Copper breaks state park

On Saturday, I took the kids to the state park. We first tried a hiking trail, since it was still too chilly to swim. The kids didn't like it much.  Too boring, and hot. 

Abby loved the hike, until she suddenly got too tired to walk, plunked herself down, slapped her legs emphatically and said, " No, no, no".  It was pretty funny. She did that several times. I'd pick her up and carry her for a while, she'd want down to walk herself, and then repeat the demonstration. 

After that hot hike, the kids were ready to test the waters. Normal temp is around 55 right now, but we had a heat wave so it was about 75 at the time. With the sun shining, and the trees as a wind break, the hike was hotter than we preferred. But, here in the swimming area, there were close to no trees, and it was a very windy day, add that to no humidity (desert), it made for cold swimming. 

That didn't last long, and I was forced to make them peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, being careful to hold the slice of bread to keep it from flying away. 

Rob got off work early, so we headed back to get him, and when we returned, the Rangers took us to where they feed the Texas Longhorns. The kids had the opportunity to feed them, but didn't want to. Rob and I did, and after a while, Daniel and Mary ventured to try. It was hard to not get slobbered on. (The picture does not do justice to the massive size of these animals, and their horns)

Fishing is free at the state park, no liscense required, so I bought a kit from Walmart, to try it out. I think I touched a pole once, when I was a kid, but that being the extent of my experience, it took a while to put the thing together. I was not surprised that we didn't catch anything, but I attribute that to the relentless wind causing noisy waves on the lake. Isaac was sure excited to try. He was the most enthusiastic. 

We wound up the day by finding a campsite, in the trees for a wind break, and had a hot dog roast. While daddy got the fire going, they had a blast climbing trees, and sneaking through the forest to "spy" on the other campers. Sarah persuaded me to join the fun, but I had to call them all back when I noticed they were getting far, and I heard barking in the distance that I thought could be wolves. Shortly after dark, we headed back.