After spending way too much time in recovery after throat surgery, I had to get out of town. October and November are some of my favorite times living in Arizona because the weather drops from 100 degrees to about 60. Nights drop incredibly and day times are short sleeve weather. After fall break when we return to work, it’s dark when I drive into work and dark when Claire gets out of karate and swim several of the week nights.

Over break I wasn’t really cleared for travelling or even lifting anything but by the third week in October, I had to get out of town. I put on my calendar “getting out of town” and told Donna to get in the truck if she wanted to go. I’d planned a trip to either Willow Springs Lake or Christopher Creek to go camping, and then I contacted the park ranger. She suggested we stay in Christopher Creek because the rim (where the lakes are) were close to freezing temperatures at night.

Throughout the week, Donna became sicker and sicker to the point where she and Dante decided to stay home. (I sure didn’t want them in the tent breathing on me!) Friday Claire and I headed north up the Beeline Highway through Payson, stopped at Subway for lunch and then headed into the woods. Christopher Creek campground was pretty dead, and we wanted to be close enough to the pit toilets that she could go alone but far enough so it didn’t smell too bad. We ended up at the same campsite where we camped the first time she’d ever gone in Oct 2008. We set up camp, paid our $16 (??!) a night, and hung out. As the sun dipped behind Christopher Mountain, it got chillier outside. We made a nice fire and hunkered down in our warm clothes. Claire just kept asking over and over again for Smores, but I told her we had to eat dinner first. We had hotdogs and then later Smores. At about 8:00 o’clock she said she wanted to go to bed so I took her into the tent, but I suddenly realized that there were no adults there so I didn’t have anything to do after she went to bed. I read my magazine in the tent for a little while but it hurt by back so I too went to bed at 8. By 7am we were awake and frigid. Sleeping didn’t bother me in the cold, but it was waking up cold that sucked. I had Claire climb into my bag with me and we told each other stories for an hour before braving the even colder air outside the tent.

We made a small fire to make our oatmeal, and we hung out around camp. I wanted to hit the General Store in Christopher Creek but didn’t think it’d be open too early. We headed over there after 9am and the lady was talking to Claire. After discovering she was 4, she said they were having a Halloween costume parade and trick or treating that night at the local fire department. I said we might be back.

Claire and I wanted to see some fall color, so we drove up a dirt road to some trails where there were Red Maples with leaves still. I was worried that we were about a week late for the leaves, but we definitely saw some back by the creek. She complained about walking even though we were going through a flat meadow, until I realized she needed to go to the bathroom. She freaks out with outhouses but when you gotta go, you gotta go. She finally dropped trou and went on the side of the trail. I buried it and put rocks over the area before we crossed the creek to climb what I thought was a small hill. Turned out it was more like a small mountain. We headed up this thing and I had to toss Claire on my head so she wouldn’t roll down the hillside. The problem was the leaves were very slippery, so we made it about 10′ and found a spot where a blanket of red leaves rolled down the hillside. She and I made like we were sledding and got back down near the creek.

We eventually made it back to the car, salvaged some wood from burn piles that night’s fire, and headed up to the top of Mogollon Rim to Woods Canyon Lake. We got some worms and hoped to fish. After about two hours of not a single bite we decided to head back to camp so Claire could change before the trick or treating. The fire hall was pretty empty when we arrived, and I told Claire to just tell everyone that she was going as a “camper” since she had no costume. After we grabbed some free hotdogs more people began coming, and it turned out that this evening was a big deal. Many people like us were valley people who drove up just for the evening. After the costume parade, they loaded the kids into trailers behind fire pickups and drove us through Christopher Creek to all the cabins. We were out there for about three hours, filling a large bag with candy. Claire loved it, and I’d consider taking her back next year (with a costume this time!)

I had an Arizona Highways magazine at home about cool drives in Arizona, and one of those drives was the 300 Rim Road between 260 and 87. It’s a dirt road that literally runs parallel to the top of the Rim for about 55 miles, and I figured we might find some nice photos of yellow Aspen at the top. Donna and I had made the drive years ago but only part way in to camp. This time I was determined that Claire and I were going all the way across.

