Epic Mother's Day Weekend

Richards family Market roof shot

Happy belated mother's day to all!  We had a pretty great extended party over on this end of things, which involved various members of the Richards clan coming to visit.  It all started on Thursday, where we got a very short but sweet visit with Clark's dad (who unfortunately had to head back home the next day), and the beginning of a lovely visit with Liz and Pat.

Visiting with aunt Liz!

Thursday Night Party, the nice version...

... and the crazy version!

On Friday, it was off to school as usual, but coming home in the afternoon was pretty awesome: not only was it SUNNY (holy cow), our weekly pizza/movie night, AND Liz and Pat were here to play, but Linden also discovered the cedar planks that Bill had very generously brought us straight from the Richards' farm.

Just off the bus: the kids pose in the sun with Juniper's bursting flower garden 

Liz helps Juniper start putting together a fairy garden

The beginnings of said garden

The cedar had a specific purpose:  my mother's day request was to have some raised garden beds constructed.  But the kids (especially Linden), made VERY good use out of the wood before it was commandeered.   There was a whole lot of "invention" that happened - both in the form of hammering together structures, and by creating a series of "ramps".  The ramps, in particular, occupied Linden (and whoever wanted in on the action at any given point) for hours.  Here's a video to get a sense of the dedication involved:

On Saturday, the fun increased by a factor of Theresa (a standard unit of measure around here, of course), who had arrived after the kids were asleep the night previous.  The day involved the market, a lot of outdoor fun (it was practically summer on Saturday, which was not taken for granted!), and... wait for it... the completion of the first of two raised beds!  Hurrah!

Pretzels, cider, and listening to live music at the market

Hard-won close-up of Linden and Pat

(most looked something like this.  Linden can't help but be a ridiculous goofball most of the time)

Positioning the completed garden bed!!

Juniper sneaks the camera while I'm not looking....

... and then lets Linden have a turn as well

Linden discovered that he's able to at least partially climb a backyard tree.  I anticipate further "exploration" in the near future.

And finally, Sunday was the actual Mother's Day extravaganza.  Theresa was our only guest left at that point, but we still made sure to squeeze in as much goodness as possible.  The day involved the following:

1. Sleep-in for me

2. Lovingly crafted brunch, complete with presents (some homemade, of course; a wonderful little hand-bound book from the market; and my raised beds)

3. Mother-daughter haircuts

4. A Sunday hike on a trail we had not yet explored (around Spider Lake)

5. Down-time

Posing on an old wooden boat at the edge of Spider Lake

Juniper packed only the essentials in her backpack for the hike: snacks, water, and a huge Harry Potter tome.

Theresa and Juniper, mid-hike 

Navigating some pretty wet, mucky terrain

So many games are played when Theresa visits!  Mostly crazy 8s and checkers this time around

A little partner yoga before Theresa left

And here it is, another cold, wet, rainy Monday morning (beautiful warm sun - where did you go?). Also, Juniper was a little incensed that there was no such thing as "Mother's Day Monday", and that she had to trudge off to school as usual. But I don't think anyone is really complaining.  The weekend was a blast, the weather is supposed to bounce back mid-week, this coming weekend is a four-day holiday for the kids, AND my parents are visiting.  So, there is clearly more partying ahead.  See you next week!