Nate's mom, Nema, arrived the first week of November to spend some time with us and help out during a busy week with parent-teacher conferences for me. Having her here to treat Claire to some special time and help with meals while I worked long hours made the week much easier! It was the last of our mild Fall weather, so we were able to enjoy the park and walks too. On Saturday, we traveled to Butte since Susan and I had both just finished Ivan Doig's Work Song novel (set in Butte during it's heyday) and were eager to explore some of the historic sights again. Butte is about an hour away, and, at its peak, was one of the major cities of the West during the late 1800's. The history of the mining and the diversity of the town, which has not gotten "yuppified" like much of the New West, make it one of our favorite places. We were also able to fit in a hike at at Lost Creek State Park, a park we hadn't visited yet. Unfortunately, I was so distracted during the week with work, I didn't take a single picture! All the pictures below come from Nema's camera, so we don't have any of Claire and her together. Thanks for all the spoiling and help, Nema!
Yes, my daughter insists on wearing a dress to hike and carrying a backpack full of doll stuff (which I carried for 90% of the hike).
About to start the hike at Lost Creek State
At the home of one of the Copper Kings in Butte. There was a ballroom upstairs; give this child a stage....
We had a wonderful dinner out, a treat from Nema, at the Sacagewea Hotel in Three Forks. It's been recently renovated and is quite an elegant and fine place to dine now. We usually go to the bar/pub downstairs with friends, so eating upstairs was fun!
Nema captured one of Claire's favorite activities; she still loves to swing, but now it's all about getting as high as possible. She loves being up to the ceiling.
