July has been one of the hottest months on record, in Baltimore and a lot of other places in the country. I think back to this winter when right-wing commentators were heckling the theory of global warming because of the crazy snow storms we had. Seems that the global climate change may be experienced more as extremes, instability and lack of predictability, rather than just straight warming. Anyway, I never would have expected that we would have found the weather cooler down in Gainesville, Florida, yet this was the case in early July.
Our trip down to Gainesville was not a planned vacation. We flew down to attend the funeral of Marie's grandpa. The event was not unforeseen, yet it was a sad premise for a family reunion and involved some impromptu theological discussion with the 3-year-old. Mila seemed to grasp some of the implications of what death is, and yet the emotional reality of this event for the adult family members around her was not readily easy for her to understand. I am glad that some of her comments inserted during the saying of grace at the table were only in the more intimate presence of Marie's immediate family (rather than the formal extended family dinner the day before). Life is definitely entering a new phase of learning for Mila as she tests out some of the larger concepts of our existence. I feel that my parenting has to enter a new stage of consciousness as well, as I have to deeply consider what teachings I am imparting through my words and actions.
Our camera was inadvertently left behind in Baltimore during this Florida trip. Fortunately, my sister-in-law posted some great photos of our family blueberry picking expedition (from somewhere near Gainesville) up on Facebook. Drew's outfit from that day really hasn't recovered. Drew and Mila got to really bond with their cousins Cain, Rachel, and Ethan. By chance, we got to see them just two weeks later in Colorado. They were in the Denver area for a wedding, while Marie had a week-long class on the electrical grid that became the premise for a family vacation. The cousins got to play together for two days around Littleton, south of Denver (a location that I had never planned to visit, given its macabre history). Deer Creek Canyon Park was a nice hiking location around there, minus the looming presence of a big Northrop Grumman building at the bottom of the valley.
We stayed in Lakewood, right outside of Golden, staying at a nice little hotel that became Mila's favorite place in the world. Her requests to go back to the hotel became a bit ridiculous, though we did manage to do some great hiking. Several trips into Rocky Mountain National Park were made- the first with Marie before her class started, and the second just with kids (who napped as I drove on a one-lane dirt road of switchbacks, ruts and potholes, up into the realm of snow fields and across the continental divide).
Some photo highlights from our Colorado trip are posted above, from locations including the town of Golden, the Denver Zoo, the Rocky Mountain National Park, and the Pearl Street Mall in Boulder.
