Labor Day Weekend

Leila and I headed up to Grant Grove/Kings Canyon National Park this weekend. We went up on Friday afternoon and returned today (Sunday afternoon). It was an action-packed 48 hours and I, for one, am exhausted though I think Leila has more steam left in her engine (she just cheated us both of a nap, much to my consternation and fatigue).

In reverse chronological order, our trip --

This pic was taken this morning by the campfire, which Leila really "warmed up" to. Up to this point, she has been deathly afraid of fire. As of this morning, she couldn't get enough. I can build a decent fire, but for whatever reason, this morning's fire earned me the credit of, "That's a real fire, good job mom." It was so relaxing sitting by the fire with her this morning burning sticks.

After breakfast this morn, we took a stroll through the great spread of beautiful forest right behind our campsite... literally, it was like it was all ours. This was our second extended tour of our "backyard" and both times, Leila delighted in finding ways to skip across the little creek... across logs, rocks or shallow crossings. Loads of fun. She's getting so brave.

Ready, set... JUMP!
And yesterday (Saturday), we drove down into Kings Canyon for a tour of Boyden Cave. About 3/4 of the way down, I wondered if the drive was worth it, but I'm certainly glad we made it. The cavern was breathtakingly beautiful and the tour was chock full of interesting information. Leila will have a hard time forgetting the many food references to the ever-evolving marble formations within the cave: bacon, pancakes, wedding cake. She probably remembers more.

Leila was quite the photographer in the cave.

Oh, and a Christmas tree.

After the tour, Leila was interested in cracking a geode. How could I refuse?

She's so proud of her shiny new pair of rocks.

Heading back to our campsite in Grant Grove, we stopped at a couple vista points to admire the view:

We took a tour of our campsite and Leila walked along every single log lining the road. On this particular log, she even snuck in a quick "chicken dance."
Our magnificent campsite...
Sleeping camper beauty...
On day one of exploration, a giddy camper girl!
Coming back from the visitor's center, we stumbled upon this sweet friend, enjoying a quiet moment. It was a real treat to observe her for a couple minutes before she gracefully sauntered off.