pop-up ice cream...

Staying home isn't a hard task, but missing your people is a different story, and we knew that by May, some people were missing all people. And so... when Eric came to me with one of his What if we... ideas, we figured out a way to make it work. He is, forever, the idea man, and I suppose one secret to our marriage is that if he dreams it up, I try to figure out how to make it happen.  

We named our "shop" Wilbur's South, in honor of our family run Massachusetts ice cream shop Wilbur's North. I even made t-shirts, because I had plenty of time. We decided on a simple menu, with just a few flavors, added some balloons, just for fun, and mapped out our route. 

We were on a mission, to spread a little joy to some of our favorite people... and it was more than we could have imagined. Everyone was assigned a job, and as our family/friends came out to the driveway, Cam unfolded the table and menu board, I strung up and set out the decorations, and Eric organized his serving area in the trunk. There was wonder, laughter, and many, many smiling faces. 

Our first stop broke all the rules. Sweet MK was too excited, and there was no way she was keeping her distance! She want to help, and she wanted a hug. Her Mom said you are the first real people we've seen! Eric scooped while MK looked on, and then we chatted and laughed together before packing up and making our way to the next driveway. 

In two weekends, we brought our little ice cream shop to over a dozen driveways, and would have done more, but the timing just didn't always work out. We forgot to take pictures at every stop, but there were smiles everywhere {well, almost everywhere... there was one little that wasn't sure about it!}. It was exhausting, but we loved it! 

We have always known that ice cream=happiness, but these driveway visits were more than we even dreamed they could be. In the days after our adventures, we learned that the gift we had given, in doldrums of quarantine, was much more than a sweet treat... it was a connection, it was Light, it was love.

a little nostalgia...

live in the sunshine.

swim in the sea.

drink in the wild air. 

-emerson

my cathedral...

Perhaps most moms-to-be hope for one of each... a girl and a boy. But, I had such vivid memories of my childhood best friend and her brother fighting, fists and teeth and loud words, that I was scared of that dream. I thought that was the way it was, would be. And then... here I was, with a baby brother for my little girl. I knew that I didn't want what I already knew of brother/sister relationships, and somehow in that, God helped me create something beyond my wildest dreams.

A couple of weeks ago my sister re-posted a monologue by Nicole Johnson, The Invisible Woman. I have seen her perform it a few times, and I believe she has written a book about it. Re-reading the words brings me right back... to the days when so much was asked of me, and I felt overwhelmed and under-qualified. The days I felt I wasn't included because I was a Mom... with kids who would need to tag along. All the times when I just couldn't answer one more question, or feel one more touch. Motherhood can be wonderful and terrible all at once.

But these two have brought me more joy that I could have known. God showed grace upon grace through the seasons of bickering, and now, as I have said time and time again, their chatter is my favorite thing. When they would be getting ready for school, in the backseat, on the phone... I am so thankful that they will always have the other - to talk with, to be championed by, to laugh with, to hold each other up. They are silly, and quirky, and two halves of my heart. If I have done nothing else right, there is this...

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we’re

doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel,

not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the

world by the sacrifices of invisible mothers.” -Nicole Johnson

life lately...the colorado edition

We are home from our adventure across the country, and my heart is full. Three and a half days of being reunited and seeing Laura's new world was pure joy... and I long to unpack some stories. For now, though, I offer a few glimpses of what was a wonderful, laughter-filled weekend.

1. Seeing where our girl is living was so nice... now I can picture her there when
we talk! And she was anxious to show me her little cup, picked up at the
Cherry Blossom Festival she went to.

2. The views from our walking tour were lovely... gardens and blue skies and public art.

3. I did this as often as I could... I plan to print this and put it
on the fridge where I can see her every day. 

4. Our food truck lunch was delicious and adventurous,
and we enjoyed it fountain-side at Union Station.
I tried Korean Barbecue for the first time!

5. When you see Swahili in Denver...

6. We passed these window boxes twice, and on my second trip by,
I had to touch them. Yep. Bottle caps!
{are they still considered window boxes if they are on a fence bordering a little street cafe?}

7. We climbed the steps to the top of the Red Rocks amphitheater...
you must have to be in great shape to see a concert there!

8. One of Laura's picks... visit a meadery. I almost said - let's skip it...
but Cam brought his Bees are freaking awesome shirt especially for this visit,
so I kept my mouth shut. It was a delicious decision!

