Today we went to Lake Pinchot for a little bit of nature hiking. https://www.dcnr.pa.gov/StateParks/FindAPark/GiffordPinchotStatePark/Pages/default.aspx
We love to see what interesting creatures we can find.
Today we found several butterflies, dragon flies, and moths. We found a few others that did not stay still long enough for a clear photo.
We loved watching this grasshopper play ring-around-the stick with us for a little while. Every time I went to take his picture, he would scoot around to the other side of the stick. He never flew off the stick just kept scooting around it. Silly grasshopper.
I had just thought, “Hmmm, we haven’t seen any frogs yet, It would be nice to see one.” and then….God put a frog right in the middle of the water where I was looking… just for me. Then the kids found several more in the grass, that promptly hopped into the lake.
A little further down the trail Sam started with his panic, “Mom. Mom…. Come Here…. Quick. Mom! Quick! …It is a HUGE FROG!” OK that got my attention. He was leaning over a bunch of branches over the edge of the lake and asked for my phone. He took the two pictures of the big frog. It WAS HUGE. It was bigger than my hand. He was just “sittin’ in the water, doing what he oughta”. He was quite impressive. Then I noticed all the duck weed floating around and wished I had brought a container to collect some for my frogs at home. They love duck weed.
Lydia then tossed a rock in the water and frightened Mr. Big Frog, and he leaped out of the shallow water, and into the deeper water with a big splash. The kids said that he was super long, exaggerating with their hands.
We did see three turtles sitting on the flat rock in the middle of the water in this next picture. They were just sitting there, but one of the kids said, “Do they move?” as I was taking the picture. With that, all three turtles dove into the water as if they were answering the question.
After a nice long walk the kids played on the playground and rocks for a little while, while mom and dad rested.
Aaaannd then it happened. The youngest (almost 9) slipped from the monkey bars and landed on her arm. We try not to move right away, if there is no obvious injury… give them time to see if they are ok, or really hurt….she wasn’t crying….this is good….she sat up, but she was holding her arm. NOW brother and sister are hovering….. dad gets up….and starts to wander closer. Still no crying, but she said that she hurt her arm and walks to him calmly. What does dad say? “Oh, OK. Go show MOM.”
It did look slightly swollen, but she still wanted to play. We decided that it was best to call it a day and see how she was when she got home. At home, we decided that we should take her to an urgent care to get it checked out. Nothing broken. Just sprained/bruised. She gets to wear a cute white sling for a few days.
When we finally got home, Sam found a toad out in the garden on the side hill by the driveway, to add to the excitement of the day. Mr. Toad was promptly returned to his home in the garden after a brief showing to the entire family. He was not nearly as impressive as the big frog in the lake. However the dog did get quite excited and wanted a good look. We do know from experience that toads are not good for dogs, because they excrete a poison that makes dog’s mouth all foamy if they pick them up to try to carry them around… Just for future reference…. In case you were wondering.
Today we found lots of joy in the little creatures at the lake and on the trail. We even found joy in the “not broken” arm, and getting to wear a cool sling for “just” a few days.