Original Post: June 10th, added on below.
Random days I write blog post in my head. Only to get all the kids to bed and realize there is no way I have the mental stamina to articulate what I had thought earlier in the day. But today I'm going to make the time. It's one of those ordinary days that feels so extraordinary in so many ways. I just nursed O to sleep while staring at his adorable baby legs, sweet baby cheeks and his precious lips and fat little baby hands. Meanwhile I could hear the older four yucking it up another bedroom with the occasional scream thrown in for good measure. And all I could think was how fucking grateful I am for these little treasures that I get to call mine. This morning J insisted on getting changed right after I had dressed her. She picked out another sundress gifted from her aunt and immediately started to twirl around and around. It took me back to my own childhood of loving this very specific red dress that rose every twirl without fail. At one point she looked at me and said "I'm a super girl". Yes she is. She kept me company while I organized the front room and made our hundredth pile of donations at the front door. The past two years we've purged ourselves of items that we should have rid ourselves of over the past ten years. It feels good. I knew when I found out I was pregnant with our fifth child that if there was ever a time to declutter it was then. And I'm so glad we started the movement because it has made the transition to five kids that much smoother.
I'm also so grateful for our three oldest boys that have become such thoughtful and considerate children. There not perfect. There is no such thing. But there acts of kindness they exhibit make me so proud. Their willingness to help with the younger two is such a blessing. The way they look out for each other brings me such comfort. I hope it continues through their teenage years and into adulthood. My siblings have been such allies in my life and have shaped me into the person I am today. I want that for my children. I think homeschooling has contributed to the loyalty & protectiveness they have for each other. Or maybe all siblings have it. Regardless, it makes me smile every time I listen to them interacting together and allowing their little sister to tag along. It won't be long and the littlest is going to be doing his best to keep up. Life with five has been more of a blessing than I could have ever imagined. With each addition to our family I understand more and more of how my folks ended up with eleven kids.
Colorado is awesome. Nater & I knew on during our annual road trips out here we wanted to call this state home. It took longer than anticipated but finally it became a reality. My first year out here was rough but it was worth it for all the joy 2015 has brought. We are in our groove and tis the season for thunderstorms, rainbows, hiking, cool nights with the windows open, greenery, camping and summer bliss.
Speaking of camping. One day I'll post pictures and try to document it better but the kids have already been on three camping trips for the year with at least three more in the books. We road tripped to Tucson, AZ to meet up with my folks and spend some time with my sister. I freaking LOVED Tucson. The scenery was spectacular and was not at all what I expected. I am looking forward to our next trip. After Tucson we headed west to visit family in California and camped on the coast for five nights. We woke in the morning and saw dolphins, sea lions and even a whale on our last morning! Watching the sunset in the evening was spectacular and I'm always grateful for time spent with family. We pit-stopped through Tucson again on the trip back and enjoyed some more time with my sister.
In April we headed up to the mountains in Lyons and camped on Nater's uncles 40 acres bordering national forest. It is one of our favorite places in Colorado and this time did not disappoint. While exploring the national forest the kids found an entire elk skeleton (scattered about) and wanted to bring it home with us. They climbed boulders, helped load wood, and ran free. I love it up there so much. I think it it as close to silence as you can get. We are heading up there again next month to cut wood and clear some acreage and I'm really looking forward to it.
Edited from here:
Trip. no 3 took us back to Indiana to see family and camp at Ludington State Park. Ludington was beautiful. My parents took my siblings and I camping along Lake Michigan coast annually as kids and even after leaving for college I still came home for the trips with my younger siblings. It's always nostalgic when I return.
My father-in-law was diagnosed with cancer (Mantle Cell Lymphoma) over a year ago so we've been trying to get back to see them more frequently. My in-laws live in an old farmhouse full of character that sits on 90 acres that has been in there family for a very long time (Nathan's mom lived in the house when she was little). It is always a relaxing and pleasant trip that includes the kids catching frogs in the pond, running all around the yard, chinese lanterns, a beer shed, lots of memories and laughter.
Clearly this blogs post is outdated because it's been a few months and camping trips later. So I'll continue with the trips I remember.
