Moss Rock Preserve

We are so fortunate here in Birmingham to have a lot of different ways to enjoy the great outdoors. One of our favorites is Moss Rock Preserve (http://www.hooveral.org/Default.asp?ID=485), a 250-acre nature preserve that is less than 10 minutes from our house. We can park and within a few feet of our car, be on a level hiking trail that even 15-month-old Ethan can handle without being carried. We've been here several times, and haven't even explored half of what is available. What we have seen includes two bridges, a cluster of small caves, a waterfall, and a wide variety of plant life. Both boys love being outside, and Caleb labels himself "Hiking Boy" and takes his role as hike leader very seriously. He looks for snakes and warns us about falling into the stream to the side of the trail. He also loves running over the bridges and pretending there is a troll underneath (from The Three Billy Goats Gruff). Marcus and I just love being outside when it is in the 70's (like it was this morning). After hiking on Saturday morning, the four of us stopped at Toys R Us to return something. Marcus wanted to walk the aisles for a little while, so we did. The contrast between the over-stimulating walls of plastic and paint in Toys R Us and the peaceful conglomerate of natural greens and browns in the woods reinforced in me how important it is to be outside as a family as much as possible. The toy store feeds the lust for more, while nature reminds us that we don't really even need all the stuff that we have.