We just got back from a fantastic hike up into the foothills. Max was awesome. He walked for miles without one complaint or bribe... if you don't count the the initial: "OH, COME. ON! I DON'T WANT TO GO FOR A HIKE!!! WHY WOULD I WANT TO GO FOR A HIKE?... THE TV's ON!" He really enjoyed it today... I mean, he's always enjoyed hiking (once you get him going), but now... he really likes checking out the map and trying to figure out where we are ("Now, where is that picnic shelter?"), he reads the signs, he likes learning about different rocks and trees. It's just a completely different experience with him. I love it.
And this is how Alex spent most of the hike... asleep. She wasn't feeling very well so she was thrilled to take it all in while being carried. It's good she enjoyed it since her time-in-the-backpack is just about over... her legs were almost touching the ground...
While Dan was taking this picture I was watching Max dodge yet another muddy section. To accomplish this, he would either walk a mile out of the way to avoid it all together (I think he ended up walking about 10 more miles than we did) or he would walk just to the side of the mud in the snow patches. In this case, he was walking through the snow patches very gingerly, while holding up his pants so that the bottoms didn't get wet. His antics were, of course, accompanied by loud grunts and noises and: "WHOA!... OH NO!... WHOO, THAT WAS A CLOSE ONE..."
When you're in the mood for it, he is pure entertainment.
