The Binker Files

Life in Winnemucca..

is kind of slow.  We don't get out as much as I'd like, in part because there just isn't much to do, but mostly because Levi is sad and kind of angry lately - he just wants to go home.  But, we've made it out exploring a few times, here are some photos of our recent "adventures":

Levi is just tall enough to start riding the run bike, Silas is helping to teach him to ride.

The view from the top of Winnemucca Mountain, if you look closely you can see sand dunes on the valley floor in the background:

Overlooking the big city:

And some desert vistas:

Life in the high desert..

is very dusty.

Silas and Levi seem to think of it as just one big sand box.

But this big "sand box" can be dangerous...besides snakes, scorpions and spiders, there are other hazards.

We recently tried to do stroller time on a similar trail, in less than 15 minutes, all five of our tires were flat - victims of goathead thorns .  The walk home, in the rain and hail, was long.

One a positive note, the Airstream shower is just deep enough that the boys can take a bath to wash off all that desert dust.

The Big Empty

A lot has happened since my last post.  After a fabulous summer and fall in Maine, our family decided it was time to be together again all the time.  Mark flew home, helped us pack up and we started driving.

We took a long cut through Baltimore to celebrate Silas' 5th birthday with Mark's family (sadly, without Aunt Suz, who was away on business).  Nana treated Si to his favorite meal, including cake and pie, as requested.

A highlight of this trip was meeting our new nephew/cousin, Oscar Mahlon Shutty, for the first time.  Oscar is such a sweet little boy with a great disposition.  Here he is dressed up for his first Halloween:

Mark's birthday was celebrated in his beloved State of Colorado and included a soak at Glenwood Hot Springs and visit to the Dinosaur Museum in Fruita.

All in all it was a mind-numbing, ass-flattening 3,000 mile journey to the Great Basin of Northern Nevada, also known as The Big Empty; which we find to be a fitting description.  Unlike most long drives, where you look forward to arriving at your destination, this was sort of the opposite.  But, we all made it here alive and we're together again in our Airstream, tucked into a cozy little corner of the Winnemucca RV Park.

We did have a pleasant surprise shortly after arriving - one of the three Luna Moth cocoons that accompanied us on the drive hatched and is now happily fluttering around the Airstream.