I'm not sure what it is about living here, but it's brought out a different side of me. I love being outside again!!! Maybe it's because I lived in urban areas for too many years, but I had sort of forgotten what fun it can be to play outside all day getting sweaty and stinky, haha! But here, it's just different. In the winter, it was so much fun to run around in the snow and sled down the hill. And now that the whole state is pretty much green and lush and beautiful... we're outside all the time! I can't get enough!
We started our day with a trip to the farmer's market in Barre, which is known as one of the biggest and best farmer's markets in the region. It's still pretty early in the growing season here, though, and there weren't any fruits or veggies for sale. Most of the booths were filled by local craftsmen, though there were a handful of places selling plants. I bought a six-pack of broccoli plants, which made me very happy! Yay for home-grown broccoli!
We didn't stay for too long, since there weren't many vendors. But it was our first time in downtown Barre, and it was really quaint! Much like our town (and all the others nearby), the streets were lined with American flags for Memorial Day. And the Barre town hall had this HUGE one! As Nikos said, "That's a REALLY big flag!!"
Since the farmer's market didn't take as much time as we had thought it would, we made a spontaneous decision to go for a walk on a section of trail we had passed while driving to Barre. I *think* it was part of the Rail Trail, but I am honestly not sure. There are miles and miles of walking trails in this area! Anyway, we had driven past this area before, and noticed that there was a cool bridge over a creek that the kids would enjoy. So, we checked it out! We also saw a tree that a beaver had clearly been working on, some interesting mushrooms, and lots of places that moose might live (but no sign of them... though we KNOW they live here!).
We (and by "we," I mean "everyone but me") started to get hungry for lunch, so we headed back home. Gus ate a quick lunch, and then took off to pick up our new fire pit and patio set. Meanwhile, my little helpers helped me plant my broccoli plants in the garden and then give them some water. Nikos was VERY careful to make sure that every plant got a little drink from his watering can! We had lunch and, soon enough, Gus was back with the stuff. I made it my mission to assemble everything, while he chopped firewood for the fire pit.
We actually bought the fire pit over a week ago, and Gus immediately went out and got an ax so that he could chop wood from our yard. We have plenty of fallen branches and whatnot, so there's no shortage of wood to cut! However, the minute he brought home the ax, Nikos was asking when he'd get to chop wood. He even announced this morning that he wanted to be a lumberjack when he grew up! Anyway, he could not WAIT to chop wood today! He ended up finding it a little frustrating, but Gus was very patient and let him try (safely, of course!). Ultimately, he enjoyed stacking the wood pieces and making sure I admired the growing piles of kindling, haha!
Once the wood was chopped and stacked, Gus finally mowed the lawn! Woohoo! It was getting pretty bad. The kids hung out with me at our new table until Gus got closer, and then we ran inside until he was done.
As soon as he was done, we went back outside. The kiddos played football with their daddy while I pitched our tent! We just got it for our camping trip next month. I wanted to make sure I knew how to put it up. And it was pretty easy! This thing is MASSIVE, though, haha! But I am excited. It has three rooms: one for the kids, one for us, and one in the middle for our clothing and whatnot. It may be huge, but it will make camping that much more comfortable. Plus, the kids already love it!
Eventually, we had dinner outside (hot dogs and burgers on the grill, oh yeah!), and then broke in the fire pit by toasting marshmallows and making some s'mores! Excellent practice for next month's camping trip!
And then Gus gave the kids their much-needed bath, and it was off to dreamland for them! He and I went back out and enjoyed the fire pit some more. Words cannot describe how much I love sitting in our back yard! The fire pit makes it just that much more awesome!
And that was our day! We were outside almost non-stop from morning til night, and it was fabulous! We have a cookout tomorrow at my friend Caryn's house, so we will be outside even more. I can't wait!
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