August 2018

Oh my beloved summit pass.

My favorite place in all the world, maybe. I think it’s these mountains that gave me a love for mountains and valleys and hiking and camping and backpacking. I’m always really happy here.

Even if it’s pouring down rain. Thought it’s much more pleasant when it’s not! This short trip there was a lot of rain and a lot of chilly weather. Apollo had his rain suit (AND LOOKED ADORABLE), but we could’ve been better prepared. We took a couple friends with us this year and had a really nice time together. We really only saw each other while hiking though, because the rest of the time we were waiting out the rain in our tents, or setting up/packing up camp. Funny.

There were LOADS of watermelon berries along the trail and Apollo looooved it. Nice little trail snack. And as you can see, I carried Apollo, and Chris pretty much carried everything else, with the exception of a couple things in Edel’s pack. I had never packed so lightly for a camping trip! Could’ve used more warm clothes. :)

Happier campers when the rain stopped! LOVE THIS KID. And he loved the river – Summit Creek, which comes from Summit Lake. Oh beloved Summit Pass. <3

Almost every morning when Apollo wakes up, we start our day with some journal drawing. And of course some cuddling! And honestly, some days I wake up to him yelling, “Mom!” next to me then slapping me in the head to wake me up. It’s funny to write that, but not so funny when it happens.

So I have a notebook journal that we use each morning. It’s always on my nightstand along with a few pens and maybe a colored pencil. Once Apollo is awake enough, he points to that red owl notebook and says, “draw.” Sometimes I reach over and grab it for him or other times he crawls over me and walks all over the nightstand, knocking things over and grabbing the supplies he wants. Then he climbs back between Chris and me and we start drawing.

We find an empty page and he requests things for us to draw. At first it was always circles, then hearts and babies, and now he’s into boats and Earth and planets and Mars and stars and spaceships. Sometimes he’ll put the pen into one our hands and tell us what to draw, and sometimes he takes the pen or pencil in his left or right hand and colors his own circles and scribbles.

Once I feel ready to get out of bed and start the day, we put the journal away and go brush our teeth. Sometimes Chris is present for all these morning moments, but now that seminary has begun, he’s usually already gone.

I’m so grateful for all the time I get to spend with Apollo and the simple things he teaches me. We love our boy and are looking forward to meeting our new babe in February.

PS I want to journal more. It’s important to me.

Some puddles ahead and some puddles behind. Apollo likes to splash in them all. ❤️

Yesterday I was telling Chris that I wished our driveway weren’t so bumpy, but today I’m realizing how much Apollo loves these bumps and puddles. He likes to fill them with big rocks and small rocks and throw dirt in them. Such a darling boy he is.

Summer is a great time. There’s challenges like allergies, Chris being super busy, Edel, money, feeling extra sleepy and a little pregnant, and our lawn growing incredibly fast, but summer is a beautiful adventure time. Here’s a few random pictures of some happy grand moments.

Stacy has been here for the past month which is AWESOME. And my BFF Carla came up for some days too. <3 So good. And Apollo is an incredibly adorable boy who fills me with love and joy. AND there’s another baby growing in my belly which is equally exciting. Can’t wait for the belly to grow more and more and more.