No.4 - Rocky Mountain National Park - Moraine Campground
My friend Deirdre suggested we came together at Moraine and I'm so thankful we did. We took a gorgeous hike, the kids played in a stream for hours near our campsites, I watched the sunset, drank wine around the fire with an inspiring friend, embraced chaos, took tons of pictures, visited Alluvial Fan, had a lovely picnic and made great memories. RMNP is such a gorgeous place with new views every turn, lots of "wows" and "kids look at that!" and "OH MY GOSH. We finally live in COLORADO. Yipppppeee".
The rest of June into July is a blur of moving houses, finishing up projects at the old house and getting it ready to become a rental.
No.5 - Glacier National Park - Family reunion for my siblings and my folks. It was a week of R & R. We rented cabins scattered on over 200 acres. No TV, no wifi (at least not in our cabin) and nothing but gorgeous views everywhere you looked. The week included slow mornings with lots of coffee, unforgettable hikes, black bears, kick ball, dodgeball (with a crazy set of rules), reading books, a dance party with the little kids, memories for my kids (with their cousins) and an incredibly scenic drive. I will definitely be going back there in the future!
Lastly we took a 3 week trip back to Indiana to spend time on the farm, participate in the annual Labor Day camping trip with my moms extended family and then back to my folks/in-laws for more visiting. That was one of the longest trips the kids and I had been on and I'm shocked by how smooth the whole thing went. I don't know what the future holds for my father in-law Tom but I know I don't want to miss any opportunity for my kids to create memories with him. On his good days it is pure jot to watch him with his grandchildren. He can make them laugh just like there dad does. His smile is infectious and his laugh contagious. I'm so thankful for his part in making Nathan the man he has become. The day before we leaved Tom was in such good spirits and his energy was high. I didn't want to leave. We will be heading back again in just over a month and I'm already looking forward to it. I'm so glad our lifestyle allows us to take these trips because if it weren't for homeschooling we wouldn't be able to do it. The kids had so much fun with the grandparents and extended family (Labor day). We are so fortunate to have so many people in our lives to love and be loved by in return.
One day I'll hopefully post some photos but at least there is some sort of documentation from the last year. Until next time...
Random days I write blog post in my head. Only to get all the kids to bed and realize there is no way I have the mental stamina to articulate what I had thought earlier in the day. But today I'm going to make the time. It's one of those ordinary days that feels so extraordinary in so many ways. I just nursed O to sleep while staring at his adorable baby legs, sweet baby cheeks and his precious lips and fat little baby hands. Meanwhile I could hear the older four yucking it up another bedroom with the occasional scream thrown in for good measure. And all I could think was how fucking grateful I am for these little treasures that I get to call mine. This morning J insisted on getting changed right after I had dressed her. She picked out another sundress gifted from her aunt and immediately started to twirl around and around. It took me back to my own childhood of loving this very specific red dress that rose every twirl without fail. At one point she looked at me and said "I'm a super girl". Yes she is. She kept me company while I organized the front room and made our hundredth pile of donations at the front door. The past two years we've purged ourselves of items that we should have rid ourselves of over the past ten years. It feels good. I knew when I found out I was pregnant with our fifth child that if there was ever a time to declutter it was then. And I'm so glad we started the movement because it has made the transition to five kids that much smoother.
I'm also so grateful for our three oldest boys that have become such thoughtful and considerate children. There not perfect. There is no such thing. But there acts of kindness they exhibit make me so proud. Their willingness to help with the younger two is such a blessing. The way they look out for each other brings me such comfort. I hope it continues through their teenage years and into adulthood. My siblings have been such allies in my life and have shaped me into the person I am today. I want that for my children. I think homeschooling has contributed to the loyalty & protectiveness they have for each other. Or maybe all siblings have it. Regardless, it makes me smile every time I listen to them interacting together and allowing their little sister to tag along. It won't be long and the littlest is going to be doing his best to keep up. Life with five has been more of a blessing than I could have ever imagined. With each addition to our family I understand more and more of how my folks ended up with eleven kids.
Colorado is awesome. Nater & I knew on during our annual road trips out here we wanted to call this state home. It took longer than anticipated but finally it became a reality. My first year out here was rough but it was worth it for all the joy 2015 has brought. We are in our groove and tis the season for thunderstorms, rainbows, hiking, cool nights with the windows open, greenery, camping and summer bliss.
