Life Within the Cuckoo's Nest: Taking a Time Out From Life

The gorgeous view from our cabin!

We got there right after they had a huge snow storm so there was plenty of snow!

I loved everything about the holidays but my energy bank is completely spent! Having Josh continue to be sick doesn't help matters much. He is scheduled for yet another colonoscopy to search for more answers because he just doesn't seem to be getting better! He is forcing himself to go to work each day with sharp abdominal pain, nausea, and diarrhea :(. We have been trying our best to carry on with life but it has been rough because it all falls on me.

So I worked some extra hours and rented a cabin in the mountains :). Every day I was at work I was daydreaming of cuddling with my family by the fire and drinking hot chocolate while watching the snow fall outside. I needed to seperate myself from technology and from responsibility. I needed to not think about things. I needed to JUST BE. JUST EXIST. JUST FOCUS on what is most important. My family. I was hoping to have more help from Josh along the way and the first day up in the mountains was perfect! Absolutely divine. But he got sick later that night and was in bed the whole rest of the time :(. So it was just me and the kids. But that's okay. I had a couple melt downs when my exhaustion level hit its max from doing everything by myself but we got over it and moved onto snowball fights and exploring for icicles. The kids were enthralled by the icicles....

Austin has been begging to play in the snow for a while now and Evie has never seen it before. So the excitement was high as we drove up Mount Charleston out of the desert and into the beautiful wintry wonderland.

We did everything I wanted to do and more. We played outside and had snowball fights, and when it got cold we went inside the cabin to warm ourselves by the fire and watch a Disney movie or quietly color and play cards. Our cabin had a big jet tub that I loved but the kids didn't enjoy it so much once they realized what happens when you turn the jets on.

There was one absolutely perfect moment that I have to document because it has never happened before I don't know if it ever will again. It had been a long day full of outdoor adventures with snow and exploration. We had dinner at the lodge and then bathed in the giant tub, just in time to cuddle all together in the giant king size bed in front of the roaring fire while we watched a family movie. The kids played in the bed for a while, but soon they were both laying in my arms quietly snoring beside me. As I looked at my sweet Evie girl in the crook my left arm and my one and only Austin in my right, I couldn't stop the tears. It was just too perfect. I laid there enjoying the warmth of the fire and the sweet sounds of their breathing and then looked up at my husband who too was watching the beautiful scene and it was suddenly all worth it. ALL OF IT. Every bad day, every heartbreaking hour. Every minute of sleep lost, and every heart felt prayer for patience. It all came down to this moment. And all I could do was cry.

Every morning we woke up and made hot chocolate which of course got spilled multiple times. And every night we laughed while we watched the kids run around the cabin chasing after each other in play. They make the greatest friends and I love watching them :).

We were all sad to see it end. None of us wanted to go home after such a picturesque couple of days. But I will forever hold the beauty of that long weekend in my mind and heart as a daily reminder that we are doing good. That our children are growing beautifully and we are so incredibly blessed. The pictures are all out of order but so was our days. We were in a constant blur of inside, outside, inside, outside and it was wonderful!

My absolute favorite thing was watching our babies play while I held onto my hot latte and just took in all the beauty around us.

Austin was obsessed with snow balls!

I bought toddler mittens but Evie's hands were still too small so she was always losing them :).

Watching them from inside....

CHEERS!

While Austin was obsessed with throwing the snowballs, Eve was obsessed with EATING the snowballs! Seriously, she thought it was so amazing and her mouth was always full!

Now THAT is how you win a snowball fight ;).

It has been so hard for me while he has been sick but I still love this guy as much, if not more, than I did on our wedding day.

The scenery alone was so healing.

I love this capture of her first experience with snow! Pure Joy!

Oh how I love these two :)

Cuddles in bed in the middle of the afternoon = PERFECTION!

Quietly coloring while she waited for her little mittens to dry.

Austin had his quiet moments as well which was incredible since he NEVER does this! I think the kids needed the peace and solitude of the mountains as much as we did!

Walking over to the lodge for some dinner!

Twinners!

I didn't want to spend a fortune eating out the whole time so I brought meals for eating in the cabin and I am so glad I did because it allowed us to just be alone and not have to socialize. We needed the solidarity to truly feel like we had gotten away from it all!

Austin tried so hard to be a big boy and do everything for himself which was nice in one way, but also resulted in him spilling his juice over all the food we had in the refrigerator.... insert Mom freak out here.... Luckily I was able to salvage most of it or we would have been in big trouble!

His face says it all!

This boy was completely in his element!

I loved our quiet indoor moments a much as I did the great outdoors! Evie quietly coloring by the fire while Daddy and Austin played cards on the bed....