Aden turns 12

 Aden had a party for his 12th birthday on National Doughnut Day. It was as easy as inviting a few friends, using our apocalyptic backyard for a Nerf War, and piling up doughnuts for a cake.

 There was an obstacle course, some Mentos and Diet Coke experiments, and a campfire to close out the night. Aden has made some great friends over the last year and I think they just wanted a chance to "hang."

Kaleb skateboarded down to Albertson's to get Aden this raft as a gift. (And then had to skateboard home with it fully inflated. Ha!) So sweet. They took it to Grandma Ellen's pool to test it out.

 Also, snow cones and pancakes. Sugar rush!

One last celebration to cap off the birthday week. Dan and Ellen give each of the boys $500 and a fancy dinner if they read through the Bible. Aden just finished in time for this to coincide with his birthday. Such a profound investment in their grandson's life. It takes a village!

Onto High School

Kaleb's eighth grade graduation was a delightful ceremony recognizing the growth in these young people over the course of middle school. 

It has been a blessing to have Kaleb, Aden, and Collin at the same school. Kaleb is particularly protective of his brothers. He can mess with them, but no one else can!

Kaleb and his best friend Indy. They have a band together with their classmate Lindsay. They even have an Instagram, so cool!

He read a poem at the ceremony. Kaleb is truly a strong, confident, charismatic leader and that has been recognized and celebrated at his school.

He will be a freshman at Renaissance High School next year. He is excited to be a apart of some of their unique courses but mostly their killer weight room to work out in. The two gals, pictured with him below, will also attend RHS. Pretty great that from his small charter school he can transition with friends.

This is Kaleb's good friend River at an outdoor camp. She is an artist and she would encourage Kaleb in art and when he was trying to throw away his art projects, she would save them from the trash for me. She also makes great fudge. I really like River :)

This is just a weird picture of my ginger guy with blue eyebrows at the school carnival. No matter how proud I am of him, he always brings back the reality of parenting teens. Embrace the weird.

Boise West U13

#11 with the pink cleats is our Aden. As the little brother to two other lacrosse players, he has developed into quite the competitor. This year, with how the birthdays fall, he was the youngest member of his team. He made the A team though and saw a good amount of playing time. He will spend his off season trying to bulk up, as you can see, some of the other guys are way bigger than him. Hard to think about an Archuleta being the lil' guy :)

U15 Meridian North

 (Photo above: Captures by KM Photography)

Kaleb had quite the year in lacrosse. His team finished last but he had a lot of goals this year. Go #12! He was well liked by his teammates, he worked on his left handed shot and he learned how to better read the field. Matt helped to coach his team and Kaleb thoroughly enjoyed that as well.

This last shot is my favorite, he has the ball in his stick and he scored. You can also see the beautiful Boise backdrop behind the Ann Morrison fields where the boys play.

Motherly Love

Why is that not the saying? Why not Motherly Love instead of Brotherly Love? I guess because Mother is synonymous with love. Mine for sure is.

We had a lovely Mother's Day celebration this year at Bonefish downtown. Also, a girls day for donuts and pedicures.







































 This past school year has been just like my journey to motherhood. A little place in my body, growing something new. Taking far too long and leaving me lost in possibility.

What on earth have I been up to? I wanted to post all about taking some classes, or volunteering for an amazing organization. I wanted a checklist. Something impressive. It's all the same though. I still prep meals, I still do laundry, and I still binge Netflix more than I should. Turns out there is work for a stay at home mom even when her kids are away at school.

I was listening to Rob Bell's podcast recently. (One of the things I am doing with my time while the boys are at school.) He was speaking with Krista Tippett about creating a space for something new to happen. It hit me like a lightening bolt. That has been my journey this year. This opportunity in time for something new to grow. A lot of praying, meditating, reflecting. And a whole lot of House of Cards. ;)

So that's it. I have a newborn. My time is a newborn. It's in it's infancy. It keeps me up at night and it comes with weird food cravings. It may blossom into more writing. More photography. For sure more prayers. I have just tried to enjoy the "pregnancy" without expectations. Because I am creating space for something new to happen. That's exciting.

Just look at those man cubs! Those courageous, hilarious bits of bone and flesh that came from me. It's a holy thing to raise them. Besides that podcast, which I would highly recommend, I also read this post from Ann Voscamp. So good and so timely. We need triage for moms of teenagers!

Mostly, it has been a school year of exhausting growth all around. All the good stuff. The goodnight kisses, the homemade Mother's Day gifts, the silly puns during carpool. And it is all mixed in with grouchy mornings, forgotten chores, and harsh words spoken. It's a swirly blend of breathless and grateful. Stressed out and simultaneously aware that we are living one hell of a wonderful life. Just doing my thing to be the Motherly Love that guides this band of wild men.