Birthday Season

Birthday season is intense. 

Heidi - December 5th

Joel - December 15th 

Elizabeth - December 26th

Josiah - January 1st

Joseph - January 6th

Noah - March 4th

...and that's just us. A half a dozen extended family members make birthday season last from November through April. 

We don't do big presents or spend big money on birthdays (nothing wrong with that). We save that for Easter. For birthday season we focus on experiences and creating memories. We also don't begrudge getting older, we celebrate it! 

The past year represents us having done the best we knew how to do....and like Maya Angelou wrote, "Now that you know better, you'll do better." We celebrate the hard lessons and make it a point to speak affirmations related to the coming year. Birthdays recount the story of who we are and who we are becoming! 

These are good days

Elizabeth is 9 years old!

Elizabeth is 9!

For her birthday she wanted to:

1. Go on a hike
2. Hang out with her cousin 
3. Eat spaghetti that she made herself 
4. Eat cake 

She got it all! Thank you for so many of you who pray and support our family. Our kids are thriving and we know that you are part of that! 

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Today is my 35th birthday

Today is my 35th birthday.  5 years ago on my 30th birthday year we did an Ironman triathlon.  It was really fun and we were really fit.  But this year, my 35th year, I believe is going to be my healthiest year yet.     

I am calling it my "year of health"....and it includes even more fitness than when I was 30.  I want to experience more spiritual fitness -- specifically more silence and solitude for communion with the Lord.  I want to experience more emotional fitness - more gratitude and more grace.  I want to experience more physical fitness - I am training for two half-marathon trail races this year.  

For years, Heidi wakes up early on my birthday to set out picture of my past which represent stories worth remembering.  It was striking how many were pictures of me in the mountains, on dates, at church, and with friends - these are the things of health.

Please pray for me that this year is my healthiest year yet!

These are good days     

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Elizabeth is 8!

It's cliché to say, "it goes fast."  But....it does.  It goes fast. 

We asked her what she wanted to do on her birthday,

she said, "I want to wake up and open presents, eat breakfast, go on a hike, pick up my cousin to play at our house, and sleep in a tent tonight."  

lol.  OK, that works.

Let's do it! 

Here is a picture journey from this morning: 

...and tonight it's tent life.

It goes fast and we are loving every moment of it!

These are good days

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When it's Christmas time...we think about birthdays.

The Christmas season is crazy for our family.  

3 birthdays in December

2 birthdays in January

....that's 5 birthdays in 32 days. 

Heidi's birthday was earlier this month...and to celebrate, she wanted to go rock climbing.   

We climbed a very fun climb at Tollhouse Rock named the Tollhouse Traverse with a few variations mixed in.    

We have been climbing together for over a third of our lives.  We have climbed all over the world on many different types of rock....but California's granite has to be some of the best out there!  

Something I love about Heidi is that she has never been "scared" of climbing.  For her, the antidote to fear is curiosity.  She is a learner and has a insatiable appetite to acquire new skills.  This has made climbing a life-long pursuit for for the both of us.  

Tollhouse Traverse follows a beautiful sweeping crack in the Sierra foothills high above California's central valley below.  

That evening we changed clothes and went on a date.  Climbers by day, dinner dates by night! ...and no, we didn't shower...we aint' got time for all that!

Another year

These are good days!

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Two types of days

There are two types of days -- the one for you and the one for those around you.  Don't confuse the two & you need both in your life.  It's a matter of focus....some days are meant as self-care and some are meant for caring for the people around you. 

The other day we went hiking (and glamour camping) with some friends at Bass Lake.  It was a really fun afternoon...a fun afternoon for everyone.  One of the keys to camping and hiking with kids is that you ensure it's fun for everyone.  Remember...there are two types of days...the ones for you and the ones for everyone around you.  Your kids need your outing to be for everyone...not just you!    

But then there are the other types of days.  Those are the days for you.  Don't feel guilty about them.  Self-care is a real thing...and it's a thing we all need. 

So for my birthday, it was a day at China Peak with some mountain mates.  It is the ski-hard-and-leave-it-all on the ski hill kinda self-care.    

Two types of days

Both important

These are good days

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