If you’ve read my slightly outdated About Me page, you’ll see that despite the big plans we had to be hiking maniacs after BIG Roo was born, we didn’t get around to his first hike until he was six months old.
This time, despite the madness of having two kids, we managed Little Roo’s first hike last weekend. Little Roo is just seven weeks old. Score!
To be honest, I didn’t think we were ever going to get out of the damn house. Our morning went something like this:
8:30- This is the time that Daddy Roo let me sleep til (hubby rocks!)
9:00- Feed Little Roo, then pump
9:30- Slowing making our way until breakfast
10:00- “Didn’t we want to go on a hike today?”
10:01- “Where’s the Camelbak? The Baby Bjorn? Trajan’s [our dog] travel water bowl?”
10:05- Go on mad search through the house. Baby Bjorn was hardest to find. Stuffed in a box in storage. Thank Gawd I know how to label boxes.
10:08- Fill water bottles
10:12- Fight with Big Roo over going to potty
10:18- Apply massive amounts of sunscreen
10: 31- Finally out of the house and on our way
Sprinkled throughout our morning was Big Roo’s tantrums about the most mundane stuff. By the time we left, Daddy Roo and I were on edge and in pissy moods. I was so close to throwing a mama hissy fit and just staying home. If it was THIS bad just to get out of the house, were we really going to enjoy the hike anyway?
Since we weren’t entirely sure how Little Roo was going to handle both the hike AND the Bjorn (and due to the late start we got), we went to Durant Nature Park which is literally a mile or so down the street. Despite its close proximity to suburbia, we found a nice little hike… perfect for our timeframe and for little feet.
In recent weeks, Daddy Roo and I have noticed that Big Roo nearly becomes the perfect child when he’s outside.
He didn’t walk too far in front of us, he listened when we told him to be careful around the water, he was laughing and having a great time! All the acting out from having a new sibling seemingly vanished.
Trajan the Yellow Labster also had a blast. Loving water runs deep in his veins. He lapped up some fresh water then made a (failed) attempt to jump into the creek. I was too slow to catch a picture of that!
As for the other Roo, we didn’t have anything to worry about. He ALSO enjoyed himself. No crying. No massive poops. Instead, he gazed at this new world, where sunshine peeked through green leaves and birds chirped happily. Look how chill he was.
That’s the great thing about hiking… and our lesson learned. Enjoying nature has an innate calming effect. We went from a cranky, frantic morning to feeling refreshing and calm. Gotta love this stuff!
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
Looks like a beautiful spot. I’m actually not much of a hiker, so I can’t talk about that but I completely agree with you about the calming effect of being outside
We love to take our girls hiking, although the last time we hiked, we got so caught up in the waterfalls that by the time we decided to turn back, we were committed to a 2.5 mile return trip. There was some whining (from husband and children) in the last 1/2 mile, and I had to promise everyone ice cream shakes once we were done. Why? Because the hike had been my idea.
Anyway . . . my favorite part of your post? The dog’s shoes. SO adorable. My dogs would never put up with that.
Haha- glad you like the shoes! He cut his paws open one time hiking so we bought him shoes after that. They are always a hit on the trails!
Twitter: goexplorenature
April 17, 2010 at 5:14 pm
Congrats to you for getting out there! I find that both of my explorers are on good behavior when we’re outside adventuring. It’s like they get so engrossed in the world around them that they stop whining & bickering. It’s the getting out there that’s the tough part. Beautiful pictures!
I’ve found the same thing with my Munchkin….time outside is key to calming down. We’re on vacation now and when time in the condo gets too cranky, we head to the beach and Munchkin is all happy and giggly. Amazing that you got a hike in a 7 weeks. You must have a mellow little one.
Thanks for visiting my site, and I’ll be sure to come back and visit yours!!!!
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Twitter: pretty_swell
April 19, 2010 at 9:34 pm
You rock, Mel. Going on a hike with a newborn AND a toddler. So impressed! Looks like an awesome adventure!
.-= Suzanne´s last blog ..Bella girl =-.
What a beautiful story! Thank you so much for sharing
Glad you liked the story! I’m happy that Little Roo is on his way to being a hiker already! Yay!
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