Rai Takes Himself Out for a Walk

Things were eerily silent in our place at 7a.m. this morning. Usually, Rai will let us know that he's up and ready to eat around 6a.m., but today, nothing but silence. We woke up at the same time and, looking at the clock, smiled content about the apparent change in schedule. An extra hour of sleep -- keep this up, Rai!
The dream scenario came to an abrupt halt as we peeked into his bassinet. Instead of seeing our cute little boy, we saw only a note, scribbled in unpracticed hand: "Gone to Presidio. Will return soon."
Apparently, word had reached Rai that in the heart of San Francisco, lies one of the nation's great treasures: the Presidio of San Francisco, once a giant Navy base, now one of few urban National Parks in the nation. With the 25th Avenue gate to the Presidio just a couple miles from our door, Rai was anxious to visit his first National Park.
We jumped in the car, heading for the Park. Minutes later, we were speeding through the Arguello Gate. Rai wasn't hard to find. At this time in the morning, he was in the only stroller around. We caught up with him on one of the forest trails. He moved slowly at first, but once he saw us, he had the confidence that comes with safety. Before we knew it, he was speeding down those forest trails.
We're still not sure how he propelled and steered that stroller, but we do know that he enjoyed the smell of eucalyptus and the varied wildflowers along the trail. The forests of the Presidio are beautiful so we're glad that Rai chose our city's National Park as his first 'sneak out of the house' experience. Rai, we couldn't be more proud. Nice work this morning!