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Sometimes You Have to Go Outside and Get Your Shoes Muddy

Jay Lane
Family Fun
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On Saturday, we had some beautiful weather. It was really nice outside after several days of pouring rain.

The kids were getting on our nerves and we wanted them to go outside.

I won’t get started on the whole “when I was a kid, we played outside all day…” rant. I’ll save that for another time.

We suggested that the boys go in the woods and explore.

My youngest son and nephew (who had spent the night) went out for about 15 minutes and then came back.

In an effort to get them to go back outside, I reluctantly told them that I would explore the woods with them.

Honestly, I was feeling like holding down our couch but I wanted them outside even more.

So I laced up my boots and we headed out.

There’s a big pond next to our neighborhood that we walked around and then followed a long, windy trail over to the Blackacre Conservancy. It’s a nature preserve that’s a couple of miles away from our house. We’ve walked over there quite a few times over the past several years.

On Saturday, I didn’t realize the trail we were on was going to end at Blackacre.

I think the boys and I were a little bit excited about where the trail would take us.

During our 90-minute “hike” through the woods, we saw some pretty cool stuff.

Here are some pictures I took during our little adventure:

boys-and-easter-bunny
We saw an “Easter” Bunny. I couldn’t believe how close this rabbit let us get to him (or her). I thought it would be cool to get the boys’ picture with him as an alternative to what you get at the Mall.
boys-selfie
I had to take the obligatory adventure “selfie.”
tracking
The boys loved finding animal tracks. They were everywhere. Here, they spotted a single footprint. I’m not exactly sure what they’re doing in this picture but in typical “boy” fashion, it involved a stick and poking it in the ground.
bones
Camden spotted a deer carcass. I would have walked right past it. They thought it was really cool. Surprisingly, they didn’t have the desire to poke the dead animal with their sticks. When they asked how he died, I almost told him that a Bigfoot was spotted nearby (but decided that might keep them from going into the woods again).
goats
At Blackacre, they have tons of goats, horses and donkeys. My only regret was that we didn’t have any food with us to feed the animals. The boys tried to trick them with hay but they weren’t having that.

During the whole time we were outside, they didn’t complain, fight or get on my nerves.

The only unpleasant part of the adventure was at the end when as we were coming back. We had to wade through some thorn bushes that tore my legs up. That’s what I got for trying to clear a path for the boys.

All things considered, I was so glad that I went outside with them. We had a lot of fun and I feel like we created some memories that we’ll all cherish. I look forward doing it again soon.

Sometimes the most spontaneous, random adventures are the best.