Day trip

Blogger is being a huge pain and I am about to throw the computer out the window.  Please ignore the funky way this post looks!

This past weekend it was absolutely beautiful and sunny out.  We decided fairly last minute to make the trip to the Pinery Provincial Park.  We had a great day, it had been many years since I had been there and it was really fun to be able to share the visit with my own children.

We went for a hike when we first arrived and the scenery was awesome.  There were three or four fully accessible trails to choose from in the park and the first one we chose was a winner.

When we reached the river we saw a Great Blue Heron which was so large and really graceful wading in the water.  He didn't seem bothered by us at all if he knew we were there.

Sophie was quite content for the hour or so that we hiked but Lucas was ready for lunch and to hit the beach.  So off we went and found the new (to me at least) accessible beach entrance.  It was a huge fantastic ramp that took you directly down the small dunes and onto the beach.  It made it so easy for us to wheel Sophie to the beach, otherwise we would have had to carry her and all her equipment like her wheelchair, feeding pump and all her other masses of paraphernalia we seem to carry around.

The water had warmed up significantly from our last trip to the cottage, although the Pinery is also two hours south, but it was very refreshing and Sophie went in for quite a while.

 

We enjoyed another long hike on an accessible trail on the other side of the park late in the afternoon.  It is a rare Oak Savannah forest and it was very different from the first hike we took.  I loved that the trail was very smooth but we were still in an undisturbed forest.  Lucas was pretty tired by this point and not in the greatest mood, but he persevered with the help of some snacks and the promise of being back to the car soon.

 

After our day at the Pinery we headed to Grand Bend for dinner.  We lucked upon a great fish and chip restaurant on the river, it was a great sunset view that we all enjoyed.  We arrived home tired and worn out but happy that we had had such a fun day.  There are aren't too many weekends left until school starts in September, the race is on to squeeze in as much adventure as we can.

 



Let the good times keep rolling

The beautiful sunny weather continued into the second half of our vacation and we enjoyed every little bit of it.  Jason's mom was able to come and join us for the last few days before we headed home and we tried to fill every minute with fun.  We had some lazy mornings but we had lots of adventures as well.

We headed out to Inglis falls, we hadn't been there for a few years but it is very accessible for Sophie.  We found some new trails too which we didn't have time for last visit.

 Lucas loved searching out the glacial potholes which are really awesome to discover in the woods.  We have hiked a few times closer to Tobermory in search of glacial potholes and it was kind of funny that we were so close to a cluster of them before and didn't even know it.  It is amazing how they are such perfect circles.

Sophie was able to join us on some of the trails here and she thoroughly enjoyed being wheeled around by her Oma with Lucas leading the way.  She was full of smiles, my girl is quite the adventurer.

It seems I can never get enough of exploring the Bruce Peninsula and luckily my family indulges my wishes for more hikes most of the time.

I hope that Lucas and Sophie will both always enjoy being out in the woods, hiking to who knows where.  It is definitely good for the body but even more I believe it is good for your being.

The next day we headed out to Oliphant, there is a great little accessible boardwalk nature trail through an old bog.  The bog is mostly dried up now as the water level of the bay has receded so much.  This area was fed by Georgian Bay even though it is right beside Lake Huron which is kind of odd.

Sophie, of course, had a fantastic time being with her peeps'. We could have been inspecting port-a-potty's that day and she would have been smiling.  She was just plain happy.

We went for a swim at the Oliphant beach and it was wonderful and warm.  A real switch from the cold water at our cottage.  The nights have been too cold (and the days too) for the deeper lake water to heat up, but by Oliphant the sandbar is huge.  So it was really nice that Sophie could go swimming in some warm water and the dog did too.  The shallow water is perfect for our little guy with the super short legs.

This is a Pitcher plant and it eats insects!  The bottom part of the plant is a place of doom lol!

The next day it was time to finish up our vacation and head home.  As we were driving through all the farm country we were gifted with a beautiful sunset.  Red, orange and pink all over.  It was an amazing end to a great week.

Beach days are awesome when you have the right stuff

After the weekend we settled into our vacation, enjoying the fact that the days were sunny and we were all healthy.  Sophie only had one seizure this trip, it was long but we dealt with it.  We aren't sure why the sudden increase in seizures the last few weeks but we believe it is due to her gaining some weight  since the winter which means her doses may need some adjusting.

 

This trip was all about making things easy and fun for Sophie.  We brought more of her equipment to the cottage than we ever have so that she could go more places more easily.  That also meant it was easier for all of us.

 

When Sophie has her tumbleform to sit on at the beach it means I'm not having to hold her for an hour or more.  Having the Wike trailer with us meant that I could easily get her to the beach without struggling in the sand.  Her Kidwalk was with us too which meant Sophie got to have some exercise and walk around all on her own. 

 

 

Getting your hands dirty in the sand and discovering what is all around you is important for every child.  Sophie doesn't have to miss out on all of that because of her disabilities and we make a huge effort to include her in everything we do as long as she is healthy enough to do it.  Until she lets us know she isn't interested in something we assume she is.  That is how we learn isn't it, by being immersed in the life that is all around us.

 

 

Lucas photobombing like only he can.

And there is nothing like a summer's day at the beach.  It relaxes you and inspires you all at the same time.

Lucas and Zoe both thought it was fun to push Sophie in her new beach mobile.  The Wike rolls so easily on the sand they were able to push her on our adventures without any problem.

Showing your cousin a crayfish you found on the beach is one of those things that you make memories from to last a lifetime.  I hope Sophie, Zoe and Lucas gather up these days in their thoughts and keep them there for a very long time.  Since they are all related to my Nanny who had the longest memory of any human that ever lived I think we are good to go. :)