You will find more in woods than in books.  Trees and stones will teach you that which you can never learn from the masters.      

-St. Bernard

So what did we find in the woods?

Good strong walking sticks – for leaning into, marching parade style, and drawing in the dirt.

Ferns.

Not just any run of the mill, standard issue fern.  Rather, some of those bronzed fronds were taller than the children. 

Signs.   And every one of them read and interpreted by Tess, as best her 5 yo self could manage.  Thus we learned from the "Bird Hide 400yd" sign that there were 400 birds hiding in the yard.  She wasn't sure why. 

She also found some directional signage such as, "d-ON-t climm on the logs! I mean…wait a second…..

CLIMB! CLIMB!

D-OHN'T CLIMB!"

I wasn't feelin' log climbing anyway so we were good.

Abbie found lots of things to pick up and look at and toss about.  Her mommy did too.  So, we had a tendency to fall behind.  Pretty far.  We were following orange trail  markers which helped, but navigation is not my strong suit as anyone who has driven with me can attest.  We came round a bend sort of discouraged she and I.  We really wanted to see those Dartmoor ponies.  

"The ponies are playing hide and seek with us, Mommy.  And they are winning."  I was tending to agree with her but was more concerned that the rest of the family was not to be found and I was musing aloud WHAT would possess them to have gone on so far ahead.  I was so caught up with our silly dilly dallying fun I hadn't noticed they had gotten away from us.  It wasn't like them.

When BOO!  Out they popped.  BEHIND us. 

They were pretty pleased with themselves.  "We heard you all like, 'I can't believe they left and I am not sure which turn…and…'"  

Geesh. 

So we found awesome fun.   And in the end we won the other game of hide and seek too. 

The ponies that is.  Those 400 hiding birds?  Not so much. ; )