Claire, age 7.5 years.
Sparkle will be 11 in nine days!
Harper B for Beautiful is 12 years and 8+ months.
That photo of Harper is in my yard 🤯
I hope your Sunday is asmazing ❤️
Big Sigh
The past 2.5 years have been all about deconstruction and reconstruction. I mean this, of course, in every way.
It is not possible to appreciate the now without understanding where it started, and the words want to tumble out of me, illustrated with photos and videos.
But this is a blog and not the book. And that past is not today’s story — for that I am filled with gratitude.
Yesterday my house went on the market. This is bittersweet and hard and exciting and terrifying and sad.
Listing the house represents what I have done continually for the past 2.5 years: The Next Right Thing.
The Next Right Thing is not always easy — in fact, it is often very, very difficult.
And when it is hard — like listing a house I have lived in for more years than any other place in my entire life — you do not think too far ahead about the future Next Right Thing because that gets scary and overwhelming.
Besides, how can we know what direction to go until we finish the present Next Right Thing?
This current Next Right Thing comes with a lot of sorrow and trauma and baggage. It has been hard to talk about. Getting here has been so much work — in all ways.
Although you cannot know the starting line and therefore cannot fully appreciate the here and now, I am very proud of how the house — and I — have turned out.
This is the link to the listing (with photos).
I feel so much gratitude to everyone who has helped for the past 2.5 years. I am so so fortunate to have such an outstanding team.
What’s next for me and my little zoo?
You know what they say about Karma.
The Next Right Thing, of course ❤️
Celebrating Lucy Clover King at FOUR!
Worth the wait! Today we celebrate another Wildflower birthday: Lucy Clover King.
Lucy Clover King at 16 days old.
We have this fun update from her family:
“Lucy continues to bring so much joy to our family. We are so grateful for the four fun-filled years we’ve had with her so far!
She still gets up every morning excited about the “best day ever!!” She jumps around and clucks and is so enthusiastic about every day. She and our black lab, Sadie, love their daily walks on the canal (a 2.2 mile walk Lisa takes them on), and she floats some of it when it’s warm outside (pretty much anything above 60 degrees seems to be warm for her!).
For her birthday, we took the dogs on a four-mile round-trip hike to Gold Bug hot springs. They both loved saying “hi” to everyone (dogs and humans) on the trail and getting in the cool river on the way to and from the springs. At the top, we had a surprise dog bagel treat from Einstein's Bagels to celebrate her birthday. She was dirty, but happy!
A picture of Lucy at Gold Bug hot springs after a two mile hike up.
Lucy enjoying a soak in the water on the way back down.
A great photo that Elena took of Lucy in our back yard, getting out of the heat under the hammock!
We had a lot of snow at our cabin this winter, and Lucy loves to bury her head in the snow!!
She loves puzzle toys - this one is a banana with monkeys in it. She never tears them apart and always enjoys finding out how to pull them out…
A hike last summer with the pups at Mount Bachelor outside of Bend, Oregon.
Watching one of the girls’ science experiments from a safe distance!
Smart Girls!
Thank you to the King Family for Lucy’s wonderful and well-loved life — and so fun to see the girls growing up (all of them!). HAPPY BIRTHDAY LUCY CLOVER KING!!!