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Full Moments

Last week while I was at work Maggie and Sydney went up and spent the night at my parent’s house. I got to go up the next day after working a half day and tag along with their adventures.  My mom planted some bulbs and it took about half a second before Maggie was right next to her assisting.

My mom is such a garden whiz, I’m envious. She makes planting 75 bulbs seem like a walk in the park, where if I were to be faced with the task, I’d feel overwhelmed. Someday I’ll be a better gardener, right? I love that Maggie doesn’t hesitate to get her hands dirty and try and figure out what she can do for help. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I think my child’s thumb is greener than my own.

 

Green thumbs aside, I listened to my parents and Maggie head out the door the next morning to go get the morning paper. I shuffled about the house before finding my shoes to catch up with them, because walking the length of my parent’s driveway is soothing to me. It is the perfect length of a walk to carry a warm cup of tea and still get to the mailbox with a sip left. It is also the perfect length to remind me of where I came from. It is the perfect length to have conversations that sometimes get interrupted, ignored or forgotten.

It makes me happy to think about Maggie already helping to work in the garden with my mom and pick blackberries along the driveway with my dad. Isn’t that just what life is about? Those moments that flash by and can be gone if you don’t take notice. We’re working hard to slow down and notice those moments, those life-filled moments.

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Nothing on the Calendar

Without really trying, our weekend decided to get awesome. It all started on Thursday night when Maggie and Sydney were invited to have a sleepover at Camp Janet and we decided to go to dinner and a movie. Things got better when I got to do a quick trip to Anacortes, because you know I love goin’ to A-Town and seein’ some of my peeps. Phil and Genevieve came out to my parents house and we swapped stories around the table.

Things took a turn down Awesome Lane when Jeff called us on Saturday to see if  Barry, Mags and I wanted to come over and help to eat some salmon that he and Kurt had caught that morning.

Umm…..let us think about it.

Yes. Of course. Without a doubt we’ll be there.

When Jeff called, we were on the brink of making some final decisions about what the rest of our night would entail, none of the options included our great friends and fresh caught salmon. We’re glad he called. Maggie enjoyed entertaining Allison, Bahl, Kurt and Debbie, and did a pretty good job of pushing every single button on Jeff’s remote and entertainment station. Thankfully he thought it was as funny as the rest of us.

A date with Barry and fresh caught salmon with our friends was all good, but the true icing on the cake for me was when we went to Richmond Beach as the sun was setting Sunday evening. We’d started a miniture home improvement/art project and were literally waiting for the stain to dry. Richmond Beach is only about a 10 minute drive from our house and we go through phases of picking it as our destination. Based on the frequency of recent trips, I’d say we’re on a big Richmond Beach kick right now. Maggie likes to wear her boots in the waves, Sydney likes to get off leash and Barry and I like to be near the water. It all works out.

I love weekends full of spontaneity, especially when everybody’s happy. Things just sank into place this weekend. It doesn’t always happen this way, and when it does I can’t help but be amazed. Barry and I both got to work out, we each had special time with Maggie and we got tons of time all together. Sydney also got plenty of attention; however, I think she felt the bath after she got home from the beach was a bit undeserved.

Sometimes not having a plan is what makes the best plans fall into place, right? I’m going with that line of thinking right now because not having a plan led me to a weekend that I’d do over again and again.

*Photo credit goes to Maggie
* Photo credit goes to Maggie Mae

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Down on the Farm

Last weekend we headed to Carleton Farm in Snohomish with Brian, Darcy and some of their friends to do the corn maze and pick out some perfect pumpkins. We ended up going a little later in the day than expected and for a while I was concerned that we’d have to be in the corn maze while it transitioned to Haunted Corn Maze!!!! Scary!

Even before we had Maggie, I always longingly talked about corn mazes and farms and we didn’t always pull the trigger on hunting one down. We’ve had Halloween parties in the past and even pumpkin carving contests, but there is something special about picking your own pumpkin or getting lost with friends in a maze of corn.

As we were given our maps to the maze, it became crystal clear that the advice of the sales lady wasn’t too far fetched when she mentioned that the map didn’t ‘exactly’ match with the real twists and turns in the maze. Luckily Brian was with us and he is a MASTER map reader. Not really, but he sure does laugh a lot, which makes Barry laugh a lot too.  Any time you’ve got two Miller brothers laughing, is a good time. At one point Bri mentioned the time he saw my pregnant butt and I had to put a halt on that story, which only made him laugh more.

As much as I’ve been singing praises for this blustery weather, which I love, I’ve been mourning the loss of nice natural light for my photos. All summer long I fought the glare of the sun and now the cloud cover is here to stay and I’m having to pull out a few tricks to make sure I still get the pictures I desire. I suppose you could say I enjoy a challenge because I still refuse to use my flash. Perhaps I’m stubborn? Nah.

So, the corn maze. It was really fun and Maggie loved it. She also loved all the attention from Darcy and her friends. Lauren, Darcy’s best friend, had black boots that Maggie absolutely fell in love with and they were boot buds, with Maggie pointing endlessly at both their boots, as if wanting to confirm that they both had boots on. Mags also enjoyed being leader of the pack, sometimes deciding for everyone if we were going to take a right or a left. The power of her index finger is still in full throttle.

As we roamed from one end of the maze to another trying to solve the mystery of the secret code, I kept whispering to myself “If you build it, he will come” and waiting for Shoeless Joe to pop out of the corn. Of course, he never did. As it was getting darker and we’d solved the puzzle, it was time to exit the maze. Barry and Maggie somehow got detached from the rest of the group and we were headed to the exit. I was a bit worried (but not REALLY worried) and Brian went back in to find Barry and Maggie. Of course not a minute after Brian turned around did Barry and Maggie appear pleased as little kittens that they’d found the exit. So, there we all were at the exit of the corn maze without Brian, the one who is really good at reading maps, remember?  I don’t think anybody really wanted to go back in to find him, for fear of getting lost, but thankfully he ambled out laughing. So we all laughed too.