Team Not So Rugged

I thought I would update you on how our Sunday hike went since it was the first big hike with the little guy.  We left the house a little before 7am and I had to move Logan from his crib to his car seat in order to leave.  I didn't bother getting him dressed prior to leaving because we had an hour and a half drive and I knew he would sleep on the way to the trail.  Little did I know, he was not feeling well at all.  He was miserable the whole time.  I mean, he was ok while we were hiking up the mountain, a little fussy but he would fall asleep every so often and seemed content at other times. We stopped after a couple hours (almost four miles in) in I fed and changed the baby.  This is when we noticed that he really wasn't a happy camper.  I was concerned about making it the rest of the way and then back down the mountain.  My husband suggested we detour to a creek and just relax there for a little while, eat some lunch and then head back down.  Sounded good to me! When we got to the creek we unloaded and the baby was able to enjoy himself a little bit.  He especially enjoyed playing in the dirt.  We dipped his feet in the cool water but he didn't like that at all! He wasn't crying, but I could see in his eyes that he was not well.  We felt so bad that he was not well and not having fun.  Once we finished lunch we headed back down the mountain.  I was booking it.  I wanted so bad to be back at the car and on our way home.  We made good time coming down the mountain, but the baby cried quite a bit.  Singing helped.  I was thinking to myself "how many rounds of The Wheels on The Bus can I sing?" but just kept singing to keep him calm.  He fell asleep and woke just as we were in the home stretch.  We made it.

Needless to say, our hiking adventure was not what I would call a success.  Team Rugged ended up being not so rugged. We ended up hiking almost 8 miles (instead of the 11-12 we set out to accomplish).  Positive aspects of the trip: I felt pretty good physically.  My back didn't hurt at all (my main concern since I injured it and it had only been a day of feeling better).  My pack was heavy but it was comfortable and the weight didn't bother me.  It wasn't too heavy - about the same amount of weight I carried backpacking with the baby, my water bladder, and supplies.  The dog did a fantastic job! I specifically picked this hike because it is a dog friendly trail, and he was a trooper!  The best thing I took away from the trip was a recording of the babbling brook that I recorded with my phone.  I think I can loop it and make my own recording of running water for the baby to listen to during sleep time.  It's worth a shot.  It will be a fun project at the very least!