Have you ever had a day that you were really excited for a hike, miraculously left on time, and got to the trail head early, started the hike on a high note, and then everything fell apart? This describes my day a few weeks ago. We had a farewell hike for one of our beloved branch leads who is moving away and I was looking forward to the hike and to seeing our friends… and particularly to getting out... for me.
The hike even started out on the right foot, so to speak. Despite a surprise snowfall, because of my
fantastic planning skills unwillingness to remove any gear from my car (because I
might neeed it), we were both, for the most part, appropriately attired. My 2 year old was raring to go and actually started up the mountain before our welcome circle. In retrospect, I should have let him go, but we stopped because that was actually a different trail than the group was doing. I slowed him down, and redirected him to the group, where I bribed him with cookies. Since we were doing a walking kid hike, I even thought I would see how he did and planned to let him walk.
As we took off, things went downhill… he thought that the snow was REALLY interesting… as were the leaves, his mittens, and every tree and rock that peeked through the snow. He threw tantrums every time I tried to move him along the trail. Epic tantrums – with kicking, screaming, and hitting… and BIG tears. I didn’t cry too, but I really wanted to. He was also fiercely possessive of his “hik pol” and tantrums increased whenever I tried to redirect him and get him to let me hold it. We only managed about 5 feet at a time.
This is also the one day I decided not to bring a water bottle or snacks, because the last 10 short hikes we’ve done, he has refused them, so naturally, the one time I didn’t have them, they perhaps would have helped. I refer to the phenomenon not as Murphy’s Law but Toddler’s Law. I didn't get photos of the major drama, the lying in the middle of the trail, the kicking, screaming, or crying, but I KNOW that everyone can picture their own toddler doing the same thing.
With my tears approaching, I loaded him up into the carrier on my back, and started further down the trail with my angry 2 year old. We hadn’t gone far before we ran into a friend who had turned around due to a 2 year old meltdown. I sighed, and decided she had the right idea, and we turned around together. In the short distance to the trailhead, there were at least 5 more angry outbursts. It was so disappointing to me to not finish the hike, and I felt helpless as most of my tantrum survival techniques don’t work that well in the middle of a trail. At the car, he acted as though I had been starving him and ate every snack in sight (he had eaten a large breakfast too).
I’d love to say that our day improved and we got back out for another hike later, but candidly, he had a bad day and had to leave his friend’s birthday party later that day because of a bad attitude. It was one of those days that when my husband walked through the door, I handed the toddler off to him, and went and sat in the floor of the shower.
I’m having trouble wrapping up this post, and why I chose to write about toddler tantrums as an obstacle to overcome, when I didn’t do so well at overcoming this one myself. 2 year old tantrums are a whole new world for me… they just started a few weeks ago, and I find that my old tricks don’t work so well. The point I would like to make though is that tantrums DO happen, and they happen to every parent. Bad days happen too. They are a fact of life, and they might mean that your hike on a particular day doesn’t go the way you want it to. That in and of itself can be a very difficult pill to swallow, particularly when you NEED to get out for your own sanity. However, every parent on a hike you’re on WILL understand and if they haven’t gone through it, they’ll experience it one day.
My point is... don’t let it get you down. Your plans on a particular day may not go the way you want them to, but there will be other days. Be prepared with snacks and water even if you think you won’t need them, shoot for giggles, and suggest they find the next tree to hug or rock to climb, and when all else fails, if you need to turn around, someone will go with you, and everyone will understand. Hang in there, Mama, Papa, Grandma, Grandpa, Auntie, Uncle, or Nanny… bad days happen to us all, and the next day is an opportunity for another outing.
What obstacles have you overcome either to hike or by hiking? Share in the comments below or via
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Erin Pennings’ main duty in life is making sure that her sweet, but very busy toddler, Emmett, doesn’t dive head first off the highest thing he can climb. She is also a moderately outdoorsy formerly avid traveler, animal lover, and lifestyle blogger who loves food. Follow her adventures on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram @SalmonAtSeven.
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