Colorado

We're home from 10 days in Colorado. We flew in and out of Denver after driving to Florida. It was best for the sanity of our family! My Aunt and Uncle generously hosted us and we had a lot of fun hanging with with cousins and baby Anne. Matching home made polka dot outfits greeted the kids and we managed a successful photo shoot before our departure:
We met with a fellow adoptive family who's daughter is nearly David's age. David and Raina were in the children's home together and came home within weeks of each other. Animal crackers and ice cream (two universal loves of toddlers) smoothed the path to friendship. Thanks to Tami for making the time and the drive to meet us. It was fun!


Apricots at the Farmer's Market just asked to be tasted and photographed. Mountain sunsets in the wide and colorful Colorado sky took our breath away every single day. It was greener than it has been there for, oh, about 45 years (according to my Grandpa, a Colorado native). This is dangerous for me. My soul is somehow deeply fed by all things green in nature. I grew up in Wyoming and Colorado constantly disappointed by brown summers and brown winters. I longed for magical, romantic, robust seasons. I dearly love the midwest's seasons--fireflies, piles of leaves, giant snowflakes, you get what I'm saying. So an unusually green summer in Colorado made me question my memories a bit and wonder if I should give the western climate another chance.

The mountains were also unusually stunning to my jaded eyes. I had lots of summer camps in the mountains in my teen years. All I remembered was that it was scraggly, cold, and it rained almost every day--usually at the most in-opportune times. The mountains were unfortunately associated with the teen angst that accompanied too many of my summer camp experiences.

It was fresh and new and beautiful, this time. Seeing my kids surrounded by pine trees, swaying grasses and huge boulders was amazing. Humming birds buzzed all around us with their mesmerizing wings and shimmering bodies.





In Boulder, we were hosted by an amazing retired couple who built their home on a wildlife reserve for the purpose of hosting people. There were three huge bedrooms upstairs and a porch with a stunning view of the valley and wildlife. They fed us every morning and the kids loved playing with Lucy, their sweet dog and on the "mountain swing."

All in all, it was a rich and enjoyable time. Lots of great pictures, good memories and important conversations. Thanks to all our friends and family who made time to share a meal with us. Thank you to our host family in Boulder. Strangers who are now friends.

Green, Day 2

I was dropping my kids off at school yesterday and had a passing conversation with a friend that changed my day. She asked if I was doing anything fun that day. I heard myself quickly answer, "no." Her non-verbal response was so subtle but surprising that I walked away asking myself, "Why can't I do something fun today?" Really.

I sometimes discover myself believing that fun is only for special occasions, and still not guaranteed. Even then, it's really supposed to be fun for the kids, not for me. My fun is supposed to be watching them have fun. That fine. But there's more.

I'm finally getting to the place where I can ask myself "What do I want?" and have a meaningful answer. There's a spiritual component to this, too. As a person seeking to know God better and be an authentic follower of Jesus, being honest with my wants, my desires feels vulnerable. Is it okay to want? Yes. It's honest and safe to take those desires to the One who knitted our very being, our souls and minds and bodies together. He knows the best ways to satisfy our souls. Trying to find the answer on our own is the equivalent of looking for fun on my backyard swing-set when God wants to take us to Disney World. It's safe to want. It's safe to take those desires to God. When they are met, I also meet God, the one who "restores my soul."

Yesterday I had fun. Doing the things I love (after I did some of the "have-to's") that God designed me to do. I wrote. I took pictures. I sewed. I set the timer so I could stop in time to pick up the kids. It was a good day. Thank you, Holly, for asking an important and needed question. I appreciate it!