Outdoor Babes!

I am blessed with two super great girls. Lillian is seven and her sister, Sage, just hit two. They are constantly teaching me about this amazing world that we live in. Personally, I have always known that life is better when lived outdoors. I love the feeling of being blissfully worn out after a day of outside adventuring. Lucky for me, both my girlies love to get out and about as much, if not more, than I do.

Sometimes Lillian takes some prodding, she is also content with her nose in a book, but get her out the door and away she goes. She recently had an amazing breakthrough on her bicycle and powered through breakfast all week for a few minutes on her bike before school. No big deal right? Well, we live in North West Montana and though we haven’t had much of a winter, morning temps were hovering around 20°, burr!

Now Sage, she could live outside. We actually have to lock the doors to keep her in, she opens the door and leaves, sometimes she will say “bye-bye,” most often not, and away she goes. There are the obvious dangers with a stray 2 year old and at our house we also have a pond, the potential of bears, mountain lions and other creatures and acres of raw land. Fencing her in is easier said than done and sometimes I have the vision of a dog-run/tether apparatus just to keep her somewhat contained. But I know her routes and make certain to keep her in my sights.

Those of us with children in our lives know what joy they bring to our days and for me, having two girls that thrive in the outdoor world we live in just multiplies that joy. Both my girls are fascinated by the plants and animals in their environment. They love the mud, how the moon hangs in the sky when they first get up in the morning and the birds that come in and out over the year. Their enjoyment and curiosity has broadened my view of the outdoors. I am learning the native plants and developing a bit of an obsession about caterpillars with Lillian and I am taking the paths that offer the most puddles with Sage. It really is a gift to look at the world around us from the perspective of growing, curious minds. The view is different from down there, it is fun and brand new; and, at the end of the day, minds and bodies full of fresh air settle into their beds without a fight!