Here is Astrid playing in the exersaucer this morning.
Today we decided to take a day trip to Yellowstone National Park. This is state # 6 for Astrid (Wyoming).
The Ranger telling us that at this time of year they only have one road open, the others are closed for the Winter.
My little snow bunny in her Snugli baby carrier. It was a team effort getting her into this thing. I did the right side and Uwe took care of the left side. This was the view I had from the front. I didn't bother to check Uwe's side. Remember that for future reference.
The hood on her snow outfit wasn't a tight fit and it was freezing cold outside, so I put my hat on her and put the hood over it. My hat was way too big for her and kept slipping down and covering her eyes.
Astrid cried at first. Like I said it was really cold. Even Uwe and I were shocked by the chill when we got out of the Jeep. I'm sure she was thinking, "Are you trying to torture me or what?"
All suited up and ready for our hike up to the Terrace Hot Springs. (Astrid's 1st hike.)
This is "Liberty Cap", a dormant hot spring cone, and the pic on the right is me walking up to it.
(I don't understand why they don't use black lettering on their signs. The aqua blue color is hard to see in photos. Especially when the landscape is covered in white snow.)
I remember going to Yellowstone as a kid and smelling rotten eggs. Here there was only a faint smell of the sulfur.
The first spring we came to was called "Palette Spring".
"Shimmering in this hot spring is a living palette of color. Billions of heat-loving microorganisms called "thermophiles" carpet the spring."
That's hot steam you see rising from the spring. 
The sign warning people not to touch the water in the spring.
Water cascades down and forms pools down below. The pics don't do it justice but you can see some of the pools are aqua blue and others are green. 
A shot from up above. You can see the blue pools a little better. 
Here the 3 of us are standing in front of Palette Spring.
Uwe pointed out that the strap on the carrier to one side of my head, and a wisp of my hair on the other side of my head make it look like I have little antennas (or Snoop braids, however you look at it). Haha.
That darn hat keeps slipping over her eyes. I kept asking Uwe if she could see and if the hat was over her eyes. (Thing is when we got back to the cabin I realized that her pink hat was in the diaper bag all along.) Well at least she was warm. 
My mountain man. =)
This is the second hot spring we came to. 
The rock formations look like classic Russian architecture.
Here's another pic of the same hot spring from a different angle (above it). 
Even though I was carrying extra weight and it was more taxing, I was so happy to take Astrid for her first hike. You can't trek up a mountain side with a stroller. At least in a backpack carrier the weight is distributed and it's more comfortable for the baby and the mule; I mean parent.
Remember how I said I didn't check Uwe's side? She looked fine from the front but on closer inspection her arm wasn't put through the arm hole. I would feel and see Astrid's right arm (fin in her snow suit) flap up and down but never felt her left arm do that. I thought that was a bit strange at the time.
This hot spring is called "New Blue Spring".
Astrid's starting to enjoy the hike. She even slept for a little bit. I could feel her warmth on my back so she must have felt my warmth too. After awhile I got to the point where I took off my gloves and opened up my jacket to cool off. Funny how a little exercise and exertion can bring your body temperature way up, even when it's freezing outside.
Looks right at home doesn't he?
After our hike we hopped back in the car and went to get some lunch. On the way we passed the Yellowstone National Park Wyoming Post Office. It has bears on either side of the front steps. They look funny with snow on their heads.
Here's my view outside the car. I think it's more interesting than a plain ole scenic shot because you can see me taking it. 
Here's my view inside the car. Uwe driving and happy.
Astrid thrilled to be inside the car where it's nice and warm. 
This is the huge stone archway you drive through to enter the park from Montana.
This is the sign at the top of the archway.
The sign on the left says, "Created by an Act of Congress on March 1, 1872." The sign on the right says, "Yellowstone National Park.
When getting a coffee Uwe noticed a gift shop and we bought this Montana Christmas ornament. When you pull the string, the legs and tail of the moose go up.
Uwe and I started this tradition of collecting Christmas ornaments from places we've visited. Our idea being that from all our travels we would have enough ornaments to decorate our Christmas tree and each ornament would have a special significance to us (rather than generic boxed ornaments). 
There was sign next to the road saying it was the 1/2 way point between the equator and the North Pole.
We saw wild bison and elk on our drive through Yellowstone. The road became quite icy the further in we went so we decided to turn around and head back to the cabin. 
Astrid enjoying the warmth of the cabin and her exersaucer.
Looking at herself in the mirror.
Getting kisses from Daddy.
We had a great day in Yellowstone. The hike was just long enough and still easy enough with a baby strapped to my back. I was glad we were able to see some animals even in the Winter. I would love to go back and see the park during the Summer.
Seven days in Montana seemed like a long time, but today it's day 4 and it feels like we just got here. The time is passing by so fast.
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