bike rides, bacon, pudding & Stanley

I have so many amazing memories from my childhood, but our camping trips are definitely some that make the short list. When I was really little, we camped a few times (that I can remember) in a tent, but after a torrential downpour one night, we upgraded to a pop-up camper and never looked back. Our pop-up was retro as some might call it, but my mom and dad fixed it up with new curtains and things. The fanciest thing about it was the swing out kitchen — if I close my eyes, I can visualize the three of us girls poking sticks in the ashes from the campfire the night before, my mom prepping eggs to scramble for breakfast, and my dad cooking bacon on the picnic table with a little propane stove.

Most of our camping trips were in Minnesota somewhere on the bike trail. We’d wake up, eat some breakfast, and then we would hop on our bikes for the rest of the day. I would throw out some estimate of mileage here, but I was a kid and memories have a weird way of growing astronomically (we biked 150 miles each day! I was only 10.) or completely wrong in the other extreme (we biked about 5 miles a day. We left after breakfast and didn’t get home until dinner.)

So I have no idea, but I remember usually finding somewhere to get ice cream along the way. Bike rides are always better with ice cream.

Or if you’re Jones: corn on the cob. (You guys, I have NEVER seen him cry as hard as he did when we took the corn away from him for about 30 seconds to pop a bib on him. Guess he likes corn!)

Our lunches would be packed and eaten along the way, “Little Bunny Foo Foo” would be sung on repeat and we would return to our campsite ready for dinner, campfire, s’mores and usually a game of cards. I learned how to play Hearts on our camping trips, and I remember a few games of Rummikub and Rack-O too. For dinner one night, we’d make pudding for dessert. Looking back, I cannot imagine how funny we looked: instead of using a beater to mix up the pudding, my mom would put it in a container for us to shake. We’d take turns shaking it until the pudding was good to go — and even writing that makes me laugh.

I love how some of my most favorite memories are the ones that are so simple.

We haven’t attempted camping with the kids yet, but Harlow and Andy have started the tradition of camping outside in the backyard. We don’t really have any outdoor space at our apartment, but I can’t wait for them to continue the tradition when we move to our new house in the fall. Having lived in the city before, stars were a little more difficult to see: I can’t wait for our kids to experience campfires and campouts right in our own yard with the stars shining brightly above.

In the meantime, we are enjoying picnics on the beach and at the park. We are grilling at friends’ houses and making memories as we go. I’ve begun taking our Stanley cooler with us everywhere — it keeps food cold for 36 hours and is super sturdy and easy to carry. It also doubles as a seat, which is always coming in handy. I love that the top will hold a vacuum mug or thermos in the elastic, because my BFF, coffee typically travels with me wherever I do.

Today we used our Stanley Adventure Cookset to cook broccoli on the grill — I definitely want to try this over a campfire sometime! Just add water, broccoli and pop the top on to keep the steam in.

Another new campfire favorite is chutney and brie cheese.

Place the brie round on a skillet and cover with chutney. Let it melt and sizzle and smell amazing – remove from heat and eat with tortilla chips, pita or small slices of bread.

You. Are. Welcome. ;)

Happy Camping! What are some of your favorite memories of camping — or not so favorite memories? Anyone else wake up in standing water in their tent? — and what are some traditions you have with your kids now? I’d love to hear!

new normals

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After arriving in the Boston area a few weeks ago, we were welcomed by a few warm days ….with quite a few chilly days sprinkled in. I wasn’t sure if my definition of spring weather was just very different than New England spring? I was hoping for mornings a little warmer than high thirties and days that would squeak above sixty with full sunny skies, but we were hovering around 50 and windy.

Bleh.

Someone then said to me, “Boston tends to skip right past Spring. You’ll have a few warm days, the majority will be cold, and then overnight it starts getting hot every day and you’re ready for the beach.”

They couldn’t have been more correct.

Well, until I look at the forecast for the upcoming week and we are back down to sixties…but I’ll take it!

