July Happenings

July is such a fun month. Sunny, long days, BBQs, fireworks, adventures, and vacations make for such a fun time. Here's a bit of what we were up to during the month:

I bought firecrackers from the dollar store and learned never to do that again. They were all duds, except for the poppers. They worked great and the kids loved them.

 Trying to ignite the "snakes" without success

More than once I filled all the buckets and toys on the porch with water and let the kids play outside in their underwear. When it's hot and you don't have a yard but you don't want to leave home, you get creative.

Nayeli has started to insist on what she wears, and if it is clean, she unfailingly chooses her Minnie Mouse shirt (seen under her ballet outfit below). She's also chosen to wear her tutu and Cinderella heels out and about on numerous occasions.

Every Friday we attend a playgroup with other women and kids in our ward. One week it was at a great playground and splash pad, but it only took a few minutes for my kids to find a nearby stream. Suddenly it had captured all their attention and it was as if the playgroup didn't exist.

Did I ever mention he could say "stick" before "mama"? Really.

Collecting rocks and sticks is more tantalizing than an expensive playground any day.

One morning we discovered a crew cutting branches off the trees just outside our window and feeding them into a grinder. The kids were fascinated and it provided an hour of free entertainment.

Our biggest adventure in July was hiking the Opal Creek Wilderness. Ben had wanted to check out the area for future scout trips and he finally talked me into it. I was hesitant because it was going to be a long hike for our family (over 6 miles), but he assured me that it wouldn't be a big deal.

This leads me to explain a little about hikes and adventures with Ben. He always says they won't be a big deal, and his track record is about 80/20. Eighty percent of the time it isn't a big deal and we have a great time, but twenty percent of the time it ends up being difficult or scary and I end up crying and upset. As I've analyzed this, I've come to understand that Ben's level of adventure tolerance is much higher than mine. Plus he is in much better physical shape. So really, something that isn't a big deal to him can easily be a big deal to me. I have to remind myself that his intentions are good and he only wants our family to have a good time. Having said that in his defense, I have to be honest and say that this hike had all the makings to be one of those "twenty percent hikes". Luckily the ending was a happy one, and I'll explain why in a moment.

We stopped at Salmon Falls on our way to the trail head. Ben insisted on jumping from the rock ledge into the water while the kids played in the water. He is such a crack up.

Nature's playground is the best kind, isn't it?

See him? He jumped off twice, just to get some energy out and because, "I just have to." 

We then drove up to the trail head, loaded the kids in our packs and started hiking. We were all crabby until we ate lunch and the kids got to hike on their own for a bit. Then the hike went better. We ended up in a town called Jawbone Flats, Oregon, population 12. It's an old logging/mining town that was abandoned and has since been converted into a summer camp area. It's the greatest thing though because they left all the old equipment, stoves, cars... it felt like a ghost town.

Climbing on the old cars

 

 Old mining carts

This row of old cars was my favorite. 

We passed through the town and after awhile, we finally reached the Opal Pools. They were beautiful pools that formed as the water rushed down a canyon, but initially I didn't care. I was pretty upset that the pools were all surrounded by jagged rocks and large cliffs on all sides. For two toddlers that were ready to be let free to play, it was a death trap. And after hiking three miles with a kid on my back, all I wanted to do was relax. I kind of freaked out to Ben and he took over. He found a decently safe place for the kids to play and let me rest. He really does try to make all our adventures a positive experience for me. Another example: although he was carrying the heavier child, he let me have the better backpack on the hike. He's really great like that.

Opal Creek Falls

The kids played in the water for a bit and then Ben decided he had to jump off one of the cliffs into the pools (apparently jumping twice off the other cliffs earlier in the day wasn't enough ;) ). He jumped about 20 feet down into the biggest pool, and no, I didn't get a picture of it because I was making sure my kids didn't go tumbling off of one of the cliffs as well. I felt so relieved when we finally packed up and left.

The hike home was peaceful and I had time to calm down. The kids both slept in their packs and Ben and I talked as we hiked. It was drizzling rain and the forest was just beautiful. This was definitely one excursion where the journey was better than the destination, although the pools were beautiful. I just wouldn't ever go back with small kids.

Sweet Teddy napping on the way down.

We finished the hike with very sore backs and hips, but having felt like we had a really good day. A LONG day, but a good one. And we even finished with smiles on our faces, so I guess you can say it was a success.

Hiking selfie!