Landed

When we have gorged ourselves on sandy shores and blue horizons, when we have packed away all but one bathing suit (just in case), when hot cups replace the iced...we head inland.

Sometimes it is a paved path surrounded by perfectly pruned beauties. Sometimes we zoom by nature on scooters and bikes. Sometimes it is well marked trails with neat bridges to discover or a perilous (for 5 yr olds!) summit to conquer. Sometimes it is just a patch of wild between home and the neighbors.

No matter which flavor of nature we chose, we dig in. We breathe deep, lengthen our strides and oscillate between adventuring off on our own and slowing up to hold a hand. If the beach is our church, the woods are our chapel. A place to come together a little closer, to connect to something bigger, and to appreciate.

Today we met friends and buzzed around the nature center enjoying conversation, fresh perspectives and flexing our social muscles. But when our friends pulled out of the parking lot, we hung by our car reluctantly. We weren't done. We headed back to the trail map and picked a doozy. A perfect loop carpeted with pine needles and just wide enough to push a sleeping baby in the stroller. There was a steady stream of chatter:: school, moss, friends, food. They scurried ahead, they hung back to hold my hand.

Sometimes my mind can zoom off to a million places, but today I took a breath, looked at where I was and at their faces...and I landed.

For Inspiration

There is a lot going on over here. We have licensing exams, orientations, new jobs...and then there is the whole business of settling into someone else's home and starting new schools.

Our old routines never made it into the moving boxes. Funny how when days were so monotonous, I longed for something different and now that each day is so unique, Im grasping for routine. Just when I start to wonder if we made the right choice, I look at my kids.

They are doing awesome. They are happier than they have ever been. They are more confident than they have ever been. They are flexible where they used to be rigid. They have more than adjusted, they are thriving.

And once I again I remember that the greatest lessons in parenting are the ones they are teaching me. Not knowing the sequence or schedule on the calendar isn't just because they haven't learned it yet - but because they are living in the now. This moment, this day is what matters to them. They aren't lamenting over what we have left behind or the way things used to be. They aren't worried about what will happen tomorrow, months from now, or in the coming year.

They can sit in the driveway and watch to see which animal eats the spilled cereal first. They can ride scooters and challenge themselves to do new tricks. They can sit and snuggle, relishing in the closeness of someone who loves them. They can go to bed each night exhausted from soaking up each and every moment.

And Im inspired to do the same.

This Moment:: Stop Taking My Picture!