9. Our last day... spent in Colorado Springs. Siamese Twins at Garden of the Gods.
Beauty in every direction. 

a dream come true... and so much more

This is one of my favorite pictures of me...

I am at my grandparents, in this sparkly, blue vinyl chair, talking to my Uncle Sonny who lived in Colorado. Even though I only met him a few times, he held a very special place in my heart - and because of that, I have always had the desire to travel to Colorado!

Well, today is the day.
We are getting on a plane, and heading west... and by tonight, I will have my arms around my girl. We are really proud of her and her bravery to step out in the world, time after time.  We are excited to see her in her new life, and we are looking forward to helping her do a little more exploring!

It's a bonus that Camden will be along - and Laura was thrilled to hear he is able to come. And so... just that makes this trip wonderful before we have even headed to the airport. I say it a lot, but it is one of my greatest gifts - the relationship between the two of them. These days, I know that to have the four of us together is a rare gift. One day soon, Cam will be offered a job, and he's likely to head off to parts unknown, much like his sister.

Cheers to my always favorite...four. Together.

our cast of characters...

Maybe one of the reasons I was so excited for this trip was that we would all {almost all... Tina, you were missed!} be together to celebrate: my family, his family... our family. There was one glitch though. Laura. She moved to Colorado in April, knowing she would need a week off in July... and she felt like it was irresponsible to ask for more. She talked to Camden first, and he understood. When she told us... what could we say? So we began to plan without her...

But... God placed a new opportunity in her path, and her new job gave her weekends off! Would she be willing to fly in Saturday morning and back out Sunday night? Laura contemplated, then finally decided yes, on ONE condition... she wanted to surprise Camden. Okay. Done.

The weather leading up to our weekend was crazy across the nation. While we drove in with no problems, my parents had planned on an extra day in Nashville, but skipped out on their planned zoo day to beat the weather! The four of us arrived Thursday afternoon, a day ahead of schedule!

Eric's parents flew into Iowa Thursday night...well, it was actually Friday by the time they arrived. Delays in Florida had them racing for their delayed connection in Atlanta. But they made it, and that was what was important.

Eric's brother and his wife {Uncle Fritz & Aunt Heather} were due to arrive Friday at noon, and... their flight was cancelled. They ended up finding another flight from Richmond to Dallas, which eventually made its way to Iowa. Five hours late? Better than never. We were able to keep our dinner reservation at the Sing-A-Long Piano Bar, which was delicious and fun.

And that brings us to Laura... our surprise guest.
She was due to arrive at noon, before Baccalaureate. But those storms kept on raging, and there were delays and changed flights... and I was almost to my breaking point. Too much stress. So we went to the ceremony without her, enjoyed the reception, and made our way on to dinner...

Aunt and Uncle to her rescue... they picked her up at the airport and met us at the restaurant {which had it's own set of issues: prom, graduation...} The foyer at the restaurant was packed - no room to budge, no room to pull off the surprise. So we waited outside in the cold until there was a little more breathing room.

I was expecting shock and utter surprise... and I might have felt robbed at his "Oh, hi! It's you!" response to seeing his sister... but they sat at dinner together and chatted and laughed and were silly together and it brought me to tears. Gasping-I-can-hardly-speak tears.  And the difficulties of the travel day disappeared...

p.s. If Tina and her kiddos could have come we would have all ALL been together... but travel is expensive, and it was May, and there is so much school to do in May! They were definitely there in spirit and in our hearts!

for the love of books...

We google mapped our way across Boston Common to a brunch spot that promised gluten-free deliciousness... but the hunger for food nearly disappeared when we spotted an outdoor book shop. Their love of books kicked in, but we managed to eat before the volumes called them back across the street.

They could have browsed for hours... 

Eventually we got back on track and resumed our wandering through the city.

Later we passed by again, and seeing it all closed up was almost just as cool...

A house without books is like a room without windows.

Horace Mann

you can go home again...

A few weeks ago I had one of those crazy thoughts pass through my head... we researched it, decided against it, and then... things began to fall into place. Last weekend, that crazy Saturday morning passing-thought-in-my-head came to life, and spending three days in Boston was so much more than I could have even imagined.

