Surprise!

It was my dad's 60th birthday on Saturday. My dad has a twin brother and so there was dual cause for celebration. 

 Far more daring & tricky secret squirrels than I planned them a surprise party. 

{cake by my talented cousin Kayla}

All day leading up to the party I was nervous for him. I was nervous for the rest of us too. I wasn't sure how he would react to unknowingly being lured into a room full of people staring at him. He and I are two birds of a feather and I dreaded that moment for him. Worst nightmare. The soul focus of all attention (I think I might throw up now) is an uncomfortable spotlight for people like us. 

But he took it like a champ, and in the end I think it was actually fun for him to see all of our family and friends. Halfway through the party I handed the camera off to the kids. They took turns snapping pictures. Seeing the party from their viewpoint was so fun! As blurry as some of the pictures turned out (read: no flash, low lights, and wiggly photographers) I love looking at the things that caught their eye.

Balloons, cupcakes, and babies...

Grandpa hugs and boring grown-up conversations (Laurel can't even...) 

Happy faces and purple hair! (We love you Meleah)

I think adults should have more birthday parties. The older we get, and the more we go through, accomplish, and savor...the more cause for celebration! Right? 

My dad means the world to me and I'm so happy that we were able to gather together and mark this day as one to be set aside to honor him and his brother. 

Surprise! Happy Birthday Dad (and Uncle Mike), you are better than ever!

planning for adventure

Adventure. Sometimes it finds you (like when you unexpectedly become unemployed as a single parent with 4 kids and a house payment- that's adventurous), and sometimes you plan for it (like when you've had a helluva week and you and your best friend set aside a day together and decide that you should try snowshoeing- that's also adventurous). 

So you block out time. You pack snacks (and maybe drinks). You borrow gear. You bundle up. You do something different with someone who's the best kind of familiar. You make a goal to get a little lost. You set an intention to get out and be silly. You smile a little when you think of the very real possibility of mischief.   

You consult trail maps. You look at webcams. You read trip reports. You charge your camera battery. You put silly things in your backpack like extra socks and matches and more granola bars than you could ever eat in a couple of hours... just in case. This is all preparation for spontaneity. All of the setting aside of time and pulling together of details used to bother me. I used to feel as if the scheduling and planning took the adventure out of having an adventure. Now I see it as taking the necessary steps to free myself up for fun. I can be present and wander off the beaten path when I've equipped myself to do so. 

And then you just go. You ignore your phone, your email, your schedule, your kids, your clients, your aching heart, your dwindling bank account, your tiniest little worries, and...

You just go. 

I can't tell you what comes next. It's a grab bag. Hopefully you stay safe (mostly). Hopefully you end up back in your own bed at night. Hopefully you take at least one picture. Hopefully you fall a little bit more in love with your life and the people that you share it with. Guaranteed you will create memories. 

 You just never know what kind of adventure you'll have, but at least you planned for it. 

Here are a few of my favorite links for adventure planning

Washington Trails Association

Wenatchee Outdoors

Adventure Wenatchee

Mission Ridge

Steven's Pass

Google Earth

From the desk of...

This is what my office looks like today:

View fullsize

It's amazing how time flies when you're working on something that you're passionate about. I finally made myself go ALL THE WAY upstairs just now to make breakfast. (It's noon.) 

The extra free time that I've recently been granted has allowed me to put some some much-needed love into rebranding, reorganizing, and very soon reintroducing my natural birth classes and workshops. I'm giddy!

It's hardly work if you ask me. Making things look pretty, writing about healthy mamas and happy babies, thinking about the best kind of support and encouragement needed for women and their amazingly powerful and creative bodies... ahhhh! I can't wait to show you. 

Back to the grindstone... ;)