Spontaneity…it’s a dying art the older we get

By: Samantha S. Daviss

Probably one of the most spontaneous things I have done as a mother, well actually as an adult, took place this past weekend and early part of the week; my husband and I looked at each other on Friday afternoon, and said “Let’s drive to Colorado for a few days with the boys and beat this Texas August summer heat.”

And we did just that. I had everyone packed, the car packed, and the house shut down within an hour. I was so excited. I don’t know what excited me more, the fact that we were going to spend a few days in the cool mountain breeze of the Rocky Mountains; or the fact that for the first time in a really long time I was doing something completely for myself, my family, and totally off the cuff.

I am typically not a huge control freak, but I do have order and organization in our household; you kind of have to when you’re raising three boys under one roof. But this time I was so excited. Someone in my past life once told me that I wasn’t spontaneous anymore, and for some reason that has really stuck with me. But of course I am not as spontaneous as I used to be in my teens and 20s; basically pre-motherhood, pre-major responsibilities. It is pretty difficult to pack up an entire house when you have little kids.

You have to basically pack everything, except the kitchen sink. There’s the diapers, the trillion changes of clothes, the toys, the books, anything and everything you might need for little kids for a quick weekend getaway turns into a nightmare. So yes, the answer is yes, does are impulsiveness lessen the older we get? Yes, of course it does, because you have other people in your life you have to think about and consider before you make a move. So to that person in my past, I say they lost their consideration for others for the fact that if they thought my spontaneity as a mother withering was a bad thing, it absolutely is not; because my baby (now babies) came (come) before any decision I could ever make.

But this last minute decision to load everyone in the car and head to the mountains was probably one of the best family decisions my husband and I have made in a long, long time. The fact that the kids weren’t expecting it, has brought a ton of invaluable “Thank You’s” for every adventure we have been on, mainly for the fact that they weren’t expecting or anticipating any of them. And the second reason is that it has reconnected us, as we enter into another crazy and hectic school year. Our oldest will be in the 7^th grade, and our two little ones will be starting in a mother’s morning out program two days a week. So we are making huge strides and changes in our family life; and the chaos once again ensues this week as we gear up for another school year. This summer has been one of extreme speed; I have never had a summer pass by as quickly as this one has.

So the fact that we made the rule of no electronics, no devices, no games…has been glorious. It has really brought us back together again as our tight little unified family. I so cherish these moments that we create together as a family; these will be memories we treasure for so many years to come. I hope that one day, my boys will wake up and tell their wives of this memory. The memory that their mom and dad loaded the car one afternoon and drove them to Colorado on a whim.

As I sit here with the cool mountain breeze blowing across my face, gazing up the mountainside at the flickering Aspen trees, and luscious green evergreens gazing down on me while I write this, I am so grateful that I haven’t let that young spur-of-the-moment girl flame out. I love the fact that I was willing and excited to pack up my family and head out of town just because, no rhyme, no reason; the only reason was to spend time with my family. Of course we all grow and change and mature, but you always have to keep that young impulsive spark burning just a little bit deep down inside. Never forget who you once were, just pile some more good stuff on top of the old; and make the old a newer and more improved you.


Check out some of the fun we had while here:

Breckenridge Summer Activities

 Keystone Summer & Winter Fun

Carlsbad Caverns

Ski Tip Lodge