Oops.
I suppose I should probably update this thing periodically, right? I am not sure if anyone looks at it. Most people are using Facebook or Instagram, but honestly I hate to feed Meta everything so perhaps I should post here instead.
Since it has been a while, let's get caught up.
First, N is now two and a half. He's all boy, too. He likes heavy equipment, mud, and climbing up high to jump off of things.
Then there's S, who joined us in 2024. She's crawling, getting her teeth. She's a pleasant girl, generally not very fussy, and she smiles a lot. She's already babbling at us and if you cluck at her she will cluck back at you.
R2 has been doing great. She's going into third grade next year and she loves going to school. She also likes carrying around one of our extremely tolerant cats. I've never seen a cat seem to be okay with being dressed up, put in baskets, and just generally treated like a doll.
Last week was Memorial Day and I took the older three girls on a backpacking trip in the Smokies. We parked at Tremont and walked up to Spence Field. Nine miles and a 4300 foot elevation change was a lot to tackle, but the girls handled it like champs. My Garmin watch indicated we climbed the equivalent of about 320 flights of stairs! After spending the night at Spence Field, we walked along the Appalachian Trail to Derrick Knob for the evening. I was grateful that we were able to get a nice view from Rocky Top and Thunderhead Mountain.
After sheltering at Derrick Knob, we walked back down to Tremont via the Middle Prong Trail. It rained off and on all day, some of it quite heavy. We were pretty soaked by the late afternoon despite wearing ponchos and gaiters. I was getting a little worried that some of the bridges could be washed out after all of the hurricanes last fall, but luckily we only had to ford one smaller creek. I was plotting a path for R (age 10) and myself to cross it when J just stomped right across the thing. I guess she figured she was already soaking wet, why faff about with rock-hopping?
This was our second trip to the Smokies in the Spring, I really hope we can do it again next year (and that I can convince them all to go again with me). I'll try to plan less elevation and mileage next time!
