Doing Hard Things

One of the things that I really want my kids to know is that they can do hard things.  

I want them to be able to look in the face of life's challenges and know that deep down inside that with  hard work, perseverance, and a firm faith and trust in God's plan that they can overcome.  

Whether it be a huge project, a health challenge, a difficult relationship, or  whatever it is that may make them feel overwhelmed… I want them to know that with God, nothing is impossible.   He will be there to ease their burdens, comfort their hurts, and give them strength beyond their own to face their challenges.

To help our kids to internalize this very important piece of knowledge, we like to participate in family activities that are physically challenging.   It is our hope that by giving them opportunities to push the limits of their physical capacities, that they will learn that they are strong and can do hard things.  

Yesterday we climbed a mountain.   

Sure it was a far cry from hiking to a mountaintop in the Rockies, but it was still a hard hike that was a challenge for us.    

Today we participated in a ropes course at Treetops Adventure Park in Asheville. 

We strapped on our protective gear...

and scaled through the treetops for a few hours.  

We ziplined...

climbed across precarious bridges...

made new friends...

and in general pushed ourselves to new heights. 

Most of us started off a little tentatively, 

but after traipsing through some of the easier courses, 

we gained confidence and soon were scaling to new heights.

Adam and Glen made it through four of the five courses (blue, green, yellow, orange)...

While Cami and Emma sailed through all five, including the black diamond of them all….the red course.  The red course was the highest of all the courses and had the most difficult tasks to perform, including walking across the infamous hanging hula hoop trek.  I watched a grown man scream all the way through that task!

 We had mentioned Ellie's seizures to the staff before starting, but  they seemed unconcerned by them since she would be strapped into her harness securely at all times.  She ended up having several seizures while on the courses, but thankfully she  made it through the blue and green courses a couple times each without incident.  By the end she was a pro at hooking and "tweezling" her carabiners herself!  

After a few hours of working hard, we were all exhausted, hungry and dripping with sweat.  

But we were also beaming with a sense of accomplishment that we CAN do hard things!!!  

(And enjoy a sweet reward at the end!)

The "No Dam" Vacation--- Day 1

Last week we sent Spence back to JMU.   He took our minivan stuffed full with the gear he and his cat Zeus will need for his sophomore year of school.  Our house was instantly quieter and cleaner, but still we all miss him like crazy.  

Shortly after that, Cami went to the courthouse for her driver's licensing ceremony.  Virginia state law requires that new drivers dress up in their finest and have the bajeebies scared out of them one last time before handing them their official driver's license.   Let's hope they scared her good!

After that we packed up our car and headed to North Carolina for a much needed vacation.   

On the way there, I officially quit our homeschool co-op for this coming year.  It was a very difficult decision to make, but in the end I decided that it was going to be the best thing for our family.  I hope that I can find a regular social outlet for them (and for me) that will be as meaningful to us as the co-op was this past year.  

We are staying in this beautiful cabin near Asheville, NC.   It was cheaper than a hotel and way, way, way nicer.  We love the great location and all the space to spread out.  

And the kids are loving the hot tub! 

The fire pit though, was not a success.   The damp air proved to be too much for these two boy scouts ... even with a lighter, several "helpers", newspaper, kindling, and logs.  

 We never did get more than a quick little blaze going! 

 Thank goodness for stovetops though, so we could still have our s'mores.  

We've only been here a day, but we've already gone to church in a very small branch,  played in a waterfall...

and climbed a mountain!  

 It was a long, steep hike that challenged the olders of the bunch (Glen and I)...

but it was also fun.  

There were streams to ford, cool log bridges to pass over, rocks to scramble over, and...

 an absolutely stunning view when we got to the top! 

 We are all excited for a great week of relaxing and enjoying spending time together in this gorgeous part of the world….  

…even if it means allowing myself to appear in a few of the pictures.  Boy, there's nothing like a photo to give you a good dose of reality about how you really look! :(

On another note, my kids found this notepad in a gift shop and instantly decided that I "needed" it.   

