Boulder Cave

Hiking to Boulder Cave is something that both Ed and I love to do. As kids both of our families took this day trip on more than one occasion. Ed's dad even proposed to his mom in this beutiful location, so it has extra meaning in their family. I can remember feeling like the hike took forever as a kid. On this trip Nora started complaining about 100 yards from the trail head. We managed to keep her talking and looking for chipmunks long enough to make it to the waterfall. She didn't complain again. The water was nice and cool, but not icy like it would have been in May. It's cooler near the falls, but warm enough to make wading in the pool at the bottom an inviting thought.

Ed helped Nora climb up behind the falls and get their picture taken. She enjoyed getting splashed and felt pretty grown up because we let her climb back there like some of the big kids we saw.

She was disappointed, as I was, in the tagging and other vandalism we saw. And I wished I had remembered to bring along a garbage bag so that we could collect some of the waste that had been left behind.

We will make at least one more trip up to the cave this year, after Ahren gets home from his trip to Montana. I'm interested to see how he sees the cave through his cameras lens.

Tent trailers Rock!

We finally got to try out the tent trailer we purchased from some friends of ours. This thing was so well taken care of and clean, we were able to move right in. We have always tent camped . . . arrive at campsite, remove rocks, pine cones ect... from tent pad, lay out tarp, lay out tent put tent up. You get the idea. It's a very long process, and then when your done, you do it backwards sweeping up sand, pine needles and bird poop.
With this trailer we were set up - completely - in 30 minutes. We broke camp the next day, got everything packed up and were on the road within an hour. I LOVE this trailer. We will definatly be doing a lot more weekend camping trips.

Ahren and Roxie

Ahren left for Montana on June 13th to spend a month with his dad and step-mom. He is having a great time. He got to spend 5 days last week at a day camp learning horsemanship and meeting new friends. One evening he got to ride his horse Roxie. She was originally trained as a race horse and required some extra training in order to be rideable so these are pictures of the first time he had ever ridden her.
I thank Kathy for sending me the pictures so quickly, right at a time when I was really missing the boy. Made my day.
Yesterday they flew off to Deleware to spend time with grandparents. Lucky kid gets to go ocean kayaking, maybe even see some dolphins.
He comes home on July 11th. I can't wait!

The end of School

It's that time of year again! The end of the school year. Time to plan all the fun things we can do over the summer. Swimming camping, getting Ahren ready for a whole months visit with his dad, and Nora prepared for a month without her brother.

This is also the time it hits me, my kids are another year older. For some reason it hits me harder when they move up a grade than when they actually age another year. Next year Ahren hits the Jr. High and Nora will be a first grader. I can't even imagine how this year has gone so fast.

This is the last week of school. A time for field trips, bar-b-ques, and class parties. They will turn in books, clean out lockers and cubbies and my hope is that Ahren will discover that his teachers don't really hate him. They will both have annuals to have signed and sign for their friends, they may even be surprised by how many friends they have.

I plan to cherish this summer and the time we spend together as I do every year. I have promised myself that I will take more pictures (ones that include the whole family) in order to recall the memories we will make with more clarity, and I will relax, and just enjoy my wonderful family, whether we are on a trip or just playing a game. I will stop wishing away my time with them by waiting for the next BIG thing!