There are many things I want to teach our girls, but something that is really important to me is to instill in them a sense of adventure. I know I have mentioned this before and it most definitely will come up again. It’s something we strive for on a large scale, but also in our day to day with them. I want Rowan and Finley to see the world with wide eyes, to see it’s possibilities and to charge ahead ready to explore. I want them to see the best in things, to make the most out of every situation, to be adaptable, and easy going. I love bringing them to experience new things. As I was doing a little research about where to go on vacation last week, I came across some message boards of people debating about bringing kids on certain vacations. They wrote “they wont remember”, “it’s a waste of money”, and “it’s not worth the hassle”. For a moment I wondered if this was something I agreed with. I decided that for our family (hear my when I say OUR FAMILY), these statements are so far from the truth. Yes. I agree that my kids may not remember a lot of the adventures we take them on at this point in their lives. However, that doesn’t mean they aren’t shaping their little minds into who they are growing up to be. I see Rowan soaking up information like a sponge now a days. Why would I not want to fill her little mind with art, culture, and new experiences. Is it always the most fun, most memorable experience? Ha! Far from it sometimes. But bringing them to do and see new things helps us live out those attributes we want to teach them. To see that sometimes things don’t go as planned. To see it’s worth the trouble of doing something outside of your comfort level and to make the most out of something when it goes wrong. It also helps teach Kev and I to be more easy going as parents, to go with the flow better and to laugh over ridiculous situations. Because when kids are involved of course things get crazy sometimes. Our kids health and well being are always first and foremost, but that doesn’t mean we have to be tied ball and chain to their schedule. This also doesn’t mean you have to plan some extravagant vacation. This is not just about vacations. It can be small. We look for opportunities in our small town daily life. You will be surprised at how many things are out there to go try and share with your little ones.

A few weeks ago Kev was away on the Men’s Retreat with our church. It was the same weekend as the Adirondack Balloon Festival. I’ve always really wanted to go, but have heard you have to leave by 3am if you want to get anywhere near where they take off for the sunrise launch. I debated it all night. It was going to be just me, and the kids, at 3 am… Was I crazy? Anyway, 1 hour of sleep later I woke up, bundled the kids up, packed lots of snacks and blankets and made our way up north. Honestly, it was the cutest thing ever. Both girls stayed awake the entire ride up. Rowan sang me songs and we talked about hot air balloons. There was something kind of magical about being up at 3am on the road headed on an adventure. We waited around for the balloons to take off but the overcast weather and rain kind of put a damper on the situation. At first I was super bummed and than that turned into frustration. I was tired, had woke the girls up super early, and only 3 out of the 100+ balloons that were suppose to take off were even blown up. Here is where I learned my own lesson. We were sitting on the blanket, just the three of us and I looked at Rowan. There she was smiling ear to ear. She was watching the sun rise and in awe of the 3 balloons being blown up. She didn’t know the difference and in that moment neither did I.

Here is a little video I made of our early morning…