HTML Map

6.29.2021

Well Its Basically August and Summer is Over

 

I was talking with a friend, where I laid out how because we leave on our trip in 10 days(!!) my mind is consumed by prep for that, and that our trip takes up the majority of July, and when we return it takes a week or so to unpack and resettle and I have to jump immediately back into teaching/mapping/possible doula client, which takes us right into August and school prep because Gwen goes back on the 16th, so its basically August and summer is over. 

Woooo-saaaaa 

Hi, my name is Meegs, I'm a Leo, and I can be slightly dramatic sometimes.

Pride Face - Good Drama
 
 
But seriously, I cannot believe its already going to be July this week! Can someone come pack for me?


I did get to spend some lovely down time this past weekend doing yoga at Red Rocks with Hanny and Alex, which was lovely. And went to Pride with Gwenie. I needed that. 
 
There is so much good happening, special things and daily things, but woo doggie is the time just going too fast. How is your summer going?

6.24.2021

Little Bit

There has been plenty to celebrate lately... Girl Scout trip to Great Wolf Lodge (indoor water park, mini golf, ropes course, and more!), Father's Day (pedicures! and Chinese food!), and Litha (a good whole house clean, and dinner with my sister and sister-in-law) specifically... but also just the little things. Summer days, visits from extended family, and plans for more travel soon.



It's only about 2 weeks until Gwen and I start heading East. I'm so excited to see Panda (who moved to AK from Colorado earlier this year), do some camping, and of course, see my parents!! It is getting harder and harder to leave Daisy behind (even when we're leaving her with Travis!), the older she gets. At least this time I'll be coming back with a new tattoo... of Daisy! It will be nice to have days that feel like our old summer days.

We've all been feeling the stress a bit lately. Balancing work with Gwen home for the summer, and suddenly even having a few extra things to do seems like so much to do after over a year of just, not doing things. This too will pass, but a few weeks of travel and visiting is just what the doctor ordered, I think. Then when we get home, its only 3 weeks until Middle School! 😵 Its hard to wrap my head around that. 

Its hard to figure out what to write... there's so much in my head that its hard to even organize it in any way. But I wanted to at least check in. Happy June y'all.

6.10.2021

Travel 2 years in the Making

Gwen finished Elementary School on the last Friday of May (my baby 😭), and boy did I feel some feelings about that. But in all our wisdom we had planned a trip, our first as a family since pre-pandemic!, to visit with Travis's family in Arizona for the very next week. This is the first road trip Travis has joined us on in a while... and, Daisy joined us too. It was so fun to go somewhere with all of us (especially as Daisy gets older, its harder to leave her behind... even with people she loves, and who love her).

It was 50°s and raining when we left Colorado... which made for an interesting and extreme adjustment to the very dry and 102° temps in Arizona! But, luck for us, Nana and PopPop have a pool. In fact, Gwen spent at least some time in that pool every single day in AZ. 

What else did we do? Well, we ate and read, walked around town, and took a pretty amazing cruise around Lake Saguaro.




The pictures are all kinds of mish-mashed, but hey, I'm here and writing something I want to remember! So I'm not too worries. Ha!


So I've said it before, I'm really a forest/mountain girl, but I'll admit that the desert has a strange and lovely beauty to it, so different from anywhere else. 



I'm so glad we got to see Trav's parents, it was a really lovely trip.



I drove the trip down straight through, leaving early and arriving after dinner; but we broke the ride home up into two days. We drove to Sante Fe, visited our favorite dinner, then drove the rest of the way home the next day.

It was so nice to see people again, to get on the road again. Thankfully, this summer Gwen and I will hop in the car again to travel to the East Coast! And hopefully I'll even get around to writing about that too  😉

6.07.2021

Movement In the Storm

I wrote this August of 2020, but just getting around to sharing! I'll try to do that more. 

 

I pack myself some water, lace up my good shoes, and head out onto the trail. So much of my day is noticing all that is different, all that has changed, all that is lost since March of 2020. I’m mad, disappointed, numb in rotating intervals. My faith in humanity shaken. The only break from that is when I encourage the miles to pass beneath my feet. 

When I walk, everything slows. 

One mile. 

The rain started to fall. It wasn’t heavy, but it was consistent, so I found myself hesitating – should I go back? Not for long though before the urge to walk overcame me and on I went. The rain danced little patterns on my skin, feeling so refreshingly cool, and drawing designs on the path in front of me. It was empty as far as I could see, no one else choosing to brave the storm. The more dirt that fell away under my feet, the worries more I felt wash away as well. 

Two miles. 

Out in nature there is no illusion of control. You do what you can, but nature is wild and denies your attempts to keep it in check. So, you learn to let go. I’m not always so great at that in the rest of life. I hold on to the illusion that I can keep my pre-teen daughter safely under my wing forever; that I can stop the slow of time in our old black Lab. I want to control my employers who shut down, or made cuts, and stop people from acting without regard to the pandemic at hand. None of this is actually in my control, but I still cling to it. Until I get on that path. 

Three miles. 

I lean my head back and taste the rain on my tongue. My shoulders have loosened, my hands release. Sometimes I take in the flowers and shrubs around me, waiting eagerly to arrive at my favorite copse of trees. Sometimes I listen to a podcast, sometimes I just let my mind wander as the steps fall away. On this day, I walk in silence. I listening to the padding of my feet and the rain, watching the clouds move across the sky, feeling the cool breeze. My mind wanders to the weeks ahead, making plans, and actually feeling excited. 

Four miles. 

The rain stops, the air is so fresh. Blue skies start to peek out, and while the storm passes, the path stays clear. It is mine alone today. For the rest of the walk I let my mind be still and clear. Storms often come to clear the air, and I’m reminded today that they always pass. 

Five miles. 

I can see my house approaching, my warm shower waiting. As I step inside, I smell dinner cooking, and am greeted with a wagging tail and curious nose. I hear my daughter yell from the living room, wanting to tell me about her latest toy creation, and my husband drops a kiss on my head on his way past. I take a deep full breath, and thank the storm.