Day two was a clearer day than the first - the smoke and clouds were gone and the lake was glittering. My girls did great hauling all their gear out despite still feeling tired and a bit sore from the first day. The trip was just the right amount of challenge were the girls were ready to be done by the end, but could still finish it. We made sure to stop for one last dip in the lake before our final push to the car. Swimming in the water was dreamy! Molly (the dog) swam from person to person entertaining us all. I took some time on the shore to reflect on this trip. I was so grateful to be able to do this with my daughters and my best friends. My body felt strong, no knee pain (!), and seriously to be a bunch of women camping and exposing our children to this was very empowering. My mind felt calmer, I left feeling restored. Stepping away from the busy day to day and the household and family and baby demands was something that really helped to revive me. I'm looking forward to more adventuring with this crew!

I took Holly and Greta on their first backpacking trip (and actually only my second!) and we had so much fun! We went with our friends and a dog - so fun to have a dog with us! We went to Bead Lake, which is about an hour and a half away. It was a there and back hike, about 12 miles total, and we probably did around 2/3 of the distance on the first day. The girls were so strong and total troopers! I was really proud of them. And they want to do it again! I'm hoping this will become an annual thing. All 4 of the kids shared a tent and I think that was a dream come true for them. They've always wanted to have a sleepover (and they basically had one in Banff last month), but all the giggling was adorable.

Gotta say, the girl power vibe of this trip was strong. How awesome is it that all 4 girls first backpacking trip was led by 3 woman? I'm kind of bursting with all the "hear me roar" feels. Here are a bunch of pictures from our first day!

Gosh, these three. They are everything.

And at the same time, I can't help but wish we had an extra kiddo in this photo. Becoming a foster momma for me means a huge range of feelings. I wonder if the ache in my heart will ever go away? Or is this what it means to love? I keep hoping that having another sweet soul to love on will help heal, but the phone just isn't ringing.

Some photos of my little trio. I haven't taken any photos since we came home from Mexico!

I don't know about the other families out there, but Sunday seems to often be a day of torture for our kids. They are so bored all day long and I feel like I spend the day trying not to lose my mind! It doesn't matter if we eat good food and play some games together. As soon as they are no longer the center of our attention, or eating, or on a screen, they are grumpy and incapable of entertaining themselves. It's painful. Staying up late the night before isn't doing them any favors either! 

Here are some cute pictures of my favorite girls! Last night we walked to the supermarket to buy supplies like toothpaste, chocolate, and diapers (except I accidentally bought pull-ups!). Poor Conor is feeling pretty rough right now and so while we had planned to go to a new restaurant for dinner, we opted to take a taxi home, put Conor in bed and go to the local taco shop instead. No disappointments there because the food at our local place is so yummy (and cheap!). I'm hoping that this coming week brings a little more health to my family. At the beginning of last week, I ate something dirty and was really sick for 24 hours. An authentic experience here in Mexico! We don't have Spanish School this week, so we have lots and lots of fun plans like visiting some towns, eating good food, visiting ruins... etc, etc! I'm so excited to see more of this area and maybe do some shopping.