Sara Sandstrom-Kobi, Peak to Peak. Just over a week ago, it was decided in our house that someone had to go to Boulder to run some errands that could not be done up here. I gladly agreed that it should be me this time. I was so excited thinking about the fact that I would be by myself for over four hours. No arguing in the car. No complaining about the music being played. I wasn’t even worried about how long it might take to get through the canyon. 

When the time came to leave, I hugged my kids good-bye and practically skipped out the door. I had a feeling of being William Wallace in Braveheart yelling, “Freedom!” 

I backed out of the driveway got down the dirt road about a half mile and realized I had forgotten my list of errands. So, I begrudgingly turned around and headed back home. So much for my great escape. All I could do was laugh at myself. And I must admit it was sweet to get another good-bye hug from the kids. 

That one afternoon of alone time, with only me talking to me, gave me the boost and clarity I needed to get through a few more days with more patience for the situation we are all in. 

I do not love that the table we always had family dinners at is now an office/classroom. I do not love the fact that I find myself folding laundry, helping a kid with an assignment, and constantly looking at the clock to make sure the kids aren’t missing a meeting and I am not missing a meeting. Have we done everything to be ready for the meeting? Did I feed the kids before my meeting starts? Are the kids occupied with a task that will hopefully keep them from needing me for an hour while I do some work? Are there any clean dishes? Do I have time to make anything besides mac and cheese for lunch? This is multi-tasking to the extreme. It is juggling fifty balls in the air and then someone throws you another. 

I am, however, beginning to see a light at the end of the tunnel. There is a sparkle of light out there telling me that soon I can put a few of those balls down. 

Summer vacation from school is in the near future. I do hope to continue some things in the summer like reading and math. However, it will be so nice to change to summer vacation mode. 

Summer vacation won’t feel quite the same though. Traveling to see grandparents is not going to happen. Now that my kids are a little older, I was looking forward to a road trip that they would remember. It will not be happening this summer. 

I am extremely thankful that this lifestyle change is happening in spring and summer. There are so many things we can do and see outside. My son is almost done making a bike track in the yard. We walk or go on bike rides every day. We search for cool rocks and hope to find a little gold someday. We watch the birds eat at our feeder, which we now take in every night after seeing evidence of a bear having had a nighttime snack of bird seed. 

Seeing more wildlife in the spring is helpful to make the day a little more exciting and I always tell my kids how lucky they are to be able see wild animals. We are learning about them firsthand and not just from a book or a website. A few days ago, we saw a male moose in our yard. We do see moose quite often and it never ceases to excite us. We were leaving our house to run an errand and the moose quietly had some dinner while we slowly drove by. A little further down the road we saw a deer. What an exciting night! I turned around in a neighbor’s driveway to not scare the deer and there were two ducks taking an evening dip in a large puddle. I had never seen ducks on our road, what in the world was going on? We got down to the highway and a couple miles later we saw a heard of elk. What an incredible evening of wildlife viewing!

Take the time to go hiking in the area with your kids. You do not need a plan. The kids will find a bug to look at or a tree to climb. Being in nature is the best classroom to be in. 

(Originally published in the May 14, 2020, print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)