Harlow’s been going to school two days a week — it’s a full day and she loves it! She also comes home absolutely exhausted, which means the days following school days are full of pretty low-key mornings. I could listen to Harlow’s imagination for hours, as she plays with her Play Mobil figures and creates castles for them with legos and Tegu blocks. She incorporates her princesses with her nativity set — sometimes they all go watch a movie in the stable, followed by a ride in the ambulance. It’s always highly entertaining.

I’m usually up around 5:30 while Andy’s getting ready to hop on the train. I enjoy my first cup of coffee while we tip-toe around the tiny apartment, pulling together a lunch for him or quietly emptying the dishwasher. Usually I have a bit of downtime to read or jump in the shower before the kiddos wake up, but once they do, we all hang out in the living room/dining room/office ;) as I play zone defense keepings Jones from getting into Harlow’s figures ….and tumbling as he tries to let go and take a step on his own. We usually have music playing and I’m downing my second (or third…) cup of coffee.

This one morning, I decided I wanted to document what these mornings look like for us in this tiny space. We don’t typically get this much light in the morning, so it was a rare treat that I couldn’t let pass by.

Even though most everything is still new around us, it’s comforting to have new “normals” finding their place. I love realizing I know my way home, so I can turn off my GPS.

I love hearing Harlow declare, “this is our new home, and I love it.”

So much good.

the ocean, some snow and the letter T

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Do you remember “Children’s Day”? The holiday. The one that kids made up — I think — because they thought they could trick parents into giving them more gifts. Children’s Day. Geniuses. Maybe it’s actually a real thing?

It definitely wasn’t something we celebrated growing up, but there was one Children’s Day when we did. My parents had a surprise for us, and the timing just worked out. So when I think about this surprise, I think about the random holiday: Children’s Day.

Is anyone even following me? Because I’m not really following myself.

So this surprise. My sisters and I were each handed an envelope. Inside each envelope was a puzzle piece.

My older sister opened her envelope first. The state of California. Easy. We’re going to California?!

Kaitlyn opened her envelope next — an airplane puzzle piece. Oh GOOD. We are not driving from Wisconsin to California…..

My turn: a puzzle piece with Mickey Mouse.

My response: we are going to see…. a mouse???? Why???

Ha, guess I wasn’t the quickest in the bunch, but my parents still let me tag along to Disneyland. ;) I got the sweetest straw hat that I wore everywhere. I should probably dig up old photos…. or I probably shouldn’t.

You know when you avoid someone because you know about the surprise birthday being thrown for them and it’s easier to avoid them than see them and not spill the beans? Well, that’s kind of been me and the blog lately. Whoops about this unplanned hiatus. It was well, unplanned.

Life has been a wee bit crazy as of late, and when I sat down to write things, I would just stare at the screen instead because, well, I’m awful at keeping surprises quiet.

So here are your three clues:

the ocean.

the T.

and

some so so much ridiculous amounts of snow.

…

we are moving to Boston.

….innnn about 3 weeks. ohmygoodness that makes me nauseous because I need about 6 more. It’s been a chaotic whirlwind of cleaning and packing and purging and showing and flying and cleaning and finding apartments and selling the house and being excited and crying every day because

every emotion.

Pittsburgh is where I met Andy. It’s become a home for me. (Now I’m typing this through tears.) Pittsburgh is where my babies have been born, and it’s where some of my dearest friends reside. It’s home to our first apartment and first house. It’s a place I adore like a friend — I used to get so lost, and now it’s a place I am so comfortable in.

Comfortable. We all crave it, don’t we? This whole move-to-a-city-I-have-visited-once thing (and happens to still be buried under way too much snow) is not comfortable. If I’m honest with you all, I cry at least once a day. Sometimes it’s from sheer exhaustion and sometimes it’s so many emotions I’m not sure if they are happy or sad.

I’m excited. I’m scared. I’m nervous.

I am not really ready, but I’m ready to keep moving forward on this crazy adventure with Andy – whatever that means. I am so proud of him and the position that is bringing us to Boston. I am thankful for the forced change that comes from interrupting ruts and habits of every day life and freedom that comes from purging and giving away.

I am completely a fake adult, and I keep waiting for someone to say, “gotcha! Great job playing dress up, I’ll take it from here!” but that isn’t happening, and I’m excited for the calm after the chaos for Harlow and Jones.

