hike it baby 30 | april 2018.

Well, we did it, folks!

Today marks the end of our third Hike It Baby 30 challenge, and we surpassed our goal with a few days to spare. Hooray! We didn't log as many miles this time as the first two we completed, but we spent way more time outside during this challenge than the others -- almost as many as the other two combined, in fact. Life was so crazy last year that we weren't able to do much hiking and skipped the challenges when they were offered, but it felt so good to regularly be back out on the trails again. There was plenty more chaos this time than the others, too, but I guess that's what I get for voluntarily going two against one on the trails.

Over the past thirty days, we did six trail hikes, took thirteen walks/bike rides around the neighborhood, and spent a total of over eighty-five hours outside -- an average of almost three hours outside a day. If you could see me as you read this, you'd see me first pumping the air and grinning from ear to ear! We didn't visit any new spots, besides the Riverbanks Zoo while Teesh was home during spring break, but we made sure to revisit as many of our favorite spots as time and gas money would allow (hehe).

The two coolest parts about this challenge were 1) the little girl who joined us (and will continue to join us forever), and 2) the fact that Braxton logged the same number of miles that I did. He wasn't carried for any of our trails miles, and he biked alongside of me for the others. So amazing! Two years ago, during our first challenge, he didn't log any miles on his own because he was so little and just learning to walk. But this time -- he held his own like a big boy. And Bethany became a big girl during this month, too, as she transitioned from a soft carrier on my chest to the big pack on my back.

Is it just me or did my babies grow up TOO MUCH during April?!

All of our crew's babies just keep growing up, and it's equally as heartbreaking as it is exhilarating.  Nearly three years ago, we were all perfect strangers. Now we're family. And these friendships are such a beautiful gift to us.

I sincerely hope that Braxton and Bethany grow up choosing to spend time outside, to respect creation, and to praise the One who made it all with His mighty, creative hands. There is so much wonder in the world, just waiting to be discovered, and I want to show them as much of it as I can. I know we won't see the whole world before it's time to go to the next, but it sure is fun trying to.

There's a sign in Braxton's room that reads,

"Be strong, brave, and courageous. Seek adventure and Truth!"

That's what I want for these little ones who call me Mommy. For them to develop a strong character, always leading with grace and kindness and love. For them to pursue goodness and adventure and to follow their God-given dreams.

And I want to lead by example, showing them that anything as possible.

It just takes a little effort and a whole lot of intentionality.

Trail Hikes: 6

Trail Miles: 15.5

Total Miles: 36.0

Total Minutes Outside: 5,270

Oh, to imagine all we'll see before this month rolls around next year!

Hike It Baby 30 - April 2016 // Hike It Baby 30 - September 2016

yellow branch falls | hike it baby.

This week, we chased another waterfall with our friends! TJ and I hiked this trail for the first time back in 2012, with my sister and brother in tow, when we were just a couple of giddy-eyed newlyweds. Since then, we've taken Braxton a couple of times and now even the littlest Bargeron explorer has added this particular trail to her resume. This was Bethany's second hike in the frame carrier, and she hummed in my ear the whole way to the falls and slept the whole way back. Braxton hiked the whole trail on his own two feet, aside from a few stream crossings where I carried him over, and I was so proud. This trail is rated moderate for length (3.5 miles) combined with terrain, and my three year-old proved himself to be a professional hiker this day. Amazing!

The falls were MASSIVE because of all the rain over the previous few days -- I had never seen them so full and strong. It was absolutely beautiful! Annnnnd slightly terrifying to get me and two kiddos across the slippery rocks peeking out of the rushing water to our snack/rest spot. You know it's a good adventure when your shoes and socks are soaked and you remind yourself that you'll live through this as you blaze forward across said rocks. HA! This trail always brings some sort of unexpected story to tell, and I've tucked several away into my heart and mind from this time. The good news -- there was no blood shed like last time. Thank you, Jesus!

We're two days away from the end of our Hike It Baby 30 challenge, and this was the hike that pushed us passed our goal. So exciting! I'll share more on this in a couple of days, but here's a spoiler alert: I'm proud as can be!

When is the last time you got your feet wet, friend? When is the last time you did something that scared you?

I promise that when you do, it'll be exhilarating!

You may even be hooked.

Yellow Branch Falls - Braxton's 1st Trip

little bradley falls | hike it baby.

