Lost in the Woods

Summer camp has officially been cancelled.  Not that I was really going to send them this summer anyway, but it’s a let down.  We’ve had some really great weeks at summer camp over the past several years.  We’re contemplating buying a tent for back yard camping (or at least “play camping”).  And not that being in touch with nature is a real problem for my kids, but sometimes you just want to get lost in the woods.

Last week we were so busy having fun that I really didn’t have time to post.  But we had an amazing hike in a nearby forest preserve, and these little explores surprised me again and again.  My expectations were pretty low.  We started on the short, easy course.  But every time we had an option to go on or return to the car, they unanimously voted to keep going.  When they could choose beginning vs expert paths, they chose expert.  I wondered how a 5 year old was going to keep this up, but she stayed right with the bigs.  We had such an awesome time.  It was a cool-ish morning, and although the sun didn’t reach us inside the forest, the beautiful breeze did.  My planned 30 to 45 minute outing lasted over 2 1/2 hours and only ended at that point because Momma said it was time for lunch.  Literally within minutes of leaving they were asking when we could go back.

There are a lot of neat natural features along the paths, like this fallen tree.

I told them about the Girl Scout rule: If you get lost in the woods, hug a tree while you wait to be found.  M wanted to try that out.

We did a lot of exploring under our feet....

...and found some pretty amazing sights over our heads.

Good thing smart moms always pack snacks.  Since this short hike turned into an all-morning hike, we got pretty hungry.

H loved exploring the wide open spaces.

We found HF doing  a little monkeying around.

Okay, maybe everyone was monkeying around...

It’s not that I’ve been feeling cooped up, but it sure felt good to get everyone outside.  I think this is the first time we’ve been anywhere together, other than the church parking lot, since mid-March.  That’s a hard thing to wrap my mind around.