Seconds

There are plenty of things we'll take seconds of....... dessert, a back rub, a trip down the alpine coaster, a long weekend at a favorite camping spot......

Our family has matured this summer, and with it's growth comes a fair share of growing pains.  I think I'm struggling the most to find where I fit in, the more I see where I'm not really needed, the more needy I become.  However the best medicine for those growing pains seems to be spending time together.  So with only a matter of days before the boys loose their father to 60 hour work weeks again we packed up and headed south for a second trip to Boulder, Utah.

 

I remember a time when Monte mocked camper camping (I didn't remind him), but with age and growth comes a realization of what really is important.  A camper addition seemed to slow our pace, allowing us to enjoy our journey, we even lingered at each bathroom stop and lunch break.  There was no arguments about the fire and setting up camp.  No lectures about bringing dirt into the tent.  And no worries of bears snatching my children in their sleep.  In fact I know I've never had a better view while making dinner.  

The boys loved their 'upstairs' sleeping arrangement, gas mileage was a pleasant surprise, Monte's birthday candles easily stayed lit, and Monte and I found that with a bit of extra bedding the backseat fold out isn't all that bad.  And what about the c.d. player, and it's excuse to dig out our old c.d. collection.  

BNL.... maybe a little, Midnight Oil..... more than I would have liked, interesting mixed c.d. creations.... yep those were the c.d.s with the most requests.  Now I'm no Nicole Kidman, nor Ewan McGreggor for that matter, but I could crank the Moulin Rouge love song montage and captivate 3 sets of eyes and 6 little ears, and for those 4 minutes I was a rock star... I'd even exit the stage with a seat belted ovation and demands for several encore performances.... maybe I found my niche?????     

  

When I crawled into our foldout backseat bed that last night I was surprised how tired my legs were.... what had we done over the last couple of days?   

We'd hiked out to that small lake at our first bathroom break, and what about the time spent climbing and scooting around those red rolling mounds when we stopped for lunch.  

There was the couple of hours we spent exploring those white hills, that's when I was able to sneak some alone time with Jo to work on our rock shaping skills.  

 

 

And what about our scenic hike to the waterfall.  It was almost unbearable to sit by it was so cold..... until we found the sun just a short distance to one side, how quickly clothing was discarded. 

 

And almost immediately after the 6 1/2 mile hike there was the other two and a half mile trek for a quick visit at our favorite swimming hole, all the while Sol was belting out his favorite line from the Moulin Rouge sound track..... 'We could be Love Birds' (He came up with his own version of 'We could be Lovers', he sang with such passion I didn't feel the need to correct him).  

And I'll always remember Abe and all his animal antics while climbing each mountain trail... jumping like a frog, creeping like a cheetah, howling like a wolf, scampering like a mountain goat, screeching like an owl, roaring like a lion, hissing like a snake..... I'm sure it was all his creature actions that kept the real animal threats away.  

 

So now that I'd thought about it for a second..... even with our slowed pace..... I guess we'd done plenty over those couple of days to justify some tired legs.