Laying low...

After a wonderful, long weekend full of apples and campfires and grandparents, we are home and settling into this wet and cool weather. Amelia has a yucky cough and I have a head cold so we just decided to lay low today.

I'm looking forward to taking Sammy to pre-school tomorrow and getting to spend the morning with just him (well, and 7 other little friends:). One thing I love about having the grandparents here is that I can spend some time with Sam and Amelia individually. What a treat!

Anyway, here are some more pictures of our trip. If I don't post them now, it will never happen! We drove into the country to find an apple orchard open and we hit the jackpot! The rancher whose orchard we picked from was so kind and let us feed the cows, pigs, horses, and buffalo with him!

Hope you all are well! Jen

P.S. Joel reminded me tonight that every time my mom or the Hunts visit, I get sick. Seriously, every time. We figure it is my body just hanging on until back up comes and then it gives in to a cold/mastitis (not kidding, came down with it the day after the Hunts got to SLC a couple of years ago)/ fever, etc. Weird. Frustrating. Yet, a blessing that I am not often sick without them here:)

I love to see how outdoor exploration builds confidence, balance, strength, bravery. I've seen it in my own life and in theirs. It's a beautiful thing, really.

Jen

What fun we had apple picking yesterday! We had a big scare at first because we went to the orchard we went to last year and there were ZERO apples on the trees. With two children asking every two minutes when we were going to pick apples, this was not a good discovery. Thankfully we found another orchard about 5 minutes away that had plenty. Sam set to work immediately filling his little basket with ones he found on the ground.

Amelia cracked us up because while we were all using ladders, apple picking poles, jumping to reach the apples, etc. we looked around to find her across the orchard calmly picking apples straight off of low, low branches right at her level. Haha. We moved over to that tree to continue picking what ended up being a VERY LARGE amount of apples:)

More pictures to come of rock climbing, campfires, hikes, etc. !! The grandparents get here this evening ("Where are grandma and grandpa? Is that their car? Are they coming soon? You said they were coming!" Next time we are going to make it a surprise, wowsers!) so I am sure we'll have reunion pictures as well. I am off to get some rest now. Everyone is asleep. Ahhhh. Jen

P.S. Can I just pause here for a second to say how incredibly thankful I am that Sammy is in such a different place this year than last? Last year he melted down almost the entire time at the orchard because he wanted to be on the ladder all the time and couldn't. This was a real refection of the challenging season he had from age 1 1/2 to 2 1/2. So much frustration, so many meltdowns. He has grown so much in this past year in his ability to adapt and to overcome disappointments, thank the Lord! Seriously, that is what was most on my mind yesterday morning. Thankfulness for this little boy and what a joy he is and how far we have come. Raising Your Spirited Child was an enormous resource to me during that year, and for years to come I'm sure. If you have a child that is more intense, sensitive, perceptive, persistent, energetic (Sammy is all but the last) this book may be an encouragement to you as well.

Crunch.

I love,love,love walking into the grocery store this time of year and seeing all of the shiny apples overflowing. Crunchy and red and so delicious.





This year, just as we did last, we are heading to Capitol Reef to hike and picnic and hopefully pick lots of apples from their orchards! This trip will be extra special because we are meeting Joel's parents there and then they'll be coming home with us for a long visit. The babes are beyond excited ,about apple picking and Grandpa and Grandma coming, and so are we! So, I'm off to finish packing. See you all back here in a few days (unless I find that we have internet access there and then maybe sooner:), Jen

P.S. How cute is Amelia in her "Portland shirt" that I found her at a consignment shop there? Also, Sam was obviously in silly face mode this morning:) His silly faces remind me so much of his daddy's and always make me giggle.

Sometimes life looks like this.

So, I have designated Wednesdays as our "Nature Club" morning. A morning of the week where we go for a nature walk or hike, make a seasonal craft, etc. This morning, even though we had a late night and an early morning, I was raring to go. "Let's go guys! Here we go! Let's take some books and go read at City Creek!" They, on the other hand, were in slow motion. After they finally made their way downstairs, it wasn't long before they were out in the back yard playing. Inwardly I was pouting, imaging us in the cool morning forest. I went outside to tell them to "come on" and then I paused when I saw this.

