The sounds of birds chirping are heard in my slumber, as I slowly begin to wake. I open my eyes and remember where I am. I feel the warmth of my sweet three year old’s body sleeping peacefully next to me. The rustling of my five year old in his bunk. My husband’s soft, sleepy gaze. I focus on my co sleeping baby. His peacefulness, his hands tucked sweetly under his chin. Before his eyes open, he speaks the words “the birds are talking to us.” And in this moment, this shared experience, I feel like all is right in my world. Waking up with my family tucked in our little trailer, with the sounds of the forest surrounding us, is most definitely the stuff of life.

We continue to hold intention in our lives and our choices, bringing our awareness to the glorification of busy and choosing differently. I am learning at times how incredibly easy it is to choose joy, to slow down, and how other times it’s extremely challenging. Some times we are good at it, and others we are not. And we keep trying to refocus our energy on what we value most.

These days camping is our favorite way to slow down. To connect. We love exploring new places, starting our mornings with pajama bike rides and ending our days watching the sun go down. As I write this, we have already gone camping eight times this summer, with more to come. And it has by far been the best summer yet.

I read something recently that spoke about what they believed were the six luxuries in life. They were time, health, a quiet mind, slow mornings, ability to travel and a house full of love. I couldn’t agree more. And I started to ponder how difficult having those luxuries are in our modern world, in the mundane schedules of life.

I think we all desire more time. We speak about how time is fleeting, we reference time as a thief as we reflect back on the years past. Longing for more time. We use the lack of time as an excuse. I can’t prioritize rest, or time with a partner, or exercise, or reading my book, because of time. I don’t have enough of it. It feels discouraging and stagnant. Although we cannot create more time, we can fill our time more intentionally. How do we start living our life in a way that leaves us feeling filled up and happy, rather than depleted and stuck?

Health. Most of us would likely say we value health, we’re grateful for our health, or we are striving to be healthier. And maybe time and health are connected. If we had more time, we may create more space and the ability to make healthy choices, however that looks for you.

A quiet mind. Yes please. And it’s becoming increasingly harder to create a quiet mind in the world we live in today. We are constantly distracted, running from one place to the next. Absorbing so much information from minute to minute, balancing the external world with our internal climate.

Slow mornings. The dream. I have always felt that mornings are sacred. The way you spend your morning affects your entire day. I believe in creating, slow, thoughtful moments of connection as you ease into the day. And since having children, it’s become more challenging to cultivate those mornings that used to be expected.

Travel. I love experiencing something for the first time. Immersing myself in a culture different from my own. I love a challenging hike ending with a view I haven’t seen before. And I haven’t traveled as much as I want to, or seen all the places I want to.

A house full of love. At the end of the day, all I want is love. I want to give and receive love, feel and experience the love in our home, treat others with love, and lead a life with love and gratitude.

It almost feels as if these luxuries are meant to come together, or to build on one another. You cannot have one without the other. And the second definitely feels more attainable if you have the first. And I want them all.

When we set out to connect and experience this beautiful life together this summer, all these luxuries, or values were held close. I may not have consciously thought them up, but when I read them today, it’s almost as if they are in part what the “stuff of life” is all about.

For us, these luxuries are much easier accessed and cultivated when we are camping. There’s a slowness that exists when you are at camp, with no schedule or distraction. We can just be. When we camp we intentionally set days aside just to be together. We are filling our days and time with something life giving. We are kayaking, swimming and hiking. We are tending to our bodies and our minds, giving ourselves the reset we all need. We prioritize health. With less distraction, the anxiousness lessens, the mind quiets. With no schedule to follow or place to be, the mornings are slow. We have the ability to do what feels good. We get to explore places we love or have never been to before. And our trailer is full of love.

Our family chooses camping. And we also choose an easy dinner at the lake on a hot summer day, nature walks in the morning, surrounding ourselves with people who lift us up, a home that feels cozy and comfortable, ten minutes reading a good book, careers that feel aligned with our values. We make so many choices each day and we can play a more active role in the decision making process. I think the most important thing is making a choice. And understanding that you do have a choice.

How are you finding joy in your summer? Joy in your life? How do we find the courage to do things differently? Even if it means disrupting the status quo. How do we create stillness and time for the stuff of life? How we live a life of luxury?

Be sweet to yourself,

Happy summer!