Hike Part 2

So, I'm sure you've all figured out I'm not the best blogger around and am SO behind but here are a few of the things we've been up to.

Nate works with the YM in our ward and they are planning a 30 mile hike in June. So to prepare for the 30 mile hike they went on this 13 mile backpacking hike this weekend. They hiked 3 miles Friday and then the other 10 on Saturday.

Nate being the wonderful dad he is decided to take Ethan on the hike with him. And Oh what a time it was. This is how the weekend went.

Friday Night: Nate and Ethan have been preparing for this hike all week long. Ethan has been SO excited and beaming with joy at going. The whole purpose of this hike is to BACKPACK (i.e. carry everything you need for the day and night with you on the hike.) So you want everything to weigh as little as possible. Thanks to Nate's backpacking expert (guy in our ward) they tried really hard to carry as little as possible.

They weighed in before the packs and after.
Ethan's before weight 50 lbs. and with his pack is 56 lbs.
Nate was 188 before and with his pack is 223.5 lbs. (It's a good thing guys don't care so much about their weight.)

Here are my boys all packed and ready to head out the door.

The weather looked awful for the weekend and before they left the weather had tornado warnings out.

About 10 minutes after they left, this is what came crashing down outside.

Not a big deal, a little hail - good enough to take a picture of.

Well then I go downstairs to run and I immediately see water STREAMING in through the window. Nate is the one that has dealt with all the water leakage in our houses so I give him a call. He is about 30 minutes out now. He decides to turn around and come home to help move everything in the basement and clean up the water. He tells me to quick hang up and go outside and scoop the water out of the window well so it will stop coming in the window.

So, with Emmett screaming his head off (super hungry) and Luke in charge of watching Linz and Em I run outside in the rain and start scooping. I am thinking to myself how I just KNOW I am going to find some rodent down in the water and it is going to gross me out.

Lo and behold a cute little toad right in the window well. Luke's teacher had sent a note home that very day explaining about how they will be studying frogs and toads next week so if we happen across one to bring it in to class.

Luke just HAS to catch to toad and take it to school (his teacher SAID.) Brave Luke went outside, grabbed the toad and we made a home in an ice cream bucket for him. I am hoping he will survive until Monday for Luke to take to school. (In the last picture of the toad you can see a cricket in the background. This cricket was on top of the toad's head when Luke caught him and stayed there for about 20 minutes after they were in their new home - reminded me of the Gingerbread Man.) Luke, Linz and I had planned a fun night. We were going to have a movie night with popcorn and then have a sleepover in mom's bed. Unfortunately these plans were thrwarted by the flooding basement.

Nate got home about 45 minutes after I called him and we got the basement cleaned up and things drying out. I felt so bad for making him come home. I was glad he decided to go back out and do the hike. He had spent SO much time preparing for it and packing everything just so I didn't want him to miss it.

So, he and Ethan headed back out and endured the rain. This is what Ethan looked like when they got to camp.

We didn't get our movie in but we read books in bed and still had our sleepover in mom's bed.

Here is the super light tent they borrowed. Not a lot of room but for only a few hours of sleep it was perfect.

Nate and Ethan and Nate's backpacking guru on the trail.

Here is the whole gang that went a hiking. The poor guys, it rained so much and I think they were pretty much soaked to the bone, but they had a great time and HEY, they are all smiling!!!

Ethan did great. They went about 7 miles on Saturday(they were all wet, tired and a few had bad ankles - Ethan was ready to be done too.) Ethan walked about 5 of the miles and many of the guys took turns carrying him the other 2 miles. Mysteriously Ethan couldn't walk along the trail but as soon as they would stop to rest he could run all over and be a wild man???

Overall, he did GREAT. He had SO much fun with Nate and he had such a sense of accomplishment after the hike. Way to go bud and I'm sure there will be many more father son campouts, hikes and critter catching.