Walk on the Wild Side

As loyals readers (and anyone who has ever met him) are aware, #MaxLoco is a bundle of energy. He only has one setting - full speed. His Hallowe'en costume is already in the works. Luckily he's tough too. When he crashes, at top speed, there will be tears, but not for long, and more often than not, he's back at it before you can say "band-aid".

It probably shouldn't, but it still surprises me. Tonight we were having a blast as we kicked the soccer ball on the back drive. Then boom! I'm not sure how, but his feet just disappeared from under him and there was his face bouncing off the asphalt.

Delayed tears. Never a good sign.

And then there was the blood. I scooped him up and rushed inside. I wanted to get him to the bathroom to get it cleaned up, but I was also secretly hoping his mom would do the more thourough examination. I'm usually pretty good in a pinch, but my fear was teeth through the lip. Don't think I'd be concsious for long after seeing that. I once thought about med school. Ya, that wasn't happening.

Thankfully, it was just a split lip, but reinforced the painful reminder that as a parent I always need to be ready. This can be challenge, particularly at the cottage. Slick rocks, hidden tree roots, uneven surfaces, short sight lines. Max loves it. My role in keeping him safe, not so much. Last year, much Max Patrol was performed in flip flops. I am well aquainted with large splinters, torn toenails and cut feet (the ones on the bottom are the worst!).

This year, thanks to the good folks at Mark's, I had some shiny new Columbia Firecamp Mesh Trail shoes to try out. I cound that I can slip these bad boys on in a heartbeat as Max makes a break for it. They're also actually pretty darn comfortable, just a comfy on the trail, in the boat, or on the dock. While not the most stylish kicks (they're no Jordans), they get the job done. It just reminds me that living in Canada with the climate and the stuff we like to get into, you need more than a couple pairs of shoes. You only get one set of feet.

Come back on Thursday as we'll be giving away $100 gift card to get into your own set of kicks at Mark's.

#ForAllWalks