They were "cleaning the road" and had an elaborate system going. Sam had no pants on, Amelia had a collection of "cute" worms she was gathering...who am I to say that this relaxed play is less worthwhile than gathering materials for a nature mobile?
So, here we are. They are in the sandbox now, and I am catching up on e-mails and doing some housework. All is well, though I am sure that soon my sandy, wet children will be ready to come inside for a snack and ask to go to City Creek. It will be too close to nap time to go. I'll say "maybe this afternoon". Sometimes, on a larger scale, life looks like this. Plain and ordinary and not as "photogenic" as we imagine it will be. While I won't stop seeking nature and beauty, I do hope to learn to listen when Sam and Amelia are asking for the beauty of home and ordinary. Jen

P.S. Why the late night, you ask? We have small group here on Tuesdays and the kids all stayed up and watched the new Tinkerbell movie with friends. I cannot express how excited Amelia was about this! Ever since she got a hand me down bathing suit with tinkerbell on it she has been SO curious about her. I told her the story about Peter Pan but knew the movie, and even the book, would be way to scary for her at this point. Then I found out there were movies just about Tinkerbell. So, I thought about it but refrained since we haven't yet touched the highly marketed world of Disney (besides Mary Poppins, which doesn't have a million "things" in her image marketed towards children). She saw a picture of it on a Redbox stand the other night and was SO excited, that I decided not to resist any longer.

Aren't they all so cute? She was not disappointed and, once again, mama learned to let go a little bit. Not so much that she will be introduced to Disney Princesses any time soon:)

Solitude.

I began my trip by taking the train from the airport into Portland. Such a simple sentence, but it actually isn't so simple. I can get really anxious over these kind of things, especially without Joel there. I know that sounds silly to some, but I am going to be honest and this post and say that I have some social anxiety that often doesn't bode well when I'm in new situations. This time though, it really was fine. Great, in fact! It was good that I didn't need to be anywhere at a certain time, so I could just relax and not worry if I didn't figure everything out in a hurry or went wrong somewhere. Plus, everyone else from the airport heading to the train seemed to be in the same boat ("where do you buy the train tickets? Which button do we press? Is this the right train?"). So often the case that everyone around us is feeling the same way and yet we think we are all alone. Anyway (do you see how much self-analysis you would have to hear if I didn't have children to keep me busy?!), rode the train into town and then walked and walked around downtown. Caught the bus up a bit further towards my hotel. Felt a little anxious every time I passed a must see in Portland, " Oops, there goes Powells, oops there goes the Rose Garden, etc." I knew what I wanted though. So, I got off the bus and walked the remaining twenty something blocks to my hotel. It was glorious. Beautiful day, beautiful city.

Walked to my hotel, dropped my pack, grabbed an apple and headed off to my destination. The place I knew would calm my soul, though I had never been there and had never heard anyone talk about it as a destination spot. Just the name of it told me it was where I needed to spend my time of solitude. I walked and walked some more and then, there it was.

Ah, green and lush and just what I was craving. I sat and read and prayed and just was. Then I walked

, walked, walked back down to the little area of my hotel, found a cute little consignment shop that I couldn't resist, found a great little grocery co-op where I bought some snacks and soup and headed back to the hotel. I loved my day in Portland. It was just what i wanted to to be.

Elizabeth picked me up the next morning. What a joy to see her. I don't know that Elizabeth and I have ever had a surface conversation in our entire friendship. By the time I reached the conference I had already laughed, cried, and bared my soul!
To stand and worship with 900 other women was incredible. Our voices lifting up together was so beautiful I could have left right after singing and have been so encouraged! Funny thing is that though the conference was about simple living, it seems the lord had other things to say to me. I think He knew that my heart was already very on board the train of living simply, desiring order, etc. so He took the opportunity and encouraged me and convicted me in other areas that I wasn't even expecting. So, I was a bit disappointed during the conference until I felt my heart align with His and I had some "Aha' moments if you will about what I was really there for. Maybe I'll share more about this later. If you'd like to listen in on one of the sessions I heard, you can do it here.

