Fall Hiking: Aspen Vista and the Winsor Trail

I had a cold last week, the kind that goes from allergies and itchy eyes and sniffles to a scratchy throat and gross coughing and eventually losing my voice.  Getting a cold during a pandemic can turn anyone into a hypochondriac, and it crossed my mind more than once that "Oh my gosh, could this be COVID?!"  (Thankfully it wasn't.)  I blame the combination of the seasons changing, sleep deprivation, the smoky air quality, and not staying hydrated during busy days at work.  It didn't help that I was over-using my voice all week between patient care, clinical education, presentations on Zoom meetings, and parenting.  By the end of the week I was completely unable to talk.  

Being sick as a parent of young kids is pretty miserable, because taking a nap or a long shower or just curling up on the coach are not options, but thankfully Ady was adorably helpful, suggesting that we make some "camel meal" (chamomile) tea to make my "neck" feel better, and offering me one of her blankets to snuggle.  Not having a voice while spending all day with my kids also forced me to listen more and to communicate nonverbally.  I literally had to get down to Ady's level, make eye contact, and whisper to her when I needed to tell her something.  I found myself becoming incredibly frustrated when she was acting out and I physically couldn't get her attention or yell at her, but I think that's how kids must feel too when they're unable to express their needs.  It was hard to not be able to respond to all her questions, and she couldn't hear me at all when we were in the car, but it also brought me joy to just be able to listen to her talk.  

Despite feeling sick, I wasn't about to miss out on the prime weekend of fall colors in Santa Fe, so I took the girls hiking on the Winsor Trail on Friday morning.  It was an absolutely perfect fall morning, with chilly morning temperatures and a stillness in the air.  Hiking with a 3-year-old is definitely more about the journey than the destination, which is good for me, I think.  We hunted for sparkly rocks, picked out the perfect logs to sit on for (another) snack, hypothesized about what might live in that nest, and just wandered with no real end goal in mind.  I did have to coax Ady to keep going sometimes when she would rather turn around (which was that much harder when I could hardly talk), but she was a good sport and hiked for two hours!  

The previous weekend I had a morning alone with Meredith and Kua while the hubby took Ady on a bike ride, so we hiked Aspen Vista and took lots of photos of baby's first autumn.

This year, more than ever, I'm so thankful to live in a place where I can get outside, breathe some fresh air, and forget about life's many stresses.  I'm not sure what winter will bring, and it's becoming increasingly apparent that COVID is here to stay, but we're just going to do our best to stay healthy and adapt to this new normal.