Sunday morning we packed the tent and got on the road north after a nice breakfast at Creekside Restaurant. On the 300 we passed right by the Woods Canyon Lake cutoff, which is usually as far as we go. This time I was determined to drive all the way. The road immediately went from paved to dirt and gravel. ATVs and dirt bike riders flew by, and I put my zoom lens and camera next to me on the seat of the truck. Claire was half preoccupied with hiding some of the night before’s candy in the back seat, but she kept putting her window up and down to watch the dust and trees. Occasionally I stopped to get some photos along the Rim and ended up at several key points along the way. I almost drove back to Knohl Lake to check it out, but I wanted to get to Strawberry at a decent hour to see my friend Alan.

There were several campgrounds along the way that we checked out, but I like sites that have a creek or lake close by. I was also hoping to see elk or coyote but we barely even saw any birds. I think Claire enjoyed the ride, and we did find a few stands of yellowed leaf aspen. I shot a few hundred pictures before we pulled onto 87 towards Strawberry.

Alan lives in the woods, and he’s never really home; this weekend he just happened to be there so Claire and I stopped at his cabin for a bit before driving into Payson where our friend’s have a cabin (it’s more like their second house). They weren’t there and later said we missed them by minutes (but I know I drive faster than them and we take the same highway home). We rolled into Chandler a few hours later, after our 350 mile, three day adventure together.

We’re sitting around at dinner, eating our pasta, and Claire blurts out, “My friend, Hannah’s name is a palindrome!” Then Mama asked her if she knew what a palindrome even is, and she said matter-of-factly, “Yes, since Hannah has two Hs, two As, and two Ns in her name.” Yes, Claire, of course. Of course.

Claire and I drove over to Changing Hands Bookstore today to pick up a copy of the new children’s book by Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul and Mary fame. He’s going to be at Changing Hands on Sunday signing and singing. This conversation below is a true story.

As we walked in the door:

Claire, “Dad, what’re we doing here?”

Me, “Getting you a book.”

Claire, “Awesome! I love books. Which one?”

Me, totally clueless, having no idea the name of the book. “Dunno. Can’t remember the name. Let me find someone to ask.”

Claire, stopping me in mid-aisle, “Is the book Day is Done? Is that the one, Dad?”

Me, floored. Finding my voice and suddenly remembering the title, “Why, yes Claire that is the book.”

Claire, “ok, there it is.” Pointing to the poster selling Peter Yarrow’s new book Day is Done.

Not only did she read the title, she then proceeded to get in line to go ask the cashier for a copy housed behind the counter.

My response to her mother when I got home. “How ’bout I just give her my wallet and car keys, too.”
Claire listening in and needing the last word, “Yes, and I already read it to myself in the store.

“Claire, you are so smart; you’re smarter than adults who should know better.”

“Mom, there’s stuff that you don’t know.”

“No Claire. Sometimes I just pretend not to know stuff so that you feel better about yourself.”

“Oh”

Claire’s been working really hard in all of her classes; I don’t know which she likes (will like) the most, but she was really excited last Friday for swimming. The week before Mama and I got to watch her attempt to pass up and graduate from her beginning freestyle class. She was pretty close, and the deck manager gave her and her teacher some pointers to work on. Claire and I discussed them all week, and she went into Friday’s lesson with them in the forefront of her thinking.

She got up there and didn’t a helluva job. The deck manager wanted to see her try again before the class was over, so both deck managers talked and they decided she was ready to move forward! Claire was so excited to ring the bell and get her medal. She is not moving into Silver class where she will learn advanced freestyle before moving towards breast and backstroke. By next summer, she should be on the team!