With Laura at the end of her service, and her next step hanging in the balance, we decided we needed to see her, put our arms around her. And when I finally did hold her in a close hello, the tears just rolled down my face. How is it that you don't really know just how much you've missed someone until you are together again?

We happily exhausted ourselves as we explored Boston and retraced the footsteps of my growing up and our romance in my hometown of Scituate. When we stopped in at our old family ice cream store, the new owner even let me scoop my own cone! It was such fun to share these places with our kids... it had been 19 years since I had brought them there, and ten years since I had been back myself.

The best thing of the weekend was being all together, four. I have no idea how long it will be before it will happen again, and so I count my blessings that we could make this trip happen. Home? It is Boston, it is Scituate, it is Wilbur's, it is Beyond Grace... but mostly, it is four.

p.s... four photo credit goes to kim... more on that friendship coming soon.

to be welcomed is to be loved...

Last week I drove my niece & nephew to camp for two days... and the camp just happened to be at our old church, across town. On the second day, I knew I needed to take the time to scoot and and say hi to Miss Julie, our favorite pre-school teacher, who taught both of my kids, as well as Tina's.

On the way in, the organist saw me and wrapped me up in his arms, so happy to see me. {Eric & I took his son to the youth gathering in 2001!} He invited me to come see his music camp musical during the Sunday service, or at least the dress rehearsal happening in 2 hours.

I finally made it to Julie... her smile was as bright as mine, and she welcomed me with open arms. We chatted, caught up on our kids, and made a promise to make a lunch date soon.

This church will always have a element of "home" for us... it was where our kids met Jesus, where I thought they would be married... the church of their childhood. In 2005 we moved to our current church, closer to home and a chance to be part of a new mission. It is hard to believe we have now been here longer than we were there...

I called Eric, and he had time to come over to see the dress rehearsal with me... and it was fantastic. There were more hugs all around, a little unexpected police business, and then we drove away. How beautiful it was to be so welcomed... and the love they shared, the love of Christ, shone all around our day.

from the drafts: that week in may...

from the drafts:
i found a few written-but-never-published posts... and to get my voice going, i'm finishing them up!
this one is from LAST may...
________________________________________________________________________________

That week Camden was home in May {see also, this post} was the beginning of the settling of my soul. For too long, my heart had been in a mess over my job, and I finally let go, agreeing to interview for a job that had been {sort of} offered.  And, of course, any time I have the four of us under one roof, life feels good and right.

These two fall right back into their rhythm of banter, and oh how I love to hear the joy in each of their voices across the house. If I ever feel like my parenting has lacked (and so often, I do), I know that I have succeeded in teaching them that their family is their home.

And something almost as important, that I know they know, is that your friends can also be your family. We went out for a family dinner, with friends, to celebrate these two, and their successful first year of college. It was a joy and a relief to know that they overcame their personal challenges and made the most of their opportunities. They soared like the Eagles they are, and found that their scouting skills really are life skills.

We spent his last day at SeaWorld, since we could only get him back to Iowa from Orlando anyway. It was a relaxed kind of day, the only plan being to enjoy. The time together filled my soul, shored up my heart...

Looking forward to August when we are four once again...

winding down {but trying not to think about it}...

Last year at this time we were making the long, beautiful drive to Iowa...
It was mostly just corn fields, and while they were beautiful, I think more of the beauty was found inside the car, along the way. Laughter, chatter, and time. Those long days of driving and exploring that we had together before leaving him at college were a gift... one I wouldn't trade for the world.

Camden is still home... for two more weeks. I am trying not to count the days. And this year, he'll fly back to Iowa, retrieve his stuff from storage, and move himself in. Yes, part of me wants to be there. The other part? The other part of me hates moving and knows that this is a life skill that will serve him well over the years. He has already proven he can manage it with the summer moving in & out of the dorms, so this time I am not even going to worry.

Pretty soon we'll have to start pulling together everything he has strewn about our daily life, and zip it into his suitcase, but for right now, there is still time to be carefree. Cam & Laura have enjoyed his time home probably more than any of us. Their friendship goes beyond brother & sister, and I am thankful for yet another gift. Last night they cooked dinner together, and I will never tire of hearing their voices, just within earshot, bantering back and forth, and just being silly.

I am so thankful that we have taught them to be silly, and hopeful that they will hold onto it for their whole life...

fitting it in...

