Natural Tunnel State Park and Grayson Highlands

For YEARS I had been wanting to check out Natural Tunnel State Park, which happened to be only an hour from Bristol. This spring we finally went and it was really quite incredible! Its a massive, 800 foot long tunnel eroded by water and other natural elements and the view from the top was enough to make me shake and shiver, especially because Jamie stayed in the car while I hiked up with ALL the kids! It made me incredibly nervous to have them all with me with such a perilous drop at our feet. There was a rickety chain link fence to 'protect' us at the top but it was too much for my weary heart and we only lingered long enough to get a quick look then we hustled back to the car because apparently I'm terrified of heights--particularly when my kids are involved!

There is a tram ride you can take up and down the tunnel and at Christmastime they light the whole thing up, which I had always thought would be an amazing experience but I now know that it's too scary and we'll never do it. Cool idea though. The kids did like playing on the train at the visitor's center.

The following day we took a drive to Grayson Highlands, another favorite drive. The kids can't stand it--anytime we go to Bristol they want nothing to do but hang out with their cousins so any other activity is absolutely torture. Even if said cousins are in school or otherwise occupied our children want to do nothing else.

Favorite Rest Stop--Exit 205

I'm guilty of over posting on instagram so it's so great to get back into blogging where I can post as many dang photos as I want and not feel like a jerk. Six shots of my baby girl at once? Definitely on my blog but not so much on instagram. 

We took a trip to Bristol in the spring and had the pleasure of stopping at our favorite rest stop--exit 205. This place kills it with beauty EVERY time. Watching Sloane crawl around in the grass and get excited about all the animals was especially fun. The kids ran around and I followed them around and we had a great stop. 

Sure beats the dusty rest stops in Southern California that I endured as a kid.

Mother's Day at Sky Meadows

I really wanted a picnic for Mother's Day and I wanted it at my favorite spot in Northern Virginia so we went to Sky Meadows after church. I made some of my favorite foods and we hauled a cooler of fun drinks. It was a beautiful evening and the green views were the perfect backdrop to being with my sweet family. IT was fun watching Sloane crawl around and I truly enjoyed savoring this first mother's day with all my babies in tow. Sloane has been such a great addition to the family--she was clearly meant to be a part of us and I can see it in the way our family rallies in their love of her. She's a great compliment to my sweet boys and that sweet sister Maeve. 

Having four kids is a lot of work--mostly because it requires one to be very organized and quick to solve problems. Also, there are a lot of relationships at play at any moment and that puts everything in a fragile state at times--just when everyone (read: Asher/Soren and Maeve) are getting along, someone erupts with emotion and conflict resolution is necessary. I'm not very good at this and most of the time I think I'm failing my sons because I don't know how to happily manage their energy and verve as growing boys but I sure love them deeply and I'm so grateful for their beautiful lives and the myriad ways they have changed and improved my life.They are increasingly complicated as they get older and their lives in turn become less simple--school, frienships, family, homework and the forces of independence and maturation merge to make their lives challenging. They are probably my tenderest of relationships and yet I'm the least prepared for them. I'm grateful they are patient with me and my flailing attempts to nurture them.

Mostly, I'm grateful to be a mom and I'm so grateful that these winsome individuals came to me so easily. I love having four children and I love that I have been given two boys and two girls. They are such a gift.