Speaking of camping. One day I'll post pictures and try to document it better but the kids have already been on three camping trips for the year with at least three more in the books. We road tripped to Tucson, AZ to meet up with my folks and spend some time with my sister. I freaking LOVED Tucson. The scenery was spectacular and was not at all what I expected. I am looking forward to our next trip. After Tucson we headed west to visit family in California and camped on the coast for five nights. We woke in the morning and saw dolphins, sea lions and even a whale on our last morning! Watching the sunset in the evening was spectacular and I'm always grateful for time spent with family. We pit-stopped through Tucson again on the trip back and enjoyed some more time with my sister.
In April we headed up to the mountains in Lyons and camped on Nater's uncles 40 acres bordering national forest. It is one of our favorite places in Colorado and this time did not disappoint. While exploring the national forest the kids found an entire elk skeleton (scattered about) and wanted to bring it home with us. They climbed boulders, helped load wood, and ran free. I love it up there so much. I think it it as close to silence as you can get. We are heading up there again next month to cut wood and clear some acreage and I'm really looking forward to it.
Edited from here:
Trip. no 3 took us back to Indiana to see family and camp at Ludington State Park. Ludington was beautiful. My parents took my siblings and I camping along Lake Michigan coast annually as kids and even after leaving for college I still came home for the trips with my younger siblings. It's always nostalgic when I return.
My father-in-law was diagnosed with cancer (Mantle Cell Lymphoma) over a year ago so we've been trying to get back to see them more frequently. My in-laws live in an old farmhouse full of character that sits on 90 acres that has been in there family for a very long time (Nathan's mom lived in the house when she was little). It is always a relaxing and pleasant trip that includes the kids catching frogs in the pond, running all around the yard, chinese lanterns, a beer shed, lots of memories and laughter.
Clearly this blogs post is outdated because it's been a few months and camping trips later. So I'll continue with the trips I remember.
No.4 - Rocky Mountain National Park - Moraine Campground
My friend Deirdre suggested we came together at Moraine and I'm so thankful we did. We took a gorgeous hike, the kids played in a stream for hours near our campsites, I watched the sunset, drank wine around the fire with an inspiring friend, embraced chaos, took tons of pictures, visited Alluvial Fan, had a lovely picnic and made great memories. RMNP is such a gorgeous place with new views every turn, lots of "wows" and "kids look at that!" and "OH MY GOSH. We finally live in COLORADO. Yipppppeee".
The rest of June into July is a blur of moving houses, finishing up projects at the old house and getting it ready to become a rental.
No.5 - Glacier National Park - Family reunion for my siblings and my folks. It was a week of R & R. We rented cabins scattered on over 200 acres. No TV, no wifi (at least not in our cabin) and nothing but gorgeous views everywhere you looked. The week included slow mornings with lots of coffee, unforgettable hikes, black bears, kick ball, dodgeball (with a crazy set of rules), reading books, a dance party with the little kids, memories for my kids (with their cousins) and an incredibly scenic drive. I will definitely be going back there in the future!
Lastly we took a 3 week trip back to Indiana to spend time on the farm, participate in the annual Labor Day camping trip with my moms extended family and then back to my folks/in-laws for more visiting. That was one of the longest trips the kids and I had been on and I'm shocked by how smooth the whole thing went. I don't know what the future holds for my father in-law Tom but I know I don't want to miss any opportunity for my kids to create memories with him. On his good days it is pure jot to watch him with his grandchildren. He can make them laugh just like there dad does. His smile is infectious and his laugh contagious. I'm so thankful for his part in making Nathan the man he has become. The day before we leaved Tom was in such good spirits and his energy was high. I didn't want to leave. We will be heading back again in just over a month and I'm already looking forward to it. I'm so glad our lifestyle allows us to take these trips because if it weren't for homeschooling we wouldn't be able to do it. The kids had so much fun with the grandparents and extended family (Labor day). We are so fortunate to have so many people in our lives to love and be loved by in return.
One day I'll hopefully post some photos but at least there is some sort of documentation from the last year. Until next time...
Miss O's little face!
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