June 11, 2000 - Sunday
Harry's first walk in the woods was a regrettably brief outing, aborted by rain. We had gone only about 3/4 of a mile, fetching Harry an up-close look at some brown and white and black and white dairy cows before the skies darkened and the mosquitos disappeared. From then, it was just minutes before the rains came and the distance we had covered was predominantly downhill.

It started mercifully with just a few drops, but the forecast was clear enough and we turned back toward the hills. One of the beauties of the woods is the natural canopy that large trees over a dirt road can create and that covering, no doubt, provided great assistance through the early drops. Unfortunately, the trees lose much of their effectiveness as their leaves themselves become wet and drip the raindrops they once impeded and as the drops become more frequent. As the rain gets harder, the delay from wetness offered the leaves is lessened. Sections of the road exposed to the sky are, needless to say, even less forgiving.

Running with Harry strapped to the front, I find, is a little hard on the back, especially leaning over slightly to try to keep him dry. But, the big fireplace in the cabin cures many ills, most notably wetness and chills, and being caught inside on a rainy Sunday morning - with the pounding of the rain on the roof, the snapping of the fire, and the sound of a couple guitars - is no loss of vacation time. It even put a temporary hold on the backache.

The real remedy for the back, however, was an evening in a Jacuzzi suite at a bed & breakfast, a Christmas gift Harry's mother and I received from Aunt Jane and Uncle Kris (top two on the right). We left Harry at their house so they could practice for Harry's future cousin and we could have a oft-encouraged break from tending and an evening to ourselves. It turned out to be a wonderful - and highly recommended for anyone with a not-too-new baby - Christmas present indeed, but more about that tomorrow.


Comments, opinions?