It doesn't feel quite like summer without a little family vacation, but it has been almost impossible to schedule it with Cam spending most of this summer in Iowa. But... he's home now, and we decided to scoot away this past weekend, the four of us, and pick up where we left off at SeaWorld.

It doesn't really matter where we go as much the being together matters. I can definitely feel that the beginning of the end is in sight... that family trips will soon be the exception rather than the rule. Even more reason to cherish four.

The day was grand, and full of thrills. Seventeen roller coaster rides for them, about half of that for me, and a few less for Eric. For the most part, we trekked the park as a group, enjoying the shows and time together. We let them loose to ride the new roller coaster a few more times while we... rested.

There is nothing like walking ten miles under the Florida summer sun!  We did find a few places to cool off though... like the Arctic, and Antarctica! I think Camden would have also liked the front row at the Shamu show.... but the top row of the splash zone was as close as I was willing to get!

At the end of the day, we were still laughing, still enjoying just being together. There is no more success than that...

summer family fun... part two

We were driving home from work a few weeks ago, and Laura said I really want to go to the Miami Zoo... we've never been and people keep telling me how great their giraffe feeding station is! Well, she was right. We have lived less than two hours away for 19 years, and we had never been. This truth burst out at just the right time... because we had a second weekend of family fun to plan.

When we got home that day, I started researching, found a Groupon... and realized that our favorite food truck was going to be out the night before our planned zoo day. We had bounced around the idea of staying overnight, and that sealed the deal.  Last Saturday, we headed out across Alligator Alley for our second weekend of family fun...

We laughed as we splashed through the puddles and tried to decide if we were full or not. We watched a man offer to wrap his pythons around kids necks for $5, and Cam & I looked at each other with two thoughts: no way, and Laura wouldn't approve! And then we laughed again when Laura caught up to us and said you know, his handling of snakes is not very responsible! Oh how we love our zoo girl!

The zoo was HOT and beautiful. There was lots of shade and miles of walking.  We did enjoy it all, and it makes me sad we waited so long to see it! Most of my photos came out awful {I need to get back into picture-taking!} but these are my favorites...

 

Obviously, those first animals aren't even real! But then we finally made it to the giraffes... the reason she wanted to come. We each got a bowl full of kale and let the giraffes drool on our hands as we fed them. It was fun and fantastic, and it was exactly what we hoped it would be!

For that night between adventures, we stayed where there were warm chocolate chip cookies and a pull-out sofa. There was also a bar in the lobby, and as the four of us sat around a small table (one with a coca-cola) it just hit me hard that this is real life. The growing and the growing up. Conversation ranged from world issues to Crossy Road, and looking back, I realize those thirty minutes might be the most important of our whole weekend. We will always be four, even when life adds people to our numbers. It is a beautiful thing to know, and maybe just what family fun weekends are for.

summer family fun... part one

We did not plan a summer vacation this year.  There was so much going on, and we have that week-long trek to Iowa and back coming soon. Laura asked if she was going, and I had to tell her no. Honestly, there will not be room in the car. And... Cam deserves to have all attention on him, like she did when it was her turn. But the question made me think we need to have some family fun, all of us. So out came the calendars, and we found exactly two weekends with possibilities... which meant we would have family fun weekend #1, and family fun weekend #2.  Now to decide what to do...

Weekend #1 plans happened by chance! When I made a silly comment on a friend's facebook photo about loving to see her family of three all together, she texted and asked how would you like to see our faces in person?! They were flying from MA to Disney World and their trip just happened to be over one of our free weekends. We did not renew our passes this year, but we all love Downtown Disney, and it was decided we could make a fun weekend out of it.

We splurged on a fancy dinner, we danced in the sand, we wandered all together and in pairs... and we spend Sunday morning and lunch with my dear friends.

We also took a trip up, up, and almost away!

I have wanted to go up in this balloon since I first spotted it flying high over Downtown Disney. Time, and the cost of it, kept me away. But here is my new favorite Disney tip: If buy your balloon ticket before 10am, it is only $10, which is almost half off! It was worth it. There was only one other family up with us, so we could walk all around and see it all from every angle. We spotted Mt. Everest and Spaceship Earth, and got a bird's eye view of all of the construction being down to turn Downtown Disney into Disney Springs. I loved it.

Coming soon... Family Fun Weekend #2