I have always loved nature. When I was three years old I went with my parents on a vacation to Robert H. Treman State Park. On the hikes that we took there, my dad would give M&M's to me at intervals along the way as incentive for me to keep going. Our favorite time to go hiking was right after a big downpour when all of the animals come out of their flooded homes.
We would count the salamanders that we saw on the trail until we got to one hundred, examine their spots, and name them. We'd also catch some salamanders and toads, put them in a terrarium with leaves and water, and carry them back to show my mother if she did not c