Parenthood and the Outdoors

Being a parent is hard. Duh. And maybe I’ve said it before, but I just didn’t expect that it would THIS. HARD. Maybe it is because I grew up an only child (for 17 years, 11 months, and 8 days), maybe it is because I was a pretty calm kid who feared getting in trouble and loved to sit and read all day long, maybe it is because I thrive off of down time…and now I have two incredibly fierce, bold, smart, fearless toddler boys who are 18 months  apart. (Of course parenthood is wonderful too, and I still melt EVERY SINGLE TIME my youngest grabs a hold of me with what have to be the softest hands in the entire universe.)

One thing that helps with the challenges is to get the boys outside. If we linger in our home for too long…everything starts to fall apart. Playing in the yard, pulling around the wagon, pushing around sand and rocks, helping do yard work, going for walks with our cat…these things are a must for the boys. Even better than staying close to home is heading out on an adventure, especially when my husband goes too.

We’ve taken the boys camping a few times. They’ve done a couple night float trip along the Colorado River. They’ve hiked among the Grand Tetons (where I  discovered the only cure for my fear of mountain lions is to hike in grizzly country). They’ve swam in the cold waters of a Montana lake. I also love our more local adventure hikes around the Front Range.

Sure, all of this requires tons of prep work. For a “little” hike, I spend at least an hour getting everyone dressed, packing additional layers, finding and filling up water bottles, prepping snacks, finding sunscreen, remembering diapers and a little bag in case there’s a poopie one, choosing photo gear, changing a diaper before we load into the car…for a hike that may not even last an hour.

But on those adventures, I get excited being out with my boys. Away from cell phones. Away from everything other than the present moment of rocks and dirt and sky and being together. I love listening to the boys chatter away, and trying to answer their questions about the world, and watching my oldest help his little brother over tricky parts. The craziness feels do-able out in nature.