By Plane or By Sea

“Normal day, let me be aware of the treasure you are. 
Let me learn from you, love you, bless you before you depart. 
Let me not pass you by in quest of some rare and perfect tomorrow. 
Let me hold you while I may, for it may not always be so. 
One day I shall dig my nails into the earth, or bury my face in the pillow, or stretch myself taut, or raise my hands to the sky and want, more than all the world, your return.”

Mary Jean Irion

This week was a good and full one. 

Lots of the "normal" days, mixed in with some extra fun days. 

Every evening at 8:00, all devices and such are turned off, and everyone can choose to read or go to sleep. 

The boys are stoked on reading lately. Evan is reading the Amulet series, and Andrew is into Dogman. 

I love Dogman...there are so many references to literature that go right over the kids' heads. 

Monday and Thursday are soccer days. I am coaching with this gal - also named Kelly. 

It is fun and we make a great team. 

This year the 6th graders are mixed with 5th graders, and I'm challenged by the younger girls. So many of them are right on the verge of greatness, and it's fun to watch them emerge every practice, every game. 

Jim has been working all week on painting the cabinets and adding this thicker trim to the the island. I can't wait to show you the "after". 

Wednesday we took the young women out on some boats for shark fishing. 

Brinn was the first to have success with this beautiful flounder. She took it home, cut it up and ate it. 

All the other girls on my boat also caught some little bullheads...

...and then I took a turn with the fishing pole. I felt a bite and started reeling it in. It was so hard to reel! I didn't know there was a shark on the hook, and I was confused as to why it was taking all my muscle power? 

Then I saw this big white thing, and my reel was at a stalemate. I really didn't think I would be able to bring it in, but I managed, and there was this giant shark! I was so amped. It is my first time fishing and first fish I've ever caught. haha. 

Look at my pinky sticking out as I'm "holding" it.  I feared it might bite me. 

After much success, we motored back to shore with the sunset on our backs. 

Thursday after soccer practice we went to the Elementary School open house. 

Evan is loving his class this year. 

He is student of the week this week!

Here is his self portrait. 

We went to see the finished mural they worked on all last year. They are pointing to the specific little items they drew/painted. Avery drew cat tails and Evan, a jellyfish. 

Friday I went on a 9 mile trail run all by myself. I'm usually with a friend or Jim. Doing it alone is...lonely. At the half point, when I was at the top of the mountain, I just wanted to be done.

I had no choice but to run back down the mountain. 

That evening, Avery got ready for her first middle school "dance".

They had a blast. 

Lindsay took Avery to the dance because the rest of us went to Padden with the Blacks for probably the last of the Padden season. The park was deserted the whole time. 

We stayed until the sun went down. 

Good bye Summer. It's officially Fall. 

Saturday we had lots of soccer games. 

Me and Avery had our first win of the season! 

A highlight was when little, timid Katherine (5th grader) scored a goal! I couldn't believe it. 

The boys didn't win, but Evan had his best game ever.

Andrew does a lot of "pretending" to be invested in what's going on around him. 

That night we rented an airplane and flew to Friday Harbor for some dinner. 

We hired Avery and Bea to babysit - with fingers crossed that the boys wouldn't be too difficult for them. 

I got a few texts from Avery like: 

"The ice cream truck is here!"

this picture with the caption: 

"the sagebrush lane gang"

Then:

"This is chaotic."

"When are you coming home?"

They did a treasure hunt and some other games. 

There was an incident where Evan was upset and was screaming at them, but I got reports: 

"we calmed him down and they are watching Curious George Boo Fest in your bed."

We came home to a sparkling clean house, top to bottom, and two happy boys! 

I paid them extra for the sparkling house. 

Meanwhile, we had so much fun. 

I always get a tad bit nervous flying in these little toaster ovens, but it was smooth and calm and just beautiful. 

Lisa found these sweet glasses in the seat pocket. 

