Busy mama. Happy mama.

The above picture was taken by Rachel over at Portraits by Rachel. Miss Kalani and me had our pictures taken for world breastfeeding week. She's done some awesome shoots for nursing mamas (actually, she does all sorts of portraits - check her out!)! I loved being able to participate in this wonderful little mini-shoot for breastfeeding awareness. Nursing did not come easy at all my first go and I am thankful I stuck it out and changed the outlook of our parenting for each of our children!

What's funny about this photo shoot is I completely and totally forgot about it. I actually was having a pity party of a morning about being a woman and how men certainly didn't have to deal with cramps and they should and and and... Well, to say the least, I was GRUMPY. And imagine my surprise when I realized I was in my sweat pants and scrubby clothes, and here arrives lovely Rachel. Luckily I was able to jump in the shower and in about 10 minutes I was ready for these pictures.

Last week we did a hula hoop making party with our homeschool co-op group! It was a blast to watch the kids decorate their hoops and us mothers made some too. This was all inspired by Erika at Inspired Mama Musings. She helped our family make hula hoops several months ago and I so ADORE them. I hoop with my kids (or without!) daily. It's really helped my fitness in my core and it's something that's simple, fun, and cheap!

I've found all sorts of ways to incorporate hula hooping into my life. I take them with me on occasion to the parks while I watch the kids play. I've learned arm exercises. I have a super heavy one with water in it even! I love how fun it is :)

Kalani napping is a thing that is pretty elusive these days. She doesn't seem particularly grumpy, but she's somehow decided napping is for normal babies, and of course no one in this house is normal. I cannot believe we're nearing 8 months. She is so mobile and fun! She's completely in love with cold apple slices and nectarines from the fridge too! She squeals with delight at the sight of our chickens coming near her and her favorite place is tucked in my arms safe and sound.

Declan is usually the first one awake in the house, sometimes I beat him to it, sometimes not. A few days ago I got to enjoy 2 solid hours alone in the morning with him. He is such an amazing son. I cannot imagine my life without him. This lovely Thursday morning we decided to collect eggs together from our barn and make some breakfast together. He was super excited to help crack those eggs into a bowl and he wanted so badly to flip the french toast - heck yes I let him! He has amazing control and dedication to learning new tasks and takes his responsibility seriously often. It's not all sunshine and rainbows - later that morning he found the costco sized maple syrup container on the counter and well, he tried to drink it. While trying to drink the syrup, it poured all over him. And the floor. And the stool he was standing on. And the cabinet. And.... well, I assure you, I'm well practiced with his messes now and I wasn't even mad in the least. I cleaned it up and moved on. Whoa. That takes effort to sail through that amount of stickiness without yelling! *pats herself on the back!*

Meet Virigina Bobro from Birthing From Within. This lovely picture was taken at the end of a 3 day, intensive "Introduction" workshop. It was life changing. I have about 3 months to decide to accept this new path or let it go for now. Tick tock.
So much about this workshop I understood on a deeper level than the obvious "doula" work - it wasn't just about holding a space for each individual family, it was about the deeper meaning of lifes work, your journey through it and I'm so incredibly thankful I was open to really listening to what was offered. I know that even a few short years ago this powerful workshop wouldn't have sunk in the same. I'm so thankful for the growth and openness to light in my soul. It's interesting - many people have asked if I 'enjoyed' the work shop... Yes, and No. While I completely know it was put in my path for a reason, it was very intense and left me sleepless for many nights. I have jotted down about a million pages in my journal since taking the workshop and am carefully plotting about a million new books to buy too! Oh so much to process! So, YES, I love what being open to really listening has taught me through the workshop and NO, it was intense and deeply meaningful which will take time to process and sink in. I'm feeling so humbled to be around such wonderful women, birth workers and souls. Inspiring.

While not working on intense, deep and meaningful workshops - there are the little things in life that are so joy filled too. Like waking up in the morning and finding these lovely eggs. And doing again the next day, and the next. Collecting eggs has become something to squabble over between kiddos because it's so exciting to wake up and feel like Easter egg hunting! I'm sure the new-ness factor will wear off soon, but taking bets on how many eggs will be in each nesting box is FUN!