Last night Claire and I were running out to grab dinner, and I asked her to grab my shoes for me while I finished something else. A moment later she’d run back into the room with my leather sandals I keep near the door in our living room. I don’t usually wear them unless I need to run out onto the rock yard. As she dropped them to the tile, something wiggled under one of them. We’ve had geckos in the house recently (and we always let them live cause they’re cute and eat bugs), so I went to pick up the shoe to show Claire. But when I picked it up instead of a cute little gecko there was a scorpion under my shoe.

Now I’d not seen a scorpion in my house in almost a decade and there he was! Claire shrieked and then immediately calmed down. She had this look like “what the hell is that thing?” I explained to her it was a scorpion and tried to figure out how to put it in my Claire context. I told her it was kinda like a “bad lizard” that hurts you.

I grabbed a glass and put it over the scorpion, and then went to find my Leatherman. I grabbed him up by the stinger and showed it to Claire, then I shot a few pictures before she and I went outside to crush his skull with a stick.

cc licensed flickr photo shared by Roadsidepictures

On the way home Friday from work in the car.

Claire: Dada, what are we doing this weekend?

Me: I’m not sure. We’ll ask Mama. Maybe we’ll go to the mall.

Claire: Dada, I want earrings.

Me, trying not to react: Why do you want those?

Claire: Cause Kaitlyn has them.

OH BOY.

This morning, in the guest bath…
me: OW!!!
Claire: What?
me: I hit my elbow!!!
Claire: Are you OK?
me: No! It hurts!!
Claire: Oh, don’t worry, it will only hurt for a minute…

When we went to Claire’s check up in April, they gave us all of this literature about car seats, safety, and what to do or not do. The car seat she was in at the time was made to supposedly work until she’s like 100 pounds and a few years older than she is now. We’re all a little too eager for our child to grow up (walk already, wait for me, come back! OR say “mamamamamama”, shhhhh, will you just stop talking for a minute!?), so I was ready for a booster. A real booster without a back, that I can just prop her into and go. Something smaller that I didn’t have to clean as much; something she wouldn’t spill her damn milk on to stink up the car in the desert summers. Of course the pediatrician assured me that if her current seat still fit her shoulders, then stay with the 5-point harness. So I did. We lasted another two months and then she went to Pittsburgh for June.

The car seats in the grandparents’ cars were older, from when she was smaller. They had both bought her boosters, like the ones I wanted to get her. Damnit, they beat me to it. No going to Target to pick them out, choose cool colors, take photos of her with the thing, and then buying it. They beat me to it. Oh well.

So we came home, back to Arizona in July. Her car seat in Mama’s car was a little tight and not quite as tight in my car. Last week, Donna picked her up and took her out for the evening so I could write. I get home, there is a new car seat. Sitting in the back of my wife’s car is a purple flowered straight from Target booster seat. Pretty. No pictures, no Dada there to enjoy it with them.

Then I went into the truck and in all it’s glory was a brand new booster seat is bright orange and muted grey. All mine! For my truck! Woohoo. Claire’s been in it a week now. It’s easy to get her in and out, she can move a little more, but she’s learning to be careful in it, and it just feels like she’s growing up. She loves it, but now she’s demanding I put the headrest back on the seat that I took off in April 2005. I guess we’re never quite pleased.

Before going to Pittsburgh Claire was eager to get another tip on her karate belt. For young children, tips come before belt changes. They have several levels of white/color belts that are tipped before they move onto full yellow, etc… When we returned from Pittsburgh, Claire was really excited because they were tip testing the next week but I was worried because she’d missed a month of classes. I asked her instructor to show her how to do the moves she needed to know while I watched, and she and I practiced every day for a week.

The following week she did tip test the first day of the week, and she immediately did the entire series of blocks. She was really excited to pass the test so quickly, and after class the instructors told us she had enough tips and experience to belt test that weekend. Saturday afternoon Donna and I took her into the dojo and they were packed. Parents lined the place with cameras waiting for their child to perform. They were testing all levels from white/yellow all the way through brown. It was really a cool event, and Claire went along with it very well even though we had no idea what half the process was like.

Eventually it was Claire’s turn. She listened, performed, and passed! We were really excited, and we could tell she was terribly happy as well.