Kids on the Rocks

A weekend ago we had planned a day trip to go bouldering at our favorite site just over an hour from our home (the picture above is actually from Fort Benjamin Harrison State Park as we didn't have our cam with on this trip).  As we were walking out the door, our 3 year old daughter asked if she'd get to use her sleeping bag so on a whim we decided to toss some extra gear in the car and make a weekend out of it.

We have two girls - 3 year old and 1-1/2 year old and for the youngest this was her first outdoor adventure.  It was offseason for the campsite and the only other campers were a large group of climbers from Hoosier Heights and their friends from around the state - up all night playing music, slacklining, telling lies and having laughs - exactly what you'd expect from the climbing community and we were glad for it!

The girls had a blast.  Put a kid in nature and let them run and explore, and learn.  Their little heightened senses point out insects and rocks and animals that you and I'd probably overlook.  They have a way of bringing the magic back.

We took them down to the bouldering area and Lisa jumped right on and within a few minutes tore her fingertip off.  A little tape and she was back on the rock - man, I love that girl.  We had to put the little one on a biner-leash because she wanted to climb right under mom and once they both saw that mom could do it, they wanted up on the rock.  They did great too and had a lot of fun.

Staying the weekend gave us more time and we weren't rushed.  The weather was perfect and all of us piling into a 2-person tent was actually cozy.  It gave me a chance to test out a new sleep pad I got and the girls got to interact with nature, run around and get dirty, cook over a fire, and see how crazy-in-a-good-way the climbing community is.  In short, sometimes it's not bad to let a 3-year old control your destiny.