Happy Birthday Claire!

Claire

It has now been 365 days since our beautiful Claire came into the world and joined our family, and it has been wonderful for the time we have had her in our lives. From the very fist time we heard her cry in the hospital to the babbling talk she has constantly now has been such a blessing. She is very close to walking and is brave enough to stand on her own for a few seconds, and loves to explore new places we go. She loves eating any food we give her as long as we don't start with sweets. We had her doctor's appointment to get shots for her and found out she is still only 15 pounds 2 ounces and 27 inches tall so our tiny but awesome baby is still thriving.

Montana and Glaciers National Park

Our last week was full of a trip up to visit grandparents in Montana and stopped in Glaciers National Park for a few days to hike and see some pretty waterfalls and lakes. On the first day, we went through an area that was burned a few years ago and hiked past the lake where the forest came alive again. The waterfall at the bridge where you pass from the burned side to the other was very pretty as well and looked like it would have been refreshing to swim in, but that wasn't the plan for the day. Claire likes to be in the backpack when we are moving but doesn't like being restrained when I put her down.


We had another day of hiking on day two of our Glaciers trip with a steep un-shaded climb to see the lookout over a Hidden Lake. The real tricky part was getting there using the very busy shuttle system though because it took 2 hours to get from the west entrance to Logan pass using their shuttles. I do not advise waking up late! It was beautiful anyway though and wore us out so we went out for dinner to get a famous buffalo burger and then shopped for some gifts and souvenirs.

We got up a little earlier the next morning and drove to our hike this time, and we were lucky to find a good parking spot that was close. We hiked to the other side of a very clear (and cold!) lake where we ate our lunch and enjoyed the shade on our hike back. Our afternoon adventure was kayaking and paddle boarding at Lake McDonald where there was a eagles nest we went by.


Claire really like when we stopped and got out to play with the water and pebbles because she wasn't being held inside the kayak by my hand the whole time. It is pretty hard to paddle when she is wanting to jump in the water so my brother had a good arm work out that day. We had a little bit of a walk to and from the rental shop so Claire rode in the back and paraded herself with lots of smiles down the sidewalk. She enjoys the attention and even waved at a few people we passed.

My mom and dad joined us that night and we came to explore the Two Medicine Lake on Saturday. We found a short hike around the lake to a small beach area where we played for a bit and then had a lunch and followed a short nature trail to a really cool double waterfall. Apparently the water fall only have one at this point in the season though, it was still pretty and a nice relaxing walk before our next fun adventure.


We rode a boat down to the other side of the river with a guided tour to tell us all about how old the boat was. We learned a few things about glaciers and the water that is a deep blue when they melt, and tried to control Claire while on the boat. She has fun when she isn't confined so some of these trips aren't what she considers to be the best.



I got a short break from being mom when grandpa and nana took her back to the campsite with them while I went on a short hike/jog to see the twin waterfalls. We didn't run the whole way but I sure wanted to because it felt GREAT! I haven't been running since my half marathon because so much has been going on and trail running can be so much fun. Going on this trip was amazing and I'm glad Claire was such a good girl for the most part. She even got a souvenir or bear socks to match her nickname: Claire Bear.