We've now been to Little Bradley Falls three times (if I counted right, that is), and this time was extra fun because we had an extra person with us -- Bethany! A couple of weeks ago, we made the trek north to this gorgeous spot that's really more like an obstacle course than a trail with our Hike it Baby friends. This was the first time Braxton walked it on his own two feet, and I learned a lesson this day: it's way easier to hike and climb rock quarries and cross knee-deep streams with kiddos on your back than walking beside you. All those miles I logged before having two kids were easy compared to now having one on my back and the other to my side (or, more than likely, running ahead of me). It definitely takes adventure to a whole new level! In both good and stressful ways.

This was the hike that I decided would be Bethany's last chest-facing in the soft carrier, because she nearly made me kill over with all the screaming she did in my face. When she's asleep, she's so angelic -- but when she's not sleeping, she's much more like the Hulk than an angel. I don't blame her, though, because I like to see the world around me, too. And spoiler alert: she's been SO much happier since transitioning to the framed carrier. Praise hands!

This particular day on the trail was beautiful and sunny, and we had such a great group trekking together. I made a couple new friends and got to reconnect with some who I hadn't seen in months, which is always so good for my soul. I've done so much hibernating since Bethany was born, and it is giving me LIFE to be back out in the world. I thrive best when I'm surrounded by people, and that's one of the things I love so much about our little HiB community -- being with other mamas who enjoy being outside as much as I do.

I know I'll blink and Bethany will be splashing in the water the next time we adventure here. Heck, I can still vividly remember the first time we hiked to this falls, just Braxton and me, and he was just barely starting to crawl. Time waits for no one, which is a big reason I try to be so intentional about making the most this season of being home with my babies.

They won't be babies forever, and I'm on the clock...so adventure we will!

2015 | 2016

bearwallow with two | hike it baby.

Last week, we adventured north to one of our favorite spots: Bearwallow Mountain. I've been in love with this place for two years now, and it's truly a little piece of heaven. This trek up was different than all the rest for several reasons...

1. There were two kiddos with me this time, and I carried Bethany in the Osprey pack for the first time (big girl!).

2. The wind was blowing at least twenty miles an hour, making the 50 degree weather feel more like 30 degrees.

3. At least one of my two children were screaming at all times, both on the way up and on the way back down.

4. We didn't get a group photo of all of our crew together because the brutal wind forced some to cut out early.

5. Several of us made a post-hike pit stop at Starbucks to help us warm up after being frozen for three hours.

Basically, if there was ever an imperfect hike, this may have been it.

But that's just part of the fun! If we only hiked in perfect conditions, we'd be missing out on the funny stories we can tell for years, the character we build as parents as we love on our kiddos when they're acting crazy, and more. The same is true for life in general, too -- our days are too short to wish away the "bad" ones. Every day, every breath, is a gift, and it's far too precious to waste or wish away.

That's a lesson I've been learning for a while, and every day it becomes more ingrained in my heart and mind. I'll only be able to hike with my children for so long.

I'll only be able to hold their hands while they make new discoveries for so long.

I'll only be able to help them climb mountains for so long.

Because one day, sooner than I'd like, they'll be doing all of these things on their own.

Instead of pushing away when emotions are high, frustrations are following me around like a shadow, and tears are plenty, I want to push in, to press in. To the hard stuff, the messy stuff, all of it. Because you know what they say -- "the days are long, but the years are short." And it's already been nearly a week since this particular day, the day that while I was living in it felt like it might last forever. 

But that day didn't last forever. None of them do -- the good ones or the bad ones.

And this is why I don't want to wish away even a second of my time with the babies who call me Mommy. Sure, I'm tempted to do this often, especially since I'm with them all day most days. But I want to keep getting better at being grateful over grumbling, present over distracted, and maintaining a good balance between going/doing and staying/being.

I want our diary of days to be full, even if not all the days I write about are pretty. Because better than being perfect, they're ours.

And that'll always be good enough for me.

Bearwallow Mountain - Fall 2017

bethany victoria | parent commissioning.

Yesterday was a day we'll never forget.

TJ and I stood in front of our gospel community with Bethany in our arms, alongside of four other families with small kiddos, and pledged to raise them up in the ways of the Lord. We pledged to prepare our children for eternity, to raise them with a commitment to the local church, and to raise them demonstrating the Gospel at home. We didn't respond light-hearted or superficially, but with a strong desire to help them know and experience Jesus' love for themselves.

