"Happy Mother's Day" - Love, The Aggressive Ostrich

I had such a nice Mother's Day this year. It is not a holiday that I feel I have to celebrate or need gifts or anything... Even so, it is nice to have my kiddos (and hubby) show their love and appreciation. With all of the rewards that parenting brings it can really be tiring and discouraging at times. I will often question my methods or thoughts on parenting...but seeing their smiles and outright signs of a happy life is so amazing and uplifting. I must be getting at least some parts right. 

Meli's birthday was close to Mother's Day and it was my uncle's birthday. So, we had a super busy, fun day planned. We started the morning with muffins and Dutch Bros coffee. Meli and Colin love the Not So Hot Cocoa. The kids love that they put whipped cream on the straw! 

Then we went on an early morning hike. It rained, but I think that makes it even more enjoyable sometimes. It was still beautiful out and just very peaceful. A nice atmosphere for celebrating motherhood. 

Since it was technically my day, my hubby could not complain about all of the stops I take for photo ops! Bonus! I totally took advantage of that.

Later that afternoon, we headed down to Roseburg for a birthday/Mother's Day lunch at Abby's (pizza). Meli scored with several princess dresses (Anna and Ariel), princess accessories, and all things Frozen. After cake, we headed to Wildlife Safari. We had not done the drive part of the park in some time, so it was very exciting for the kids. They loved how close you got to the bears and bison. 

This guy (above) was one of my favorites. He thought we had food, so he put his head right in our window.

Due to past experience, I explained very clearly to Meli that if she was going to sit in my lap up front (do not worry you drive less than 8 mph for the most part) she was in charge of the window. So, if an ostrich came up to our car she was to roll it up very fast. When it came time to do this, she thought it was funny to hear the stress in my voice. She just kept waiting. Well, I know those things can be mean, so I encouraged her (with as much niceness and patience as possible) to get the window up that instant. She thankfully got it up just as the ostrich approached. He stayed with us for a bit. The kids thought it was hilarious that he was pecking the window. He/she was very much trying to get Meli's hand on the window.

Such a gorgeous day!

His little nubs grossed me out a bit, but he was so cute.

My hummingbird

It was such a nice day. One of those magical days that has a balance of all that one needs to be happy. I am going to store it in the memory bank to use when I may have a day that I need a reminder of how blessed I am and how good life is. 

                                                      ~ Love, Hugs & Kisses ~
                                                                     The B Family