A Perfect Day For a Walk in the Woods

I went outside this morning to mail a letter.  I at once knew that today was the perfect day for a walk in the woods.  The sun was shining, the air was crisp, not freezing.  And we had nothing else to do now that we're TV/Computer free/Computer lite.

First, we stopped off at the eye doctor to pick up David's new glasses.  "Mom, it's like putting on 3D glasses.  I can see now."  or "Mom, it's like I'm wearing binoculars.  I can see the leaves on the trees."  I'm just sorry it took us this long to realize he needed glasses.  I thought they wouldn't make a big difference, his prescription is only a light one for near sightedness.  I figured he'd just wear them to see things far away, but apparently he likes the view because he's been wearing them all afternoon.

Modeling his new specs

Then we went to the park.  The park I chose has a pond that I knew was frozen over because I'd seen a picture posted from Sunday of my friend ice fishing on it.  We have been trying for years to make it to a frozen pond, lake, bay, whatever.  Just something frozen solid enough that the kids could see it and walk on it.  Today was the day.

Are you sure the ice is strong enough to hold us???

"It's like ice skating!"  Yes, it is.  "This is the coolest thing ever!"  It is pretty cool.  We skated around for a while, enjoying the sun and the ice.

The hesitancy didn't last long

Then I declared it time to take a walk in the woods.  I was assailed by complaining.  "We don't want to go for a walk.  We just want to play on the playground."  But I was insistent because today was a day for walking in the woods.

After the first few minutes all of the kids got into it.  We heard birds, we saw squirrels, we found nests, hollowed out trees.  I saw a really old tree and asked if the kids could reach around it.  It took all three of them to surround the entire tree.  Then the kids were all trying to find trees that they could reach their arms around.  We found a few that one hand could span.

We sat on a bench and spent a few minutes just listening to the sounds of nature, looking up at the tops of the trees and watching them dance in the breeze.

No more "We don't want to go on a walk."  Suddenly the kids were all declaring today one of the best winter days ever.  And they all asked if we could come back next week.

The spinny thing of sickness

We played on the playground and tried our hardest to make ourselves sick on the merry-go-round and the spinny thing.  I was the only one who was successful.  That spinny thing and my stomach do not agree.  It only took a few spins around and I was feeling ill.

Trying out the hole in the tree

I was right.  Today was the perfect day for a walk in the woods.