The Adventures of Lyell

Lyell turns 2 (months) today! I can hear his little sleeping murmurs as he takes his morning nap, all swaddled up and listening to the sounds of the ocean which come out of his little stuffed sheep. Lyell and I went for a run this morning and I actually had to dress him warmly as there is a slight chill in the air for the first time here in the sunny Sierra. We were passed by many of our teacher friends heading to work, and as they waved at us I was reminded again that this will be only the second September since I started Kindergarten that I will not be returning to an educational setting. On to new adventures...

First we had a visit from Grammy and Papa Marcis which included some golfing,

fishing by the river,

walks to the lake,

and lots of chill time on the porch admiring the little guy.

All of a sudden Lyell started to grow. When we took him to the doctor we thought something was wrong with the scale as it showed he had grown more than 2 pounds in two weeks! And he has grown 6 inches in length since birth! I had to put away all of his newborn outfits (which I admit caused a few tears from mommy) and move him into the next size. Matthew and I looked at our 13 pound baby boy and decided that he was ready for his first high country adventure.

First we visited with grandpa VK and Mara at the McCauley Cabin in Tuolumne.









Then we teamed up with two other families for a backpack trip up to May Lake. It was glorious and Lyell was a fabulous hiker. He had no altitude trouble and loved the cooler high country air.

Most importantly we got to glimpse the mountain that inspired our son's name.

Lyell, however was more interested in his lady friends.

Our trip turned a bit adventurous as a storm blew in at night and drenched us with rain. Fortunately, Lyell was oblivious and toasty in the tent and the car was not too far away.

We arrived home and harvested tomatos, peppers, squash, cucumbers, okra, green beans and parsley from our garden!

From backpacking at 9000 ft. to gardening at 3000ft. all in a day, we love the Sierra!!!

Lyell Todd: The Rock Star!!

Lyell turns 6 weeks old today! As I sit here at our computer (which is now permanantly moved to in front of the couch so I can browse while I nurse) waves of memories come flooding into my mind and I struggle with how write the ocean of feeling that our new baby has unleashed.

Lyell likes his morning walks, which are slowly turning into morning runs. Well, maybe mommy likes to think that Lyell likes the walks because she likes them so much and doesn't want them to end. Fortunately the weather is calming down a bit so we don't have to leave at 5:30 to avoid extreme heat. More like 6:15. I have downgraded my lofty goals from a marathon to a 10k and then we'll see.

Every moment is a miracle. Truly. I Yesterday he woke up from a nap without his usual cries for food, and calmly stared at me. It was like he had grown up during his nap and now understood a little bit more about the world. The way that he looked at me was so profound, and perhaps I am reading way too much into this, but it felt like he was seeing me in a whole new light.

I have learned my lesson about bragging in writing about Lyell's sleeping and crying habits, as it seems to cause a subconscious regression. Suffice it to say that Lyell cries and Lyell sleeps and right now there is not too much of the former and quite a bit of the latter.



Matthew continues to work hard in the garden and his latest project has been brewing manure tea to help the plants with their midsummer lull. We are heading to the farmers market tonight with some of his bounty. Canning will be the next project and he has already started with pickles, which seem to be all the rage in the trendy bay area food scene.

Speaking of the bay, we took a trip to Palo Alto to visit the VK grandparents and great grandpa Tincher. Lyell was a rock star in the car, except when we hit bay area traffic. He will be growing up in a county without a single stop light, so I dont think he is used to too much stop and go.

We also had a visit from our friends Joanna and Chris and their baby Karsten. The boys weren't quite ready to play, but they did share a mosquito net as the parents enjoyed a warm evening dinner.