I got what I needed and what I deserved!

So, last week was mostly a bust for exercise and eating healthy! The past few days I really wanted to do something outside and be active. Yesterday I had a support meeting to go and afterward I went grocery shopping. So there went most of the day. This morning we woke up to a sunny day, and I had a few ideas for getting outdoors; and I didn't have yard work or gutter cleaning in mind. I presented my two best ideas to Holden. The first idea was riding our bikes at Gray's Lake. But the second idea seemed more interesting and simple for several reasons. The second idea was to ride our bikes (Camden in the bike trailer) around our town to see horses and farm along scenic back roads. Holden was all for it! At 9:30 a.m. we headed out the door. Unfortunately, from the get go we had issues. Holden wore baggy pants that kept getting caught in his bike chain. We must have stopped 10 times within 1 mile before we found a solution, other than going home. Holden wanted to go home because I was cranky and deserved to be slapped (or hugged??) several times. All I wanted was to be outside with my kids and getting some much needed exercise. Was that such a horrible thing to want?

We walked up large hills and rode down hills. It seemed never ending at times, but after a few miles we got into a nice groove and our attitudes seemed better. Holden was sad and felt I had tricked him into this adventure. I felt a little guilty, but I had hope things would turn out o.k. He asked to go home after a few miles and I told him I was looking for the place a bike trail went through all this farmland. I knew it was somewhere nearby. I just thought if we kept heading north on the road we were on we would run into it.

Soon we were were near a highway. I felt it would be a mistake to keep going north and past the highway since we live south east of where we were. So we turned down a road heading east that I believed would most likely get us in the right direction. After about half a mile that road dead ended to a farm. Rather than turn around I thought we could cut through the farm and find the bike trail I was looking for, or at least be headed home in a new direction than the way we had come. It seemed like a fine idea and a grand adventure! I ignored the no trespassing sign that was more to discourage hunters since the sign said no hunting as well. The road we were on now was dirt (not gravel) and it ran along a dried up, harvested corn field. All was going great! I felt free and alive with the sun on my face and wind in my hair! The kids were mostly happy. Camden loved the adventure we were on. After about half a mile things got interesting!

We came to a big muddy trench and the road was much narrower. It was more like a four wheeler or off road trail with lots of high grasses, small trees, and mud with fresh dog and deer tracks. There were lots of valleys with mud and lots of deer tracks and high brown grasses, thorny shrubs, and weeds to maneuver through. We were getting a little weary, but we kept finding a new trail a long a corn field and I knew we were at least heading in the right direction. The adventure was still somewhat fun until the trail narrowed along a high fence. We were squeezed between the fence and high, dead corn stalks. The hardest part was that the bike trailer was bent now and I couldn't keep it going straight. It had been damaged going through the terrain. I was sad about this and I lost my temper a few more times. I was exhausted walking my bike with child in the trailer (when he wasn't walking) up and down huge hills that never seemed to end. Both boys were such troopers! At this point we had gone for at least 4 miles or more total. It seemed like hours. I was hopeful I could salvage the bike trailer and ride it home with Camden inside. We were very low on water now and I was feeling bleak about the choices I made and for not listening to my gut or to Holden when he wanted to turn around many times before. My shoes and socks were muddy and black from sinking into deep muddy trenches we couldn't go around.

Holden was in tears a few times and I was near tears a few times. Camden was such a charmer. He told me he was fine and we kept going. He wasn't near as tired because he was in the bike trailer most of the time and he didn't have to push a bike at all or through such terrible terrain. All we wanted was to get to the next road or the bike trail I had hope to find. With each hill we were sad only to see more corn fields or our neighborhood far in the distance out of reach. If we were just walking we could have easily cut through fields on foot and hope we didn't run into any raccoons, badgers, or other wild animals. The hardest part was the bike trailer. I never dreamed what would happen next!

I decided to move to the right side of my bike so I could put a little more distance between the corn rows and the bike trailer wheel which kept getting stuck in the corn rows. It was all horribly tiring and frustrating. There was a fence on my left and corn fields on my right. I felt all was going great, except for the fact that I was thirsty, still far from home and Holden was in tears again. I was bursting with anger at myself for getting into this adventure. I tried to stay positive. My load seemed lighter now that the bike trailer seemed to have more room with me on the right side of the bike. I turned around to see if the trailer was still dog wagging behind my bike. I didn't hear it. I looked down and it was gone! It had broken off the hitch. My beloved trailer! Blasted! I wondered a lot of things like how I was going to manage to get all the way home with two very tired kids, no water, and probably have to carry Camden and push my bike.
I didn't want to just leave my bike trailer in this cornfield. But I didn't have a choice at this point. I had no way to secure it to my bike. I tried a few things which failed. So I unloaded our coats and tossed the trailer over a high chain link fence which was the county side and not the farmer's side. It was still about a mile off the beaten path. We could see the highway, but we were still about a mile from home and huffing it now for real though. Camden was sad about the bike trailer too.

I put Camden on my shoulders while I pushed the bike. After he rested he got down and walked. When he got tired again he got on my back while I pushed the bike. I tried to get him to sit on the bike and hold on but that terrified him. Holden and I had a funny talk about what life was life before roads and cars...this was it except they had wagons and horses to maneuver through some of these valleys and trenches. I told him we had it easy compared to some people, and we were so tired because we were lazy from having a car. It was my attempt to keep myself sane and an attempt to keep our spirits up.

I decided it would be best to find a safe spot on the other side of a high hill far from the highway to hide the boys while I rode home to get the van. Holden was not sure this was a good idea, but once he saw how tired Camden was, and how hard it was for me to carry Camden, and push my bike he relented. I was very tired, thirsty, and just wanted to get myself and kids home. As soon as I got about half a mile away I was terrified I would never see them again; someone would find them or the police would take them from me for leaving them there. I tried to go as fast as I could, but once I got halfway up a huge hill I had to walk up it. I wanted my legs to go faster. I wanted to run.

As soon as I got home I thought I was going to pass out. I couldn't believe the clock said 12:30p.m. (We were gone 3 hours.) I grabbed the water and my car keys. When I got near the kids I was so happy I honked the horn repeatedly to let them know I was coming. They were happy to see me, but not near as worried as I was. Holden wondered why my face was so red. I was hot and tired. Finally, we made it home!!! I got all the exercise I ever needed or wanted! I learned some valuable lessons as well. I deserved to have my bike trailer break on me. I was grateful we made it home without anything else going wrong or anyone getting hurt.

It was a helluva an adventure!!!!