This past weekend, Walter and I packed up a some fruit salad and our water bottles in my Ban.do cooler and took a long hike at dusk down in the MetroParks. We love dipping into the woods behind Hogsback Hill and exploring. There is even a swing down there by the river! It’s truly a perfect getaway.
My happy little hippo couldn’t wait to get into the ice cold water. So, being a dog mom that spoils my baby, I got right in with him: shoes, clothes, and all.
We started splashing each other and running in this little creek. Sure enough, soon we were totally soaked and the only natural progression was to head out into the river itself, where the water was up to my mid-thigh in places!
I kept his leash on him because the current was actually pretty strong, and sometimes he was struggling to paddle against it. When he gets too far away from me in the water he give me this look that says “Mom! Help!” so I didn’t want him to be too scared.
I wanted to share these photos not only because Gus is absolutely adorable, but as a reminder that taking the spontaneous route and doing whatever feels good in the moment as often as you possibly can is absolutely essential to your mental health. My motto has always been: “if it feels good, do it!” I think that these photos embody that to the fullest. We went home CAKED in mud, took a long family shower (not pictured: Walter falling in the mud. Walter is super tall, so it’s always funnier to see him fall than a normal person. Why does one person need that much body? It’s bound to get in the way!), and ordered some steamy hot Angelo’s pizza. It was the perfect way to spend our Saturday evening as a family. Get out there and enjoy being outside. This is such a great time of year to begin your MetroPark exploration, or to comb the beaches for treasures before the masses start heading that way. However you do it, get into to nature and let yourself be free!
