An Afternoon Hike

Eric took the day off on Monday (Hooray!), so that afternoon, we decided to head to the park for a hike. Caleb played guide and leader for the majority of our journey. We have taken the boys on that same hike many times and our destination is always "Pride Rock," an affectionately Workman named rock ledge, located off the beaten path, that overlooks the trees and is a really peaceful place. Eric and Caleb found it during one of their first hikes together, which must have taken place during The Lion King phase.

Our boys are alike in a lot of ways, but this adventure together really highlighted some of the contrast between them. Caleb is an adventurer. He came out of the womb that way. Few things have ever caused fear in him and I don't think any sort of physical challenge has ever caused him to flinch. At the start of the trail, he found a hiking stick and immediately his mind was set on exploration and adventure. He led us right to "Pride Rock," by the way. We went down a particularly rugged trail at one point and Caleb was way out in front of us, finding his own ways to climb up steep hills and maneuver through a thick bunch of branches. And if he stumbled, he just got right back up and tried it again or figured out a different way. Eric commented that you can just throw Caleb into any situation and he will jump right in and instantly adapt...or just do his own thing, which is another way of adapting. That is similar to my personality. He loves to be around people and especially loves an audience.

Seth, on the other hand, is more like his Daddy. He is more the casual observer. He doesn't just jump right in. He has to stand back and be acclimated to the situation before he sticks his toe in. And then if he feels it is worth his while, he will go for it. But it takes time and has to be on his terms. He likes people, but is just as happy to play by himself. He has never been a real demander of attention. He is not shy; He is just not much of a risk taker (which can be nice. I am not sure how I would handle two of them). For the first part of our hike, Seth wanted to be carried or on Daddy's shoulders. He wasn't quite sure he was going to be game for all of the adventure, so he wanted to stay close to home base. He didn't go head first toward the rocks, dirt, and hills and say, "Yes, this is an adventure!," like Biz. He hung back and waited for big brother to test the waters and then he made baby steps. Granted, he is not even two yet, so I think this is normal behavior for a toddler just learning about the world. We just never really had this phase with Caleb, because he hit the ground running and never looked back. By the end of the hike, Seth wanted to walk by himself and explore everything. He was even climbing hills on his own, with coaxing from the rest of the family.





















Gradual, cautious, well-calculated, observer--that's our Sethie
Instantaneous/spontaneous, fearless, challenge-seeker, problem solver--that's our Biz

Both boys are so full of life, but it is expressed in different ways.

On our way back from the trail, we stopped so the boys could play on the rocks by the creek. As always, Caleb instantly found a buddy and they took turns throwing big rocks in the water and laughing at the big splashes. Daddy and Seth took turns throwing Sethie-sized rocks in. Good fun.

Caleb got a little ambitious and started leaping from one big rock to another. Although I had warned him that it might be slippery, my adventurous 4-year-old only saw this as a challenge. Right as we were getting ready to leave, I looked down and there was Caleb in the water up to his knees. I guess he missed the creek bank when jumping. He pulled himself up and looked at Eric and I and said rather dramatically, "Why does this always happen to me?"

All Eric and I could do was snicker. I can't really recall another time that Caleb has fallen into the water like that, although he proclaimed it was a regular occurrence. But it was really funny and gave us all a good laugh.


We are anxiously awaiting Spring. Camping, here we come!!!

Oh, and what better way to end a day than with a ride down the curvy slide together back at the park.

I guess those Workman boys aren't too different! Of course, Sethie refused to go down the slide until Biz came along and "tested the waters" first.