Take a hike with Jesus

On Wednesday morning I checked the weather while drinking my cup of coffee as per usual. It was supposed to be a beautiful day so I started brainstorming things we could do outside to take advantage of the weather. Then I remembered Theresa telling me about Brukner nature center and after a little research I began preparations.

Yes, the ladies are three and some change years old, however there are still preparations. I began by chasing and bribing "thing 2" to put on her pants already while "thing 1" would not let me help her do anything. This spiraled into threatening "thing 2" to put on her pants or else... and finally being allowed to help "thing 1" pull her stuck arm out of the head hole of her shirt before she dislocated something. A little camera preparations, snack packing, and shoe wrangling later we were in the car and on our way.

The girls and I were having a great time singing along with the radio when we pulled in and parked the van. (Yep, that's right, I have a van, I know you're jealous. Maybe I'll let you drive next time) We took a short little walk down to look at the pond and see some turtles and then we were ready to embark on a "nature walk."

As we were crossing the parking lot and getting closer to the forest Lily yells "Let's go find Jesus!" "Jesus is in the forest Momma, let's go find him!" And of course not to be the only one left out Ava pipes in, "Jesus!" as she goes running into the woods. I took a deep breath and made sure no one just heard that. Check, we're clear.

OK, hold on let me explain myself. Don't go jumping to conclusions. My kids only went to church a couple times when they were babies, however we do plan on attending one again at some point, if we can find one that's not full of crazy's. We do have a bible and a kids bible but we're just not what you would call openly religious types. Why do my children know Jesus, you ask?

It's because of this place.
http://holyhill.com/Basilica/default.aspx also seen here http://farm1.static.flickr.com/25/57499742_656a7e682c.jpg

Holy Hill Bascilica in Hubertus, WI is one of my favorite places. It is probably the most beautiful mix of religion, architecture, and the outdoors that I have ever seen. Just driving to it is relaxing (if you avoid the freeway) and as soon as I start to walk around I feel calm and whole. I love the place, what can I say. I have a lot of fond family memories of Holy Hill.

Ok, back to my crazy girls! Last summer the stars aligned and we had enough time to go to Holy Hill. My husband and kids had never been there and I was excited to take them. Mass was being held inside and no way was that going to happen with a double dose of two year old. I suggested we walk the stations of the cross. The stations of the cross are spread throughout a hiking trail and you walk to each one, they're large, but not quite life size. (I'm not Catholic, so maybe you're supposed to do something at each one, I don't know)

At the first station the girls asked who the man was and I told them it was Jesus. They considered this for a moment and then introduced themselves to Jesus.
Ava: "Hi Jesus, Hi"
Lily: "How doing?
Jesus: nothing, nadda, birds chirping

Ava (getting a little ticked) "Hi!"
Lily: "Momma, he no say hi to me"
Jesus: blank stare, crickets

After collecting myself I stepped in and explained that Jesus was a statue and he would not say hi. Ava did the mope and pouted, head hung low, arms hanging down like an ape (not a monkey). This news did not please her. Lily took it much better and moved on to looking for "popcorns" (acorns.)

So as any parent of small children would, we made finding the next station a game. The ladies ran down the trail looking for the next Jesus. This was great fun, picking up "popcorns" and looking for Jesus. Then at another station Ava noticed that there were offerings left all around the station, flowers, candles, coins etc. She asked me why they were there and I attempted to explain what an offering is. She considered my explanation and reached into her pocket (which she had just figured out an hour earlier and filled with acorns) and brought out the contents, acorns. Then she told me she wanted to give them to Jesus. At this point my heart melted and I got all weepy. I told her Jesus would love them and she put them on the station with the other offerings.

It was a fantastic day and one I'm sure I'll always remember. However I really need to get my kids in church because now they think that ANY statue is Jesus, like even the little cheesy ones some people have in their gardens. And apparently he is down every trail in the forest. They do know what Jesus looks like though because every time we walk into the YMCA they look at his picture by the door and say (too loudly) "Momma, there's Jesus!"