A Walk in the Woods

We arrived to our first trail by way of the US Forest Service Road late Friday evening- a little bit too late to hike the two miles (we (I) had miscalculated) that led us to the actual campsite (clearing in the grass) on the Appalachian Trail...

So, we made do. As the last bits of daylight faded around us, we acted quickly and found an area off the trail that was only slightly sloped...needless to say, I spent most of the night sliding to the bottom of the tent in my sleeping bag...

Despite the awkward night's sleep, we still awoke on Saturday morning feeling excited. We boiled some water for tea, ate some granola and blueberries, loaded up our backs with our belongings and set off for a full day of hiking the Appalachian Trail.




It was Awesome.

We camped again on Saturday night and hiked back out on Sunday, feeling reinvigorated, more connected to one another, appreciative of our time spent there, a bit sore and ready to face the kids and the world waiting for us at home. I only wish we could have brought along our camera...


I did, however, manage to pick up some wild flowers for the Princess at home; a magic forest sword (wooden stick) for the pirate at home; and of course small rocks for my collection in the garden...not too shabby.

A Camping We Will Go!

Not a bad place to spend the weekend, is it?

Pete and I are headed off on our second weekend alone in the four years since having Nate and Jules! We are going backpacking on the Appalachian Trail through parts of the Natahala Forest in NC. I feel like a kid again planning a cool camping trip with my best friend. Miles and miles of trail, and just the two of us. Lots of quiet, sprinkled with conversation and sharing individual thoughts, and a whole weekend of memories...with just the two of us.

I'll see you at the start of next week!

Back In The Cooking Game

Now that Pete is back home again, after being gone for what feels like years, (over-exaggeration) I am having to meal plan and actually spend time cooking hearty family meals again! It's great, really, I love to cook, but at the same time I also feel a bit lost (it's been too long since I've spent more than 15 minutes preparing dinner, and no, I'm not bragging about this).



So, I'll admit, I'm having a hard time getting back into the game. That, along with the fact that my children are still super fussy eaters, presents some challenges for me.



A few months ago I discovered this great foodie blog, 1 Family. Friendly. Food, it's chock full of fantastic solutions to everyday cooking- for, and with your family. And for me, the best part is that after a few visits to the site, like finding this post on weekly menu planning, I am starting to feel back on track!



Go check it out- I promise you won't be disappointed!

Water + Slides + Pool = Awesome 4th Birthday

Happy 4th Birthday Nate!!!!

We spent today (Nate's birthday) at a nearby water park with some friends. Pete was able to take the day off of work and come along with us too. We had a great time playing in kiddie pool, splashing in the splash park, gliding down the lazy river on inner tubes and sliding down the water slides. With the exception of a few red spots on our bodies due to my splotchy sunscreen application (onto two children who could hardly stay still for 10 seconds!) all had an awesome time.

Now we are home, we have that lazy-after-being-in-the-sun-all-day feeling, and we're looking forward to an evening of chicken enchiladas and ice cream sundaes on the deck.

Happy Birthday to my first born baby, I love you!

Early Rising

I woke up early this morning. Pete and I planned it all out last night- we got the kids to bed at a decent hour, relaxed a bit ourselves and then off to bed I went, aiming to get at least 8 hours before a 6 am rise. I planned to go for an early morning run and then work on my thesis.

What I didn't plan on was having trouble falling asleep in the first place and having it take me at least two hours before I was finally able to drift off, or waking at 2 am to the sound of little footsteps in our room, or the same sound and the appearance of the same sweet face (Jules) moments before my alarm was set to ring...

Never the less, I woke, I stretched and I rose. Juliana and I headed downstairs for a fresh cup of coffee, a new sippy cup of cold milk and cereal with blueberries. I didn't get my run in and my thesis still waits upstairs, untouched as of this morning. Maybe tomorrow will be different...All I can do is keep trying, right?!

Today's Memories:

-Snuggling in the rocker with Nate and then playing tag outside with him while Juliana took a nap.

-Nate asking me what I wanted to do today!

-Juliana and her friend Isabella holding hands and dancing around the living room.

Arrghhh...It's A Pirate Birthday Party!

As of Sunday evening our little family was officially back to some sort of normalcy. Pete arrived home Friday afternoon after being away for business for months- literally. We spent the weekend celebrating Nate's 4th birthday along with visiting family and friends. It was a wonderful weekend full of smiles, laughs, sweets, good conversation, great gifts for the birthday boy, sword fights, (pretend!) yoga class (thanks Kara!) and much more.

On Sunday evening after our weekend visitors parted ways and all the party dust had settled, Pete and I made a huge effort to get Nate and Jules into the bath early and to sleep in their beds by 8 pm. We sat at the kitchen table alone (wow! it's been so long!) and enjoyed fresh, homemade pasta and sauce, salad and bread. We talked about our upcoming weekend away, about Nate's party, and about us. It was great to have him home, and feel the comfort of a connection we haven't been able to enjoy in a long time with his being gone so much.

Krista and I worked hard on Friday to plan the details of the pirate themed birthday party (thanks to one of my more unfavorable characteristics of being a slight procrastinator). We decorated the pirate ship cake too- and now after three years of her helping me decorate birthday cakes, she is officially my cake-maker partner in crime. On Saturday afternoon the party began and after guests arrived, we kicked things off by reading the story, Talk Like A Pirate to the kids. After the story, they all had a chance to test their own "pirate talking" skills. Then they played a "Hook the Treasure" game, where they used plastic cups with "hooks" coming out of the end (pipe cleaners in the shape of a hook) to pick up pretzels out of a bowl. They all received gold chocolate coins and toy compasses for playing the games.

And of course, no pirate themed birthday party would be complete without a treasure hunt. We took photos of random objects in the backyard (the hammock, the bird feeder, soccer net, etc...) and printed out the photos to use as clues for the mostly pre-reading kids. The last clue led them to the fort at the top of the swing set, where we had hidden a treasure chest shaped pinata inside of a Rubbermaid container with a sign that said, "Pirate Loot!" They LOVED it!!

They ran around the yard working great as a team and found all of the clues.

We tied the pinata to the swing set and had them each wear two eye patches instead of a blindfold to swing at it!

Cake, ice cream, and gifts followed. Overall, it was a great success!

Dating Again...

Well, after all of these years, I am officially back on the dating scene!

Okay, I'm not really dating, just making new friends and making time to cultivate those relationships...without the kids tugging at my skirt or asking me a question while I'm in mid sentence.

Last night, my friend Gwen, from More Lima Beans! came over after hours (AKA: the kids were in bed) for some tapas (yummy olives, garlic spread, sourdough bread, dark chocolate and cheese and crackers) and good conversation. We sat on our screened in porch, lit candles and listened to the rain storm outside while sipping on cranberry vodka drinks. It was so much fun! We talked about creativity, spirituality, faith and religion, relationships, friendship, our kids, philanthropy, and much more. Four hours later, we couldn't believe how late it had gotten and I couldn't believe how easy it was to just keep sitting there talking.

It made me realize just how long it had been since I had actively made an effort to cultivate a friendship like this outside of play dates with other moms.

How great to be back on the (mama friends) dating scene!