Matthew departs, Benjamin arrives, and the return of poop…

We bid farewell this morning to Matthew, who returns to Michigan to un-pack, re-pack, and drive to Michigan Tech later this week to begin his freshman year. We really had a fun time with Matt in the house this summer, and it has been hard adjusting to the silence!!

But as we were driving back to our empty nest, we received a call from my Mom telling me that my brother was a proud papa. Cliff and Jody gave birth to Benjamin Michael Coe last night. I’m THRILLED for my brother, and can’t wait to meet my first nephew.

As a send off to Matt, here are a few pictures from yesterday’s road trip to Pinnacles National Monument. Pinnacles has two sides–East and West–which are not connected by roads. In February, Jeff and I visited Pinnacles East, so we decided to try Pinnacles West with Matt.

As you might expect, Pinnacles is strikingly difference between rainy winter to sun-beaten summer. We took plenty of water for our lower-90s hike. Our hike took us along the Balcony Cliffs for some sweeping vistas of the park, and then plunged down into the Balcony Caves. The caves were short, but a nice cool break from the heat. Along the hike, we ran across many piles of dried animal scat…since it hasn’t rained in these parts since April.