Last weekend we set out on an outdoor adventure. My husband jogged while the girls and I explored a section of the Banks Vernonia Trail we had never been to before. It had snowed the night before, and the elevation was high enough for snow to remain.

This part of the trail was up on a trestle, so high above the ground crossing it was an exercise in truly relaxing and burying my fear of heights. When you're on it, you can't really tell how high up you are because the sides of the trail are flanked by tallish walls. The girls were completely unafraid, dancing and skipping in the snow. Me on the other hand, I was hesitant.

On the other side we explored the strange patterns in the snow. We guessed that maybe falling plops of snow from the branches above left behind such strange patterns. The shapes marked in the snow reminded me of what you might see looking into a microscope.

On our trip back, I crossed calm and unafraid.