TGIF

After a rather intense two years, I have been deeply inhaling the changes that are coming our way as the boys grow. It's amazing how simultaneously terrifying and relieving a child's growth can be to a parent.

This morning the boys and I shared a simple picnic lunch on the steps of the nearby Pulgus Water Temple, pictured below. Neither of the boys got precariously close to diving into the reflection pool. No one started taking off shoes in an effort wade. They toddled around discovering pine cones and spider webs. They ran circles around the pillars and talked about how much exercise they were getting. (Well, the one who can really talk, that is.) It was pristine. Then we meandered back to the car and left each boy's long stick in the pebbled parking space next to ours. Within 20 minutes we were back home, with the boys tucked into bed for naps. (They've recently started going down at the same time, rather than staggered. It is a huge time saver for me!)

When Ryan came home from work at 4pm, we headed to the Stanford Shopping Mall just to wander the grounds, woof-woof-ing at dogs and playing a very basic version of tag. I love this brief moment of stillness:


And to top off a lovely evening, we enjoyed a rare sunset sighting while driving the 280 home. It seems that the hills that block the west often dampen of our sunsets, but not tonight!


You can see why I've been breathing deeply lately, right?