Celebrate the Earth!

We went to the Albany Pinebush preserve on Saturday for a small hike (although for the 2 pair of little legs joining us on that hike it seemed very long!).

We just got on the trail and immediately the air felt cleaner and cooler and rich with forest scents, more refreshing to breath. I remembered what a friend has told us that his most beloved times with the Divine are in the forest. I felt an easier connection to God too as i walked on the trail and observed nature.

Lucy found mushrooms growing on different surfaces and Levi was excited to run, run, run. Noah fell asleep on my back. (awww--there's nothing more beautiful than a sleeping baby).

As I was watching the leaves in the trees being blown about by the warm but crisp fall air, i thought, "what an amazing home we've been given!" In Mormonism there's a common teaching that our bodies are gifts, created by God and then gifted to us to care for as the precious gifts they are. That's a teaching I really love and feel like extends to the gift of our home, the Earth.

I'm trying to love those two gifts more and more. What ways do you reverence, take care of or show your love for those gifts?

Here are some pics of the kids taking care of their bodies :)