I don't know what they're talking about though...

 I haven't been on a dam hike in at least two weeks.

********************************** 

In the Last Week….

• Spence got a cat and headed back to Harrisonburg for his sophomore year at JMU!  I am not pleased with JMU apartment cleanliness standards and opted to use the restroom at the gas station rather than using the one in his apartment that clearly had not been cleaned in a very long time.  Ewwww! 

• Everyone in my presidency was out of town and I manned the food at a stake dance almost entirely by myself.  Thank goodness the Bishop's wife stopped by and stayed to help for a while! 

• Cami got her wisdom teeth out and hiked up a mountain (Old Rag) with friends.  (see pics below)

• Glen's been working like crazy lately.  He will be more than ready for our vacation when it rolls around!

• I've used Nyquil and Benadryl for the first time in my life (not at the same time though!) so that I can get a little sleep with this nasty cold I've had that's going on two plus weeks!  

• Glen got a new calling in the HP and will be released from his Primary Chorister calling soon.  He is bummed.

• I took Ellie, Adam, and Emma to a Lego Fair.  It was very cool (see pics below)! 

• Cami and Emma have been avoiding eating dairy and gluten.  Why?   Just for the heck of it.

• Ellie and Adam both bore their testimonies on Fast Sunday and melted my heart!

• We saw a juvenile yellow-crowned night heron hanging out at our pool the other day.   It's endangered in several states, so we felt very cool seeing it!  (see pic below)

Cami and friend, Graham

Cole, Maddie, Graham, Cami, Katy, and Frank at the top of Old Rag

Immature Yellow-Crowned Night Heron

Wisdom vs. Ice Cream

Random Fact #1:   I am 41-years-old and still have 3 of my 4 wisdom teeth. 

Random Fact #2:  As of Wednesday morning, Cami now has 0 wisdom teeth. 

Random Fact #3:  According to my calculations that fact makes me approximately 3 times wiser than Cami and  the average American.

Random Fact #4:   Cami comes out of anesthesia really really talkative and giggly.

   

Through the whole drive home, Cami carried on a mostly one-sided bubbly, unfiltered, gauze-mouthed stream of consciousness conversation with me!     

***********************

Cami:  "Mom, I rea-wee want to go on a Ssssegway tour."

Me:  "Should we see if we can do that when we come for your follow-up?"

Cami:  "No!  I want to go now!  Can you imagine how it would feel to ride a Segway down the sidewa....Oh! Did you see that lady?   She looked like Emma!   Do you think there are deer in the city?  I like baby deer...I wonder where they live in the city.  Let's stop at Jamba Juice!  Oh!  Sister W asked me to babysit tonight!  Segways are sooooo cool. "  

*************************

Random Fact #5:  In the last 24-hours Cami has consumed every variety of frozen treat known to man. Ice cream, frozen yogurt, frozen custard, smoothie, slurpee, etc.

It's enough that I am thinking of getting my wisdom teeth out now too.



**************************

Saying Goodbye to the Chicks

Remember the little baby chicks in our bathtub from a few weeks ago?  

Well, I am pleased to say that with Ellie's, Adam's, and Emma's tender loving care that...

Rose....                                            Felix.....                                                and Stripe....

are all grown up....

and now free ranging it at Shelly's farm (pics coming soon)!  

And the best part of all?

Getting rid of the chicks meant we had room for Spence to bring home a new pet.    

Spence adopted Zeus from the animal shelter on Saturday.    Spence and Zeus are only here for a couple more days until Spence heads back to school this week, but Zeus has already become a well-loved figure in our home.

Except for Rocky (our dog).  He hates Zeus with a passion and barks incessantly at the closed door where the cat is staying until Spence leaves.

I think that he thinks that he's protecting us from the "big, bad" cat, that's actually quite sweet and nice, but all he's really doing is ensuring that the next pet we welcome into our home is more likely to be a quiet, easygoing feline instead of an obnoxious barky, underwear chewing canine.

*****************************