Not So Merry At Marymere Falls

mer·ri·ment - ˈmerēmənt/

noun

gaiety and fun.

"her eyes sparkled with merriment"

synonyms: high spirits, high-spiritedness, exuberance, cheerfulness, gaiety, fun, effervescence, verve, buoyancy, levity, zest, liveliness, cheer, joy, joyfulness, joyousness, jolliness, jollity, happiness, gladness, jocularity, conviviality, festivity, merrymaking, revelry, mirth, glee, gleefulness, laughter, hilarity, lightheartedness, amusement, pleasure

"we got caught up in the merriment of the occasion"

As parents, my Sugar and I try and provide experiences and adventures that would elicit such joyous feelings, cheerful memories, and overall amusement for our 3 children.

As parents, my Sugar and I love nothing more than to see our children have smiles on their faces, at peace, living and loving life.

As parents, my Sugar and I want our children to have a love of nature and all of the amazing things that our Heavenly Father and His son created for us.

As parents, my Sugar and I hope that our children appreciate these experiences in their childhood, and recognize how truly blessed they are. 

 

But, again, we had another exciting adventure where one child was sure she was going to die. That same child wanted nothing more than to turn around and go home after driving a little over 2 hours to get there. A child who didn't listen when she was told what socks, pants, and shoes to wear in order to stay warm. 

So, this beautiful place, filled with amazing trees to climb, pictures to take, and natural wonders to see, was pure torture.

As parents, my Sugar and I try and help our kids by sharing helpful advice from personal experience, life lessons, and the weather channel, in order to ensure they are safe. It's up to our children to listen to these little bits of advice of simple things that would help ensure absolute merriment. 

 

 

 

So I write this post as a little reminder for this child. Telling her I have never felt such merriment in my life until the very first time I held her in my arms. This girl brings such joy and exuberance to our family and I'm so beyond thankful that my Heavenly Father let me be her mother. The happiness I have knowing that she will be my baby girl for eternity, can't be topped by anything else really. When she's choosing to be happy the world smiles with her and feeds off of her energy. The opposite can be true, and sadly we see it at times. To this girl of mine, please know you are loved beyond all measure, and always will be. Please know that as parents, your dad and I are not trying to ruin your life by suggesting certain things, like sock choices at age 8 or bigger things at age 18. Just please know that you are my definition of merriment, now and forever.

And I would like to add one more thing, to this child of mine. Please remember that you have younger siblings who watch you constantly and learn from your example. So... 

If you are wondering why my children were not prepared for the snow... you can ask this guy right here.  He said there would be no snow since this hike is so close to the water. Oops.

But if you notice, I am wearing appropriate shoes for a cold hike along with my baby, who I picked out her clothes.

He is so handsome. :)