A Mother's Prayer and a Winter Walk before Supper

The last couple of days I haven't quite been myself...with a lack of sleep, the lemons that life has been throwing my way haven't been taken as well as I usually would approach them. I have found that my own early morning prayers have been similar to this mother's prayer. Surely someone out there can relate.



Thankfully, I have an amazing Creator who loves me in spite of my shortcomings and offers inspiration daily. He has also blessed me with a strong companion in life, who is awesome at knowing how to handle my "feeling stressed out moments." So, yesterday evening when Clay walked in the door and enthusiastically suggested we all go for a walk at a nearby park before supper, I grabbed my coat and all other winter gear, to which he laughed and said, "You do realize this is the warmest day we've had here this winter at like 40 degrees and camera and ran with the boys out the door.

After posing for and suggesting like 62 photo opportunities just in the hour that we were outside, I knew that hubby was using my passion for photography as a "stress reliever for mom moment." Well, that and hoping that all the fresh air and walking would bring home two exhausted, ready-to-sleep-good-for-the-night little boys. Smart fella. I felt much more rejuvenated when we arrived back at the house.

Most of the walking/skiing trail is in view of the frozen lake, so the scenery is breathtaking.

Cooper loved his winter outing. Due to severe temps lately, this little one hasn't seen much of the outdoors (just like his brother during the winter of '08 when he was born.) He looked totally relaxed, but attentive during the walk. For the first 20 min you would look back at him and he would break out into a huge grin, but I think he was getting tired by the middle to end of the little adventure. This was the look for the remaining 40 minutes of the walk. :)

While walking and exploring, Parker was picking up sticks and leaves and observing little things that his daddy had taught him like spotting animal tracks and trees that had been visited by woodpeckers.

Though it was fun watching him try to slide down the wet snow on just about every hill we came to (which was like every 12 steps), we did have to remind him about the importance of respecting nature and the fellow walkers and skiiers. One could hear his excited little squeals of delight from across the lake I'm sure.

Can you guess who's legs tired out once we got half-way around the trail?