I balanced a consumerism-laden Friday (Clementine and I took a trip to IKEA) with a totally back-to-nature Sunday. In between, I got a haircut, Clementine got braids, and oh... USC beat Florida;-)
Even little Clementine walked a good portion of the day. At one point, well into our second hike, she told Kevin, "I want to do one more hiking, and then I need a nap." She wound up catching that nap in her carrier as her poor father walked UP hill about 1.8 miles. Ah, the joys of fatherhood:-)
We took a love-er-ly through a portion of the Shenandoah National Park, making our way along Skyline Drive and stopping at various spots along the way to hike.
With Gabriel's energy levels, the kid could move mountains... or at least very large boulders:-) He hiked. All. Day. Long. Amazing stuff.
Both of the kids' enthusiasm served as a nice reminder that the four of us do the absolute best and have the most incredible days when we're doing something active that engages everyone equally. It's one of the things we loved about Greece... the adventures we got into as a family. All of us, together, wandering, figuring stuff out as we went along.
When we go on adventures, we're always surprised at how we never hear the kids bicker or complain. During a normal day at home, I can hear 100 complaints about the temperature of their hot chocolate or the volume of the television or who hit whom when. But when we're outdoors and active, it's all smiles, nearly all of the time.
Even little Clementine walked a good portion of the day. At one point, well into our second hike, she told Kevin, "I want to do one more hiking, and then I need a nap." She wound up catching that nap in her carrier as her poor father walked UP hill about 1.8 miles. Ah, the joys of fatherhood:-)
The day trip made us antsy for the road not traveled. It's been nearly six months since we arrived home from Greece. It's making us wonder... where should we go next?
