Adventure Racing

Greg and I got involved in adventure racing shortly after we met.  I have done a few and Greg has now done several races, including Untamed New England.  Adventure racing involves map and compass navigation.  Usually, races include trekking, mountain biking, and paddling.

Bitter Pill 2010

This weekend, Ian and I completed the Wildlands Adventure Challenge in Orland, Maine.  This race was organized by Strong Machine Adventure Racing and we are lucky that this race is basically held in our backyard.  We have also participated in their Maine Summer Adventure Race in Jefferson which was a blast.

 Ian's first Race - Maine Summer Adventure Race 2017

Finishing his first adventure race just after turning 4

This was our second time doing this 3 hour beginner race.  Last year, Ian was the only child participating.  He was only 5 and I did a lot of the paddling on my own and had to piggyback him several times.  We had a blast and he wanted to do it again.

Just finished Wildlands 2018 (5 years old)

Top of Great Pond Mountain looking for checkpoints
Wildlands 2018

This year's race had a few more teams than last year and we were excited that there were four other children participating.  We began with the paddle section.  Adventure racing involves some strategy and not all of the checkpoints are mandatory.  I knew that Ian was likely to get tired on the trekking (mostly uphill) and would definitely be slower on his six-year-old legs, so we went for all but one checkpoint on the paddle.  This would allow him to take as many breaks as needed while still allowing up to make progress through the course.  Ian was a rockstar!  He paddled for much of the hour and nimbly hopped in and out of the boat to punch the card.

Just before the start Wildlands 2019

Just off the water headed for the trek
Wildlands 2019

Once off the water, we headed out for the trekking section.  The first checkpoint that we went for was in a stream.  This one ate up a lot of our time as it was MUCH further than I expected it to be and the rocks in the streambed, as well as the leaves on the steep sides, were very slippery.  We thought about turning back on this one, then we finally saw it.  Ian was a trooper even with a few falls and really enjoyed exploring off-trail.  We got back to the road a little wet and with a few extra scrapes and headed out to look for checkpoint 9.  I had to piggyback Ian quite a few times last year and was expecting to piggyback him this year as well.  I was wrong.  Ian loved finding the checkpoints, was diligent about checking his watch and actually ran quite a lot of the trekking section.  After reaching checkpoints 9 and 10, we decided that our next checkpoint was out of our reach if we wanted to stay within the time and we began our trek back to the finish. Overall, we reached 8 checkpoints and finished in 3rd place overall.  First place in the family division.  The first-place team had 10 checkpoints with no teams clearing the course. 

Still climbing trees after the race

I'm so proud of my little racer who is eager to get out and do it again.  This race was well organized and so much fun!  Thanks so much to Strong Machine Adventure Racing (https://www.strongmachinear.com/) for making these races family-friendly and encouraging new racers to get out and try the sport.

Family Mountain Biking.

I have recently come to the realization that I have completely forgotten how to write.  I guess posting one-sentence Facebook posts, conversing with a three and a six-year and teaching students with developmental delays isn't really challenging my cognitive abilities.

I am taking a graduate course towards my CAS, which requires quite a bit of writing, so I figured I would start up the blog again to log our family adventures and provide some mental stimulation and writing practice. 

We have been doing quite a lot of exploring and generally just enjoying the outdoors.  I am sad that I haven't logged all of it on here for the boys to look back on.  A few weeks ago, we traveled to Carrabassett Valley for the weekend to do some mountain biking.  Ian completed a children's mountain bike race at their summer challenge and both boys have been begging to go back and explore the trails.  Now that Gabe can pedal independently and with winter fast approaching, we figured it now or never for this year.  

So, we loaded up the bikes, the kids and the dogs and made the trek.  The first morning was chilly.  Hats and gloves were required and there was still some complaining, even from my shorts and flip flop child.  As a warm-up, Ian led up around the racecourse which actually had a pretty steep downhill and some loose gravel.  I am impressed that he conquered this on his first race.  Next, Ian and I rode around a green single track trail that he had been too intimidated to try in July.  No problems this time as he took the lead.  At this point, Gabe was ready to try the "real trails" and we set out to ride a green trail that loops around a large pond at the outdoor center.  This was Gabe's first big outing with his lightweight Woom 2 and he had no trouble keeping up, only having to walk the top 1/3 or less of the bigger hills.  

We took a break for some leaf and real estate peeping - maybe someday we will have a camp up there.  After a little lunch, the boys were ready to tackle some more single track off the Narrow Gauge trail.  Ian rocked around the trails with Greg, voicing some annoyance that he had to keep stopping to wait for me and Gabe.  Gabe did pretty well with the single track, struggling and crashing a little on the roots.  The Woom 2 isn't really designed for true mountain biking but overall, I was impressed at how well he was able to handle the trails.  

I think we covered a little over 3 miles of true mountain bike trails.  We heard lots of moans and groans when it was time to leave.  I love that they love to adventure and I am so excited that we can really hit the trails as a family.

17 Months - Fall in Maine

Ian is 17 months old and he is enjoying fall in Maine.  He is most fond of "aaahhhples" and wants to have one in each hand at all times.  He can't really eat them yet, so it can be a little scary at times.

