when the sun shines....

When the sun shines on a New England fall day, you take advantage of it. Last Thursday was bright and sunny and with Ana home from school, it was the perfect opportunity to head up to the pumpkin patch and corn maze.

Saturday was also a beautiful day, so we headed down to Middlebury to the Robert Frost interpretive trail. It is a trail about 2 miles from Frost's home and the woods were likely the inspiration for many of his poems. The trail is lined with some of his most famous poems, including my favorite, "Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening."

By the time we got there, it had clouded over and the woods were actually quite dark.  It was a lovely, "yellow wood" and we had a great time walking through the woods on cloudy afternoon. The leaves left on the tress and those covering the path shimmered so much they looked gold- and copper- plated. Many trees were bare, and in some places the woods almost looked desolate, but there was beauty in the desolation. It was a lovely, peaceful walk. It began to rain near the end, so we ended our little walk and headed back to the car.

(Ana running down the slope)

(Jack tripping down the path)

On the way home we stopped by a cute little candy shoppe near Middlebury.  It reminded me of the times when my cousin and I used to go to the local candy shoppe and by penny candies and then head home to gamble them in a rousing game of black jack in the bed of her dad's semi. (We were 12.)

They also had milk shakes, which are hard to come by in Ben & Jerry's home state. We bought the kids ice cream and candy sticks for dinner.

We headed home after the sun set, and tucked the kids into bed.

There is nothing quite like New England in the fall.

jammie jam

Nothin' like a morning dance party to get the day rolling.

I love that Jack thinks that Garth Brooks is "cool music" by the way.

Happy Wednesday!

little crazies

My kids are awesome.

Amidst the whining and the school struggles and the job battles and the crazy-toddler antics, sometimes I forget just how much I love my kids.

But this last week I've really felt it. Sure there are still crazy moments, but some how I managed to stay calm and see the good-ness in them all.

I love Ana's big ideas that she has. She has a hard time finishing her work at school, but by golly she'll work all afternoon building a violin out of popsicle sticks. She is passionate about everything (like her mama) and this can be frustrating and exciting at the same time.

I love how Jack is still talking about the Empire State Building and anything Space related and loves to draw and color and do projects.  He is my boy. He loves preschool and playing games and just hanging out with mom.

I also love this picture of Mickey Mouse and Clubhouse he drew last week.

And Katie. Oh, boy is she a little ball of fire. She is climbing on tables and railings and couches and everything else. She is talking a bit, but prefers to yell. She wants to be a big kid and she is super silly.  She is adorable and super irresistible.

She also loves to read this animal book that I scored for 50 cents at the library. (And she has Daddy wrapped around her finger.)

So even though they are crazy, and they make me crazy half the time, I love my little kids. They are so much fun and bring me so much happiness.

1:10.28

In September 2004 I ran a half marathon. That is a story in it's own right.

Over the last eight years, my enthusiasm for running hasn't waned, but my actually running totally has. I ran (or rather, jogged) a 5k here or there, but haven't really been "a runner" like I once was.

Last fall a bunch of my friends ran a 10k not far from here. I was barely two months postpartum and didn't think I could work my way up to 6 miles. But I said I would run it this year. (Again, it was more like jogging.)

I trained. But I have to admit, it is hard to figure out when to run when you have three kids. I ran twice a week, never for very long, and then one day I realized that the race was in 3 weeks and I could barely run 2.5 miles. I kicked it up a notch, but it seemed the world was against me. I would plan on running and then it would be blustering outside and I couldn't take Jack and Katie in the stroller. Or I would plan on switching off with a friend and Jack would wake up puking. I think the farthest I went was 4 miles.

Then it was race day. On Saturday morning, amid the rain and mist and wind, and beautiful fall foliage, me and three other friends ran a 10k. And I did it! I jogged the entire way. About mile 5 my knees started killing me. But I kept going and I actually finished in better time than I thought I would.

I still came in last. There might have been one walker behind me. I'm not sure. Either way, I finished.

Right after we got done it started raining really hard. We had a lot of fun and I can't wait to do it again.

Then I came home, took a shower, and sat down to watch General Conference and put my feet up. 

i am a femininist

In the hallway by Ana's old kindergarten classroom is the statement, "To live is to grow and change."  This year has been a "living" experience for me in many ways. I've been growing and changing in my views of so many things. What I once saw as black and white I now see so differently.

One of those topics is the role of women and how the world views womanhood. In my younger, more "black and white" days, I would say that a woman's place is in the home. That seeking work outside the home is short-sighted. Please don't strike me down for that view.  I still believe that the most important thing that we do as woman is be a mother. That has not changed. I still am committed to being a stay-at-home mom and to be proud of that. But I see now that there are many ways to mother successfully and that women have so many gifts and talents that can be shared with the world.

I find it interesting that so many women who receive the praise of the world are usually not praised for the things that are womanly. Instead they are praised for being rough and "making it in a man's world." I want to see more praise for femininity, instead of praise despite femininity. Women have natural gifts that can bring so much goodness to the world.  Women see beauty. Women look beyond themselves and serve others. Women nurture. Women are naturally spiritually in tune. Women see problems differently.

Woman have a desire to contribute meaningfully to their families. We don't have to churn butter and sew our own clothes and smoke our own meat or wash our laundry by hand. But we should be "anxiously engaged" in doing good things. For some that means teaching art classes to children or doing photography. (Both incredibly talented friends of mine.) For others that means working in an office. And still for others it means letting their kids be involved in ballet and music and soccer and whatever else. (This is an absolutely wonderful talk on this very subject.)

