Navigating the hilly terrain of motherhood
We ventured a little further afield on Monday (a day off for all of us) and headed to Bates-Morse Mountain in Phippsburg. It's an uphill hike, and we stopped a lot to look at mushrooms, and check out tree sap, and pick up pretty leaves, and look at puddles. We were starting to think about turning around when another hiker told us we were ten minutes from the top. Boy, are we glad we kept going…
Every fall, Adam plays a game with the girls where he shakes skinny trees so that their leaves fall, and the girls scramble around to try to catch them. Grace is (finally) getting pretty good at this, but Tess is not so lucky. After watching Grace catch several leaves on Sunday, Tess was was sad — until she finally caught her own. And her big sister was so excited for her. Such a sweet sisterly moment!
And then… going down on her back, head first, with some help from the master thrill-seeker.
Saturday morning, we told the girls we were going on a hike, and to please get dressed appropriately. So they came down dressed like this — and calling themselves the "pretty girls." I suppose when you're going to take a hike at the height of the fall colors, you want to dress as beautifully as your surroundings. And "pretty girls" like to hike too, you know.
Each year, when we attend Maine Audubon's Apple Day, I insist that we walk down to the little bay so that I can take some photos of the girls. I started doing this the very first time we attended Apple Day, when I noticed that Grace's hair was the same color as the grasses by the shore, making for some beautiful photos (sorry, I wasn't blogging then, or I'd link to them!). I haven't quite been able to recapture the magic in the following years, but I keep trying!!
On Sunday morning we went to Bradbury Mountain for our annual fall foliage hike. It was, as always, breathtaking (although the leaves weren't quite at their peak). Tess had been asking about her baby backpack, the one we used to bring her to Bradbury Mountain in. We told her she's too big for it now, but she wanted to have one last ride before we give it away. And although I'm generally the sentimental type, I really won't miss the backpack very much. It's way more fun to watch Tess run up and down the mountain, collecting leaves and laughing with her sister.
Oh— that's just our first-grader, who has suddenly decided that she likes to sit quietly and read. BY HERSELF. I love her more and more each day.
Travelingjenny 