We dinked around Friday Harbor and ate dinner and cracked jokes and it was so great.

Then we flew home in the dark. 

I've been thinking about this current station of life I'm in.

The kids are so funny and clever. They are so busy and smart.

They are social and are always playing out in the street with friends. 

A few nights ago, I watched old videos from when they were babies. 

It was mind bending to see where we have come from.

I am now in the "middle phase" of parenting, and it is thrilling. There is so much freedom, but not a lot is yet at stake. They are still innocent and problems are solved relatively easily. They are independent and excited about their own individual lives they experience at school and with friends. 

We are a good balance of "together" and "separate".

It's all such good stuff, and I'm thankful. 

Ptarmigan Ridge

Thursdays are mountain days.

Jim has Thursdays off.

This day we did Ptarmigan because it's one of my favorites.

Jim is picking wild huckleberries. They are so delicious. 

We are up above the tree line the whole 8 miles. 

It's just breathtaking.

We get back home in time for the kids to get off the bus. 

Our legs are sore and tired.

That evening I cancel soccer practice (so much rain!),

go to the middle school open house and meet Avery's amazing teachers. They are the BEST. 

All evening long when I adjust my tired legs, I think back to the mere hours before when we were running on top of the mountain peaks with glacier clad mountains all around us. 

School's In Sesh

The FIRST day of school is sad for me, but I get over it real quick. 

The kids are having such a ball this new year. All three of them cannot WAIT for the morning when they can go back to school. They were sad when it was Labor Day and we had the day off.

So naturally Jim and I feel good about enjoying ourselves as well. The first week they were in school, we were at Galbraith every day but Sunday, biking or running. 

Galbraith has all kinds of weird random things like this all over its trails. 

I started mountain biking with Jim and it is so fun,

but it is only fun if I don't have to go anywhere near the trails that he rides. 

My trails are nice and mellow, and I am starting to get comfortable - dare I say - even confident. 

Friday I went with him to his side of the mountain and I remembered half way through the brutal climb that I have a rule: when Jim says "come with me" I say "NO".

haha

His side of the mountain is way more interesting and pretty, but still: NO.

I have so much more fun on my trails. 

But it was fun to see him do his thing. He's so good. 

Some other things this week:

The kids' Nexus passes expired, so they got new pictures. 

Here's Andrew's...

Don't you think they should get a picture of his face looking AT the CAMERA? 

Saturday afternoon at Deception Pass with the Blacks,

Soccer season is in full swing!

I made sure to arrange it so that we practice at the same time and day. Monday and Thursdays are our soccer days. 

Saturday all three kids' games were at the exact same time as well. It was a soccer miracle.

We had enough time in our Saturday for a Padden sesh. Joe's knee is "good enough" to ride again! Order has been restored in the Black/Larsen relationship. 

Today I taught the lesson to my favorite teenagers. They drew this rendition of Lehi's Dream. 

They are so smart. For real smart. 

Two new things we gleaned from Lehi's Dream:

The great and spacious building is hovering about the ground with no foundation, no stability. The tree has roots. Deep roots that mimic a solid foundation. 

Also the great and spacious building "has room for everyone". It's so roomy. It's not difficult to wander in and get comfortable. 

Side note: When we were camping at Sucia this summer, we were staring at the fire and I mused "don't you want to reach out and eat one of those coals?" and Olivia (the girl in black/stripes) was all,

"Like the Imp of the Perverse! I just read an Edgar Allen Poe story about the Imp of the Perverse who does things that he knows is self destructive, but he does it anyway....etc etc".

And we discussed that concept and it was great,

and that kind of random connection to literature is my favorite and I love her so much. 

She's a senior this year, boo hoo for me. 

And lastly, we had a street "meeting" in our driveway (minutes after our neighbor had a bit of a domestic dispute situation that got loud and uncomfortable and all the kids were staring as they rode by on their bikes) to debrief on the gossip. 

Yikes.