The Wild Wood

Isn't everyone off on Columbus Day??? I thought so! I assumed if my Marine had the day off certainly the school district did as well.

Monday morning I woke up from dreams of crisp blue sky, glowing trees of orange and reds and winding trails with vista views. We packed lunches, loaded our packs, promised the boys a day of adventure and hit the road. A mile or so into the drive I started noticing school busses and heavy traffic. Mr. Doozie and I looked at each other, "Isn't today a holiday?" We passed a school, the parking lot was full!  I grabbed my phone and called the boys' school. Yep, classes were being held. Whoops!

We laughed at our oversight and drove on, glancing occasionally at the grey sky and offering little prayers that the sun would appear. Our road trip ended at the State Park grounds, just as the temperature gage on the car dropped a few more degrees. Thankfully Mr. Doozie came very prepared and even though the temps dropped and the sky grew darker we had all the gear we needed to still have fun with the boys.

Halfway through our hike the rain began to fall and I prepared myself for the whining that would ensue. Instead, the boys were thrilled, refusing to keep their hats on just so they could feel the raindrops. Thankfully there was a split in the trail and we were able to take a shortcut back to the picnic grounds where we could have lunch tucked away from all the wetness.

It wasn't what I imagined, the trees still boast more green than anything else, and the rain and chilly temps kept us from venturing further, but in the end it turned out to be a day of sweet memories made and a realization that our boys are up for the challenge when it comes to outdoor adventures! Bring on the camping and hiking!

We were amazed by the mushrooms we came across! It was incredible to see the detail and color of them all. I told Mr. Doozie I would love to own a book on foraging mushrooms. I know that many are dangerous but all I could think when I saw them was a little butter, wine and a saucepan would make for a very happy momma ;) Ha!

Dora pup was in heaven with all the wet ground to sniff and since we had the park to ourselves she was free to romp and play as far ahead of us as she liked.

The rain kept messing with the focus on my camera so the picture is a little off but here we are happy, wet and making memories. We were shocked when the boys asked when we could come back! Yay!

My little guy braved the whole trip without blankie or binkie. It was a very big day in the Wild Wood for him.

Is this not amazing? These were the exact colors we were seeing. It was breathtaking to say the least.

It felt so good to escape from everything. To be together as a little family. I love love loved every second of it. 

We learned that Will can keep a pretty good clip. Jack cannot. Will can chat away and when he's not talking he is making noises or singing. Jack is much more quiet, he stops and looks at the smallest of things along the trail and insists I take pictures of everything. The boys compliment each other very well and I'm loving our family of four at this stage in life. Learning to be content as we wait for the adoption process to move forward has been challenging. This little trip was just what I needed, to be present in my children's lives and soak up all the goodness that already surrounds us.