Summer fun

What a fabulous day with the kids. A spur of the moment invite from my brother and sis in law to join them on a hike turned into the perfect summer day. When I try to PLAN the perfect summer day for my family, I usually have all these high expectations of both myself and my children and the fun we will have, and I overdo the whole thing. But the joy experienced by my kids just jumping into the creek, hiking down the banks of the creek and generally just goofing around that came this weekend was a surprise gift.

Jack, my kiddo who is known as "the instigator" in the Villhard household, gets a bad rap for all the instigating he does around here. But there is a positive spin on him being an instigator. On this hike, Jack instigated the idea that we all hike along the bank of the creek. Jack instigated the challenging venture through the brush to get to the creek. Jack instigated not only hiking along the creek, but swimming in the creek. Jack instigated a splash contest that invited all the kids to jump form the high banks of the creek down into the deeper water. All of jack's instigating created the most fun day. All of Jack's instigating brought the shy ones out of their shells, the tough ones to their knees, and the nervous ones a bout of courage. Thank you to Jack - the world's most influential instigator : )

Scotty, my kiddo known as "the brain with legs" around the Villhard household, gets a bad rap now and then around our house for sharing detailed facts with us all constantly. But there is a positive spin on him being a know it all. On this hike, Scotty taught us a few things about nature that we all enjoyed learning. He knew that certain snakes would not be poisonous, and more. Thank you to Scotty for enhancing our nature experience!

Elaina, my kiddo known as "the nature girl" around the Villhard household, gets a bad rap around our house for never wearing shoes, bringing bugs in the house, and having no interest in video games with the boys. But there is a positive spin on her loving nature more than her pink bedroom. Elaina was all over this trip! She led her little girl cousin through muck and mud, over rocks, across logs, and through cold creek waters. Did Elaina shy from jumping off the banks of the creek? No WAY! Thank you to Elaina for sharing her nature love with the rest of us!

Ben, my kiddo known as "the quiet peacemaker" around the Villhard household, gets a bad rap now and then for being too scared to join in, or not tough enough to handle the big boy fun. There was no place for a scaredy cat on this little adventure. Ben bucked up and showed his courage. Good job Ben! Thank you to Ben for joining right in!

Charlie, my kiddo known as "the lunatic" around the Villhard household lately, gets a bad rap often for frankly acting insane! But there is a positive spin to all this insanity. Along with insanity comes a healthy dose of fun, bravery and energy. Charlie scoffed at the idea to walk the easier way with mom and aunt and baby. Charlie was in it for the long haul. And was snoozing in daddy's arms before we made it back to the car. Thank you to Charlie for sharing your energy with the rest of us for as long as you could!

Also I never want to forget:
-The look Jack's face when he first jumped into the chilly water from the high bank; Thank goodness I have a photo!
-Elaina's squeal when she realized the fun was to continue as we all went back to our house with our cousins and had a hotdog roast over a fire, s'mores, and a big sleepover!