Mother's Day 2012

There are so many pictures in this post, but it was just one of those days that goes down in the books as one of the happiest and I simply have something important to say about so much.

So here it goes.

Holidays are always new thing for us. Being away from family you make your own traditions and we keep trying to figure out what ours might be. What I wanted to do for Mother's Day weekend was spend time with my family. All four of us.

Nate picked the activity, so up to the fish farm we went.

It was a gorgeous summer day, you know the kind you get in May and you can just taste the real summer just around the corner. It was a long and beautiful drive in Northern California. Which means we got the mountains and vineyards and sometimes both on our drive. Nate managed to go the wrong way both on the way there and the way back but we were just enjoying our day so much we laughed about it. The fish farm was intimate an almost our own and really, Brig's sense of wonder at everything we did takes the cake for making a day wonderful.

We packed lunches and a blanket and camped out underneath a big pine.

Dad had a few dollars and got us a couple of ice cold sodas from the vending machine to share.

That constituted about the first 45 minutes of our visit.

I am loving Brig's stage in life right now. 

He is old enough to wonder and do things on his own and finally listens when we tell him he can't do something. Which makes pictures like this where mom and dad our lounging on the blanket while Brig roams. 

 Then Nate and Brig fished.

Nate gave Brig the pole.

Brig took the pole

 Brig caught a fish on the pole.

then.... he quickly dropped the pole and wouldn't let Nate give it to him again.

After the first fish said pole was used by Brig for prodding the very big frogs on the edges.

Brig wouldn't come closer than this to Nate while the fish was alive

Then Nate killed it and our favorite story of the day occurred.

After smashing the fishes head with plyers Nate took the fish to the water to rinse him off. Brig followed the whole while following Nate saying "He's sad" (a phrase he picked up the day brother got home) Nate's response to him was "No buddy, he's not sad, he's dead" 

Then we both started laughing.

One of those parenting moments where you go... probably a better way to say that but that's the truth.

Happy and unsure fishermen.

This bug slept. The whole outing.

After 5 hours I made Nate stop at a gas station so I could wake him up and change and feed him.

Like I've said. He's so easy!

Brig hated the fish when they were laying around, but once they got gutted and put on ice he carried those goods like the spoils they were.

 Me and this one on my mother's day weekend.

While Dad was cleaning out fish I took this one up on the hill and taught him how to roll down it.

He loved it, but if I didn't get him started he would do the funniest side roll, that wasn't rolling, the he totally thought was rolling.

  

I just couldn't help but laugh.

Oh how I love being a mother.

The best thing about this day was that I experienced all these fun things with Brig, you know first time type things, and I can't even say how lucky I feel that I get to do first timers all over again with Dex!

So please Dex, wait and let me teach you how to roll down a hill. 

I want to be the one to see that silly joy on your face.

*on a more historic note Mother's day marked my official entrance back into the world. We went to church, I resumed church callings, and now we are 4. For some reason going to church marks for me when I am ready to be back to normal.