We Climb

We climb.  Did you know that?  It's been awhile since we've climbed on a regular basis (Kansas = no mountains = no climbing).  Last Saturday, the Mr. and I went climbing and it was SO much fun.  I had forgotten how alive I feel when I climb.  Obviously, I'm ALWAYS alive, but climbing ... climbing tests my strength, my problem solving abilities, it clears my mind, it's exhilarating.  

This post is about why we climb and where we started ...  

It started with me ... Some guy (don't ask me who, I don't remember) took me on a date and we climbed.  That's all it took, I was hooked ... 

After the Mr. and I met, we climbed with my roommates.  It was our favorite thing to do.  One element of climbing (possibly my favorite) is the fact that a person cannot do it alone.  Someone else MUST be there to belay (cease, stop) the rope to prevent the other from pummeling dangerously downward.  The belayer is also the supporter.  The Mr. is my favorite belayer.  Seriously, if another person belays me, I'm nervous and can think of nothing else than ascend and descend as quickly as possible, in case something happens.

After we married, we climbed 2-4 times a week.  We got pretty good and went on several adventures.

After B was born, we would hire a babysitter.  When B was 6 months old, we brought him with us.  At first, he would just sit in the hiking backpack.  At about 18 months, he started bouldering (climbing without a rope) ... he couldn't get high, but he had fun and we had fun encouraging him.

The Christmas before he turned 2, he got his own harness and helmet.  His shoes came a few months later.

The rest was history.  He still prefers to boulder, but he climbs well.

When we moved to Kansas, we discovered a cliff an hour away in Kansas City.  It isn't what we learned to climb on, but the rock is rock and it's fun ...

Now, even Little Miss can do it, sort of.

Last weekend, we climbed in a gym (we'll probably return, a lot).

Another element of climbing which we love is the opportunity to go with friends ...

The people are great and the view is beautiful.

Most of all, climbing brings our little family closer together.  Two people cannot climb without communicating and it's a blast to teach our Kiddies something that brought their parents closer together and continues to do so.  Climbing's fun and we can do it together.  That's why we climb.  We love our family and our family climbs.