Lately

Lately:

We spent the weekend at my cousin Britney's to take care of her 4 kids while they were away celebrating their 10 year anniversary. We went to the zoo with 6 kids and while it was crazy, it was a blast!

A woman at church recently was moving and tried to sell her piano. When she had no luck she decided to give it away for free! So now I have a piano here in Athens and I am going to try to build up a studio here to help make some money while john is still in school. I am grateful to be able to contribute and to use my love for music to help others and our family.

We have great neighbors.  The other day the I bought a pool at Walmart for $7.88 and filled it up from the sink bowl of water by bowl of water.  The kids jumped in their bathing suits and ended up washing the cars out in the playground! They used a whole can of shaving cream and they loved it!

We have been studying creativity and imaginination at joy school and the kids learned about spontaneous delight at Amy's house and we played with shaving cream and they had so much fun! I love what joy school is teaching them, sometimes Joy and Happiness is a learned skill.  It is so important to find joy in everyday life.

Yesterday the kids and I went to Sandy Creek and hiked the trails and went to the nature center.  They were running full speed through those trails and Avett didn't even care when he would fall and trip over the roots on the path, he would just get right up and keep going,  I loved their enthusiasm for nature.  It's in their blood I know it! 

Evaleigh has been taking an art class and she loves it. We go once a week to the Lyndon House to a beautiful art studio and she creates something, a take on a Van Gogh sea scape or land scape.  She was very proud of the horizon lines she painted two weeks ago.  I feel so proud when i see her creating and being comfortable in her own element.  She loves art so much. 

The Glenn Murphy Ranch: Spring Break part 2

Yesterday we got dirty and learned a lot.  Papa drove us around and we spotted Burrowing Brown Owls and Meadow Larks.  We went to the bone yard and the kids were introduced to the circle of life by seeing two decomposing cows.  They both rode Sassy, Avett's first time on a horse. He was beaming and mesmerized.  We watched daddy Papa Erin and Aunt Janice cut the calfs first thing in the morning.  We picked more fresh oranges and sat on and on every piece of farm equipment.  

After our hibachi Buffett dinner we came home and played another game of corn hole, (John and I won!) and then we put the kids to bed and watched a Elder Holland's LDS face 2 face broadcast. Lisa sang and I beamed with pride for my friend.  Wonderful gospel conversation followed by cards and a late bed time.

The kids woke up at 5:55am this morning, a fluke. But not a fun one. Now we will spen the morning at the Verona Lake beach to get all of the wiggles out we can before we take off for Georgia.  It's been a blast of a visit to the ranch.

little mulberry

Today we went to Little Mulberry Park so John could play disc golf with a friend.  We enjoyed the drive up looking at all of the big beautiful homes and the scenery.  The kids played hard when we got there and John and I talked and wondered about what our first home would be like.  I love where we are now and I am so excited for our little family to move to Athens at the end of this year.  I look forward to cozying up in a little two bedroom apartment with the people I love the most. I think it will be a sweet time for our family and a time of growing closer together.

We have been loving this Thanksgiving break and have been soaking up each I other and family time. It's been a much needed break for us all.  

Nature walk

Sometimes you just need a good fun day out in the muggy weather and soaking wet ground because it's the first break from rain in days!  I let the children lead the way on our nature walk and we weaved in and out of the woods.  I couldn't keep up with how many dozens of times they tripped in the rain boots that are several sizes too big for their little feet but they were so happy and determined and right in their element that nothing could keep them down. We help "spidy sticks" and whacked them in front of us while we walked so that we wouldn't run in to spider webs, because that is the WPRST feeling! 

We found ourselves down at the creek where they waded for over 30 minutes and walked up and down the descending water rock slides.  They were soaking up every bit of it that I dared not to speak but only observe.  Except when Evie yelled "snake " and we had a quick conversation about how I only want her to tell animals that couldn't be in our woods like Elephant and Alligator.  That way if there really was a snake I would know it wasn't pretend play.

Such a sweet and simple afternoon I got to share with my curious nature loving children.  We are soaking up Stock Gap all we can before we move to Athens at the end of this year. It will be so very missed by us.

kissing trees

We have been loving this warmer weather.  The other day we got out and picked flowers and ran and swang and played with birds nests and checked on the buds growing in the orchard and learned to kiss trees.  

Growing up my mother taught us all about the outside.  We practically were raised in the woods playing outside from sun up to sun down.  I have fond memories of Parker rock in our backyard.  Picnics on that rock.  My sister and I climbing the tree we named Mabel.  Digging toilets in the ground.  Making trails that lead to a make believe pony camp.  Walking through streams.  Picking flowers and countless walks.  My mother has always been quite the gardener.  She never missed an opportunity to let us look at her flowers.  She would tell us that the secret to her beautiful flowers was that she would talk to them and tell them they were beautiful.  

This weekend Evaleigh and I found ourselves in the orchard.  The trees are all sprouting and displaying their new buds.  This summer we will have peaches, apples, pears, plums, cherries, blueberries, and huckleberries.  I've loved watching these trees grow from what looked like broomstick handles to 10-25 foot trees.  It's a beautiful measure of the passage of time.  I am proud of those trees my mother and her husband planted.  So I taught Evaleigh to kiss them and tell them they were doing a good job growing and that they were beautiful.   

I felt like my mother.

I'm glad to become like her.