In the Cool of the Pines

Our weekend in the pines.

So thoughtful and thinking she's so big at 2 years old.

Dad in his element, but the girls are done exploring as you can see on their faces.

My joy, my family!

Ainsley is feeding the horse an apple. Emerson just liked observing, not feeding.

Mommy and Ains prefer chocolate, while daddy and Emmy like vanilla. YUMMM!

Ohhh, the lazy days of summer with your sissy.

Despite all of the dirt, my girl is going to be a freckle face like her mommy.

Now that is a BIG cup of cocoa and yes, Ainsley ate almost all those donuts!

At the end bottom of Tonto Natural Bridge.

So beat! Notice that Emmy is like her mommy and takes her half out of the middle.

Our family went on a much needed mini-vacation up north this weekend and we had a wonderful trip. We left on Thursday morning, with me still recovering from a bout of the stomach flu that the girls so lovingly gave to me, and stayed until Saturday afternoon. Thankfully I was feeling back to my old self by Friday and didn't require any more Pepto Bismol. We took a ton of walks to go exploring and it was so fun to see the girls excitement at every bug and creature they encountered. One of those walks was at night with our flashlights. We also went on a short hike on Friday to Tonto Natural Bridge, which is literally a natural bridge with pools beneath. This was the girls first real experience with hiking and they did a stellar job. Ainsley decided that she likes hiking more than exploring and Emerson was just happy to be finished so we could have lunch. We made friends with some nearby horses and fed them carrots one day and apples the next. We also went on a drive and stopped dead in the road to examine a tarantula spider. I had told the girls stories of when I was a child and my mom picked up a tarantula on one of our vacations so it was "big time" for them to see one and actually see how big they can be. They acted so brave kneeling close to it to get a better look, but when it almost crawled on Ainsley, the screams began. Gotta love girls! We also drank lots and lots of hot chocolate and ate far too many tiny powdered donuts. We even shared milk shakes every day at a local 50's diner. All in all it was a super family get away and Marcus and I enjoyed so much just being with the girls. Ainsley picked so many wild flowers while there and just before we left yesterday so said that she wanted to take her little bouquet of purple flowers to Eden's grave. What a thoughtful sister as I didn't think of even stopping at the cemetery. We stopped at the cemetery so she could place the flowers and the girls told Eden all about the weekend, with the spider taking center stage. It's so hard to figure out the balance between keeping Eden a part of our family conversation and not mentioning her as much for the girls sakes. It is still so hard for Ainsley to understand that she is dead and will not be coming home to our house so we hesitate to talk about her death and bring her up too much. As we left the cemetery yesterday I told Ains to blow Eden a kiss and after she did she said, "it's not the same as giving her a real kiss. I wish she could be all better and come home to live with us because then I could give her real kisses." That broke my heart as it's so hard for her and it seems so unfair for her to have to deal with this at only 3 years old. We have decided to take weekend adventures for the next three weekends so it's "a camping we will go" next week.

I find it hard to think of what to write about now that our journey with Eden has ended. It seemed like that was all I focused on and now I am at a loss. However, when I really thought about it, I have so much I could talk about as I still have two beautiful little girls who amaze and delight me daily and five chickens that frustrate me and one husband who is the love of my life. I am so blessed so I will share it with anyone that will read. We love you all and you have changed our lives forever. Thank you!