a mini-trip

Back in September (I'm still catching up!) we met my parents in St. Louis for a quick weekend trip.  Rowan's immune system apparently sensed a fun trip away and she got pretty ill on the Friday we were supposed to go.  We waited it out, and were able to meet up with my parents the next morning, where she was back to her own cheeky self.

Although we've lived an hour and a half away from St. Louis for over 2 years now, we've never done the touristy stuff with my parents!  We all decided an Anheuser-Busch tour was in order.   So a brewery tour might seem strange for an outing with kiddos.  But the littles loved seeing the stables and the Clydesdales.  And the grownups all loved the free beer!  Win win.  We also went to the arch and took the tiny little capsule elevators to the top to enjoy a perfect-day view.  

And we took them to our favorite place in St. Louis, the botanic gardens!  I can't get enough of the gardens, and we literally stayed until closing.  Pretty sure my parents loved it, too.

 But really, those fish mouths?  Hilarious and only slightly creepy.

It was a perfect little trip away, or almost perfect!  We could have used a couple more days.  But isn't that always the case?

treehouse living

This past weekend we packed our car to the gills with food, blankets, and books and took off for a treehouse in the woods!  We met our friends, Lacy and Dan, and their sweet baby at the campsite, which was heaven on earth for our kiddos.  There was of course the treehouse we stayed in, a big pool, a little lake with paddle boats, and tons of nature to dig around in.  And I was in heaven because there was air conditioning, hard cider, great conversation with friends, and a good book to read.

It was hot and humid, but it didn't matter.  There were cold drinks and a cool place to sleep at night.  All the time in and on the water really wore the kiddos out, and so there was a lot of rest time in Dan and Lacy's hammock, and Rowan even put herself down for a nap when she got sleepy.

The treehouse was actually built on a steep hill, so it wasn't in a tree.  We could walk straight onto the deck from a dirt path, but when we walked around the deck to the back, there was a long drop down to the ground.  We really were among the trees out on our little deck!  And our friend's treehouse was right in conversation distance from our deck.

We had a few cooking mishaps including blackened pizza crust one night, and forgetting about the oil bubbling on the fire.  So an oil fire gets really exciting in the woods!  Once the fire died down, Brian took the dutch oven off the fire, opened the lid, and a yellow cloud of smoke floated up from a now empty pot.  A quick trip into town for cooking oil and we were back in donut-making business.  Which are necessary for a successful camping trip, if you weren't aware.  

The little cried when we had to leave, and announced wishes to live in a treehouse all the time.  I may have fallen in love with the idea, too.

the cave

Now that Spring has definitely made an appearance here, we've been going out and exploring more and more.  I take the middle of nowhere Missouri for granted a lot, because frankly, it's easy to do it.  There just isn't much around here, until the weather cooperates, that is!  And then there are a lot of fun outdoor places to have adventures.  (But seriously, is a Target too much to ask?)  Last Friday, Brian took us onto base where there is a really beautiful caved perched high on a cliff.  The littles really really loved it.  And I loved it too, but I have a touch of claustrophobia, so I sat out the smaller enclosures of the cave.  The cave had openings all around where we could see the river running below, and pastoral scenes of cattle and horses roaming across the river.  Just a warning, there be cracks ahead.  And I'm not talking about the ones in stone...

 There was a large tree growing out of one of the openings. It was peaceful and serene, and we stayed for hours exploring.

 Since it was on the base, we weren't too surprised to find group of soldiers in one opening of the cave. But what we weren't expecting was to hear a really motivating and engrossing speech given to the NCO's in training.  It almost made me want to become an non-commissioned officer, too!

We have a number of other places on our list to explore before things go from warm and sunny to unbearably hot and humid!  Where are you planning on exploring this Spring?

trestle gawking

So in my last post, I said I'd share our "pretty view" pictures tomorrow.  I meant to say in 5 tomorrows. Yes.  That is what I meant.  On the last day of Spring Break, it was warm and sunny, so we all decided some exploring was in order.  There are a lot of rolling hills and beautiful valleys here in mid-Missouri. And not much else!  Brian found this old trestle bridge right off of Route 66, not too far from us to go check out.  It was built in the 40's to bring supplies to Ft. Leonard Wood. We drove to the overlook, and then got out to gawk at the valley below.  So beautiful!

 We found a cocoon that was jumping around, and it was fun to hold and feel the life fluttering inside to get out.

 Rowan was a little scared about walking the wall that overlooked the bridge.  I don't blame her, it made my stomach drop a little.  It wasn't a straight drop down, there was a sloping hill, so we weren't endangering our lives here.

 Fletcher, on the other hand, was a little daredevil, leaning far over and laughing when I gasped.  He's trying to shorten my life, I just know it.

 We drove around a little more and found this old wooden train bridge.  It was impressively large and intricate.  And I would not want to be any where near it when a train passed over.

It's always good for the soul to go explore a little.  And it's a treat to find special places tucked away just down the road from us.  Now that winter has surrendered, let the outdoor adventures begin!

tree bonfire

Last weekend we had our Christmas tree bonfire.  I love Christmas tree bonfires.  They go up so quickly and so gloriously in flames!  Add in a bit of a windy day, and things get exciting.  I used the opportunity to take a load of pictures of the littles (who were disappointed that we didn't have marshmallows on hand).  And I used the opportunity to burn a list of bad habits or mindsets that I want to shed in 2014.

Since 2014 started out on such a sad note for us, we didn't really have a chance to talk about what our hopes and wishes were for the year.  My own hopes and wishes have had to go through a major adjustment.  So I thought that instead of trying to figure out new hopes and wishes, I'd do well with letting go of the rubbish in my life.

 And I tried to get the littles to smile and pose for me.  If Rowan is aware of the camera, I get a lot of goofing off.  And funny faces.  Her teacher told me that she's the class clown.  I believe it, lady.  I believe it.  Fletcher tends to ignore the camera.  It's all equally frustrating.

 Since it was a bit windy, we had the kids stand a ways back from the flames.  We all watched as the fire whooshed up to the sky quickly, and then settled back down after the needles from the tree were burned.  It was a pretty fire.

 And that is how I hope 2014 goes for us.  That the intensity, sadness, and scariness that 2014 began with wanes into a comforting, peaceful rhythm that can somehow be beautiful in the midst of the wreckage.