Mt Lemmon

About an hour and 30 minutes from our home is Mt Lemmon. It's like a perfect oasis for this New England girl living in the desert. Complete with tall pine trees, cooler weather, hiking trails and even snow! I love the mountains. I love the views and majesty of it all. There's just something about being tucked away in the forest on top of a mountain that makes me feel connected with nature and with God.

I took the kids by myself about a month ago and we found a perfect little spot off the road to go sledding and enjoying the snow and woods. This week James and the kids happened to be off on the same day which doesn't happen often by coincidence, so we took advantage of it and spent the day in Mt. Lemmon. Most of the snow had melted, but we explored a little deeper and found a great little spot off of a side dirt road that had just enough snow to sled down. The kids quickly turned their, "I hate this day" comments into "this is the best day ever!" comments. We sure do miss snow. I don't miss driving in the blizzards, or having to chip ice chunks off my windshield, or freezing just stepping outside, but I do miss the magic, the silence and peace and the beauty of freshly fallen snow especially as it gently lines the tree branches.

Brie clearly didn't love it.

After sledding and getting soaked and muddy, we did a quick change and then found a hiking trail to explore. Makai likes to get lost in the woods anytime we explore and all 4 older kids try to find treasure (aka junk) or at least their very own hiking stick. Then we have to have the same conversation all over again about how we are not taking all that home with us. It was fun to walk through snow and step through pine needles and see who can find the biggest pine cones. James made us all run up a massive hill as part of our family training (see previous post). By the end of it all, we were ready to go home. James and the kids fell asleep right away and I enjoyed a quiet drive home. The only downside to Mt Lemmon is the windy roads up and down the mountain side that make me feel so nauseous. It's worth it though. 

This is my adorable view on all of our family adventures.

Whose kids are these anyways?

Even Zazu had a great time

Kissing those cheeks the whole way up the mountain.

After sledding and getting soaked and muddy, we did a quick change and then found a hiking trail to explore. Makai likes to get lost in the woods anytime we explore and all 4 older kids try to find treasure (aka junk) or at least their very own hiking stick. Then we have to have the same conversation all over again about how we are not taking all that home with us. It was fun to walk through snow and step through pine needles and see who can find the biggest pine cones. James made us all run up a massive hill as part of our family training (see previous post). By the end of it all, we were ready to go home. James and the kids fell asleep right away and I enjoyed a quiet drive home. The only downside to Mt Lemmon is the windy roads up and down the mountain side that make me feel so nauseous. It's worth it though.

James' Spartan Race

This guy is awesome. He doesn't quit or back down. He proved that to us all this past weekend when he ran a Super Spartan race with his cousins. He has never done something like that before and didn't know what to expect, but he was all in and he had a blast. 

James is on the left. Notice the name on the back of his shirt? That is what happens when you don't pick your own name and leave your cousin in charge!

My favorite picture. James is explaining to his proud, supportive children what it was like when he jumped in the mud.

The following pictures are courtesy of Spartan photographers:

We were all very proud of him. Watching him do this race has sparked a fire in all of us. Not only is James planning on doing two more Spartans this year, but our whole family has started training to do one together! Though Brynlee has said she'll only get a little muddy because she doesn't want to be gross. lol.

Deklan's Award

Last month was an exciting month for Deklan. He was selected as the Leader in Character Award Winner for the month of January. The Leader in Character award goes to a kid who is a great example in all he does and represents his school well. One kid from each school is selected each month and Deklan got it. He got his name and picture in the paper, got recognized at the district meeting and he was gifted a $25 gift card to Barnes and Noble.

My Deklan got this award. The one who makes me question my ability to be a parent on a daily basis. The kid that I often have to physically shove into the car kicking and screaming just to get to school or church. The kid that takes hours to complete his homework every night because he's everywhere and the same kid that says we are a horrible mom or dad and he wishes he never had to see us again at least once a week.