And of course, while I am busy and happy all at once - it wouldn't be the Huberty homestead without a whiteboard full of ideas. This lovely white board is a small summary of the habits I've been studying. I'm deeply committed to understanding why people do the things they do out of 'habit'. I've been learning about cues, emotional rewards, societies media, etc etc etc. It's really helped to look at the keystone habits of our home and refine what we need to change. I'm not so vain that I don't know at any given moment there is huge room for improvement - but often I wonder how, where, when does the cycle begin. How do you start a new cycle?

Well, all this planning and learning about habits has lead me to a 22 lb weight loss in just a few short months. I am stronger, more alive, happier. But I have an active interest in how to make this change carry over into many aspects of our lives. It's working, but slow. I'm studying mentoring, coaching, habit changing, and peaceful lifestyles all at once. It makes for a very happy but very full life. Half of the nights I collapse into bed  full of ideas, thoughts, dreams, hopes.

It's a busy busy life around here.

Avocado

 I'll let the pictures do the talking.... 

Hope you enjoyed this event with as much laughter as I did capturing it!

Simple.

Our life is FULL of pure and simple happiness. 

One of the simple things is our life that has added happiness to Daunika is having TOE SHOES! She is thrilled to match mommy now. REI garage sales rock. We both got toe shoes at the last one :) 

Throwing a blanket over a table is simple but it produces AMAZING hours of fun!

And of course... plain white paper and paint does wonders for all of us. 

Who doesn't think pie is fabulous? This is 100% whole wheat homemade crust, with fresh mulberries we picked ourselves. The filling is so amazing - 4c mulberries, 1/4c flour, 1/2c sugar. That's it - simple goodness!

Declan is often entertained by strange items (like playing pick up sticks with pencils!)

While jumping on the trampoline, suddenly a hard summer rain hit us. It didn't slow them down a bit. They were soaked head to toe and happy!

Kalani has two tiny teeth on the bottom now :) And in the same week, Daunika lost her second tooth too!

The kids are having an amazing time lately spending our days at Eagle Island. Super fun, super cheap, all day fun. The first time they were THRILLED Daddy came with us even! I love his dedication to us!

Life really is just mellow from day to day. In the simplicity I find the most fun and enjoyment all around. We're setting up our school supplies and office to get ready for a new (home)school year. We're slowing down and honing in on what we need to really do. We're reviving our business. We're taking it one day at a time committed to being the best versions of ourselves. It really is lovely!!

But with kids like these, who wouldn't think their lives were anything short of amazing?

Oh so blessed. 

Gratitude in adversity

Things have been better. No really, I do believe things have been much better in our lives before. For whatever reason, our possessions keep breaking in massive ways. It has been a rough month indeed, yet recounting it seems so humbling. It all started with a call I got, "I'm coming home, the truck is broken, the guys will have to finish the initial without it"... Well, big truck = big tools needed, new lessons learned, new experiences. And of course, Betty, our suburban could tow the trailer and get the job done. No biggie.

Truck fixed in time for Hester, our awesome 600$ car, decided to break. Several repairs and two weeks later, oil and coolant/water are mixing together rendering the darn car useless. But, what else happen during those two weeks you ask? Let's see... our riding lawn mower broke. 2 of our 3 push mowers broke. Our trailer broke.

As if the work stuff wasn't enough, our dryer began acting up. Then our washing machine completely died, and to top it off - our WELL to the house began spewing sandy water at us. Oh yes, and as of last weekend, the A/C unit is pouring water in the mechanical room downstairs. Great.

I have taken each day one at a time while reflecting that I have the choice to let it get to me, or not. It's actually amazing. While it seems terribly stressful, I honestly don't give a shit. It is just possessions. I've been through a heart breaking major loss this year - who the heck cares about the STUFF you fill your life with. It is about the people, the connections, the community.

So, here we are, about 4 weeks since everything began falling apart and I've learned a ton!

Damon has amazing skills mechanically

Stuff breaking meant we saw each other a bit more

We have an amazing community of friends 

Our chickens perch on the wheel hub if the tires are off

Tools = self sufficiency and we are willing to share these tools with others

People matter a million times more than our things

Our kids think washing clothes by hand in the bathtub is fun

Sharing car can be stressful

We need another ten trailers, well, maybe two more would suffice

Our crew is awesome 

Working from home means tasty meals from the wife according to Damon

Our kids saw collaboration and team work through this time

People in our lives are reliable

Laughter is better than tears through stress

Nothing is good or bad until you assign it that way - so why pick negativity?!

