Friday, July 11, 2014

Explorers' Club


One of the many things I want to pass on to the girls is a love for exploring their world. I want them to see the beauty and intrigue among the mundane. 

So, we started a mini explorers club. Our first adventure is a nine-mile trail that winds through town. We have been exploring it as often as we can. The girls usually make it about 20-30 minutes and then we have to turn around. We found, at first, that we were only making it to about the same spot every time and when we tried to force them to go a bit more, we'd end up with crying kids who were begging to be carried. So, now we drive to the spot that we left off and walk a new part of the trail each time. 

The girls love it. And so do we. 










Thursday, July 10, 2014

Summer 2014: Part I


It was cool enough last night that I opened all the windows and doors. I didn't notice it at first, but after the girls went to bed and I was downstairs turning lights off and picking up toys, I felt it. 

Summer. 

A warm-cool breeze floated through the door with the sounds of crickets and the smell of grass. 

It immediately took me back to childhood and all those long hours spent outside soaking up every minute of summer. 

I sat down in my dark living room, closed my eyes and just took in that moment of serenity. 

It's obviously been summer for weeks, but in that moment last night, I actually felt it. When we were kids, we were lucky enough to have a stay-at-home mom, so our summers were always super relaxed. We woke up when we were done being tired, played outside for hours, and inside for hours, with only our imaginations fueling our playtime. We controlled our destiny back then (or at least it felt like we did). Summer meant freedom. 

I felt that freedom last night -- more in my memories than in real life, but it reminded me that sometimes we have to force life to slow down a little. 

We're going camping this weekend with my family and I'm planning on soaking up as much summer as I can.

A few pictures from our summer so far: