Well, I’m missing two goals right now. I didn’t make it to a Hike It Baby meetup this week, and I have a variety excuses for that. The biggest thing keeping me solo is the combination of T being constantly dissatisfied with what he is doing (Walking, he wants in the stroller; in the stroller, he wants to walk), and Si being hit and miss on his pack temperament. The ideal meetups are longer stroller walks, or toddler wanders. But yea, totally doable for me, I am just finding reasons to stay home (traffic, nap time, lunch time, potty training, etc etc). I also haven’t figured out the whole nursing in the carrier thing. Si is a messy eater and I’m not sure that there is a huge benefit over just stopping and taking a break right now. Plus I figure its good for him to get out and stretch and bit.
We started the week with an Easter morning hike at Smith Rock (Trail Log). I was really hoping to hammer out 5 miles but we only made it about 3. We had some issues with T wanting to be in and out of the pack constantly, which slowed us down a bit. The trail made an impact on him though, so it was definitely worth it. He kept asking to go on “big rock” hikes for days after. Before we left the ranch, T had the chance to ride a horse on his own for the first time. He seemed a little apphrensive at first but I didn’t pressure him and he ended up learning “giddyup!” and “woah!” pretty quickly. We managed a short walk in the neighborhood, where T found a dead worm that he became fixated on. We only made it around the block because he found a sprig of tiny pinecones that he insisted we needed to bring back to the dead worm.
Today, I decided on a catch-up day and we embarked on a 5.6 mile stroller walk on North Creek Trail. The weather was perfect, reminding me that a true Spring is right around the corner, and we saw plenty of wildlife to prove it. Right out of the parking area, there is a small pond that was full of baby ducks. We probably could have sat there for the duration and been satisfied but I pushed on because I honestly really need the exercise if I am going to get back into hiking the trails I really want to be on. T has a new tactic for attempting to get his way, which is to sit down and just sort of stop…doing anything. I tend to let him sit and think about it for a minute, then give him the option of going back in the stroller or walking. If he declines both options, I just put him in the stroller.
We’re past 20 miles now, and we are heading to the east side of the Cascades to get in a long hike tomorrow morning. I’m just not in the mood for hiking in more rain right now.
8 Feet Outside 