Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery

All day today, Clay has been walking with "crutches." Sometimes his right knee hurts (just like mine), but sometimes it's both legs and his neck.

While I was making something new for dinner (my First for today), he came in and announced that he had "accomplished [his] task for the day!" Clearly, he's trying to show a little solidarity and in the process has absolutely melted my heart!

Imitation is truly the sincerest form of flattery!

Mesa Verde

Today's adventure took us out to Mesa Verde National Park and to two of the amazing cliff dwellings it houses. The scenery was absolutely beautiful and the dwellings were impressive and thought-provoking. No one really knows the whole story of the people who inhabited these structures or why they eventually moved on, but there is plenty of speculation. It's an interesting mystery to ponder. I do know that the inhabitants must have been physically fit and limber to climb up and down those cliff faces and to crawl and squeeze through the tight spaces we visited today. I also know that mothers of toddlers (and boys of all ages) must have never taken an easy breath!

Mesa Verde

Ready to explore the dwellings

32 feet, almost straight up

They made it, with smiles in place!

Time to squeeze

Balcony House

The edge of Balcony House

Time to crawl

Cliff Palace

An inward view of Cliff Palace

A tight stairway to the top
(The native people would have used only
toe and finger holes to assist with the trip
in and out of the of the pueblos!)

Spoiled on Mother's Day

I was completely spoiled today by my people, on our last day in Branson! They took me to a wonderful brunch at Level 2 Steakhouse and then indulged my every whim, which included visiting the Butterfly Palace, a tour and wine tasting at Curling Vine Winery, dinner at Pasghetti's, and the Patsy Cline tribute show this evening. Oh my goodness, we had so much fun! I am so thankful for those who call me mom! I am also thankful for my own mom, my mother-in-law, my grandmother, and all the other mothers in my life, whether related to me or not, who encourage and inspire me. Happy Mother's Day!

We love Branson!

Mother's Day Brunch with my people

This lovely lady first made me a mom

Bountiful Butterflies

The butterfly aviary is a happy place!

Curling Vine Winery

The Patsy Cline show was awesome!

Feel Good Friday: Choose the light

More times than I can count over the course of the last 14 years--my parenting years--I have heard words coming out of my mouth, directed at one kid or another, meant to correct inappropriate behavior and develop deeper character. And, sometimes, I'm quite shocked that the words I'm saying might be better directed inward than outward. Being a parent makes me acutely aware of my own character flaws and shortcomings. I see my hypocrisies and failings as if under a magnifying glass. And, so often, when I am correcting one of the kids, my words ricochet and strike me right in the heart, and I realize something in me needs to change, particularly if I want to see that change in one of them.

This happened today. I was reminding one of my dear offspring that every moment we have a choice about the kind of person we are going to be. Are we going to be rude or kind? Happy or sad? Engaged or disengaged? Respectful or disrespectful? Positive or negative? Helpers or hurters? Workers or slackers? We can't control everything that happens in life, but we can control how we respond. We always have a choice. 

The truth is, I have been pretty depressed since our RTW trip ended. I have been resentful of my stationary situation and have flatly refused (both subconsciously and consciously) to be happy in this place. Of course I've had moments of happiness and things certainly haven't been all bad. But, in my heart, I know I haven't really been trying that hard to make the choice to be happy. 

And, today, as I spoke to my child about choices, some lightbulb suddenly reignited inside my brain, and I realized that I can change my choice. That, in fact, I must change my choice, because I do not want to go through my days unhappy. I can and will choose to change my inner dialogue. I can and will choose happiness, regardless of my situation.

"We've all got both light and dark inside us. What matters is the part we choose to act on." --J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

As for me, in this rare and beautiful moment of clarity, I will choose the light.

(For more of my ramblings on choosing happiness, check out this post.)

So many things

First: As you can see, I'm experimenting with a new look and name for the blog. I would really love your feedback! Feel free to tell me what you like as well as what you don't like.

Second: A huge piece of my heart just walked out the door to catch a plane to New York. I'm so proud of my girl and excited for the opportunity she has to attend a special camp at Skidmore College during the next three weeks, but the letting-gos are always a little hard on a momma's heart.

Third: Yesterday morning, I published the third Geography Explorer book, Explore Thailand. If you have a kid in your life who might be interested in that part of the world, check it out.

Fourth: Yesterday afternoon, we continued our explorations of the island. We visited the Hanapepe swinging bridge and Glass Beach, which is partly made up of a huge deposit of sea glass. We also popped into the Kauai Chocolate shop, before boarding our Napali Coast tour boat. We spent several lovely hours cruising around the island and taking in the stunning scenery of the Napali Coast. We also had appetizers, drinks, and dinner aboard the boat, and ended our tour with an amazing Kauai sunset.

Hanapepe Bridge

Glass Beach

The less glassy side of Glass Beach

Kauai Chocolate

Napali Coast Cruise

Sneaky Rainbow

Can you guess why they call this Kong Point?

Find the owl hidden in the rocks.

The lovely Napali Coast

There are two sea caves at the base of the brown mountain in the center.
These were created by lava tubes, and they are constantly growing.

