glassy mountain | hike it baby.

If you've followed me for any amount of time, you know this to be true: I was born to explore. Whether it's around the block or around the world, adventure has always been my favorite way to spend my days. I'm not afraid of new places or things, and I love the surge of excitement that comes over me when I reach my destination; there's nothing like those butterflies.

None of that changed when I became a mama nearly four years ago, except a heightened desire to see and do and experience life to the fullest. Only now, not just for myself -- but for my children, the ones I'm responsible for teaching and shepherding. In a world driven by the need for more things, I want my kiddos to choose to make more memories. Instead of wanting more stuff, I want them to learn that less is more, that joy is more about perspective than circumstances. And nothing has taught me more about that than creation.

We're almost halfway through our fourth Hike It Baby 30 Challenge, an initiative to encourage parents and kids to hike/walk thirty miles and/or spend at least thirty minutes three times a week in a month's time. This isn't easy with work, full schedules, and two wild children, but it's worth the intentionality for us. Some of those miles are spent on trails, but a lot of them are simply spent walking/biking the streets of our small town. Just breathing in fresh air does something to a soul, I believe it. And there are few things that I pray for more often over these little Bargerons than to learn to breathe deeply.

The phrase "Gratitude over attitude" has become a motto in our house in recent months, and I don't think it's a coincidence that I say this significantly fewer times when we're outside in creation. Every hike and walk we take exercises more than just our bodies.

Creation has given me clearer eyes to really see my Creator. That's why I explore.

And I hope that one day when our kiddos are grown, they'll never fear the mountains or the valleys, but rather see them as opportunities for growth and maturity and a whole lot of fun.

fifteen years.

Fifteen years.

More than half of my life.

That's how long I've loved my Teesh.

Sure, we didn't know much about love back then, but there is no mistaking or denying how I felt about him. From passing notes in seventh grade math class to becoming boyfriend and girlfriend in ninth grade in the hallway after school. From high school to college. From an engagement to a wedding. From marriage to parenthood. We've been through lots of seasons hand-in-hand, each simultaneously getting easier and harder, but none of it would mean anything without each other.

Our relationship hasn't been and still isn't perfect. But somehow, I believe through the grace of God, we've managed to press into each other in sunshine and in rain, in certainty and confusion, in all of it. We've always had a strong connection to one another, really since the first day we met when we were just twelve years old, which is a major miracle. A miracle I don't take for grated or would ever trade in for anything else in this whole, wide world. And I know that we'll always share this pull towards each other -- as long as we keep pursuing it.

Fifteen years ago, I was a fourteen year-old girl who had been waiting for months to become TJ Bargeron's girlfriend (THE TJ Bargeron, you guys!). And on this day, all those years ago, a new season began. A season that we're still in: young and in love. We still share a large cherry coke and a large popcorn every time we go to the movies, we still wish each other a "Happy 3:49!" every time we notice it on the clock (the exact moment he asked me to be his girlfriend; yes, I checked the clock), we still enjoy a good round of mini golf every so often, we still have dance parties to 2000s pop, we still fight about a lot of the things we've always fought about, we still have a hard time forgiving each other over certain things, we still would rather be angry together than happy anywhere else, and we are still absolutely, positively crazy about each other.

Fifteen years is a lot of years.

And yet, somehow it feels like it's only been a second since I first gave my nervous "yes" to the boy I had both secretly and not-so secretly liked for almost two years. It wasn't that long ago that we were two young love birds who went on chaperoned dates with his big sister, gave awkward side hugs, and stayed up all night for months and months talking on our house phones. Time passes so quickly, which is all the more reason to linger on every single moment.

Although we're still babies in a lot of ways, we've changed a lot, too. And praise be to God that we've given each other space to grow and mature and become. I think that's what real love is all about -- growing and maturing and becoming alongside of each other, always saying yes to what's next instead of staying hung up on what came before. I'll always be grateful for the purity, innocence, selflessness, resilience, endurance, and patience that is in the DNA of who we are as a unit, because those things have followed us into adulthood, into each new season we enter into.

