hike day

Today was our last Furlough Friday of internship. I can't believe we're having our first "last" event yet, but it came and went today with gusto. This morning Brooke, Kelsey, and I were up early and at church by 7:45am to get breakfast ready for the kids.

We only had seven kids today, which was kind of a nice break, since we'd been having between 15 & 20 during the last two furlough days. We'd been planning a hike day for the last few weeks, but an unwelcome guest arrived with the kids at 8--rain! Hmmm. What to do...

In a fit of last-minute inspiration, I called the kids up to the sanctuary and read them "Miss Nelson has a Field Day", one of my favorite books as a kid. As the story ended, the kids found books that they wanted to read, and took turns reading to the group. It was precious to see the older kids help the kindergartners read, and watch as the little ones sat entranced by their older friends' voices.

Well, that took up all of about 45 minutes. So we popped in a DVD of "The Incredibles" and watched until the kids got antsy. By 10:15, the rain had cleared, so we loaded the kids up in four different vehicles and took off for the trail-head. Before hiking, we came up with the rules as a group. Some suggestions from the kids: 1) no stepping in mud 2) no leaving the group 3)No touching things in the environment. Gotta love it when kids come up with rules!

We hiked down a narrow trail which led into a forest. The trees were tall, shady and covered in moss, and the forest floor was blanketed in fallen leaves. It looked like something you'd find in Virginia or Colorado, but certainly not Hawaii. It was beautiful nonetheless. Our hike was uneventful--which is a good thing when you're in charge of several kids--and we learned several things along the way. My favorite moment of the hike was when I stopped with some of the boys to let the rest of the group catch up. As we waited, they wandered over to a tree with a name carved deeply into it. One of the kids came running to me exclaiming "auntie! auntie! someone carved on the environment!" Too cute, too cute. Here are a few pictures of the hike....


At the trail-head before our hike




One of the most energetic (and intelligent!) kids I've ever met. She's so fun!




Some of my favorite boys. Love 'em!




We made it back to the cars and headed back to church for grilled cheese sandwiches around noon. Then we walked to the tennis court for our tennis lessons, came back and watched the Incredibles, and were done at 2. Quite the full day, and always one to remember!