In my next 30 years!

When Carter was first born someone much wiser than myself told me that the days are long, but the years are short.  Well, maybe not exactly in that same verbage, I'm sure it was much more eloquent.  Either way, this last month has flown by and so much has changed.  Carter lost his first tooth, he can swim independently in deep water without being rescued, and has managed to buck the old training wheels on the bike.  Oh, and I almost forgot, he got up on water skis at Trinity Lake all by himself.   Please ignore my screaming when you watch the video.

Upon reflecting on our activities this last month, I think I know how July may have seemed to speed away from us.

1) Overnight 4th of July "camp-out" at the Thamer's and Hilton's.

2) Trinity Lake/Mud Pond two night camping extravaganza with friends.

3) Family Movie Date Night to Planes: Fire and Rescue. 
4) Weekend of resealing patios and restaining porch.
5) Numerous weeknight dinners with friends.
6) Countless swim afternoons at family pools.
7) Mom's two night stay in San Fran - A nice Italian Restaurant now features a "JoyNess" cocktail.

7) Mom's Dirty Thirty Mud Run and mini Mt. Shasta vacay.

8) Maybe, just maybe, a few naps.

Reflecting on turning 30, the days are often long, but I do feel that the years are short.  I feel like I'm an "old soul" and that age is just a number.  I sure hope that my next thirty years are as blessed as my first thirty.  In another thirty years, I hope that I will have raised two sons who go out to make their own mark in the world in a positive way.  I hope they will fall in love with their soul mate, their work, their life.  In another thirty years, I should be nearly celebrating 40 years of marriage with my husband.   Maybe a few grandkids?  We'll own our home.  Maybe retired?  Grey hair and wrinkles.  30 more marathons run.   I will have completed an Ironman Triathlon, and caught a few more stamps on the old Passport.  I will have worked each day in all that I do to make the world a little better.  The days are long, and the years are short, but the decades are opportunities.

Shirtless Wonder

Just yesterday I pondered where the month of June had gone.  Apparently she never visited my blog.  The school year closed a week later than usual, we went to South Lake Tahoe for cousins' week, I started in as a principal, and that's about all she wrote.

Sometimes when perusing Facebook or Pinterest I get stuck on cheesy quotes.

 - Smile and the world smiles back.  (Not on a beach in South Lake Tahoe when two dogs try to rip your quads off, and the owner starts yelling at you for yelling at his dogs.)

- Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened.  ( Try that on the last day of your teaching career while a slideshow plays and a song about kids being heroes accompanies the images.)

On the way to clean out the coop.

- Every Damn Day - Just do it.  - Except in the case of trying to entice your boys to clean out the chicken coop - AGAIN.

Or my personal favorite:  - What would you attempt if you knew you could not fail?  (Certainly not allowing my five-year old to be rescued by the life guard at the pool because he felt he couldn't fail at jumping in when I wasn't watching.   OORRRR  Teaching my three year old to take his own shirt off, because he's now a shirtless wonder in most circumstances.)

This blog is a little random and that's about the speed of my brain these days.  Every damn thing must be entered into my calendar with an alarm to remind me, or I'm screwed.  Because I know this, I'm constantly second-guessing my calendar accuracy and then have anxiety I will forget something.  Between hoeing the pumpkin BY HAND TWICE, working at a new job, being a mom, and trying to not feel overwhelmed, I feel scattered.  I'll hit my groove soon, but until I do there's gonna be a few washboard bumps along the way to finding that path.  Which leads me to another quote.  .  .

- Every journey begins with a single step.  (Yes, but sometimes that step is backwards and your journey gets delayed, or perhaps you step in bubblegum and you get stuck, or perhaps you step into a pile of sh** and you then have to wash your shoes or clean up the mess, or perhaps you step into .  .  .)

Although some things have to be put on the calendar, it is often the most unplanned events that turn out the best.  This last Sunday we hiked into East Boulder Lake after toying around with the idea for a few days.  Upon finally making our decision around 10am, we were off.  Carter hiked in and out the whole way by himself and Miles did about 1/4 of the journey.

The boys kept saying how "beautiful" everything was.  Of course Miles started out the shirtless trend at the lake and everyone got sunburned, but it might have been the milky white skin that attracted the two fish we caught.

Summer Vacation is in full swing and so far our list of experiences is high:
1) Trip to South Lake Tahoe for Cousins' Week
2) Swimming at Mema and Papa's pool and the city pool
3) Horse Riding lessons
4) Hiking into a mountain lake
5) Daddy's fishing trip to Astoria Oregon
6) Purchased a more family friendly vehicle
7) Helped mom move into her new office
8) Hoed and hoed and hoed the pumpkin patch
9) Backyard barbeques
10) Mom's annual cross country racing series





Where did June go you say?  I think she took a step on her journey onto a horse and into the mountains.  I think she's getting in a few training runs before July hits. .  .