While National Trails Day may have been the first Saturday in June, you don’t need a reason to go outdoors and hit the trails. You’ve gotta be tired of being cooped up in the house.
The same goes for me. I need zero reasons other than the thought of distractions for the kids. From the West Coast to the East Coast, if there is a trail to be hiked, my crew will seek it out.
Despite that, there are many reasons to hit a trail; fresh air, the smell of dew and dirt, the pleasant noise of birds, squirrels and other critters sounding off and scurrying around. Don’t get me started on the sights! Lush shades of green leaves, yellow stripped bees, and red blossoms.
Nope, I don’t need one extra reason to hit a trail. But, perhaps you do? So I’ll give you one more.
NAP TIME
I’ll go out on a “limb” and say your kids have energy for DAYS. We have to be creative with ways to help them burn that energy off. Having an obnoxious one year old and loud four-year-old, once we’ve played in the yard once or twice for the week, it’s time to switch it up.
There are as many ways to put a child to sleep as there are Dadfriends that are willing to tell you. You can NEVER have too many tools in your belt that will get your kid to “Shut the heck up and go to sleep so I can get some quiet time!”. So, I will share mine. Where my yard comes up short, the trails pick up the slack.
Some dads will take a car ride and let the hum and vibration of the car put their kid to sleep. Other dads will diligently rock their child to sleep, only to have them jolt back awake when you go to lay them down. Still, others will put their kid to sleep on their chest or in their adult bed.
I am and remain to be a staunch NO CO-SLEEPING parent. That’s my choice, possibly not yours. But I have had my fair share of putting my child to sleep on my chest while lying in the bed or on the couch. I’m pretty sure that was the start of my lower back stiffness. Totally worth it at the time.
Our one year old takes one nap, maybe two (on a GREAT, FANTASTIC, GLORIOUS day!) for his routine. My mom’s go-to saying growing up was “Silence Is Golden”. That meant BE QUIET! I never realized how true her words would ring, so much as I do now. So I treasure that golden time, and will go to the ends of the earth (for the flat earthers out there) to secure it.
TAKE A HIKE
But let’s go back in the past for a bit. Being our first born, my daughter was our guinea pig, so we experimented with hitting the trails with her as an infant. Before she was walking alongside my wife and I, she was on my back in our Deuter Kid Comfort 2 Child Carrier.
The Deuter Child Carrier was a Father’s Day gift from my wife. However, it was my daughter who allowed us to even think that exploring the outdoors with an infant was more than possible. Along the way we learned a secret that I will share with you now….the serine hikes were like magic when it came to putting her to sleep.
My daughter is FINALLY of age to start walking the trails alongside us. She just completed her Personal Best at 3.5 miles of hiking on her own two feet! I was a proud dad that day, mainly because I didn’t have to carry her.
Welcome To The Crew
The serenity of birds chirping and fresh, cool breezes, will put any wired kid to sleep. My daughter experienced this in her younger years. Due to our son’s temperament (a GRADE A Butt Munch), we weren’t so optimistic about his affinity to hiking outdoors. Sitting down for hours, not being able to move, did not sound like something Tiras would love.
Turns out, we were so wrong about his ability to chill (he’s still a BUTT MUNCH). He LOVES to be held. My guess is he likes to see things from our vantage point. After a few test runs, our son was initiated into the family hiking crew. He has taken to hiking so much that he gets excited when he sees us pull out the hiking backpack. The boy literally tries to get in the backpack right away.
So our thing is not car rides or rocking to sleep anymore, it’s a hike! Of course, you can’t just up and go on a hike capriciously with two young ones. There’s a bit of planning and packing involved. Even if it’s only for an hour.
BUT, talk about getting your family time in! You get time to talk to your wife, teach your daughter about the plants, insects and deer. You also get to be the first to introduce your youngest impressionable mind(s) to these activities. And of course, you are Prioritizing Physical Activity along the way! Add on the weight of your infant son (30 pounds!), the infant carrier (7 lbs 3 oz), and you have a nice ruck to add to your exertion.
You’re just piling on the wins!
What’s In It For You?
If you still aren’t convinced yet, allow me to summarize. Imagine, distractions that aren’t electronics related, mixed in with real world educational opportunities, fresh air, kids can be as loud as they want to be, nap time, nap time nap time, and oh yea… PHYSICAL ACTIVITY!!!
My kids motivate me in to Prioritizing Physical Activity. If for no other reason than getting us all out the house. We need a pressure release valve. So release the pressure before you all blow, use it as motivation and HIT A TRAIL!
Stay Motivated! Stay Healthy!