We are so blessed to have a community of people who love and support us. From the calls offering to bring us a meal, to the borrowed washing machine, to the crew pulling extra weight and dealing with less while we worked as hard as we could to bring back the tools to them. People gave us advice, support and love through the process and most importantly, we had each other. As a husband and a wife, we relied deeply on our connection, love, support and sincere and complete faith.

While it's been stressful, I love our life. It's just stuff - but the people who have prayed for us, helped us, and simply listened to us and held a space - Thank you. You matter.

Discover, again.

I love living in Boise. In case you didn't know - I think it is one of the best places on earth to raise children. While I have nothing to compare it to - I do really feel that the resources here are simply amazing. Great libraries, museums, a zoo, a million parks, great families, and one of our favorites - the Discovery Center!

Here's a peak into our day with friends at DCI

Looking into forever...

Playing with shadows.

This was GREAT to watch! Daunika is trying to grab the spring she can 'see'..... It's all an illusion. This is what she sees...

This is what I can see from the side....... I tried really hard not to giggle.... much

Then we headed to 'play' with some more hands-on items that Declan adores.

Serious concentration!

And of course - who doesn't love giant bubbles?

Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Can you hear that? That 'wheeeeeeeeeeee' will probably be heard forever from here on forward. In fact, I'm sure my neighbors are repeating it in their brains over and over again just like I am. What could cause our children to scream this at the top of their lungs in our yard? I mean, we are seriously budgeted here... with our limited resources, could it be possible to create such amazing fun?

Well... you judge for yourself.

Doesn't every girl get out in 103* heat in her pink cowboy boots and swing to her hearts screams 'Whee!'

And what do you do when you have some extra rope? Take some more scrap wood from the firewood and drill a hole :)

Really, these girls are just fabulous to watch be so happy.

Declan is absolutely and completely terrified of swinging. Both of our girls went through an irrational fear of swinging too about 2. It's obviously no longer an issue for them, but for now Moose won't be doing any swinging.

But I think these two will make up for him missing out.

If you have a large tree, RUN, don't walk, to the hardware store for thick rope 

Then add some scrap wood, tie some knots. Viola!!!

Enjoy

Happy Independence Day :)

Every Independence Day for the last 5 years we have held the same tradition - our family packs a cooler full of food and then we hang out at the Boise Depot for a few hours while we wait for our amazing view of the city fireworks! Our kids love it, and I think both Damon and I share the appreciation for the beautiful explosions and their symbolism.

This is the view from where we were hanging out that I captured while we waited as the sun set slowly.

And while we waited... of course we had to explore!

There are huge fish to see!

Our family is growing up so quickly. Damon and I sat and watched people play and have fun with their frisbees and footballs - and once again, I was struck with the amazing fact that our kids are old enough to be crazy running frisbee throwing kids too. Darn. At home we have the trampoline, hula hoops, and sprinklers to be crazy with - but we don't yet have anything that travels to play outside with. We're going to put that on the agenda of things we MUST get.

But we had a stellar good time any way! We all stayed close to Damon. Sometimes it's hard when we see him so little but we are really dedicated to staying a strong close knit family. It was so great to be together for hours (in day light even!!) as a family. The kids crawled all over Daddy while they could..

Now, Damon being there was a special surprise to the kids. I had prepared them for his potential absence and I think they understood because he did get up and head out with the crew bright and early in the morning of the 4th. We hit a BBQ with our great friends and then we all celebrated when he showed up to join us before we left our home. It really felt awesome!!

And of course, Kalani and me stayed close too!

Our awesome 6 year old snapped this one of us together! Can you believe it's been 12 years together?

Some nearby families shared a huge glow stick with Declan, which was a lifesaver for him. By 10 pm he was exhausted but the fireworks didn't start until 1030. So... He had fun with a glow stick!

And as the sun finally went down, the sky lit up and we all marveled at the explosions and our deep gratitude for our lives.

I'm so thankful for our lives, really. It's incredibly hard to describe the intense gratitude I feel when I sit and really think of it. I know we're on the path of happiness and living it daily. The commitment it takes to hold ourselves up through adversity, struggle, and unexpected turns in the road are seemingly easy. We have so much to learn in life, but I know we are on the right path for us. These traditions are just small moments in the daily grind of our lives together. How awesome.

Hope everyone had a fantastic Independence Day!!