Together, we are unstoppable. We are unique. We are a dream team. We are blessed.

Yep, that last part is where I'll park my heart and mind today -- reflecting on all the blessings we have received since September 9th, 2003. Fifteen years of being we. You and me. Me and you.

Us.

That's my favorite thing about the memories we've made -- making them together.

Happy anniversary to the boy-turned-man who will always hold my heart, have my love, tempt me to punch a hole in the wall, and make me weak in the knees. In a life that tempts so often with regret, God has used him, my Teesh, to protect me from more than I even realize. Even on our worst days, I think our love story and life together is better than anything Disney could write.

And y'all know how I feel about Disney.

"Don't allow yourselves to be weary or disheartened in planting good seeds, for the season of reaping the wonderful harvest you've planted is coming!"

-Galatians 6:9 (TPT)

more trees, be gone | home sweet bargeron.

It's been a while since I've shared an update about our humble abode, but we've made a couple of updates to the outside since February. I can still remember how I felt when the front door flung open and my eyes met the gorgeous house that would later become our home. I swooned over the original hardwoods, thick molding, glass doorknobs, updated kitchen, closet space, and stunning master bath. The outside, however, made me cringe a little. With one look at the overgrown bushes all over the yard, you could tell that it was once someone's happy place -- someone used to tend to the bushes and water the flowers. But after being neglected for many years, it was slightly overwhelming to look at.

And when we moved in, we didn't waste any time: we dug them all up within six months of calling it home. Our big summer project last year was covering our deck, and then we took a few months off as we prepared for Bethany to be born. There were plenty of other things that we wanted to get done after the deck, and we kicked our quest for beauty back off again in February.

First up: clearing out the far side of our yard near our driveway for two specific dreams we wanted to make reality: a fire pit and a grilling station.

This is what it looked like before, picture taken in February 2017:

And this is what it looks like as of June 2018 after many, many days of hard work and patience:

We are so proud of this little nook, and I am especially thankful for my handy husband who has such a talent of making things come to life. He and I make a great team with projects like this, much like in life: I'm the dreamer and he's the doer. We still have a couple things we want to do to this space, but we are so happy with how it currently looks and functions.

Next up, which happened in the middle of the previous update was: the removal of four large trees next to our house.

This is what the side of our house looked before the tree removal, picture taken in February 2017:

And this is what it looks like now, as of February 2018:

The more we clean out, the more we make room for our vision. We love our home so, so much, and we are inching our way (slowly and steadily, albeit) to get the outside as beautiful as the inside is. We've been blessed with gift cards and just plain generosity to make a lot of our outdoor updates happen, and the rest has come from getting our hands dirty and making our bodies sore. But, oh, our hearts have been so full to do these things. Making this house even more our home.

We've got more plans that we are hopeful will come to fruition in the next year or so, but we are really just along for the ride, making improvements as we are able. I'd love to finally see shrubs surrounding our home one day soon, but I'm content to plant them whenever we're able. The best part is making these memories with my family, all while looking forward to how we will make even better memories in years to come. We're simply living and doing at our own pace, being grateful every step of the way.

And for us, there's no other way we'd rather do it.

bethany victoria | nine months old.

What a month, baby girl! I can't even put into words how much you have grown and changed over the past few weeks. You are now crawling (we call it your "bear crawl" because you crawl on your hands and feet), pulling up on things (all. the. things.), eating  \solid food three times a day (literally, a miracle), thrive on putting your toes in your mouth, love to make silly faces (especially the one when you make a big "O" with your mouth), and you have TWO TEETH (with a few more that I can see juuuuust below your gums). Girlfriend! I can't believe how you have just taken off this last month. So many things we've been praying over and asking God to make a reality have come to fruition since this day rolled around last month, and it has been so exciting around here!