Our church family pledged to help us love them well, standing beside us as we spur them on in the name of grace and truth. And it was so beautiful.

Three years ago, when Braxton was almost the exact same age as Bethany, we stood before these same people and pledged to do the same for him. These two babies that God has entrusted to our care have brought us a tremendous amount of joy since the moment we first learned that they were on their way to us, and TJ and I talk about how hard it is to recall life before they made us a mommy and a daddy. We've cried tears of happiness and tears of frustration since entering into this thing called parenthood, and we pray more now than we ever have before. Those prayers increase daily. Because each day, we are awakened to a new need of them -- a new way that we can cover our children in the Word.

I can remember the first prayer I prayed over Bethany, that Friday when I first spoke with her first mama through a text conversation. I fell to my knees, crying and laughing at the same time, just as I did when I saw the positive pregnancy test with Braxton. And I simply, humbly asked God, "Father, if this is meant to be our baby, help us raise him or her to change the world in the name of Love. And even if this isn't our baby, help this mama raise this precious baby to do the same."

And, today, my prayer over our daughter is the same one I still pray over our son:

May God receive glory in the life is Bethany Victoria Bargeron, and may she learn to love Him in return, in part, by seeing her daddy and mommy love Him with their whole hearts.

Bethany has enriched our lives in ways too beautiful for words to describe. She is sweet and spunky, beautiful and chatty, friendly and snuggly. Everyone who meets her immediately loves her, and her testimony is one that has brought countless people to tears. One day, she will tell her story for herself, and my biggest hope is that she's no ashamed of her story; but rather, that she is gratefully proud to say that she has been grafted into our family by love, that she believes without a doubt that she is fearfully and wonderfully made.

I believe this baby girl is going to do exactly what I asked God to help her do -- to change the world in the name of Love. After all, she changed ours in His name the moment she was born.

We were, also, blessed to have a big chunk of our family there with us to help celebrate our sweet girl, this miracle baby that is adored by everyone who meets her. We've got the BEST family, one who is always there for us no matter what, and we'll never take them for granted. Just as they've helped mold and shape us with their love, they're already doing the same for the next generation -- Braxton and Bethany.

Our lives are crazy and chaotic most days. They are full of cries and screams and prayers of desperation, but they're also full of smooches, tickles, belly laughs, using our imagination to go to far off lands, hugs, and praying together every night.

These are the days we'll never get back.

And this day, the day we publicly professed our desire as parents to teach, raise, and equip our daughter -- our children -- to know and give glory to the One who made them, was a day we'll never forget.

"...that their hearts may e encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God's mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge."

-Colossians 2:2-3

coach daddy | plus three.

Our crew has doubled since we were first at this field together, and with that comes double the love. Double the support. Double the gratitude. Double the praise.

Sure, it's double the chaos, too. But that's just part of the fun.

We are so proud of our Coach Daddy!

coach daddy.

It's a bittersweet day, folks.

Four baseball seasons ago, TJ became "Coach B" when he was an assistant coach at Bryson Middle School. The following three seasons were spent as an assistant coach at our alma mater, Hillcrest High School. And tonight, he will coach his final JV baseball game at the field that helped raise him.

Next year, his biggest fan will start his own baseball career, so TJ will be leaving one coaching position to begin another one; being both daddy and coach on the field at the same time.

We will miss our nights under the lights, and I will especially miss the trips down Memory Lane I get to take each week. Not to mention how fun it has been to meet new people and spend time with those we've known for years as we cheer from the stands the past three years! We know greater things are coming, but change always seems to sting a little. This field he has coached on is the same one we grew up at, and there has been so much joy in living in this story that has truly come full circle.

From being two babies in love used to shyly flirt with each other from a distance here to now bringing our two babies who came to us in love watch their daddy stand at first base and walk out to the mound to give guidance and encouragement to young men.

Full circle.

And we will always be Coach Daddy's biggest fans, in and out of season. Regardless of if he coaches in the major leagues or his kiddos in little league, we'll hoot and holler simply because he's ours. Because he's the best coach, the best man, the best daddy, and the best husband -- always.

Annnnnd because this man in baseball pants is....well, let's just say "mama likey."

(insert winky face emoji here)