They've slept in a tent a few times: Once or twice in the church yard. (basically our backyard.); One night at a state park in CT last summer. They've demonstrated that they like it and have wanted more. They've (mostly Mia) also been begging to "climb a mountain" "like the boys" for a few years.
A few things have kept us back from "climbing a mountain like the boys." First, Violet has been having surgeries or recovering from surgeries since she came home. She's finally ready. We've also been curious to see what Mia could handle physically with Beta Thal. Could she handle a real hard day? Would she tire easily? Plus, Mia is just....well.......How do I put this?
Mia is tough. Seriously. I get queasy just thinking about having a needle stuck in my arm. She faces them down every week, sometimes twice in a week. She lives with less hemoglobin than you or I do. That means that she has less energy then you or me. And she keeps on going.
With that said.....Well, she just hasn't been ready. :-)
But the girls are 8 now. We went on a 4.5 mile hike in CT a few weeks ago and they did great. But that's CT. It's not the White Mountains. The White Mountains are HARD. But it was time to put them to the test. And they passed beautifully!
They were amazing! We hiked 8.5 miles in two days, They climbed their first "4,000 footer," Mt. Jackson. (The first one the boys did five years ago.) This is classic White Mountains hiking. 1000 ft/mile elevation gain with tons of rocks and roots. They were tired and slept SOUNDLY last night. But they got up eager for another three miles today to a beautiful waterfall. They were even "all-in" for the steep scramble over rocks and roots to get to the top of the almost 200 foot falls. (see picture from top) I am so proud of them. They did things that are not just challenging for 8 year olds, (one with a prosthetic leg and the other with a blood condition) but went after hikes that would be challenging for many adults!
But I have to say......Hiking with girls is.....different. They are different. I am different. They are not boys. Please don't hear what I'm not saying. I'm NOT saying that girls can't do hard things, that girls aren't tough, that there aren't loads of athletic girls. etc. etc. etc. But girls are different. My girls are NOT my sons. They do this differently than my sons. I hike with them differently than I do my sons. Maybe that's not a good thing. But I tend to think it is normal--and good.
So what's different? Well, let's start with biology. Pardon my bluntness....but boys and girls pee differently. When you hike a few miles in the woods, sometimes you just have to "go." There are not restrooms. There are no outhouses. There are just trees and rocks and roots. I've had to teach my girls how to do this. It's rather easy for boys. Ladies.....you can easily understand the dilemma. :-) It's also quicker and easier to be discreet for boys.
What else is different? Well, my girls were a little more "dainty" when it comes to mud and puddles. We all try to avoid them, but the girls a little more so. They were also a little more tentative in their approach. Eventually they realized that you're just going to get dirty, and they lived with it just fine. But at first......:-)
The other differences are more about me than them. I often hike in front of the boys. I mostly hiked behind the girls. I was more patient, more easy going with them. I didn't care as much about our "time." I didn't push them as hard. I held their hands (when they wanted and trail width permitted.) I was quicker to slow down or stop or rest. Not that they needed me to or asked me to. Actually, they whined a whole lot less than my sons on certain comparable trips. Ha!
Maybe I just wanted them to enjoy it and want to do it again. But there's more to it than that. I felt more "protective" of them. I want the boys to "suck it up" and "go for it." The girls? They're my girls. I didn't coddle them. I want them to be strong and bold. (I wouldn't have taken them if I didn't.) But I approached it differently.
