lately

6/16/2015
"The very least you can do in your life is figure out what you hope for. And the most you can do is live inside that hope. Not admire it from a distance but live right in it, under it's roof." 
-Barbara Kingsolver



Life lately, while filled with some silly little troubles like double ear infections and a fridge full of antibiotics, or the lingering sting of getting back to reality after being gone, life lately has really been a tad dreamy. Dreamy, and, eventful. I suppose that's all I wish for in life!

Let's get right to it.












^ First and foremost, my love bug had a birthday! It's true, he's one. My baby is one. I know you're wondering how that happened and I suppose your guess is just as good as mine! Time does a number on me. I spend my days trying to keep up with it, time, and although sometimes she can really be a you-know-what, other times I feel that I am able to catch small glimpses of the beauty that is time passing. It's a contradictory affair all in all, but I myself am very contradictory a person and so sometimes, just sometimes, I believe that time and I have enough in common that one day we might become very good friends.

As a mama I will vouch for the first year being the best year. For me, for my kids, anyway. It truly is so perfect, that first year. I went into this whole baby number two thing with a pep talk to myself about NOT TAKING ANYTHING FOR GRANTED DANGITALL and I believe I've done a mighty fine job of doing just that this past year.

And anyway, his birthday! The smash cake! First birthdays are only for the smash cake, I think we all know that. Beck did himself a ridiculous job of smashing that cake. And the irony is, he didn't eat much of it! Maybe a swipe of frosting, and the one square of spongy vanilla cake that dad stuffed into his mouth. But he did enjoy smashing the crap right out of that cake. That's my boy!

If there were any such poetic words for how much love I have for this sweet ray of delicious, sugar coated sunshine that has made our lives better in every way, I would fill pages with the poetry. But my tongue is always tied most in moments as these, so words tend to fall short.

First birthdays, they are wondrous.







 ^A quick weekend camping trip, as is proving to be the norm for our summer. It is the summer of camping! We are raising wilderness enthusiasts in our home. And bacon lovers.


^ The other evening Jace was playing rather rambunctiously, as he often does, and when it came time to leave the park he was quite disgruntled about it. It took some exhausting convincing before he begrudgingly agreed to leave, running speedily in front of me towards the car, when he stopped dead in his tracks at this yellow flower and without missing a beat at all, he picked it and handed it to me, "Here you go mama!", before continuing his run to the car. You know those grinch moments when you feel your heart swell? It was that. Jace is so thoughtful and so sweet along with his rugged boyishness and I love him for it.

^ Fabulous farmers market find!

^ For date night Dan and I decided to take out the kayaks. Each time we kayak, when we are setting up the kayaks to put in the water, my heart is always racing a mile a minute, vividly aware that soon we will be in the hands of the fast paced river. I've never had so much respect for the river as I do since picking up the sport of kayaking. When you are in the river, you don't choose where you go, the river takes you where she wants you to go and you choose how to best maneuver through it. It is strong and forceful and demands respect. One second it is calm and enchanting, while the very next second it becomes angry and fierce. You have to learn to keep up with the changes and I can see that it's a very sensitive art, one that I hope to get much better at. Each time we've gone has been such a learning experience for me. The first trip I was sucked into some log filled debris that threatened to pull me under, so this time around Dan took me to the very spot of my scare and spent twenty minutes teaching me how to avoid that situation, and what to do if it happens again. Over and over again we practiced until I felt calm and comfortable. We also practiced back paddling, as I tend to over react when my kayak turns me backwards.

This trip we ended up running into a tree that had fallen across the river at a decidedly fierce section and that really shook me up. We made it out with one of our kayaks almost filled with water and one of our wrists sprained, but we made it out at all and again, learning experience! I hope to do better the next time I run into a fallen tree blocking my path. Kayaking is such a crazy fun adventure.

Am I boring you?

^ Relaxing summer mornings with a cup of joe on the front porch are my thing. So are aerial shots, but you know that by now.




^ Speaking of summer. Picnics! This classy picnic basket that we've had for years sure gets put to good use. I believe that everyone should have a woven picnic basket for summer picnics. Just the other day I ran past Dan the brilliant idea that we should let it travel the world with us! How many places can the picnic basket travel! Besides how bulky it is to pack, I'd say my idea is grand. But anyway, picnics. We love them! That's ibc rootbeer by the by, don't fret.





^ My little slugger is on a tball team! It's hilarious to watch, and kind of boring, and also, so very much mama proudness going on. Through no encouragement from any of us Jace has loved baseball since he could hold a bat.


^ I'll leave you with this, the sunrise on my trail run this morning. I'll take Stellar Sunrises for 200, Alex. That would be, Why do I get up at the crack of dawn to run? Correct!


Dreamy, I tell you.



And now, tomorrow is Wednesday! My third favorite day of the work week! Seize the day, my friends. We can do this.



xoxo

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