We were kind of shocked when we heard the news of this award. Deklan is my hardest kid. And yet at school he is an angel. And I couldn't be more grateful for that. I am so thankful that he can control himself at school so much that his teacher recommended him as a Leader in Character. I am so thankful that he can be a good example and that he often helps his friends make better choices (according to observations from his teacher). I am thankful for a sweet teacher who sees so much good in Deklan and thinks he is incredible. I am thankful that he has many moments when that stubbornness and determination are channelled for good and we can see glimpses of the kid I constantly pray that he will become.

Truth be told, Deklan feels everything. And not only does he feel everything, he feels it all intensely. If Deklan is happy, he is on cloud 9. His laugh is contagious, his smile is the sweetest and he will do anything to get you to laugh. Out of all of my kids, he loves babies the absolute most. One of our favorite memories of Deklan is when Brynlee was born. Deklan was an 18 month old terror. His scream pierced our ears every single day and night and I knew we were in for it. Yet, when we brought Brynlee home from the hospital, he was tender and gentle and literally would not let her go. We tried to take her from him and he told us "No!" and would hold her tighter. He just loves loves loves babies. He is the kid who cried just last week while watching his little sister perform in her class choir performance because, "she was just so beautiful and I was so proud of her". He's the kid who bawled his eyes out when we moved away from Texas because he was going to miss everyone. And then just bawled his eyes out again because he fell in love with someone else's puppy. He's the kid who gets terrified of earthly disasters and feels the reality of them so close to home. And when he's mad, he gets really mad; like hulk mad; like scary, hide the knives mad. But the bottom line is that Deklan feels everything intensely, including all the good emotions.

A little over a year ago I had a necklace made with the engraving, "Be His Solace" that I wear every single day as a reminder for me about Deklan. I need the reminder that Deklan needs a safe, peaceful, calm place and I need to be that for him. I feel like I fail miserably 9 times out of 10 with this, but it is things like this award that remind me what an incredible kid is behind all those big emotions. It's awards like this that make me feel so blessed to have this kid in my life. Deklan is the kid that makes daily life so challenging, but he is also the kid that is going to change the world with his goodness.

Huge thanks to his 1st grade teacher and all his former teachers who have always had nothing but wonderful things to say about this little boy and the privilege they have felt to have him in their classrooms and lives.

Deklan and his cute teacher Ms. Bello at the district meeting.

"The kids who need the most love will ask for it in the most unloving ways." -unknown

"When little people are overwhelmed by big emotions, it's our job to share our calm, not join their chaos." -L.R. Knost

"Those who are hardest to love need love the most." -S. Mark Palmer

Madera Canyon- Our Happy Place

When we moved to Arizona, I had no idea how great our little town would be. We live 30 minutes from this super fun place called Madera Canyon. It is so great to explore and let our kids be kids. They love that sort of thing, but haven't had much chance to explore until we moved here. They climb rocks, walls, waterfalls, and splash in super cold mountain water. It is our happy place. There is no better place to be than outside and we are so grateful we live in a place where we can just be outside!

It was chilly, so James asked the kids to be careful and not get wet. I literally laughed out loud because I knew better. Deklan ended up soaked from head to toe, but at least he was happy about it. Brynlee...not so happy. Brielle didn't mind. I bought all the kids water shoes last year for our trips to Madera and I think this last trip may have finally convinced them to bring those shoes next time. What? You mean sometimes mom is right? Shocker! Koda and I were there too, but I had him and the camera strapped to the front of me the whole time, so you'll just have to picture our excited faces ;)

Best part about putting your kids in overalls? Instant handle for easy lifting. She actually loved this and kept asking him to carry her like this!

So remember how I said we love this sort of thing? Well, last summer we visited James' sister and she asked us what our kids would want to do. We said, "Well, we want to go hiking. Our kids love it." The whole hike Brynlee and Deklan screamed and cried and said how much they hated it and wanted to go home. She was laughing and said, "Soo....they love this sort of thing, huh?" I was like, "Well, they USUALLY like it." But after our trips to Madera and other places, I'm beginning to think that love is conditional for some of them.. And yet, even if we leave in tears, they are begging to go back.

Pictures of Brynlee screaming are becoming some of my favorite kinds of pictures. It's just so Brynlee. lol

Go on adventures and explore!

The End