The Hike

I ended up getting the boys out and taking a hike. We took our time and followed whatever path we chose, only making a decision on which way to go when we reached a fork in the path.

It was fun. We talked about all sorts of stuff, whatever they wanted to talk about at the time. We looked at nature and talked about animals. Took some pictures of them being silly, some pictures of the scenery. Taking that hike made me think that when we get to the part about mountains and wooded areas in Science, it would be a good place for a field trip. Even if we get to a part in History about gold mining, because the hills we went hiking on sit on top of many, many mines. Sometimes, if you take the right path, you can see a few rather large, deep holes where the mines caved in. One of them even has a very old truck from the 1950's sitting in it. We have no idea how it GOT there, as the "road" is much farther down the hill, but it is still amusing nonetheless to see it. I used to have a picture of it, but I'm not sure where it is anymore. I put it somewhere online, but I have no clue where anymore.

All in all, we hiked for about 70 minutes. We took our time, let our whims lead us down the paths. And we enjoyed each other's company without worrying about school work or chores. While I enjoy the time we spend together during homeschooling, I enjoy more the time I get to spend with them relaxing (yes, hiking IS relaxing) and just having fun. And even though halfway through the hike Christopher was complaining about being tired (I forgot to pack water bottles, for one thing...for another thing, he kept running UP the hill), I could tell that he and his brother enjoyed the hike with me as much as I enjoyed the hike with them.

When we got back to the car, we were all very thirsty (because silly me forgot the water bottles) and hot, so we made a quick stop at DQ to get some water and some small ice cream cones. Topped off our little family time with a treat. And really, they deserved the ice cream. Even with the complaining from Christopher (it was very minimal and not at all whiny), they did very well on the hike. And it was a little treat from me to them.

And now that the weather is starting to get nice again, we talked about making Sabbath afternoon hikes and ice cream our "tradition". So on the Sabbaths they are not with their dad, and the weather allows for a hike, we're going back to Jacksonville and taking a Sabbath afternoon hike. We'll make an afternoon of it. I'll pack a picnic, we'll hike to the top of whatever path we choose, eat our lunch, then hike back down. It's better than sitting at home wondering what to do, or taking a nap all afternoon. It puts you directly in the middle of God's Creation, in a place where you can be together as a family (part of what I believe the Sabbath is supposed to be about), somewhere you can think about all your blessings without thinking about work, or chores, or schoolwork, or anything else that is/has been bothering you.

Today's hike truly made Sabbath a delight.