another adventure

Remember this trip? And this trip in '06? Well, it is time for our annual "camping" trip with our friends from across the mountains. And this time, we're doing something a little bit different but we'll still be together--which is the idea:) We're looking forward to maybe spending more time talking and less time chasing after kiddos. Hmmm...I'm not sure if that is possible, but I'm sure we'll have fun! Be back with pictures soon! I guess I better get that camera battery charged...

first in 6 months!

We recently returned home after another wonderful vacation with family--this time to Glacier National Park with my side of the family. Now, a few of us are sick. Can't tell you how many episodes of Backyardigans we've had on today:) I secretly love that show....but after today, that may change! I didn't even feel a bit guilty about excessive TV today. My super outdoorsy boy rejected the idea of walking to the park. Now, that is SICK!

I'll put together a little slide show of our trip later....after I swipe a few from other family members:) But I love this picture of Kelsey and me after our "strenuous" hike! It is the first one of the two of us taken in six months! Yes, we were reunited with our little sis and we couldn't be happier!

lazy days of summer?

Whatever happened to the lazy days of summer? I think we left them in the years before we had kids! We have been so busy and I am tired, people! I am ready for Fall to come...not because I'm tired of the beautiful weather, but because I'm ready to stay home more and take it easy. I have had one full weekend home since the beginning of July and we are going to be away again this coming weekend. Now, I want to be clear--we've had an amazing summer and I wouldn't do anything different. We've enjoyed all of the time we've spent with family and friends, but I'm ready to spend some time at home with our little family of four. I'm getting a bit weary of packing and unpacking, never having a clean house, tired kiddos...and parents!

I think I wrote a post about this feeling last August. I really love summer, but my very favorite time of the year is Fall around here. It is so beautiful and still warm during the day, but really cools down at night--so cozy! I love watching the kids around the neighborhood come back to the school near us. We enjoy taking family trips up north to pick berries, apples, and pumpkins. I love how life settles down into a predictable rhythm after the exciting days of summer. The colors, the scents the food, the feelings of it all...so great!

But, I need to be patient. We still have a lot of good summer left here. So I'm going to try to keep my head in August...full of hot weather, beach days, picnics, trips, sunscreen...the works! It really is so fun and our next season will come soon enough.

We spent another weekend at the lake and had so much fun...again! We loved spending more time with our family! The above picture was another attempt at a family photo. Griffin is always staring in the wrong direction...he he:)

wake up call on the water...

I'm typically a total water sports wimp, but we brought my sister and her boyfriend out to the lake this past Saturday and decided I'd better try something. Kelsey and I thought tubing sounded pretty safe. And it turned out to be really fun, even though I was yelling at Joel the entire time to stop the boat! Kelsey and I were sharing the tube and it was so hard to hold on. Like I said, I'm a total wimp when it comes to this stuff.

Now, there is something about having babies that has made me more comfortable with my body. I figure if my body can carry a child, it deserves some grace here and there! The baby weight comes off pretty easy for me, so after two children I was feeling okay about myself. Until Sunday rolled around. I could barely get out of bed the morning after that 10 minute stint on the tube. I'm serious....I felt SO OLD! Pathetic. If I can't hold my own weight on an inner tube for 10 minutes without feeling like I've been run over by a truck...this is a serious problem for me! I exercise, but I do nothing in the area of toning and strength training. This was my own personal wake up call to GET INTO SHAPE! I don't need to be Superwoman, but I need to be stronger...and quick! Now...how should I go about that? ;)

In other news, we were able to spend time with Kelsey's boyfriend on Saturday. I'm not sure how comfortable she feels about me talking about their relationship at this point, but I will say that I like him...and I like to think I'm a good judge of character! He treats her well and it is clear he cares for her a whole bunch. But most of all, I like him because he brings out good things in Kelsey and she is herself around him. This is so important. Maybe someday I will post pictures of the two of them. We shall see:)

Happy Camper

Some might call me high needs, up-tight, control freak, prissy. I can't function without a shower in the morning. I eat the same exact things for breakfast and lunch...every day. I drink filtered water and good coffee. I hate rodents and filthiness. I'm afraid of many animals, especially bats at night. I bathe my babies everyday because I like them to smell good. I really, really like the microwave and refrigerator...convenience at my fingertips. I don't like to be too cold...or too hot. I LOVE a clean bathroom. Oh, and so many more. You get the picture...

So why in the heck do I like camping? If I have all of these lovely things at home, why do I spend days and days packing up and preparing to go sleep outdoors for four nights? Camping is such a weird thing. And, of all people, I should not like it...but I LOVE CAMPING! For some odd reason, when I'm out camping it doesn't matter much if my feet are black with dirt or I drink sludge in place of coffee. I actually like cooking on a gas stove and if I close my eyes in the campground shower, I'm even okay in there! Something about choosing to live an altered life for a few days makes many of the things I'm usually concerned about acceptable and actually enjoyable. Hmmm....makes me think a little about how my attitude and choices affect how I experience life in so many other areas. Anyway, I love so many things about camping, but mostly I love that we choose to slow down and enjoy the simplicity of life together. I think that is what is so special about the experience--strip away convenience and you get a more organic environment for developing relationships with family and friends.

We recently spent four nights camping with our good friends from our old home, Phil and Aleah (and their four giggling monkeys). It doesn't seem possible that it has been an entire year since we've seen them. I think that is when you know you have good friends...when you can pick up right where you left off. No awkwardness, no formalities. Just easy and fun. And it was relaxing...as relaxing as it can get with six young children! Thanks Phil and Aleah--we look forward to many more years with you on our annual camping trip!

Oh, and thank you also for the extra pictures of the trip...filled in my gaps in my slide show!

ready or not...

Look what Parker decided to put on this morning! He is really into taking on and off his clothes and I guess he got a bit confused today --we don't have water near us and his feet definitely aren't the size of his Daddy's!

Or maybe, just maybe... he's just brilliant and he's getting ready for our next trip. Yep, we're heading off on another summer trip this weekend, this time camping with our friends. I'm not sure I really thought about the fact that I'd be unpacking from our lake trip and packing for our camping trip at the same time. We had so much fun last year and I think this time it is going to be even better! Looks like Parker is all set to go...can't wait!

vacation withdrawl...

We're back home from our wonderful week at the lake with our family! I'm officially coming off of my sugar high from eating way too many cookies. Right when I walked in the door I started frantically looking for my chocolate and quickly realized that I'm not on vacation anymore! If I ate like that all of the time....oh my:) And I don't even want to know how many Dorrito's Parker ate over the course of the week. We shall see what they do to his digestive system very soon! Seriously though, it was such a nice week with family. We were able to relax a bit while our family graciously watched our boys so often! Sometimes it was a bit crazy with all 25+ of us there, but it really was a fantastic year. Oh, and it was HOT! Nothing like a good swim in chilly water to fix that!