He is my little hiker already.  He does not want to be carried and can go for quite a while on his own.

He loves the sand on his toes, but wasn't sure about the waves coming up to get him.

We rode the train to the Common Ground Fair.....And tried not to let him show much skin as he had just gotten over Hand, Foot and Mouth.

He can now climb onto, or into almost anything and is in constant motion.

Other than climbing, his new developments are mostly language based.  He can say "Ella" for both his cousin Ella and his best buddy Ellie.  He says Yayaya for Josiah.  He will try to repeat a lot of things, but mostly approximates syllables.  Most recently, he says "There ya go" when he hands you something.  Today, he put something on the conveyor as we checked out at the grocery store and looked at the cashier and said, "There ya go" with a big smile on his face.  He is such a goof.

We sure love this active, silly boy!

16 Months

Ian is 16 months old this week and is a bona fide toddler!  He is walking, talking, TROUBLE.
He can climb things and open things and is getting pretty good at starting a game of chase.  Here's how he really felt about a 16 month photo shoot.

 

He LOVES his bike and is almost too brave on it.

 

Ian can use sign language to say...

• "more"
• "done"
• "milk"
• "please"
• "help"

He can nod his head to answer yes and no and will wave to say "hi" or "bye".  He claps now too, though it did take him a long time to try it out.

He can use words to say....

• "dog"
• "hi"
• "bye bye"
• "night night"
• "done"
• "ya"
• "dada"
• "mama"
• "what is it?
• "what was that?
• "this"
• "open"
• "thank you"

 

 

 

He has said, Ella, Ellie, Alex, Siah, dirt, rock, up.  He can also do the animal sounds for dog, horse, cow and owl.

 

He is beginning to follow basic directions to give an item to mommy or daddy, throw something away, or go find something.  It is really fun to see him learning new things every day!

 

We had a great summer exploring the beach and playing outside.  We are back to reality now.  Luckily, Ian loves his 2 buddies at daycare and is always happily playing.....sometimes so much that he doesn't want to leave, when I arrive.

As always, we are excited to share new experiences with Ian.  Apple picking, playing in the leaves and the Common Ground Fair are some of the things on our agenda for this fall!

Happy Birthday Sweet Boy!

 Ian is one today!

  

It's so hard to believe that this little peanut has grown so fast!

He can crawl faster than fast, but he loves being on his feet.  He can pull to stand and cruises along anything.  He most definitely does not like to sit still.

He has four teeth and weighs 23 pounds.  He still isn't very tall.

He points at all kinds of things and says, "dis" or "dat".  He has a few other words too.  He can say "dada", "mama", "dot" (dog), "doot" (I think this is Moose), and "adone" (all done).  He waves at everyone and everything and can sign "all done".  He still refuses to sign "more" or clap.

He had so many people who love and care about him come to his birthday party.  It was a beautiful day.  We were able to celebrate outside on the deck.  The kids enjoyed bubbles, sand play, climbing, sliding, collecting eggs, petting goats, and catching a crayfish.

Ian loved his cupcake.

He had so much fun playing at his party.  He slept so well and was still exhausted the next day.

We love you sweet boy!  Happy Birthday!

Eleven Months Old

We are having so much fun watching Ian learn and grow.   It is so hard to believe that he is already 11 months old.

Ian has two bottom teeth.  I'm not sure that he is ever going to get any more teeth, though there may be a top one about ready to make an appearance.  His lack of teeth doesn't stop him from eating.  This boy loves his food.  He is almost as bad as the dog when it comes to begging.

He pulls up to stand on almost anything and LOVES doors and drawers.  He also loves outlets and wires.  He doesn't miss anything and knows within seconds if the dishwasher, basement door or dog gate or is open...and he is lightening fast on his hands and knees.  He really is trouble.

He can wave and make lots of silly sounds with his mouth, or hands and mouth.  He loves to bang on things and is starting to drive toy cars and throw balls.

He says, "mama", "dada", "dot" for dog, and "dis" for this.  He has just recently started pointing, usually at his dogs.  Gauge is still the one who brings him the most joy.

 We are so in love with this silly, silly boy!

10 Months Old

Even though I only just posted Ian's 9 month photos, he is actually 10 month old today.

Ian has two bottom teeth.  He is still a chubby boy at just under 21 pounds.  He is doing new things every day.  He waves (when he feels like it), he pulls up on EVERYTHING,  he puts all kinds of things in his mouth....food and nonfood alike.  He is loves to say "dada" and is beginning to say "mama" more and more.  He also says "bababa", and "yayaya" a lot.  The only thing he is actually labeling is the dog.  He will reach for Gauge and say "dot" or "doot".

 He is really starting to explore his world.  He loves to feed the dogs and throw his cup or spoon on the floor.  He likes finding out what different sounds he can make when pounding on things and has recently begun to take out bowls and pans that he can access.  He has also recently discovered the stairs and he LOVES to climb.

His newest thing is pushing buttons on the radio......

and dancing.

He also likes to let go of things when he is standing and often forgets to put his hands down when he is falling.  Most of the time, he is pretty chill about his bumps and bruises, but he scares his mommy.

 We absolutely love this crazy, silly, messy, and active boy!