the kid project 
Not all adventures start off pretty. This one began with a whimsical dream. We literally decided to leave town for the weekend, jumped in the Xterra, hooked on the camper and were on the road within an hour. It was awesome. As a mom that struggles with a hyper-scheduled life, I often dream of the…
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I get asked quite frequently if hiking longer distances flies right out the door when you become a parent, along with most your money, good sleep, and sick days. The truth is yes, and no. At first, your new infant is easily packable. The only limits are how far and how much weight you want…
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I get it. You saw this glorious photo of your friends and their young kids scampering down the trail, crossing some high alpine meadow, and you are thinking, “Wow, that looks amazing! I wish we did stuff like that.” The truth is you can, anyone can. Hiking with kids doesn’t require super-mad-outdoor skills or awesome…
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All around the snow came down in half-hearted flurries. On the chair ahead my three kids enjoyed the newfound freedom of not having to ride the chairlift with my husband and I. It was at once terrifying and exciting. I shared my own chair with two other folks, all testing gear up at Solitude Mountain…
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Gasp. What?! Kid’s complaining about adventures? Never. When we look at other people’s lives, [and most likely when you look at ours] it appears that we are all just frolicking around on an “explorer’s high,” smiles on our faces, all the pieces coming together for perfect journeys, and an endless desire to do it all…
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If you’ve been following along on Instagram, you’ve no doubted noticed we’ve been touring around the desert southwest a bit during the last few weeks. Most of this was due to my first ultra race, the Antelope Canyon 55k. This is one thing I love about racing! It opens up so many opportunities to explore new…
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Down the last sandy hill, across a rocky wash and up to the ramp. I was almost there: 34.3 miles into a 34.4 mile race and about to finish my first Ultra. I hear my kids shout, “It’s mom!” I climb up the steep sandstone, hit the ramp and Abs, my 7-yr-old boy, says, Come on, mom,…
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I grab my cup of coffee and sit as warm air from the fireplace wraps around my legs. I open my journal, an old leather cover I’ve recycled over the years, wrapped around a cheap notebook. But who would know? Truthfully, I haven’t written in a journal in years. Who has the time for that?…
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Anticipation built all week for our trip to the Midway Ice castles. We even watched Frozen the night before, and like a good mother I endured “Let It Go” at ear shattering decibels for the hour-long ride into the Utah mountains. Every year, the temperatures drop, the holidays pass, and everyone begins posting photos of…
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As 2015 wrapped up, I took time to consider myself, not in a critical way but in an honest way. How was I? Where was I going? Did I want to be going there? Etc. Every year for the last five or six, I’ve done this and then used it to set an intention for…
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This last year of adventures has truly been remarkable. In looking back, I am filled with overwhelming thankfulness. If I could, I would fill another year up with the same adventures and not find it lacking. So I figured I would share our best and most favorite destinations of 2015 in hopes that someone out…
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The snow is accumulating all around the state of Utah, and our family is making the most of winter! This year, for the holiday season, we made reservations at the Homestead Resort in Midway, UT (only a 25 minute drive from Park City Mountain), with plans to ski and explore Park City Mountain. If you are…
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Do you ever wonder if you really know yourself anymore? Or do you worry you are merely a product of what everyone expects of you? I do. A month ago I had the opportunity to take a night off, escaping to the Homestead Resort for a bit of a retreat from normal life. My husband and kids…
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Country roads, take me home To the place I belong… -“Country Roads” by John Denver The work day ending early, we jump in the already loaded car and hit the road. I laugh (and cry) a bit inside when the kids whine about a 50 minute drive. We are so spoiled in Utah, with the…
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Mom, what is a wedge again?” My 5-year-old daughter asks. OH NO … I need to set some seriously low expectations for day 1 on skis! Ski stoke is in full swing as Utah resorts are opening across the Wasatch. But with a couple of years under my belt as a “ski mom” I’ve learned the stoke…
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Early in our marriage, before kids were bumbling around like honey bees, I found myself reading some general living books from the 1950s era (and some recent ones too). Let’s face it, after we have kids, none of us really have time to read any of those instructional parenting books anymore, right? I don’t remember…
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Be daring, be different, be impractical, be anything that will assert integrity of purpose and imaginative vision against the play-it-safers, the creatures of commonplace, the slaves of the ordinary. – Sir Cecil Beaton Leaves are turning golden. School started almost a month ago. This is the time of year everyone cozies in and makes themselves comfortable….
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The deep pine smell fills my lungs. It is one of the things I love most about summer. That and starry nights, warm evenings with a glass of wine, my kids playing for hours in forest and on beach… without any need for interference. What do you love about summer? Maybe you have noticed, but…
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Every summer we set aside school, evening sports, and many of the social obligations that fill our time and reconnect with our kids. We reconnect with each other. And with friends and family that are often lost in the busyness. At the start of every summer we brainstorm our “adventurous whims” and pencil trips on…
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