So let's start a new movement. A "femininist" movement. Not a movement where we burn bras or demand equal rights. That has been done. A movement where we celebrate strength in femininity. A movement that we look for ways in which women contribute in womanly ways to the betterment of society. A movement that finds joy and contentment in what we are as women. We are mothers. We are also nurses and teachers and CEOs and city planners and dental hygenists and writers and a million other good things. And we are all women.

tell me a story

I like life stories.

Sometimes when I go downtown and I see all the old buildings and I think of how old Vermont is, I want to know the stories that go along with those big houses.

My Poppy told great stories. Many were stories of faith that have added so much to my life.

My mom doesn't tell too many stories from her life, but every once in a while, one comes out. One in particular that I remember is the story of when Dad was writing his masters' thesis. He didn't really know how to type, but my mom had taken a typing class in school, so into the night he would hand write a page and give it to my mom to type. She was pregnant with her 4th child and she would type up each page, and then lay down to doze while he finished the next page.  That story is such a tribute to my mother: always quietly doing her duty.

Since I like stories so well I often think of my life as a collection of stories. I wonder what stories I will tell when I have been married 30 or 50 years.  I will probably tell the story about the run-down little house we rented in Rupert on the other side of the tracks, and how I had to turn off the heat to vacuum in the winter so I didn't trip the circuit.

***

I wonder if I will tell today's story.

The story of how despite the rain, we packed the kids, kicking and screaming (literally), into the car with a picnic dinner to go "leaf peeping."

We endured the whines and the "how much longer?"s and wondered at God's magnificent paintbrush. Though the clouds blocked our view of the mountains, the rain made the colors surrounding us much more vibrant, and I found myself saying, "I'm glad that I live in this beautiful world Heavenly Father created for me."

Then as the kids settled down and the sun began to set and we headed home, I felt perfectly at peace as we listened to hymns and the rain on the roof and passed by farms and magnificent red and orange trees.

I think as the years go by and we look back to this time in Vermont we will say, "remember that time..." and we will tell this story.

maine attraction

Maine has been calling us since we moved to the East. So we scheduled a weekend to go and headed to the coast! We had three goals: camping, lobster, and the beach. We went with our good friends, the Dahle family, who happen to be amazing photographers. Hence, I didn't pull our my camera because I felt like an imposter.  But Dave got a few shots on his phone, so that will have to suffice.

We got to our campsite after dark and during a thunderstorm. Cool thing: seeing the ocean light up with a flash of lightning while we were driving into the campground. Not-so-coo thing: setting up our tent in the rain and dark and then trying to get Ana to settle back down to sleep once we moved her in.

  We went to the LL Bean store the next day.  "Store" is an understatement. Museum is more like it. They refer to it as the LL Bean "campus." We also shopped at outlets and had a grand ol' time.

We then went to the coast. Freeport has a rocky coast, so it wasn't much for swimming, but the kids found ample things to do. They threw clam shells against the rocks, watched some clammer, and watched some osprey up in their nests.

 That night was a free outdoor concert at the LL Bean campus, and we thoroughly enjoyed listening to the bluegrass music of a couple of bands. Fun times!

  

The next morning was a beautiful day, so we hit up a lovely little lobster shack on a wharf, then headed to the beach.

 

Everything was great about this trip. It was a great cap to our summer, and we can't wait to go again.

evening

I meant to sit down and write about our trip to Maine that we took almost a month ago.

But then tonight I took Jack and Katie outside after dinner and I had one of those moments when time seems to stand still and it stops my in my tracks.

Jack was running around in his winter coat. It wasn't that cold, but he doesn't really have a jacket.  Seeing him bundled up brought both a sense of contentment about the cooling weather and the joy that comes with the upcoming seasons.

Katie followed Jack around like she was a big kid. She copied his every move, and Jack ate it up. He loves that little babe, as do we all.

Time marches on. Life is good.

irresistible

Do not be deceived by this adorable little face. This baby is trouble.


It must be because she knows she is so darn cute it is irresistible. Her trouble making antics just make me laugh, which, in baby language, means "keep doing what you're doing because it is adorable." Like yesterday when she kept moving my baby barricade so that little Zach could get to the stairs. Or last night when she just didn't want to go to sleep so she was up until 11:30.



She knows how to work it for the camera too. I pull it out and suddenly she flashes her best smile. Even when she is covered in applesauce and graham cracker mush.



She loves to make people smile and laugh at her. This includes giving zrbtts and then looking around to see if anyone laughs. It also includes giving loves and kisses and tickling others. She even says "ticka-ticka-ticka" when she does it. How can you resist that?


Dave can't resist her either. But can you blame him? He walks in the door and she does this:

"Dada!!!"

I think we are in trouble. And while we are on the subject, does anyone have any great ideas on how to wean a one year old when the only way I can get her to sleep is nursing (or riding in the car)?

making the rounds

Last Friday, Katie woke up sick. She threw up several times that morning. By the time I got Jack off to preschool I was prepared to sit and cuddle my little babe, but alas, she was feeling much better and didn't want to cuddle.

Yesterday Dave wasn't feeling well and we ended up going to bed super early.

This morning it hit Jack.

Hopefully it will stop with him. I haven't had to deal with too much barfing as a mother, and I prefer to keep it that way.