Elizabeth and I headed to her house full of thoughts and things to chew on after the conference ended. We drove through beautiful Oregon countryside and then came to their new home and I was in awe! So peaceful. I told them as we were sitting out on their porch overlooking huge, rolling pastures and cows and tractors and fruit trees, that if I wasn't convinced our family was right where we are supposed to be, I may have started sobbing out of envy:) I truly am so thrilled for them and for their children to be in such an amazing place.



Then I came home and fell completely in love all over again with my little family:) I feel so thankful for my trip and my solitude and the way God fed into me while I was there. I am left hungering for more of Him in our life. More truth, more direction, more of an intentional path. I say that a trip that leaves you hungry for God is a trip well worth the taking! All for now, jen

Beauty all around.

So, my trip to Oregon was a big "success"! By that I mean that it was so much what I was hoping for. Time alone exploring Portland, time alone drinking in the greenness (and by that I literally mean the color green, not the compostable bag I was given at the children's consignment store I visited:) of the city, time worshipping and learning with 900 other women at the conference, and time with my friend Elizabeth and her sweet family. Time is my love language, and so to have that gift given to me was really big. Really big. I hope to write more about my time tomorrow and show you a few pictures, after I have had time to chew on it some more. For now, I wanted to show you some pictures of the beauty Joel and the babes were reveling in while I was gone. They went on their first overnight camping trip together and had such a blast. And yes, when we were reunited I declared them the cutest children in the universe and am just so thankful to all be together again:)








More soon, Jen

I'm off!

So, I'm on the plane headed for Portland for my first solo adventure in, oh, years and years. Yes, it's only three days, but considering how ready I am to see Sam and Amelia after three hours of them being in pre school, and how I love to have Joel with my as an adventure guide and companion, I'm sure three days will be plenty!

I kind of feel like, " hello self, it's been a long, long time." You mamas know what I mean, right? I love my mama self, more than i ever did my pre- mama self actually, and yet, well, the chance to step away and refresh and renew and think, it's a welcomed opportunity.

Joel sent me off with love, Amelia with words about missing me and wanting to go with me, and Sam with one of his best juicy smootches and warnings to " not get hurt by sharks, or bears, or mountain lions." :) How I love my little family.

So off I go, with just a back pack and heart ready for adventure and refreshment, and to see my dear friend Elizabeth.

Jen

I know a song about a beautiful whale...

I know it because I listened to it about 15 times on the way to and from the canyon today!:) "Baby Beluuuga, baby beluuuga", still rings in my head:) Sam adores that song, and Amelia sings it at the top of her lungs.
Anyway, we headed to the canyon for a picnic lunch to celebrate the first day of Fall! We wanted to collect acorns, but alas, we didn't find any. Guess we'll have to head to City Creek where we found some last Fall. Anyway, Sam spied some white shells, and acorns were all but forgotten as they scoured the mountainside for shells (and found lots--what does that mean? Why are they there?) They also found some beautiful leaves for our nature table. I bought some gourds at the store yesterday and Sammy had such a fun time decorating with all of these treasures today (He got in trouble for purposefully crunching one of Amelia's special leaves, and all the way to the time out stair he was wailing, "but I have to finish decoraaaaating!".


I have only gone up to the canyons by myself with the babes once or twice before, and I always feel so adventurous when I do! Usually Joel leads our outdoor adventures, and I am thankful for that because he gets us out much more than I would. However, short trips like the one today are really fun and I hope to do it much more often. I did get kind of panic-y at one point. I was letting them lead the way and they wanted to go up,up,up. We did for a while and then I started thinking, "What if something happens? We are out here all alone." They were not happy about turning around until I said, "Guys, mama is getting a little bit nervous because way up high is where we might see a mountain lion." I don't think they could have scurried down the mountain side any quicker than they did! :) We had a nice picnic and then left just as the dark clouds started to sprinkle down on us.







So, happy Fall to you all! Jen

P.S. Please remember that our festivity stand and seasonal book basket are the only "decorating" that I do for most seasons/holidays, so don't start thinking I am super on top of things:)