At home

Each of us, I believe, has a place (or a few) in which we truly feel "at home".  They're the spots where we feel as though we're enveloped in a comforting embrace, where we can relax and be ourselves and really sense the goodness of life all around us.  For me, one of those places is my parents' backyard in Sault Ste. Marie, where I grew up.  My mom and dad have built a beautiful little paradise out there with their labours of love over the years, and when I'm there, surrounded by lovely, fragrant blooms, breezes fluttering through the leaves of wise old trees, and the calls of the birds of my childhood, I am always completely at peace.  

When Matt and I were looking to find the home where Noah and Will would spend most of their childhoods, we both knew that a yard with lots of room to both play and relax was important to us.  The first time we came to see the house we have now made our home,  and saw its expansive green lawn, its gardens, and its old, majestic trees, we knew the place was calling us to make it our own.  While there is a lot of work involved in keeping our yard looking happy and inviting, Matt and I do it all gladly, and the yard rewards us for our efforts time and time again with many family hours filled with joy and laughter in it.

Last evening, after Matt had mowed the lawn and I had done some work in the flower gardens, some of the next-door-neighbour boys started trickling into our yard along with Noah and Will, and an impromptu game of baseball started up.  Quite content just to watch the boys (Matt included!) enjoy playing one of their favourite sports, I grabbed a seat in a comfy chair on the deck and watched the game unfold. 

Notice Matt's fancy baseball boots!  ;)  Good for mowing the lawn, maybe, but baseball?  Not so much.

Taking a breather.

The cutest little spectator came out to enjoy the ball game, too!

As the evening wore on, I slowly felt the weight of the busy week lifting from my body, and my breaths became slower and deeper as I inhaled the scent of the freshly cut grass and the peonies that are now gloriously blooming.  The sun danced through the leaves of our trees as it sank lower in the evening sky, and the cheers and hoots and chuckles of all the boys were reminiscent of the happy sounds of my brothers and I and our friends as we played in the summer evenings of our youth.  I felt utterly at home, and so thankful that Matt and I have been able to create that space, that feeling for ourselves now that we're grown.  I hope that Noah and Will will always feel at home in our beautiful little corner of the world, too.  Judging by the happy smiles on the faces of the two tired boys we tucked into bed last night, I think they will.