The kids wanted to see what would happen if I started in the same place, but made the angle smaller each time for kaleidoscopes. They wanted to see how small an angle I could work with and how the picture would change. I started out with 8 triangles and ended with 256.
The original picture can be found here.
Adrian was watching me play with a kaleidoscope idea. He thought it was pretty, but he thought I should start with a smaller angle and he dared me to try.
Hiking with children is fun! You travel at the speed of the slowest walker so you have lots of time to talk and be together. Everyone splits up in different groups all day and you have many opportunities just to listen to your children talk.
You can watch the kids love on and encourage each other. When Megan struggled the first day and was going sooooo sllloooowwwwlly, Mark started to make up a story about a backpacking princess. They continued making up the story for the rest of the trip and Megan did not have as much trouble keeping up.
When the hills caused problems, or someone fell and got hurt, there was always someone there to encourage them-not just mom or dad. Once we got to camp, the kids worked together to finish what needed to get done, so they could play-together. When the kids crawled into their tents, exhausted, we had to remind them to stop talking and go to sleep.
There are so many wonderful family vacations. But my favorites are those where we leave the normal, and just enjoy being a family.
P.S. Mark did not carry Megan during our hike, he wanted to see if he could carry her and both packs. Megan walked the whole trip, though Allan did carry her backpack for about 10 minutes.
The Maple leaves are turning their fall colors!
We have tried to teach the children to love being outdoors and how to hike and canoe. It started early, Mark’s first overnight backpacking trip was in Swaziland when he was only a few months old. We have continued taking the kids as often as can.
During one trip in back country Glacier, Allan carried a toddler, while the 4 year old hung unto the baby carrier when she got tired. He carried most of the weight and a required bear canister while I walked behind, 3 months pregnant, singing and telling stories with our 8 year old. It was a wonderful trip, one that the kids remember and still talk about.
Each of the children have their own backpack. Megan carries an “ultralight” miniature pack that only holds her clothes and snack for the day. Everyone else carries their own sleeping bag plus clothes and snacks. We divide the remaining equipment between the packs, according to age and carrying ability.
The children learn the skills they need to hike on their own early. Allan has them all help filter water, and they all help with setting up and tearing down the tents. Andrea learned how to use the cooking stove this trip and Mark has known how to use it for years.
While we do not hike nearly as often as we would like, the kids love hiking. They look forward to our next trip and talk about the ones we have taken. Now to start planning our next trip!
Congratulations Josh and Angie on your very little princess. Nora Grace was born 29 September and weighed 5 pounds 13 oz. She is such a sweet little girl!
We had planned to go hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park while in Colorado. Allan’s aunt and uncle told us about Pike’s National Forest and we decided to try there instead. We were very glad that we did!
The Paint Mines were beautiful. Watching my family explore and play was neat too.
Near Calhan, Colorado, is a wonderful place we had never visited before. Aunt Debbie and Uncle Dan invited us to visit the Paint Mines Interpretive Park with them. The Paint Mines are clay formations in beautiful reds, yellows and white layers. There are four miles of trails to explore that wind around caprock and hoodoos- a pillar of rock formed with softer rock on the bottom with a harder rock on top.
The mines are beautiful! We had lots of places to explore and many colors to enjoy since we visited early on an overcast morning. As the sun replaced the clouds, the colors faded and were not so vivid. We left soon after.
We often get into Colorado near sunset. I have already asked Allan that the next time we visit, could we please stop at the mines for our last rest stop. I would love to explore them at dusk!