Hey folks! As I've been mentioning
lately, I really enjoy hiking, though I haven't been doing nearly as
much of it as I would like to. You might think it's because I have a
new baby (which is definitely another reason!), but to be honest,
I've been letting my snake phobia get the better of me lately. We
have plenty of space to go for a nature walk at home, but I've just
been too damn afraid of snakes to go by myself with the kids. They
are EVERYWHERE this time of year. But, that's a whole other story...
I've decided to give a new series of
sorts a go here on the blog to keep me motivated to go hiking more. I
made a summer bucket list of nearby places I would like to visit and
go hiking at and it's definitely nice enough to go now. Thing is,
John has been busy on his days off helping his parents get their new
house move in ready. I would love to host more hike and picnic lunch
playdates for our group but honestly, even though Ripley is four
months old now, I still
cannot get to most places on time. It's kind of embarrassing. I feel
like I should have my shit a little more together by now. That's also
a whole other can of worms...
Anyways,
I'm hoping writing about our adventures on here will give me the
inspiration to get out there more, even if I don't have a hiking
buddy. After all, I used to go hiking by myself with Myka all the
time and there were a lot more venomous snakes in Arkansas than
Indiana. ;) Plus, it will hopefully give me a chance to hang out with
an old friend I just “reunited” with recently because she likes
hiking too.
Sunday,
May 22nd,
I took the kids hiking with my aforementioned friend at Griffy Lake
Nature Preserve in Bloomington. I've only been there twice before
back in the fall, but I really like it. I got some great pictures of
Myka from a playdate there when the leaves were changing. Here's one
of my faves below.
I
also hosted a laid back hike and picnic lunch last November as well
for our playdate group there. It was a lot of fun! I got to meet some
new people and it was fun letting the kids run around and explore at
their own pace. We did a nice, flat trail next to the creek which
this 6 months pregnant mama was very thankful for at the time!
I was
hoping to go on a new trail this time, especially since I was feeling
more adventurous since I had my friend and her dog with us...but I
couldn't find my map. And, shocker, I was already running late, so no
time to print a new one. So, we did the one next to the creek again
and ended up going on another short one I had been dragged on at the playdate pictured above. Oh well.
It was just nice to get some fresh air and have some adult company
for a change. :D
I was (unsuccessfully) trying to get a picture of those swallowtail butterflies over there on the right. They wouldn't hold still. Imagine that. :D
Someone always has to fight the good fight with the sleepies while I'm wearing her...but she always caves eventually...Usually five minutes before we're getting ready to leave wherever we are.
Oh.
And I would just like to say that I saw TWO freaking snakes and
didn't have a panic attack, so bully for me! But seriously, TWO?! The
first one we had literally been walking for like a minute and both
were right next to the trail...and there were tons of people there!
“They're more afraid of us than we are of them.” Right...
