HIKING AT FOURTH OF JULY CANYON

There are few things out there that rejuvenate me like a long hike. Since we've known we were going to leave Albuquerque, we've been trying to make the best of our time here by getting out of the house often. We have a long list of things we want to do before moving day, but I'm sure we won't get to them all. One of our favorite things to do as a family is go hiking, especially since Noble was born, so that part of the list has become priority. It's the one place that the three year old doesn't have to be entertained 90% of the time, but still gets out enough energy to not fight her nap - and the baby just passes out in the Ergo. When it was just Ev, getting outside for a hike was simple once we got a routine down. Hiking with two has become a bit more complicated, especially since Ev doesn't fit in a carrier anymore. She really is an expert hiker for a three year old, but we have to put a lot of thought into which trails she'll enjoy and be prepared to turn around early. Though some days I feel like a herd dog biting at the ankles of a sheep, we still make an effort to go often. Cultivating a love of nature in my kids is one of the most important aspects of being a parent for me. I've been reading Last Child in the Woods over the last month or so. Louv urges people to consider time in nature for children as essential for their health as good food, loving parents, and a full night of sleep. Time outside shouldn't be a extracurricular activity or something reserved for vacation - it should be an integral part of their day.

On this day, my mom was here visiting and we all woke up ready to get out of the house. Alex had a long weekend and we had originally wanted to go camping, but just couldn't get all of our t's crossed and i's dotted in time, so we settled for a hike somewhere we'd never been before. Fourth of July Canyon is known for its Fall colors due to the Maple trees growing in the area (uncommon for New Mexico). The drive out there was intense, ending with 7 miles on a winding dirt road, so we were glad to have four wheel drive. We did the easy one mile trail where Ev was glad to run wild, blow dandelion fluff, and talk about dinosaur tracks (and how it looked like they were chasing the horse tracks + that we needed to save the horses), then we started on the 6.5 mile loop. We made it a mile or two and decided to turn back, but I definitely want to see the rest. As I looked through the pictures of her blowing the dandelions, I realized I had taken similar pictures almost exactly a year ago in Brooklyn. Watching her grow is such a beautiful thing.

If you're local and looking for a similar hike a bit closer to home, we found a new favorite at the base of the Sandias. We were only able to hike the Sulphur Springs trail, but rumor has it there's a creek on the neighboring trail.

MOTHER'S DAY HIKE

 

 

 

I'm a pretty easy woman to please when it comes to holidays. Even being four weeks postpartum, all I wanted to do was get out of the house. I had been talking about hiking basically since an hour after Noble was born and though I wasn't medically cleared yet, I felt good enough and wanted to get some exercise, so I did. The differences between the first and second baby are comical. I'm pretty sure I hadn't even gotten up enough energy to do the dishes four weeks after Ev was born. Alex knows me all too well - his gift was bringing the tripod along to get a family picture. . . but we forgot the piece that actually attaches the camera to the tripod, so that was a no go. We did the next best thing and tried to use the camera strap to somehow rig the camera up on the tripod, hence the picture up there with just Evie's arm in it. Then we just decided to use a log, nature's tripod, and that worked out swimmingly. We weren't at all prepared for how cold it would still be up on the peak, but we don't give up easily. We scrounged around in the car for abandoned clothes, Alex gave Ev his flannel shirt that fit her like a dress, and we were on our way. We chose the 10k trailhead up on Sandia Crest because we'd been here before (on our third anniversary actually) and didn't want to push our luck driving around looking for a new spot on our first hike with two kids. Once we got moving, it wasn't quite as cold, but we still pretty much had all the trails to ourselves. Alex has been on this 'prepping' kick lately, so we basically have stockpiles of MREs around the house. He grabbed one of those for all of us to share and Evie didn't stop shouting the entire time, 'This is the best picnic EVER!' It reminded me so much of something my Dad would have done. Everything he did was magic when I was a little girl. I'm always astounded at the beauty and flourishing wildlife that is just a short drive from a barren desert. New Mexico is a quirky place - it really never stops surprising me.

52 IN 2014 • WEEKS 31 + 32 + 33 + 34 + 35

31/52.

07.31.2014

Some of my best memories from my childhood are of doing family crafts. They were also something that I looked forward to the most about having kids someday. We're slowly inching closer to that time where we can sit down and do a craft together. You requested 'buttah-fwy wings,' so I made do with what we had on hand and you loved them.

32/52.

