Oh, Yellowstone

Finally, finally, we got to introduce Hayden to this incredible place that is so near and dear to our hearts. In the last five days, Hayden has seen wolves eating an elk. He's seen bison taking their sweet time huffing along in front of Old Faithful as the geyser does its wild geyser thing. He's seen hot water bubbling and steaming and shooting up out of the earth. He's seen bull elk with antlers three times as big as he is, and he's heard their crazy beautiful bugling. He's hiked partway (and ridden the rest) to the top of Mt. Washburn, and from the peak watched bighorn sheep and a wildfire. He's hiked all the way down to the bottom of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, and thrown rocks into various places along the Yellowstone River. He's laughed at ravens and chased magpies, and has also now met—and fallen in love with—one of Mommy's best-ever BFFs, who made it a point to find us at our campsite on her honeymoon road trip out west. And he has lain exhausted at the end of the day in a bed of fine dust, looking a little like a wallowing bison himself.

It's good to be home, for sure. Even so, we're already itching to get back.