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On top of all that excitement, you're still sleeping sooooo good (at night and during your two daily naps), become more curious about the world around you with every new second, fall more in love with your big brother and daddy each day, are a mama's girl through-and-through, and smile all the time. It still tickles me to think about how you went from crying non-stop to smiling non-stop. Now, don't get me wrong -- you still have a set of lungs on you. Whew, do you ever! When you're over-tired or hungry, you let your voice be heard from here to Alaska. But, for the most part, you are so content. I can't tell you how grateful I am for that -- another prayer that we earnestly believed God would answer.

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You've been through the ringer this past month with medical visits, too, sweet one. You've got some things going on that require us to meet lots of new doctors, and we're thankful that so many people care about making sure you stay well. We're, also, thankful for how God has provided for us financially over the past year -- from fundraising to bring you home then to paying for seemingly endless medical bills now, He has provided time and time again. Your daddy and I were just talking the other day about how incredible is to know that we're being taken care of on all fronts. We, also, pray often that you and your brother would never doubt the sovereign providence that surrounds you. We wholeheartedly believe God has so many huge things planned for you two, and we want you to chase those divine dreams He gives -- ever confident that you'll never walk in any season alone.

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Over this past month, we survived a whole week without Daddy while he was in Haiti, went on only one hike (don't worry, we'll make up for that this fall), took countless walks downtown and around town, had lots of play dates with your favorite people, had a lunch date with your First Mama and oldest brother (always the best), and replenished your donor milk stash because of a handful of generous mamas. Basically, we've got so much to be thankful for. More than anything, I hope you are thankful for the things you're given. That's a lesson I'm still learning, so hopefully you'll be better off by getting a good start when you're itty bitty.

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We've got big plans for this next month, pretty girl. And I know that the next time I write you a letter, you'll have grown and changed even more. You're becoming your own little person, and it sure is exhilarating to watch it happen. You are so, so loved by so, so many people, and it's truly the biggest, most precious honor being your mama. After nine months, I fiiiiiiiinally feel like I've left the "survival mode" stage behind since you came home to us, and it is pretty much the best thing ever. I'm thankful for how far we've come, and I'm equally as thankful to know that we're still just getting started. You make us so happy, baby girl!

Braxton Michael - Nine Months Old

sister hike | pinnacle mountain.

It had been two years since we went on a sister hike, so we fixed that problem last week. Last time, we went on an eight-mile moderate hike to the suspension bridge at Raven Cliff Falls. This time, we went on another eight-mile hike, but it was a lot tougher than the last. You should have heard her response when she called to say that looked up my recommendation: Pinnacle Mountain. This was a first for both of us, and here is the gist of it: we got our booties kicked in the best way!

Most of the trail was pretty manageable...until the final descent to the peak. LAWD! The sun was hot and bright above us as we climbed the rock face, and we laughed out loud to keep from thinking about how we thought we might pass out. We couldn't laugh too hard, though, because we were huffin' and puffin' something fierce. This back end of the trail was sneaky after a moderate trek up to that point, and we were so proud to reach our destination. Proud and relieved.

My favorite part of this hike, besides just being with my baby sister, was simple: taking it all in. Hiking with kids doesn't leave much allowance to pause for the things I used to pause for before they joined in. So, on this day, I just soaked in as much as I could. Every flower, every early-morning ray of sunshine peeking through the leaves, every creek and waterfall. Everything. It was pretty magical, honestly, to be out in my happy place and be able to take my time as we ventured. There was no hurrying this day. And it was just what we both needed.

More than that, we were just what we both needed.

To have a sister is to have a friend forever. That's too good of a gift to waste on not being grateful for it. Days like this give us an opportunity to reflect on all we've overcome -- both personally and together, to confess things, to share secrets, to laugh at stupid things we do, and to speak into each other's gifts, talents, and souls.

Yep, I'll always be grateful for my sister.

And for days like this.

"There were once two sisters who were not afraid of the dark because the dark was full of the other's voice across the room..."

-Jandy Nelson