have hurried too much, since he ended up cutting himself with his pocket knife. But Lilly had a very nice stick to call her own...only covered in a little bit of grandpa's blood...until she remembered that grandpa had an even better cane. She stole his cane again and strutted along proudly with two sticks. When I politely asked her if I could have the cane, she literally threw it at me and started screaming. That's when we decided it was time to go back into the backpack. Poor thing was so sad about that.

We enjoyed the rest of the hike. I taught Lilly about geysers, and she now thinks that all geysers are called "bubbles!" Erin started to have a blood sugar crash, and Lilly was getting cranky because mommy forgot to pack snacks, so we hurried back to the cars. We tried for round 2 of lunch at our favorite camp ground, and, just like last time, there was a big ol' buffalo sitting at our table. Every stinkin' time! We settled for eating lunch at a nearby table. Kevin surprised Lilly and Joel with stuffed animal buffalo. Lilly was scared of them the last time we were in Yellowstone, but this time around she hugged and kissed it. She calls him "moo," since that seems to be the central theme of this trip. We had to strap Lilly in her stroller for lunch, since she really wanted to go over to pet the real "moo" over at the other table. 

After lunch, it was time to head home. We had an 8 hour car ride ahead of us, and I just wanted more than anything to have it over with. Lilly and I slept for the first hour or so, and then we spent the next few hours trying to keep Lilly from getting cranky. We watched Toy Story, ate crackers, and sang the alphabet in sign language. Pocatello saved our lives! We had to stop for the obligatory Jack in the Box for Ryan. Lilly got a fresh diaper, some food, and a chance to run around. That made all the difference in the world. The second half of the journey was MUCH easier. She watched Nemo and laughed when mommy sang "just keep swimming..." 

We got home at about 8 o'clock, and as Ryan lugged in all of our junk, I gave Lilly a bath and put her to bed. I was able to get everything put away, but I was so dreading having to clean Mount Laundry. I was finally able to have a nice shower and then hop in bed. I'll say this, I slept like a baby last night. Apparently I missed my bed more than I thought.....Even though the trip was short, it was very memorable. I'll never forget it. Yellowstone trips are something that I hope becomes a yearly tradition. I so love all of Ryan's family, and I love getting to spend time with them. Here's to next time! 

The whole gang. Good picture!

I particularly enjoyed this mud pot. It was very gurgly. 

She throws a big fit any time we put her in the backpack, but she instantly falls asleep. 

That so does not look comfy

She looks so interested 

She loves her Aunt Erin

It always made her SO happy to have the cane

....and SO sad when we took it from her

I love this picture. Daddy is hiding the cane. Lilly is waiting for grandpa, as he hurriedly makes her a walking stick.

TWO STICKS!

Seriously, every time I look at this picture, I get choked up. She was so sad!

Pulling mommy's ponytail

KISSES!

I've been singing her the ABCs, but I do sign language with it. She loves to watch my hands. This is her trying to mimic the signs. She just crosses her fingers and flashes gang signs...

Instead of looking through them, she would just kiss them. I guess that works too