One of the many reasons why I love living on the East coast (and YES, there is more than one reason to love Jersey, shuddup!) is our ability to experience all four seasons...sometimes all in the same week, even...so today, it's autumn.

Oh, hello there Autumn!

It's been a very stressful week/month/year/seriously, it's probably better if we just quit keeping score, because...DAYUM!!!!...it's hard out here with teenagers...the stress, she is NOT leaving...so, I kicked myself out of the house and took my two oldest girls with me, because they really should learn to plan on NOT being home...a little better...next time.

They've walked along this trail about a thousand times, it never gets old.

Now that my kids are older, they have this thing about walking alongside their mother.  Not because they're embarrassed about being seen walking with their mother (not that they've admitted to, out loud, anyway) it's just that I am not a very good walker, especially when I have my camera with me.

I don't mean to be a bother, but...SQUIRREL!!!!...somebody carved my initials into that tree...oh, and look at the texture of that bark...hey, that's a really cool place for mushrooms to grow, you think...oh AND hey...is that a Hobbit hole?!?

They're a lot faster and much more nimble than when they were little.

Everytime I looked up...I mean, faced-forward...the girls were further ahead than the last...SQUIRREL!!!

Teens are lot further away than they seem, trust me!

The thing about being out of shape is that you do not realize just how badly you are out of shape, until you are way far away from the car.

In this case, my borked-up back was getting on the sciatic nerve in my left leg's...ummmm...last nerve.

"You wait here, I'll go and get the car."

So, while my oldest went to get the car (pausing to acknowledge any residual angst about my having a kid old enough for a driver's license, SHUDDUP and DER!!!!) my middle girl and I...very...very...slooooooooowly...started our way back up the trail and I was feeling pretty low (not to mention, old-ish) when she grabbed my hand, gave it a squeeze and then tried her best to make me feel a little better.

"That's okay, I have to go pee, really bad, anyway!"

Aaaaand, you know what?!?  It worked!!!  Because I, on the other hand, had the good sense to go before we left.

[sound of crickets, chirping]

Hey, look...doesn't that look like a really fun roller coaster...for squirrels?!?

[SLAM!]

Good thing I have jury duty, tomorrow:  all that mostly sitting (for the next 2 days) will have me in tip-top shape for the cancer walk, this weekend.

Stupid borked-up back, dumbass cancer.

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