Today we went to the Colorado Gators rescue near Hooper. Passed by that place many times but never went in until today. Elliot loved it and we spent probaby 3 1/2 hours there, feeding the animals and holding them. He did not want to leave. UPDATE: we went back the next day for several hours!
We had early dinner at the Sand Dunes Recreation, also in Hooper. They have hot springs with diving boards that Elliot really wanted to try. We’ll have to go back.
In the evening, we watched the Salina Christmas parade which ends with the lights on the mountainside turning into a Christmas tree with fireworks. Elliot absolutely loved it, too, but not as much as the alligators. He later told me Hanukkah and Halloween, not Christmas, are his favorite holidays. He is still enthralled by fireworks.
When we got back to the BV Overlook Camp and Lodging, where we are renting a cabin for 3 nights, we played pool and air hockey again with some other children. And Twister!
The next day, we went back to Salina to get a new toy sword. But instead, Elliot chose a wooden bow & arrow set. He asked me to teach him how to use it so he could be a ninja. We practiced hitting a tree for a while at a Salina park.
Scared of the Dark, Elliot’s Whimpers
Elliot’s turned out to be quite scared of the dark up here. Mostly “bicoties” (coyotes), not ghosts or the supernatural. He asked if his new toy sword, and later a flashlight that we are borrowing from the management, would scare away the bicoties. He clings to me in the dark while outside or with the lights out inside, he asks me to hold his hand. He does his “dog whimper” thing that sounds a lot like Chinle crying or whimpering.
But none of that is new. I just wanted to write about it again. He’s been afraid of bicoties for a long time and often asks about their weaknesses or what scare them away or otherwise defend against them.
