Sweet Corn Festival

a day to jump out of bed and herd the kids straight to the car. the first fall fest of the year and its life or death! sweet corn dunked in butter and salt and pepper to taste, strawberry ice cream for the screamin demon and a forever wished for sprite from the boy who had none.
another fall season barging in on us, handing us many opportunities to get out and keep those traditions alive.
me and nev got hung up in the halloween booth in awe over the beauty (and the prices)! and the realization that our favorite season is smacking us right in the face..swoon
i entered bum in a corn shucking contest and he got right up with the kids ready to compete for whatever corn shucking was. After one head of corn, he left the line insisting on a small break. lol, who's the unschooler here! we opted out and moved on to bigger and better things, like jumping on a hayride and watching the old bearded men cook over the fire, and lusting over fresh homemade sour dough bread that we were $2 short of buying. its all good though, we left happy with ice scream splattered shirts and corn in our teeth, win!
here's to a perfect sunday afternoon and being thankful to live in a place where there are seasons!

 “But then fall comes, kicking summer out on its treacherous ass as it always does one day sometime after the midpoint of September, it stays awhile like an old friend that you have missed. It settles in the way an old friend will settle into your favorite chair and take out his pipe and light it and then fill the afternoon with stories of places he has been and things he has done since last he saw you.” 

Family Camping

this was our first time camping as a family. the kids scattered as soon as we got there and found other earthlings to harass as mama got stuck unloading the car and putting up the tent, (figures)! five other families we didn't know were there for the camp too, everyone got along, and london had a doppleganger! the only way to tell them apart was the color of their shirts!

denver found a boy his age that he called 'the blue boy' because the top of his hair was dyed blue, so denver constantly stalked and interrogated him about what he knew about super mario brothers and the wii system itself.

i think the blue boy and his family were pretty relieved to see us pull away at the end. (shrugs). i bet so did the big lady who sat next to us at dinner and he immediately pointed out to her that she had a 'beast of a meal'. TWICE! its that moment you have to get up and walk away cause you cant hold in the laughter any longer. my poor guy has a way with insulting people in the most innocent way. smh. 

nev got befriended by a little 5yr old korean kid, he stuck to her like glue! when he could'nt find her, he would come to me and just say 'where she'? haha he was so cute! yep, trent, family of 5.

we had an awesome dinner cooked over camp stoves, and banana boats roasted over fire for desert. watched the sun go down as the kids did a skit about the constellations and denver and london were made into kings and queens. night hike in search for owls and where i lost my phone and one child. both were ran back to me by fellow campers in my moment of panic, i don't think i'm ready to do this alone quite yet. 

it was enough fun to last us for a while, but I am glad to be back home in my own bed. and I have a notion everyone's going to bed early tonight!

Aaah, summer - that long anticipated stretch of lazy, lingering days, free of responsibility and rife with possibility. It's a time to hunt for insects, master handstands, practice swimming strokes, conquer trees, explore nooks and crannies, and make new friends.

A kiss of rain

couldn't have picked a better day to unleash the crazies down at the farm. we got caught off guard by a burst of rain that sent most scattering to their cars as if they were melting haha. not us though, we took full advantage of having free rein and making a mess of ourselves.
denver and his leaf umbrella inventions, and london stuffing her skirt pockets with pet rocks to take home. smh.

love the way the rain kissed nev's face and that captured moment of her swinging on that magnificent magnolia. a sweet soul embracing the good things in life, and learning to toss the bad.

life is good as long as you stop to look at the little things. slowing down and doing what makes your heart happy.
cool rain on a hot day, puddle diving, shrilling screeches of joy that remind you to look up and pay attention, and then getting the back seat of the car completely soaked.  yep, that's how we roll.
hope you find clarity in the moment and allow that next rain shower to kiss you right in the face!

“The purpose of life is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experience.”
― Eleanor Rosevelt

quittin's ok

my baby boy was so excited for swimming lessons but he soon realized its not his thing.

he has a thing against water in the face so i guess he figured he could get all the way through it without getting wet! he lasted three lessons and after the final meltdown due to the instructor forcing him underwater for the second time, he decided swimming was not what its cracked up to be. these were supposed to be happy times and my poor guy was scared to death. after the lesson as he was dressing, he made the decision to not come back until he is ready. i totally support that. it was his decision to sign up, and its his decision to bail, totally up to him. he got what he needed out of the experience and that's all that matters.  

kudos to the instructor for putting up with his hard little head and cries and struggling arms, she sure earned her keep those 3 days haha.

I appreciate and am grateful for the beauty in the whole experience though, including the random lady that walked by me with the turban.

loving my guy for trying  ...and lovin my guy for letting go of what did not feel right.  <3 <3 xoxo

“All I am saying can be summed up in two words: Trust Children. Nothing could be more simple, or more difficult. Difficult because to trust children we must first learn to trust ourselves, and most of us were taught as children that we could not be trusted.” – John Holt

  

Happy April

why is it that this time of year always seems to stretch the longest. with spring peeking right around the corner but never seems to fully show its face. were over here wearing shorts one day and coats the next! its the one season that never seems to be able to make up its mind. 

baby girl has been itching to wear her 'purple dress', so we snapped a few quick pics outside despite her blue kissy lips and chicken skin arms! its spring never-the-less.

this month represents a turning of a new page, rebirth, and letting our sorrows melt away with the snow. looking forward to afternoon naps under rainy breezes, raindrops in place of snowdrops, the blossoming of new endeavors, and greener grass at last. 

“It was such a spring day as breathes into a man an ineffable yearning, a painful sweetness, a longing that makes him stand motionless, looking at the leaves or grass, and fling out his arms to embrace he knows not what.”