The entrance to an awesome sea cave that has no ceiling

Another beautiful rainbow

A mother monk seal and her pup catch some rays on the beach

Sunset at sea

Mother's Day and Merino

We started buying our travel clothes for this trip almost two years ago. Many of the things we bought were made from merino wool, due to the versatility of that particular fabric. Several of the items we bought came with codes, which allowed us to trace our garments back to the farms in New Zealand that produced the wool. One of the farms turned out to be catering to tourists by allowing them to come to the farm for education and fun. I knew right away that we needed to visit "our" sheep and began planning to make that happen. What I did not know was that the day of our visit would fall on Mother's Day. (I actually only realized this happy coincidence yesterday, when Jeff asked if I planned it that way.) It was such a fun way to spend the day! We took a steamboat from Queenstown over to the farm, where we got to feed the sheep and other farm animals, have afternoon tea, watch a sheep dog in action, see a shearing, observe a spinning demonstration, and enjoy the beautiful farm and the beautiful day.

When we were back in Queenstown, we shopped in the cute little shops and wandered up and down the wharf. Jeff bought me a beautiful pair of opal earrings, and the kids surprised me with a lovely New Zealand paua shell necklace. And then, they all conspired to take me out to dinner at a fantastic lakeside restaurant. My people are awesome people, and I'm so thankful for all of them!

My Mother's Day was wonderful, and I sincerely hope that all of you mothers who read this blog also had/have a fantastic day! Mothering is hard work and is often a thankless job. But, I hope today, at least, you feel loved, and appreciated, and valuable, because you are. And, even if no one else tells you that, I want you to hear it from me. Happy Mother's Day!

You know this guy isn't going to pass up a chance for a photo with a giant kiwi!

The TSS Earnslaw

We're all wearing merino here!

Feeding the red deer stag

Feeding and petting

Loving on Sprite the Sheepdog, while she wasn't working

This big guy was quite friendly and eager for some treats

Afternoon tea

Mother's Day roses

Now Sprite is all business

Ready for shearing

Spinning wool into yarn

Gorgeous Lake Wakatipu

I'm so thankful to be called "Mom" by these amazing people!

The Passage of Time

Day before yesterday, we left Vex, Switzerland in the midst of some pretty intense fog and headed to St. Imier, Switzerland, via Chamonix, France (home of the very first winter Olympics), with a goal of seeing Mont Blanc (the highest peak in Europe). When we got to Chamonix, we found the clouds hanging too low for us to see the actual peak of Mont Blanc, but the surrounding mountains were beautiful, with their lovely blankets of snow and multitudes of fantastic waterfalls produced by the melting snow and ice. We stopped briefly at a grocery store to pick up a few things for lunch, before pointing the car back in the direction of Switzerland. We were limited in our purchasing power, since we had forgotten about the difference in currency between Switzerland and France, so we ended up having to make another, larger grocery stop once we were back in Switzerland. We passed through the beautiful city of Geneva at the Swiss border, before finally making it to our quaint little farmhouse near St. Imier, which was quite a feat, given the dense fog and living roadblock made up of a herd of milk cows, each outfitted with its own charming little cow bell.

Yesterday was my birthday, so, by my decree, we had a slow morning, followed by an afternoon outing. The kids gave me lovely homemade gifts, including paper airplanes, cards, a quesadilla lunch, and a necklace. We visited The International Clock Museum in the afternoon, which seemed appropriate given the natural propensity of people to contemplate the passage of time on occasions like birthdays. Marking the passage of time is now and has always been important to humans. The seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks and years of a person's life matter, and we need to be conscious of their passing and how they are being used.

After a coffee break, we left the museum in La Chaux-de-Fonds and headed over to Neuchatel, where we visited a chocolate shop (because one of my birthday goals was to eat Swiss chocolate), did a little more shopping in the cute and lively town center, and then drove over to the lake to play at the neat playground (because happy children equals happy birthday mom) and eat dinner, which included two kinds of fondue (because my other birthday goal was to eat Swiss cheese). Since we were without Internet at our house yesterday, I was also able to check in with Facebook and email while we were out and was grateful to see so many sweet birthday wishes. I am greatly loved and am so thankful for the people I get to share my life with that make the passing of time such a blessing.

Thick Alpine Fog
(This is the view from our balcony in Vex.
A clear view can be seen in my Sweet Switzerland post, if you want to compare.)

Mont Blanc snow and runoff
(The peak rises up with the clouds to the left.)

They don't call it "Mont Blanc" (White Mountain) for nothing!

High Five, Lake Geneva!

Our sweet little farm house near St. Imier

Clay gave me this rainbow for my birthday.

Max's birthday masterpiece

I received this beautiful plane from Weston.

Ruth made quesadillas for my birthday lunch.

Ruth also provided me with this beautiful necklace. 

Marking time at the International Clock Museum.

Happy kids = Happy Mom

Dinner at Lake Neuchatel

Cheesy fondue

Birthday Bonbon
(Clearly, I only thought of taking a picture after I cut into it!)