A lot of our family and friends comment on the fact that we are always really busy, and that we are always outside doing stuff and doing random trips and adventures. So some might say we are a VERY active family. We like to be out and about and we love for the girls to have all sorts of fun memories when it comes to family time. Myself, I have always been a very active person. I worked at a health club through highschool and collage, and in the summer I worked at an outdoor education camp in the Northern California Mountains. Before the girls came we did very little (in Hawaii we took up surfing and hiking ALOT.....because that was all we could afford LOL). When we became parents we decided we wanted our kids to experience as much as possible when it came to trying new things, and seeing new things.
So, I thought I would do a post about what we do, and why we do it.
First of all, wee let them try out every sport they want. Some they like, some they don't. Sometimes one is good at a sport and the other is not. They know that it's not about winning, but trying our BEST and having FUN. We do not always love having to drive them around and take them to practices, and to be honest some days we flat out just don't do it. But they go to almost every practice for whatever they are signed up for. Doing sports at a young age gives kids all sorts of confidence (not just in their athletic ability, but in their body image, courage, and so many other ways), teaches them team work, and good sportsmanship. We have found that Abby tends to like the less aggressive sports (well except hockey, but at her age they are not aggressive yet) like gymnastics, and Jordy likes the more aggressive sports like wrestling. Sports where she isn't busy and having full contact she loses interest in much quicker (track) (she hasn't gotten to try a whole bunch yet because she is just now old enough to start trying them).
During the summer we go to the base pool at least a few times a week, if not every single day. More than half of those days, we bike to the pool which is about a mile away. In the winter we play out in the snow, and not just the kids...we all go out and build snowmen, sled, and have snowball fights. Most people think we are nuts. I know that most of the people we know here have never gone and played with their kids in the snow. IF their kids even like going outside in the snow, they just send them outside. Going outside in the cold isn't for everyone, and we will admit, we are not outside with them every single time...but people who NEVER do...you are missing out big time. This is the sort of stuff kids remember. In a few years they will not remember me slaving over a hot stove and making that perfect healthy meal...they will remember us being with them and playing. When we have in between weather we love going on family bike rides and just being outside. So yes, we are definitely that "outdoorsy" family. But there is more to it than just having fun and creating memories for our girls. We are trying to set in them that being active is important. It keeps you healthy and lets you enjoy life. Real life, not the fake life you see on TV. The girls know that we need to be active, and they know there are tons of ways to make it fun. They see Geoff and I going on runs, or doing a work out video. We never say it's to lose weight when they are around. We tell them we do it to keep our bodies healthy. Eating healthy and staying active are very important to living a happy life and we try to lead by example. Our girls watch VERY little TV. Somedays they watch none at all. Most days they get 30 minutes at night before bed to help them sort of veg out and relax. In the summertime, we walk after dinner as a family every night that we do not have any other commitments (which is usually some sort of practice).
Also most nights we eat a healthy homemade dinner...at home...TOGETHER...at the dinner table. I know this isn't an option for many military families, but we are blessed that it is for us. It is VERY rare that we will all just sorta randomly eat dinner at different times. We have a set dinner time. Now when we are more involved with some sort of sport with the girls we are not able to do this as often as we would like, but if we are home, this is what we do.
Also most nights we eat a healthy homemade dinner...at home...TOGETHER...at the dinner table. I know this isn't an option for many military families, but we are blessed that it is for us. It is VERY rare that we will all just sorta randomly eat dinner at different times. We have a set dinner time. Now when we are more involved with some sort of sport with the girls we are not able to do this as often as we would like, but if we are home, this is what we do.
With that said, here are some random photos from the past year or so. Most of them are pretty crappy photos because they are from a point and shoot or camera phone because I usually don't have a good camera with me when we are out and about. I have a waterproof/shatterproof/freezeproof point and shoot camera that can take a pretty good beating and take decent enough photos to capture the memories. It's not the best quality, but it gets the job done :)
Swimming
exploring the peace gardens
playing at the park
Splash pad at Sea World San Antonio
Mount Rushmore
Climbing on rocks somewhere in South Dakota
Exploring Oahu, Hawaii...Windward coast.
Hiking in South Dakota.
Watching the boom operator refuel planes on a military flight to Hawaii.
(Jordyn's 1st military HOP, Abby's 5th)
Learning the Hula...Waikiki- Honolulu, Hawaii
Turtle Beach...North Shore Hawaii
Hockey
Tubing in Bottinau, ND
Jordyn's first Hockey practice
Jumping in the rain puddles
Splash pad in Grand Forks, ND
Running Track
Gymnastics
Abby's first time without training wheels.
Kayaking
Both girls were taught how to swim underwater last summer.
This next summer is going to be even more awesome!
I know this probably seems like a lot to most people, but this is only a small handful of the stuff we have experienced and done over the past few years. Being busy and active isn't for everyone, but we love it and have no plans on slowing down :)
