Spring Break 2011 - Camping in TX III

Cooper Lake was a pit stop on the way back into town and turn out to be a highlight. The lake was so big it felt a little like the ocean. The kids ran to the water, the water calls to everyone in my family, it changes bad moods into good and tired achy feet into exuberant spirits ready to run, it radiates happiness from their faces and this joy comes exclusively from Sean and exhibits his love of life. I am so lucky!
I, of course, fell asleep on the beach. I laid there for maybe an hour and left with a farmers tan only my dad could fully appreciate. Among the many benefits of living in Hawaii is the freedom that naked kids on the beach enjoy. I am realizing that my kids memories will always begin with Hawaii and that we created a happy life there. Once you feel the aloha spirit it stays with you.
OK, so now the dog is in on the action, I'm all for animals in nature but seriously I think they are staring at a cockroach in the sand.
Do boys ever outgrow the joy of throwing rocks into the water? We participated in various activities throughout the weekend and I don't think anything matched throwing rocks for Gray.

Spring Break 2011 - Camping in TX II

Ishmael began as a dream. A year into our courtship I had a dream about a black Lab named Ishmael. You could say we created my dream or that it was coincidence that we decided to get a dog and decided to call her Ishmael. We choose to think of it as fate, our life has not always made sense on paper but there is an instinctual beauty that is created when Sean and I are together and Ish is part of that. She was our first love together and taught us how to be parents. She is the best dog ever! She will be 10 yrs. old this summer her birthday coincides with our wedding anniversary. She has always loved the water and is as beautiful today fetching a stick as she was as a puppy. Fishing from a pier. The photo looks so loving and calm. Kalia hugging on Sean and Gray checking out his line. When Sean saw the photo he said what a great photo, but it doesn't tell the whole story.... Gray wanted to cast on his own and kept getting mixed up in neighboring fishing lines, Kalia was bored and fidgety Sean was torn in two directions as I sat on the beach with Ish. (no dogs on the pier)

Spring Break 2011 -Camping in TX

When camping the most important thing to remember is the rainfly. Fortunately, our camping trip was dry and warm, the temp. gave a feeling so disorienting, it being March and 80 degrees. The lesson of the trip was that Gray's little frame cannot support s'mores after 6pm and be sleepy enough to retire by 8:30p. He was like a ferrel cat in the tent the first night. Imagine a Jimi Hendrix concert although replace the broken guitar with a head-banging/flying pillow. Nature is so refreshing, uplifting, and rejuvenating for me. If I could choose what my kids remember about their childhoods it would include a love for the natural world. I find with anything you can not love what you do not know. Experience is a great teacher and nature is an environment we can't control, and becomes a place of freedom. Freedom to explore, to be messy, to create, to feel alive. ...(more thoughts another day)

We created a game of "leave no trace" at the campsite, I've never had two kids so eager to clean up. They are learning that we share the outdoors with other animals and it's impolite to leave trash in someone else's home. I am intensely passionate about my connection to mother earth and I feel her spirit when I abide with her.
S'mores are far and away the highlight of camping for my family. The kids would do just about anything I asked if we ended everyday with s'mores. There is something special about sitting around a fire waiting for the wood to burn down to beautiful red coals. The foundation of a great s'more is the right fire.

My grandfather is a bit of an arsonist, (he he he) I grew up with the annual deer hunt, a week in Northern Utah with nature, family, guns, and fires. Thinking of it now reminds me of the generations of people, my people, that came before me and influenced who I've become. So my grandfather, a wanderlust spirit like myself, was a master fire builder. His motto, the bigger the fire the better. He was less concerned about the amount of wood available as with the massive sage brush bushes surrounding the campsite. Thinking back, I can't honestly believe we never started a forest fire. He was the person in my life that taught me about red coals and their importance in the creation of the great s'more. You start with a giant fire, (when camping with my grandfather) and you patiently watch as the fire reduces down to glowing red coals, you separate any partially burnt wood and make a circle with the coals extinguishing any existing flames. The coals provide the heat necessary to heat the marshmallows while reducing the risk of starting your arm on fire by getting close enough to cook.

I love my grandfather for teaching me about fires and s'mores, the greater lesson I learned was by watching him mix knowledge and a wild spirit to create memories that have lasted a lifetime.

Spring Break 2011 -Fishing in TX

In an attempt to explore this vast new world, we wandered in the general direction of East Texas. The state park system is well described via the net, so after some research we decided to explore a few parks during the spring break.
Grady loved the fishing, actually he loved reeling. This translated into a lot of casting, the bait usually got lost during his casting "all by myself". No matter though, the goal was not actually to catch fish.
Tyler State Park was great. Very clean, well laid out and fun. The campsites surround the lake and they rent a variety of boats for fishing. We opted for the canoe, the wind was blowing and offered the opportunity for some synchronized paddling, an activity Sean and I enjoy doing together.