All Things Considered...

Skip needed to recon an area in the mountains for a cadet activity. So we decided to make it a family affair. A friend from the program was also coming, and brought along his son. Let me introduce you to the newest member of our family: The 2008 Wrangler Unlimited. Notice it's already muddy. I've been wanting to get a nice picture of it, gleaming silver in the sun. But apparently Jeeps are made for playing in the mud. NOW I understand why there was so much enthusiasm for this family outing. We had to drive the new Jeep up a muddy, slushy mountain. Once I got over the dirty-new-car- fixation, it turned into a lot of fun!

Following Paige's total disregard for rules, we decided to get out of the Jeep and start hiking at this point:

Clearly visible is the "Keep Out, No Trespassing" sign. The men assured me this did not apply to us, and the kids were more than willing to break some rules with parental permission. Bunch'a thugs.

The hike started off well. Lots of enthusiasm and energy. And then the mountain got steeper, and the snow got deeper. The snow pants got heavier. The buckets and backpacks got cumbersome to carry. The youngest member of the party pooped out. We considered applying "tough love" and just leaving her where she threw herself down until she realized she should hurry and catch up with us. But someone had compassion.

All told, we hiked about three miles. When we were almost at the top, we hit heartbreak hill. I knew there was no way the kids had the energy to make it up, so I kept the three youngest and stopped for lunch. Mika continued on with the men. The little ones had fun building snow forts and spreading out trailmix for the deer. Mika, on the other hand, ended up hiking another half mile in waist-deep snow. To say they hiked off the beaten path would be an understatement. Notice the flushed cheeks and unpleasant disposition. Even my heartiest "You kept up with the men" speech proved fruitless. I'd like to think that deep inside he was proud of his accomplishment. But all I got was "That was too hard. I think I'm dying."

I had a great time. Given the difficulty of the terrain, the kids did great. They all had at least two meltdowns. I had none. Not too shabby. They were soaked, filthy (see tree climbing shot) and exhausted when we reached the bottom. They willingly went to bed at 6:45 that night, and were asleep within minutes. That left us with a whole evening to ourselves. We're thinking of making this a regular event. Like I said, all things considered, everyone did remarkably well, and had a lot of fun. And you can't beat a free date night like that.