Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Whitney, Vacation Fun, and Discounts

We actually got away for a few days as a family last weekend. Our trip to Yellowstone was wonderful and Whitney had a great time. Visiting the geyser basins in the park requires a lot of walking along uneven trails and boardwalks. But Whit was very stable on her feet and walked a lot of it. When she felt unstable, she held the hand of a family member, but she kept on walking. We walked all over the Old Faithful area, Norris Basin and Mud Volcano and Whit just kept right on going. I'm really pleased by her endurance and mobility these days.

Whitney also understood a lot of what was going on around her while we were out. She heard us talking a lot about seeing various animals in the park, like bears, elk, deer and so on. So when we headed out on a walk our first morning, Whitney politely asked if we could go see the penguins and the tigers. Those are her favorite animals at the zoo and clearly if we were on a walk and going to see animals, we must be at the zoo! Melanie and I laughed and explained that we were going to see some different animals and Whit was satisfied. In the picture above she's signing deer. Whitney really enjoyed seeing the elk, deer, bison and the bear we managed to see in the park.

Our favorite thing about visiting national parks with Whit is that she has a special pass that the federal government issues people with permanent disabilities in order to access federal land for free. That means Whit's pass gets us into Yellowstone, other national parks and even BLM land for free. If you've got a family member with a permanent disability, you can learn more about getting a pass by visiting the USGS website. It doesn't cost anything to pick one up.

We all had a great time getting away. The pressures of doctor visits, appointments and daily care fade away when we all get to change our routine and relax for a few days. Below is a video of Whitney and our extended family having some fun in Yellowstone last week. We are all very glad we got to go.


6 comments:

Justin said...

Great video! Looks like you had a really fun time. I love National Parks.

Nate said...

Thanks! It was a lot of fun.

Heather Thorup said...

Glad you guys had fun, Whitney is so adorable!

Nate said...

Thanks, Heather. So is Carter. Cute little guy. It was good to meet you the other day. Hope you're doing well. I was reading about Carter's swallow struggles. I hope you're able to get him eating without choking. You're wise to get things like that checked out early.

Jenny said...

Looks like you guys had a awesome vacation. I know what you mean about all the steps. when we went right after school got out with the kids it was a very long day trip. Taylor was so tired of walking. This is the times I wish we had a stroller that climbed stairs. lol Thanks for the site on the free passes. I sure wish I would have known that then. It will be good for lots of future trips, I'm definatly getting one. Thanks again for always having such good info to share on your blog.

Nate said...

Thanks, Jenny! We did have a great time. If I lived as close as you guys, I'd get that pass and be up there every weekend. ;-) Hope you're doing well!