Ward Pound Ridge Reservation

Today we went on a hike to Ward Pound Ridge Reservation. It was such a nice day out. There wasn't even a need for a jacket and we were walking in t-shirts. The hike was a loop and it was very well marked and the pathway was well groomed and wide. There were quite a few people there, whom were all so nice. Everyone seemed to have a dog with them too. Right from the get-go I noticed that Chancho was limping, which isn't a great sign when you're planning on going on a 2 1/2 hour hike. He mentioned that it wasn't anything, just an ingrown toenail. We continued on and as he stumbled over a couple of rocks he was complaining a lot and cursing with every stumble, in pain. At this point we were far enough in that we could either turn around and go back or finish it out. He insisted that we continue on, I agreed as long as he wouldn't complain anymore. He did great with that. It was more of a work out for him, but he was a champ and managed to finish the hike. It went up to about 700ft and had a gorgeous view of the Hudson River. They kindly provided a bench for us at the look out point. The loop that we decided to take was called the Leatherman's Loop. It had a "cave" that the Leatherman used to stay in, which we got to see. I really liked this place. We'll definitely go back again. It also wasn't too far away, about a 20 minute drive.
Side Note: I was able to fit into my skinny jeans for the first time today!

Here's three pictures from my phone. I forgot my camera again!

 This is the bench that was provided for us.

These are the views from the look out point.

A Regular Sunday

I had a pretty great day today. I was able to spend the entire day with Chancho uninterupted. We actually were able to impliment one of our "fixes". Chancho's mother requested that he eat lunch with her today, so that's exactly what we did. We spent from 12pm until 4pm together. It was very nice. His uncle visited and I was able to chat with his sister a lot. She was suggesting some roads for me to look into with my job search. It really was a wonderful afternoon. I'm hoping that he realizes that this is something that can be done now and everyone is satisfied.

After lunch was over, I forced him to take a walk with me in the woods. We went to Cranberry Lake Preserve. I went to camp there when I was younger and have some great memories. It's got a few easy trails for anyone to walk on, that go over and around the lake. It has a trail that leads to a quarry and has a small waterfall. Chancho found entertainment by playing with a stick the entire time and poking the water with it. It was relaxing and let us get out in the open air for a change, plus it gave us exercise. We also were able to talk about how he likes to say one thing, but mean another. For example, tomorrow he signed up for a paid detail, which means he'll be working for Target in the Bronx all evening. I asked him if he wanted to go for a hike in the morning before work and he responded with "Sure, just wake me up, but my feet will be tired for work." That makes me feel guilty for making him tired for work if I make him go on this hike, but yet he doesn't say no, he doesn't want to go on the hike. So we talked about how he should just say that he'd rather not go on the hike because of work and that saves us the trouble of having to play mind games. I'm glad we got that out in the open because we all know that mind games can get out of control.

We're heading into the later portion of the night which means movie time. We'll be watching my movie pick tonight, Away We Go. Hopefully he likes it. I've already watched it, I find it to be pretty gosh darn funny. I also love the main character in Away We Go, John Krasinski, he plays Jim in The Office too, which is one of my favorite TV shows.

Here's to a great night and another wonderful afternoon tomorrow!! Hope you all enjoyed your weekend!

Quote of the Day: "Remember, we all stumble, every one of us. That's why it's a comfort to go hand in hand." - Emily Kimbrough

Woodford State Park

Great news! Camping was a huge success with Chancho. He has deemed it his favorite hobby now and wants to go back again soon. We talked about a fall camping trip. We traveled to Woodford State Park in Bennington, Vermont and set up camp on Thursday. It was a little stressful for me at times because I had to explain everything and make all of the decisions, but I'm taking it as a learning experience for myself. After setting up camp we took a "hike" around the reservoir. It was a loop that went around it. It was a good first hike for Chancho. We weren't able to make a fire the first night because the wood was soaked through and wouldn't light, which was very disappointing to Chancho, that was the one thing he wanted out of the trip. Friday we woke up and made our breakfast and then decided to go for a hike. We made it to the trail and about 5 minutes into it we heard thunder and the woods started to get really dark so we had to head back to the campground. The storm wasn't quite at the campground yet so Chancho suggested we take the kayaks out on the water so that's what we did and just in time because as we were finishing up it started to pour. The clouds opened up and let our tarp and tent have it. The tarp we had set up over our picnic table collapsed on us. Our tent leaked. I was miserable and Chancho lay in the tent snoring away like a freight train. My best friend since 4th grade made the trip up and stayed for the night with her boyfriend. The rain thankfully cleared up for us to make a fire and we were able to have a relaxing evening. Saturday we packed up in the rain and were home in time for the Yankee game. Overall this was a good first trip. We bonded a lot and now have found an activity that I think we will enjoy doing in the future.

My vacation is over and I sadly had to be up for work at 4am this morning. Chancho still has one more day left of his vacation. He's busy running errands. I hate returning to work after such a great vacation. It should make it easier, but it really only makes it worse knowing that you don't get another great vacation until next year.

I leave you once again with a picture from our trip - the view of the reservoir from our hike: