Fireside Lunch

There have been so many things that have changed for our family since my last blogpost in April. We moved, the kids changed schools, I got a little part time job, and we've tried to make time and room for all the emotions that have come with the changes.

However, we are still here and still just the same as we have been. With a new camera lens (to replace the one that broke), I'm taking pictures of the kids doing the cutest things ever and thinking about them after they go to bed. 

With those things said, I would love to say that I can get back into this space and do what every mom wants to: show pictures and talk about my kids. Something about this little slowing down and posting about being a mom is really fun for me. Here's to possibly more blogging...!

Getting Dressed For Easter

I am sometimes paralyzed and always overwhelmed when it comes to dressing up. Halloween, fancy events, etc is all too much for me. I think the root of the problem comes from living on a budget-I don't want to use all our clothes budget getting the right outfit for an event.



Sometimes the grandmothers really come through though! This year my mom bought matching shirts for the littles and almost-matching for Burl.

 

What was adorable was that no one was as excited to match as Burl was. He felt so proud to match his younger brothers, a feeling that most nine-year-olds just don't have. Fern was in there too, wearing her blue, and adoring her babies as the second mom of the house. 

This was our first Easter to make it to church on time for a parking spot and a seat in the sanctuary, so we celebrated by bringing the littles in for the music. I usually leave my phone at home when we go to church, but today I had it with me and was able to take a picture right before the service started. 

Easter is not at all about the clothes. At all. This is not a spiritual post. This is just a post about getting "fancy" dressed and loving the smiles my kids had. 

Cloudland Canyon

I'm back to blogging! Yippee. My main camera lens broke, which put a damper in my picture making abilities. Our solution was to upgrade my phone first, then save for the lens. I've finally gotten into the groove of getting them on the blog. So...here I go.



We are finally finding our hiking feet as a family of six. Lark and Ridge were so young yet so big, that we couldn't find many hikes where we could carry them both or have them walk. Now, we've got Lark in the carrier on John's back and Ridge is totally capable of walking! While these are minor details to some, they make or break our ability to hit the trail.



We headed up to Clouldland Canyon. First, we hiked the one mile loop where there are several remote primitive camping spots. Burl and I are itching to try backpacking, so we are doing it on our own speed: slowly.



Hiking with Burl is a different experience now. We don't see him much. He runs ahead of us then we catch up with him only to find that he has his knife out and is doing some nine-year-old boy thing. We love it.



We found a couple of creeks and they truly are my favorite outdoor activity. I never met a creek that I didn't love. 

After that exploratory hike, we headed over to the east rim of the canyon for the epic views and the picnic spots. 

Right now we still keep the food simple and stick to the basics. 

Once we finished dinner, we climbed down part of the canyon to a beautiful waterfall with the bluest pool at the bottom. Somewhere deep in my childhood memory, I remember hiking to this waterfall when I was very young and with both parents. I asked my mom, and she confirmed that we came here quite often before my parents divorced, sometimes with other families. This matches with my fragmented memory. 

One of the highlights of our time hanging out here was watching Burl. He ran around the edge and back five times, getting closer and closer to the base of the falls. With a lot of cheering on from me, he eventually stood under the freezing water as it hit his back. He was so charged up by this and said that it was one of the coolest things he's ever done. Gosh, he's fun. 

We set up the hammock, poked in the water, helped the babies and took a picture or two. Wink, wink. 

It was another great time outside. Endurance is increasing in all of us with each hike. It's pretty easy with children that enjoy it and incredible views like these!

Self Care Laughter

There is so much buzz and debate around self care these days. It's something that I think about as well! What works and what doesn't work for me is something that I wonder. For a long time, I used to think that self care for me was a break from the kids to do something on my own or with friends. While those are great things, it didn't always do it for me. It put me in a posture of always waiting to get away from my kids so I could relax, only to feel frustrated when I'm with them and never totally myself when I got back from my break.

Some of my breaks include: out to eat with friends, coffee shop mornings by myself, exercising (oldie but goodie), having friends over after bedtime for a bonfire, etc. Those are all good and I still do them occasionally. However, I've recently learned that actually playing with my children is some of my favorite self care! 

It was a nice day when they kids were off of school recently, so we went to the playground for fun and a picnic. We ate, they did their thing, I watched all the things that they wanted me to see, then I got in on the fun. 

I ran, chased, tickled, helped, and did a lot of laughing. That's happening more often, and I've so enjoyed getting involved and laughing with them. Being goofy with them brings me so much joy. In my search for feeling good in life, giving myself over to my role as mother has filled me so much. 

These are my children that I adore and they have truly been my best self care.