Insta Update + a few fresh pics

I've said it before, and I'll say it again-- I love instagram!

I'm alaska_babyham.  Find me & send a follow request. 

I'd love to have you.

Here are some instagram pics as of late.

Wyatt had his first independent play date.  He was SO excited! Krista said he did really well and I was proud of him for being such a big boy!

Wyatt loves stacking things.  Cars are his specialty.

This was last Sunday morning.

I love when they can play cooperatively & imaginatively.

Especially while I drink my coffee & read.

Wyatt fell asleep one night, sitting upright on the stool by his bed.

Here's a better picture.  He was completely asleep.

Josh scooped him up & put him back in bed.

 So, I have a thing for Orange Koolaid.  We went through the last of it a few weeks ago, and Josh bought me more at the co op.  I love that he gets me.

 The sun came back this weekend!  We spent each day playing out.  Wyatt prefers digging in the dirt to playing at the playground.

This moose hoof is on one of the rock piles just outside our front door.  People give the bones to their dogs so they end up strewn about town. 

 This is a reflection of water from a table outside our window.  It reminds me of my bestie, Julie, whose backyard pool makes the same reflection on the ceiling in her kitchen.  I miss her.  And I miss that kitchen.

Spring in Alaska is a confusing time.  So much sunshine, sweet peas growing on the windowsill, but still the occasional freezing temps & morning visits from Jack Frost. 

These two.

My heart.

I can hardly contain the love.

Piggy back rides are his favorite.

Love this little monkey! 

 I have a thing for pens.

Sorting through them is like choosing my favorite child--

Impossible.

 We have no dishwasher here.  That means when things like this happen, the task feels daunting.  On the other hand, nothing makes me smile like an empty sink!

My dad took this picture on a recent hike & sent it to me.  He said the birch trees always remind him of me.  This is what I posted on Instagram:

THE ROAD NOT TAKEN

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair

And having perhaps the better claim

Because it was grassy and wanted wear

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same. 

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no steps had trodden back

Oh, I kept the first for another day

Yet knowing how way leads onto way

I doubted if I should ever come back. 

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, and I

I took the one less traveled by

And that has made all the difference. 

-Robert Frost

My dad sent me this picture from a recent hike of his. Birch trees are sort of my thing. I love them. Growing up, we had some in our front yard. I love to peel the "paper" off the trunk, find aphids on the bright green leaves, and catch caterpillars falling out of its top branches in late summer. As an adult they always remind me of this poem by Robert Frost. I feel that we've taken the road less traveled by, and while it's made for a challenging journey, it's also made all the difference.

All bundled up, but outside & happy(!) earlier this week.

His eyes as well as his brothers seem to be changing from the brightest blue to green, 

just like me & Josh.

This is the view from my spot at the kitchen table where we homeschool.  I moved my "Linger" sign to the back window so I could meditate on it during our learning time.  I'm so blessed to be able to homeschool my kids and spend my days lingering with them.

The boys love painting, especially Wyatt.  Last time they painted their chubby fingers and made handprints.  I love them so much!

I have taken up reading with a new vengeance and it makes me so happy.  When I was struggling with anxiety, it was hard for me to stick with a book and enjoy my favorite hobby.  Feeling better and being able to enjoy it again is cause for celebration.

Read:
The Paying Guests (Could NOT put it down!)
The Last Letter From Your Lover (It was okay...)
Hands Free Mama (Changing my life!)

Currently Reading:
The Well-Trained Mind (A giant read, 800 pages, but so awesome!)
How To Be a Woman (Just finished yesterday!  It was vulgar, but hilarious!)
One Thousand Gifts (re-reading and loving it even more than before)

To Read:
Orphan Train (I can't wait!)
How To Fall in Love (I adore Cecelia Ahern)

***

Happy Sunday!