fall freak out

The color is insane.  Life is full.  We move fast, the leaves turn even faster, everything an unrelenting cycle of movement and change.  We hiked six miles up to a gorgeous waterfall today.  The larch are gold and tremendous and the drive up the Blackfoot was literally breathtaking.  There is nothing that I love more, nothing, then being in beautiful places outside with my family.  We stopped at this diner in Seely Lake, one of those places where time seems to stand still and all of the waitresses still look like Flo from Alice, too much hairspray and sorta snarky and odd.  I love feeling like we're on a little vacation from the funky cool of Missoula, like we're on a vacation in the real Montana.  The Montana of dirt roads and ma and pop diners, of remarkable seasons and lots of old trucks on the highway.  We drove by some weird little distillery where they make "moonshine-style" whiskey.  Maybe next time we'll stop.

On the way out, I hiked in the back with Solomon and Lucy.  Lucy was struggling, sweet, old girl that she is.  She'd sort of sunk in this muddy lake, so she was dirty and stinky and limping, her old hips not able to take the terrain like they used to.  Sol had to stop every few minutes to gather more sticks as they arsenal of weapon possibilities is almost unlimited in this neck of the woods.  I think he talked the entire way out, from his elemental powers to defeat me to the story of all the worms he and Blaise found on the hill at the top of the playground to his asking for more and more addition problems to figure out on his little hands.  He would turn his back to me so that I didn't actually see him using his hands.  That and he was hiking behind me so, ya know.  He's such a cool cat.

And then there's sister bear.  Sister and her songs and her kindness and her knowing.  She got an awesome role in our school play.  She screamed when she read the cast list, just like a good little thespian.
 

She and Jeff were talking about favorites in the front.  I love it when I watch them together.  The daddy/daughter thing is so sweet and when they're on, they are just a pulsing little mass of love and goodness.

 They both seemed happy for the space from the Ninja Warrior.  He was all mine today.  Perhaps that's why I'm exhausted, have elevated my legs, and can't seem to move from the sofa.  He's watching, you guessed it, Kung Fu Panda in our bed.  Alas. 

This is our kind of Saturday night.