All in a Day's Work

It seems like forever since I have last posted, yet it has only been 5 days. Our family (sans Scott) has been stricken with Strep throat. I am still recovering from my injured toe and finger. So I have been feeling not too well. We are on antibiotics and on the mend.
Needless to say, Scott decided that we should do a 4km hike today (8km in total) and I was a little hesitant.
"I'm not sure if it'll be good for the toe!" I protested.
"Can't you tough it out, the boys will be devastated if you don't go!" he reiterated.
"Okay!" Nothing like a good ol' guilt trip to get the wife going.
And good for the toe...it wasn't! The seven of us were excited to get hiking. Did I say seven? Five of us, plus Gypsy(our beloved pooch), and Buzz. Who is Buzz you might ask? Well Buzz is Gavin's newest companion. A friend, of sorts. Buzz Lightyear, from the movie "Toy Story" has become a member of our family courtesy of a McDonald's Happy Meal.(I don't feed my kids this often, I swear!) Gavin carts him around everywhere! When he goes to bed he places him gently on his pillow and says, "nigh, nigh Buzz!" Everywhere he goes so does Buzz. So like I was saying off we went for a hike. Of course hiking with a family isn't an easy excursion. I remember the days of living in Waterton when I could run out the door with a day pack and go for my hike. To even go for a hike with your family it requires bringing "a whole lotta stuff"and a pack horse. (I wish) Here is a list of the "whole lotta stuff" our family takes on a day hike.
1). Sandwiches, not 5 but 8. You wouldn't want to be in the middle of nowhere with a crying child wanting another sandwich, when (gasp!) you didn't pack enough.
2). Entertainment for the children. This was easy for us, because we were going to fish at our destination. (phew!) So, fishing rods was our entertainment choice.
3). Beverages. Juice, pop and water are the usual choices for our family.
4). Outerwear for the boys in case we get stranded.
5). Gavin's toiletries (diapers and wipes).
6). Sunscreen and insect repellant is tucked away (where?) neatly. Wouldn't want to come home bitten by mosquitoes and sun burned.
7). The Camcorder is a necessity. Today as Scott was trying to film an important memory, he complained that the lighting was bad and couldn't see anything. Jonas said, "is it because the black cap is still on the camcorder?" (and it was)
8). The cellphone (in case of an injury) or an urgent message from someone.
9). A jumbo bag of Dill Pickle chips, my family's favourite.
10) The van keys to get us to our destination. (a given)
You can see why I am exhausted even before I begin the hike. Of course the trail we decided to hike (Clearwater Lakes) was overtaken with the roots of the trees with every step taken. It was only 10 seconds into the hike that I stubbed my toe for the first time. (the first of 19!ouch). We didn't complain and enjoyed the hike down to the lake. We spent a lovely afternoon fishing, eating and enjoying the beauty of mother nature. Did I mention the "hike down to the lake"?The journey back was all uphill. I told Scott they needed a gondola to get everyone up. We persevered and ascended our way to the top. Scott smiled and whistled the whole way up the hill. Gavin grunted and huffed, all the while with Buzz in one hand. Jonas ran the whole way up. (easy when you're 5 and weigh 40 pounds!). Seamus and I complained to each other.
"Mommy my tummy hurts!" he began.
"Your tummy, my toe hurts. So does my finger, and now that I think about it I have a sore neck and my calves are burning" I added.
"Okay, you're in worst (as said by Shay) shape than I!" he smiled. Ahh, no kidding kid!
I thought to myself as we summited to the peak of the hill, "how glorious do I feel in accomplishing this hike! Imagine what people feel like when summiting a mountain, or Everest? Talk about elation!" Needless to say I was elated with my little accomplishment of summiting the "hill that felt like a mountain". The Indian who went up the Hill that sure the hell felt like a mountain! My proudest glory of today's journey was that my 2 year old hiked the entire trail from top to bottom with no assistance of any kind! Maybe he'll be a mountaineer?
Our day was filled with fun, complaints, laughter and tears! The usual family kind of stuff!
The weather today was Hot, Hot, Hot! Quite the change from Wet, Wet, Wet! It was 24 degrees today. Can't complain yet about the nice weather.
When we returned home Scott "decided" that Jonas should learn how to ride his two wheeler (without the training wheels). So off we went in the middle of the hot sun for a fun family event of bike training at the boys school field. The "fun family event" turned into a nightmare. I was still overcoming my physical exertion and at one point I watched Gavin climb the stairs to the slide. What I didn't realize right away was that the slide was attached to an intricate set of monkey bars. Before I clued in, Gavin was kneeling on top of the monkey bars. So I shocked my body even more (and my toe) and sprinted "a good" 40 feet to get him out of harms way. Phew, child saved. Before I knew it he was on this climbing contraption trying to jump to the Adventure Playground. Too much stress for an old lady in her 30's!
Jonas didn't fare too well with the bike instructions. He wasn't motivated at all. The final kicker for him was when daddy promised to not let him fall. Daddy let the bike go and somehow the bike, Jonas and daddy all tumbled over one another! We called it quits after that. Seamus watched quietly from the sidelines, looking perplexed and anxious with the turmoil happening before his eyes. I must admit that it was Shay that pointed to Gavin trying to stand on the monkey bars.
"Ahh, Mommy, Gavey's standing on..."he began to say.
"Yes Shay I know he's on the stairs to the slide!" I replied curtly.
"Ahh, no, he's on the monkey bars to the slide!" he responded.
"Oh..."and that's when I sprinted.
So all in all, we had an eventful day! We are all tuckered out and looking forward to what tomorrow may bring. (a good night's sleep I hope). The boys are all feeling better as is their worn out mother. I leave you with a quote for the day:
"Me thinks that the moment my legs begin to move, my thoughts begin to flow."-Henry David Thoreau.
Good night!
Jenny