Anticipation

     Anticipation- an emotion involving pleasure and excitement when thinking about a longed-for good event.It is also "the process of imaginative speculation of the future." So what better way is there to increase the anticipation for expectant parents than to have a baby shower, where friends and family gather to share in their joy!!
     I was fortunate to be able to attend Liz's (my niece) baby shower this weekend to experience this fun-filled occasion. Kristen hosted the event with lots of attention to the beautiful details to make this a very special time for everyone. 

Proud 'soon-to-be' parents; Liz and David

    This was also an opportunity for visiting, especially with family and friends that haven't seen each other for awhile.

Aunt Kelly and Harper

Even the kids had a good time :-)

Cousins Emma and Cooper

Oh oh....

taking turns showing off their dance moves

Stella liked the strawberries; but was told here that she needed to eat her lunch first before dessert.

       After visiting and a wonderful lunch, it was time for opening presents. Between laughter....

     and hugs....

hugs from the front were a little hard to do!!

     cards were read...

      and presents opened....

 with plenty of helpers....

 There were even helpers for recording the wonderful presents.

This helper accumulated bows...

 and ribbons....

as the wide variety of presents were opened.

 Some brought 'ooohs' and 'aaahs'

Liz definitely has a lovely 'maternity glow'!!

 Some brought laughter...

Cats were kind of an inside joke

 and some brought tears...

 With more hugs given, it was soon learned that side by side ones were easier...

Sisters

 After the last present was opened, the Guest of honor asked, "Who's ready for some cake!!!"

 Stella now gets to enjoy the strawberries :-)

As goodbyes are said...

 Presents are taken out and packed into the car....

As Emma and Stella keep watch over another adorable baby.

I do believe that everyone's level of anticipation has increased 10 fold this afternoon !

Finally, Back To Camping!

       Since childhood, camping is my favorite way of vacationing; and after a few years hiatus, it was quite a delight to finally camp again :-)  Since Nathaniel is a Park Ranger for the summer at the Black Canyon Of The Gunnison National Park, it was an easy decision of where to begin again. So, we dusted off our camping supplies and headed West. As we got closer, the anticipation kept building as the gorgeous scenery kept changing around every corner/curve!

    Where else would you see a B 1/2 Road ....

    and a lonely house atop a steep hill!!

Since gathering of firewood is not allowed or sold in the park, we  stop at the corner store (about 5 miles from the entrance to the park) to buy some.

    Once inside the park, the views from the car window are still wonderful!

In 'the olde days' we would drive around and around to pick out a camping site, but with how busy the National Parks are in Aug. and the online reservation system; I had already picked out and had a campsite reserved :-) In no time at all we had our campsite all set up!

Firewood all neatly stacked and ready for tonight!

Jim is ready to relax....

   while Geoffrey and I go for a short walk on a nearby trail.

I have always enjoyed going on the different Ranger led hikes and programs.

This time it was especially nice to see Nathaniel at work in the visitor center...

with us

and with other families :-)

and even better; on his own hikes/program that he developed! We arrive early so that I can get some pics :-)

Waiting for participants

Geoffrey checking out 'Sparky', the vehicle Nathaniel got to drive to this program.

Yep, they are brothers :-)

Answering questions before walk begins.

I tried not to take too many pics during his walk, and just enjoyed his presentation.

Geoffrey took this pic with his phone.

Most mornings, the sun's delightful patterns on the tent walls would wake me up.

 I would get up before the others and enjoy the quiet and beauty of the morning.

Some birdwatching here...Western Tanager, Green-tailed Towhee, Evening Grosbeak, etc.

Since we were in 'bear country', cleaning the campsite and putting EVERYTHING away before we left for the day's activity (and at bedtime), took a bit of work. Even water containers and cleaned camp stoves were put away!!

The van was always a bit messy!

Nathaniel let us use his car for storage :-)

Campsite all cleaned up and ready to leave for the day!

After the day's excursion, there was time to relax around the site and have dinner....

 enjoy a sunset....

 have a campfire and some S'mores....

 or go to one of the overlooks by the light of the supermoon! That experience was very memorable, and if you could combine the next 2 pics, it may come close to what we saw :-)

My pic...with some photoshopping

Nathaniel using my camera with no photoshopping.

After this week of camping, I definitely don't want there to be another long hiatus!!!