There’s so much more to share and say — I’d love to say, “that’ll come this week!” But in between the packing and details, I know these last weeks will be full of PEOPLE. <– I need and want that. I’m really great at pushing people away when I need them most, so just tell me to stop being dumb. ;)

thanks for being excited with us! If you are local, expect hugs and tears. I plan on wearing waterproof mascara from here on out because I have a feeling I’ll need it.

and if Boston could just please melt all the snow before we get there, that would be great.

constant in the chaos: a day in my life

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There is something about the birth of a baby that causes life to slow down and give pause. In the changing of the family dynamic and the beautiful chaos of new life, there are the constants that are the glue holding life together.

The extra couch cuddles. The love that multiplies and expands with new life and new moments. The familiar view from my nursing spot.

Then all too quickly, the gears begin to shift as the new and learning calm becomes the busy norm. Life picks up and small, yet special moments are passed for the next to-do on the list.

As our family gears up for a move to a city I’ve never even set foot in, I both fear and look forward to this “newborn-city” phase of life we are about to enter into.

The newness? It excites me. The unknown? Terrifies me. The constants? Calm me.

I am preparing for the waves, knowing I will be caught off guard by the fierceness of the tide.

I am preparing for that new and learning calm, focusing on letting it linger longer than our society encourages.

I am focused on creating a calm and consistent norm instead of the business that is often tempting and available.

Throughout it all, my life is held together by the constants.

My life is when my people are with me and close. Life is knowing they are with me in the unknown ahead.

My life is peeking in on naps. Life is ignoring the to-do list and joining in.

My life is learning more each day from the love they share.

My life is kissing away the tears, rubbing backs and singing to sleep. Life is embracing the days “nothing” gets done for the more important everythings that get accomplished instead.

My life is embracing the chaos when it hits, knowing its what I make of it that will be what lasts.

My life is taking time for giggles and goof — never taking myself too seriously.

As we step into the coming unknown, I want my daily choice to be joy.

Joy in the chaos, joy in the new, and joy in the constant moments.

whoosh.

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Unexpected blogging breaks are welcomed….and well, unexpected. Ha. Thank you, Captain Obvious Kacia. It means my time is spent doing a million other things, but it also means I get behind on posts I had planned. It’s like anything that causes you to get behind, I guess. Definitely nothing new. ….so you can just ignore the sentences I just wrote. Definitely stating the obvious. Ha.

I have some fun things to share, some giveaways planned and well, some explanations for my quietness coming up too. Life is chaotic and grand and crazy and tiring and beautiful.

I’m holding on for the ride, trusting His timing and hand — and getting smothered with kisses and drool amidst it all.

So this has been life.

a princess crown // Giveaway from Arrow & Lace Designs

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Harlow is my little fix-it-gal princess. You will typically find her working in the basement with her daddy, dressed in a princess dress and crown with a hammer in her hand. I love her spunk. I love her flair for pairing the things that don’t usually “go.” She’s stubborn as an ox, and I love every ounce of her to pieces.

This past summer, we had the chance to attend my cousin’s wedding in Minnesota and if we are honest, it’s up there on Harlow’s “BEST DAY EVER!!” list. She calls weddings “Princess Weddings” and along with Chelsey’s flowergirl, Harlow followed “Princess Chelsey” every where she went that day. At their reception, Chelsey wore a gorgeous flower head wreath that my aunt made.

To say Harlow was obsessed with that crown would be an understatement.

I told Harlow that I had a surprise for her the other day, and I wish I had recorded her response.

A crown!? for me? Just like princess Chelsey? I look just like Princess Chelsey!

welp! She was just a little bit excited.

A little bit about Arrow & Lace Designs:

Arrow & Lace Designs is vintage inspired apparel and handmade accessories. With a focus on quality, extra measures have been taken to make these accessories last. Details like adjustable headbands, ribbon lined alligator clips, and headbands/floral crowns/necklaces have felt applied so they are soft and comfortable to wear. Apparel is tested by her children and washed many times to make sure the level of quality is maintaned.

I adore her little bow ties too!