We Rocked That Hike!

One of my goals for the summer was to enjoy the outdoors more.

I love this beautiful world we live in and I am always looking for ways to make sure my kids appreciate the beauty that surrounds us as well.

I wanted to go on a hike, so I jumped on Pinterest, because I knew that I had pinned a few local hikes on there and found one that was perfect.

It is up by one of the ski resorts, Brighton.  It was four miles round trip and we were able to see three alpine lakes tucked away up in the mountains.

It...was...amazing and we totally rocked it.

 We started up the mountain with a ton of enthusiasm.

About five minutes into the hike, Ellie and Abbie were tired.

I tried to distract them with snacks and singing.

We made it to the first lake, Lake Mary, and it was gorgeous. 

 Coming up to the lake you pass a series of waterfalls.  I love listening to the sound of waterfalls and standing next to one always makes me feel so small.  Once you get up to the lake and past the waterfalls, the only sound you hear is the occasional bug buzzing by your ear.  I don't remember the last time I was in complete stillness like that.  I wanted to move there.  It was incredible.

The second lake is more of just a collection of rain water.  It wasn't very pretty and I did not take pictures of it.  It is called Lake Martha.  The trail looks down on it as it winds higher up the mountain.

The third lake, Lake Catherine, was where we stopped for lunch.  Again, complete stillness and magnificent beauty.  The sun was making the water shimmer and every once in a while you could see the fish jumping around.  We almost didn't make it to this lake.  My two littles who are not very outdoorsy, were completely exhausted.  The appeal of the snacks was wearing off and they felt like the hike would never end.

Then we came around a bend and  Emma happened to look behind us. 

"Hey mom! Isn't that a lake back there?  I think we passed it!"

Sure enough, we had passed it.  So we turned around and found the right path which led us to the perfect place to stop for lunch.

After refueling, Abbie and Ellie were in much better moods and we set off down the mountain.

Everything was great until someone needed to empty her bladder.

I will not say which child it was, only that she (okay, so you know it's not Josh now) was NOT excited about the prospect of peeing in the great outdoors.  I told her about my FD trip last summer when the only restroom we had all day on the river was the river or the banks surrounding the river.  It wasn't my favorite thing to do, but when you gotta go- you gotta go.

Finally, the bladder could not take it any more and she received a lesson in how to pee without peeing on your shoes, your pants or anyone else around you.

Boys have it so easy.

When we made it back to the van, I looked at these four kiddos of mine and I said, "We did it!  We just hiked four miles and we are pretty much amazing!  Don't you feel great?"

"Yes, we feel great," was the response with as much enthusiasm as their tired little bodies could muster. "Can we go home now?"

Oh just you wait little munchkins.  That was just the first of many more amazing hikes to come.  Just you wait and see....:)