08.01.2014

We took you to the Bronx Zoo for a half birthday celebration of sorts. Your birthday usually falls on a nasty, Winter day so we like to do one of those fun outdoor things you're always pining for in the dead of Winter. You liked the butterfly exhibit and gorillas a lot, but your absolute favorite was the dinosaur safari.

33/52.

08.17.2014

We all took a trip to the MOMA and stopped off for a little picnic on a Central Park boulder afterwards. We watched the the horse and carriages 'clop-clop' by from our mountain on high and you told me the purple one with the big feather on it's head was your favorite.

34/52.

08.23.2014

We took a drive to Niagara Falls for the weekend to celebrate Mama and Papa's fifth anniversary. It was a quick trip, so we did the Cave of the Winds (which you simultaneously peed your pants laughing and sobbed through) and left the tourist attractions at that. I sometimes worry that you won't find our adventures fun, but I'm not sure why I ever doubt you - you have such an adventurous spirit, which makes traveling with you mostly a breeze. You always surprise me with how excited you are to just be somewhere new with us.

35/52.

09.04.2014

Our weekends have been full of adventures lately and it's been fun, but a bit exhausting. This weekend we took the ferry to the Statue of Liberty. You called her 'the big lady holding an ice tream tone.'

'A portrait of my daughter, once a week, every week, in 2014.'

I'm linking up with Jodi over at Practising Simplicity.

HIKES, FORTS + FALL PLANS • HELLO OCTOBER!

A few days before this she picked up a random stick, held it like this and said, 'I'm dow-ing hite-ing!
You coming, Mama?' I have no idea where she saw that because neither of us use walking sticks when we hike.

 

'Wook! I have kitty cat ears!'

 

She hiked pretty much the entire trail at Carlito Springs Open Space.
The county just opened it to the public for the first time last month.

We once built a tiny fort for Ev on a whim in a Brooklyn park and she never stopped talking about it.

We thought we'd show her what real forts look like.

As we try to find our 'new normal' here in Albuquerque again, we've been spending a lot of time outside hiking and building forts. The weather has been beautiful, but you can feel the chill of Fall beginning to set in. Even after being gone for a year, we've sort of gone straight back to our old routine. We've picked up where we left off and have been making plans to frequent all the Fall festivities that used to be tradition for us. The Balloon Fiesta starts this weekend and I'm hoping I'll be able to drag Papa Bear out of bed for the early morning ascension. We've usually always gone at night when the balloons flicker, but don't fly (and they have fireworks) because it was easier with Ev, but I think she's old enough to really enjoy seeing the balloons ascend and make the 5:00 A.M. wakeup call worth it this year. The Pumpkin Patch is, of course, on our list for this month too (a little video of last year's Fall festivities). We've also made plans to head up to Los Alamos with some friends of ours for a resale we always attend and get the majority of Ev's clothes at. We're usually able to fit in a few hikes while we're there and the Fall colors are always gorgeous.

What kind of Fall festivities do you have planned for this month?
Happy weekend!

P.S. from the archives:  a Fall book list for toddlers • a leaf craft • another leaf craft

THE LAST OF NEW YORK

 

It's been a tad bit quiet over here as we're all trying to adjust to life in New Mexico again. Instead of blogging, I've been using the majority of my down time reading or organizing pictures, but I'm starting to ease back into my normal groove and catch up on posts. The week before we left Brooklyn, my Mom came for a visit. We were really more focused on spending time together than giving her the grand tour, so we didn't get around to showing her much. We did manage to take the ferry out to the Statue of Liberty and I was pleasantly surprised. I'm usually not impressed with the tourist attractions, but something about the open air, city views, and magnitude of it all made Lady Liberty worth it. We had been admiring her from afar for quite some time now. Anytime we got a good sweeping view of the skyline, Ev would point out the 'Satch-oo of Wib-tee.' No view compares to standing under the real thing though. At some point I'd love to got through the museum at the base and climb to the crown, but the museum wasn't feasible with a toddler who needed a nap in tow and they don't allow kids under 4 in the crown. Though we're no longer Brooklynites, we aren't done with New York. We still have a long list of things we would love to do, so a trip in the near future is inevitable. Before going, it didn't seem like there would be a lot to do and I wasn't sure how enjoyable it might be for Ev, but she was surprisingly excited about the whole thing. She loved the ferry ride, the walk along the edge of the island, looking at the skyline through the view finder, and standing under the 'big lady holding an ice cream cone' as she liked to call her. After my mom's visit was over, we set to work packing and headed out just a few days later, so these are the last of our New York pictures. Each time we move, it's even more surreal as to how fast your life can change with just a rental truck and a drive.