Winter Solstice hike

The first day of Winter was earlier this week, and we've decided to make it an annual tradition to get outside and take a hike to celebrate (although, as we decided today, it would be much warmer if we celebrated the summer solstice instead).  I love that this is a new family tradition for us, one that is completely stress free, takes no real planning and doesn't involve any consumerism.  Unlike many other holiday traditions at this time of year!

This year, Ranger joins our family, so we took our hike on a dog-friendly trail at one of our local parks.  It was a chilly day, but it was really nice to get outside for a bit.  There was beautiful, bright green moss everywhere, providing splashes of color among all the brown leaves:

And lots of fungi:

It was great getting away from the busy holiday season, just for a little while, to slow down and enjoy a walk through the woods.  And of course, we all enjoyed hot chocolate when we got home.....an integral part of this new tradition of ours!

Happy Winter!
-Cheryl