Mercer Park & My Way of Adjusting To a New Place.

The other day I received a text from a friend that read, "sometimes you gotta move to a bigger pot so your roots can stretch out and nestle in deeper where it's going to become stronger." 

Thanks friend for that because I'll tell ya...it's already stretching. 

Although we've moved many times before I have to admit that this particular move has somewhat been a bit different, and it's probably because we were getting too comfortable in the place we were in. Even though I was excited for this move, I had a mixture of nervousness, and fearlessness. Nerves because we never know what to except, and fearlessness because I am an extrovert, and love meeting new people. There were a few bad habits that I chose to rub off on me while living there, and in the beginning of this year I decided to throw them to the curb. I won't go into detail as to what bad habits they were, but I'll tell you this...in those eight years of living in south jersey, and going to church I learned what to do, and what not to do! 

And I've learned sooooo dang much! 

With moving comes adjustment, and I find that in order for me to adjust to my new surroundings is to venture outside. To not be afraid of what's out there. To not be afraid of letting people know who you are especially when it comes to the church I belong to. There's no use in wallowing in pity because I'm further away from all the good people I met at church and in my community, or because my kitchen is much smaller, or because I no longer have a bike trail or library that I can easily walk to (man were we spoiled), but I know this....because of the love I easily build towards people, and to know that I have a church no matter where we move I can make new friends, I can appreciate having a bigger dining room, two full baths, and be more grateful for a smaller kitchen (miss that counter space though, but it's okay) and knowing that I can walk to the post office is a blessing because I love to write letters. And the fact that I don't mind driving, because boy have I done quite a bit of that so far! And when you like driving, you love traveling to unknown territories. 

Where I live now is pretty rural, and although I miss having everything so close, I have  realized even more that simplicity is best. 

So as I was driving around my area we discovered this park. Not just any park, but a big one. Not as big as Central Park, but for my area it's pretty huge. It is amazing and probably one of the best ones I've ever seen so far in Jersey. There is so much to do here. There are various sections of the park where one can play tennis, volleyball, frisbee golf, soccer, and they even have a huge skating rink. There is also a huge pavilion with a good size lawn where you can watch shows, and concerts. 

There's also an awesome boathouse where you can launch your own boat from, and rent paddle boats, and kayaks. We've been to this playground twice, but never really explored all around the park, or ventured further into the woods near the lake. 

We also saw people fishing, sunbathing reading a book, couples snuggling (miss you during the day Jon!), families having picnics, and people just chilling all over the place. It was pretty cool. 

We then went on the other side of the boathouse where there's a gazebo with benches along the water where people can just sit and take in the sounds of the water crashing into the rocks while watching the sun go down, and boats passing by.

Absolutely breathtaking. I am calling this my mini central park!

With Lexie and Sierra being gone all the time my crew of kids is getting smaller. It's bittersweet because I get to hang around more with these two goofs, and they sure are a joy, and interesting to hang around with! 

After walking around, and having the kids play in the playground we decided to be adventurous and walk along the trail into the woods. The next thing you know we found ourselves near the lake, getting our feet wet (too bad no swimming is allowed), and skipping rocks. After watching superman Noah was in search for a meteorite, and he actually found one similar to it! Cracked me up! 

And when did this girl get so tall?? Stop!! 

and this boy...what a cutie. 

 I'm telling ya! Too much fun in one afternoon! 

And what a beautiful day it was! 

I always want to be able to have the energy and stamina to drive whether they're long or short distances, and to continue to explore my surroundings no matter where I live. This is how I've learned to adjust whenever we've moved, and I'm so grateful for a tolerant family that deals with having a crazy momma, and for the helping hand of a loving Father in Heaven who lends me His guiding hand, and gives me the strength to make the adjustment when it comes to moving so much easier.

Because it will never happen overnight! 

Happy Wednesday folks, and here's to adjusting and to bloom even more now that I've been planted here, and to grow in hopes that my new area will help me build an even deeper, and stronger appreciation for life, the gospel, different cultures, and all that comes my way!