Since I knew I'd be giving my last final exam on Wednesday, I scheduled an all day field trip for Thursday. Last summer Nadia participated in a five day Adventure camp at Bloomsburg University that included ziplining, rock climbing, hiking, and kayaking. She would have liked to do that camp again this year, but I decided instead to sign all three kids up for a one day event at Refreshing Mountain, which is located two hours from our house. We left a little before 8:00am. The kids were divided into four groups (1st/2nd, 3rd/4th, 5th/6th, and 7th-12th) and spent one hour at each of four stations - reptiles and amphibians, a team nature scavenger hunt, climbing a 34 foot tower, and zip lining. Ian started on the ziplining. He got suited up, but every time he was hooked up on the platform, he lacked the courage to step off. Oliver and Nadia went zip lining later in the day, and they both had a blast and did the course twice. They would have taken a third turn if they had been allowed to do so! The climbing tower had different paths - very easy, easy, racing, medium, hard, and very hard. Ian went up part of the very easy side two times. Oliver went part of the way up the racing side twice and part way up the easy side once. Oliver made it to the top of the very easy path! Nadia went part of the way up the racing side and the medium side. She didn't go on the very easy side, and she made it to the top on the easy side. You had to get to the top of medium to attempt hard or very hard so none of my three attempted either of those. I thought Nadia would say the zip lining was her favorite part, but she said the rock climbing was her favorite. Oliver liked the zip lining the best. Since Ian chickened out of the zipline, I was afraid he'd do the same on the climbing tower. I was happy he attempted that activity twice as it hadn't gone very well when he had another rock climbing opportunity two years ago. On our way home, we stopped and had dinner with Kay and Allen. We hadn't seen them in two years. I first met Kay in 1993 when we were in graduate school together in Indiana. Then I got to know her much better in July 1996 as she had been the previous administrator at the school where I was the principal from 1996-2003. Kay will be turning 80 this summer, and her husband is still an electrician at the age of 82! They became great grandparents last year. It was great to see them.
Ian started coughing a little yesterday. Today he sounds much worse. He wasn't up to participating in gym class today even though they were doing glow in the dark dodgeball, which is a favorite activity. He chose to stay with me as I ran errands instead. We went to the library, eye doctor, produce market, and bought a birthday gift for Aunt Millie while Nadia and Oliver were in gym class. Oliver broke his glasses a week ago. I was hoping it just needed a screw or something. Nope. However, the frames were still under warranty so they put Oliver's lenses into a new frame at no charge. Here's to hoping he takes better care of this second pair of glasses. Oliver played in the indoor playland while Nadia had art class. Ian read a book. The kids had been healthy for almost two months. Paul and I have been healthy for longer than that. I'm praying fervently that none of us catch Ian's cold. I'm encouraging a lot of hand washing and hand sanitizer usage!! The kids and I are leaving on Sunday for a three day trip to New Jersey. We had planned on going to Reptiland today, but due to the weather (had some rain today), my exhaustion from yesterday's adventure, and Ian's cold, we postponed that for two weeks. Since I was bopping back and forth between the climbing tower and ziplines yesterday to take pictures, I ended up walking for three miles yesterday, which meant it was the third time thus far this week I had walked that much in a day. My latest weight loss plateau has ended.
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