Over the river and through the woods...

to grandmother's house we go.

Samantha and AJ spent two weeks at their grandparents in Mississippi at the start of the summer.  Lucky kids!  We shared about 4 days with them there and then they were on their own.  They had an amazing time. I am very proud of them and very thankful that Grandmommy and Granddaddy were able to entertain them and love on them for that time!  Grandmommy and Granddaddy became Grandmama and Granddadda while the kids were there.  If that doesn't say it all, here are some of the events of the weeks.

They swam.

They painted.

They read.

They wrote.

They ran through the sprinkler.

They prayed.

They went to the Children's Museum.

They slept in a tent during a thunderstorm.

They fished in a lake.

They saw the house were Granddaddy grew up.

They ate food cooked over a camp fire.

They had donut holes and hot chocolate as an appetizer.

They went to the Museum of Natural Science.

They made us stepping stones.

They got new flip flops (their first).

Are you worn out reading about it?  They were worn out and slept great while they were there!  Grandmommy and Granddaddy were pretty tired too, but I am sure the memories will last a lifetime.

Honesty

I am not always honest with myself. Because honesty can be ugly.  Yet, if I am not honest with myself, how can I expect others to be honest with me, and how can I be honest with others.  This all sounds quite cliche, but its the truth.

We are almost half way through this year and I find myself reflecting inward.  Its not very pretty.  But then I am reminded of God's mercy and grace. I am thankful for it. My priorities are not completely out of whack, but they need some *work (*interpret "work" as  more than just a refinement). 

Here are a few somewhat random thoughts from my journey inward.
The priest celebrating the funeral mass for my godfather was reminding us all that my godfather was not a man of words, but a man of action (Memory eternal Jim!).  I should speak less and do more especially for my loved ones. I struggle with this most when I am tired. I need to get moving. Lord have mercy and teach me to reach out and love. 

A friend of mine, reflecting on her thought processes when her baby is under the weather, realized that when her daughter wasn't feeling well, she suddenly felt like she couldn't do what was 'needed' (around the house). When in reality if her daughter were well, that task won't feel so urgent. Selfish. That's what she called it. Wow! How eye opening for me! I am grateful for her honesty because it forced me to be honest with myself. I can be so selfish. Suddenly when one of my kids is sick, I feel myself torn between being frustrated they are miserable, wanting to make them better and getting WORK done.  Negogiations start between David's schedule and mine. 
-When do you have meetings? 
-What can you reschedule? 
-I can work later. 
-I have to set an example this time.
I am now seeing where I am selfish elsewhere in my life. Lord have mercy and teach me to be humble.

I saw my brother and sister in the first time in a YEAR!  I wasn't even showing (with Matthew) the last time I saw them and he is 6 months old.  I don't want our lives to be so busy that this is how it is. We live hours away. We are 'busy'.  Families are growing and careers are demanding. I am so grateful my parents have been down to our house so many times this year. I think I've spent a calendar month with my mom and my dad just 1 week shy of that. I hope this year was an exception with Matthew being so young over the holidays.  Our family vacation is coming up and I cannot wait to see the kids with their cousins again!! But I need to and want to find the time to be with family. 

The trip to Ohio was too fast. It didn't allow the time to see friends. We, of course, needed the family time and the time with our family friends, but it also forced me into a different reality. I left that place. Ohio is no longer my home. My relationships are so different with my friends and my family friends, and they will never be the same. I feel guilty I left those relationships behind. I am not saying the relationships don't exist.  They are just different.  I still care for, pray for and love each of them, but I miss the face to face exchanges.

The beauties in my life!

"Sometimes", said Pooh, "the smallest things take up the most room in your heart."

Matthew is 6 months old now.  He is a happy baby!  He is crawling a little bit.  He can sit up independently and sit himself up from any position (watch out world here he comes!). He coos and giggles when you speak to him.  He lights up when he sees any of us. He likes to be carried around in the Baby Ergo, and I love having him in it because the grins I get when he looks up at me melt my heart.  Ms. Linda and Ms. Holli are taking good care of him during the day.  He is interacting with friends in his class now and I love to think that one of those lil babies may be his best friend in the next couple years.

"We find delight in the beauty and happiness of children that makes the heart too big for the body." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Samantha is 6 and 1/2 now.  She just finished her first year of kindergarten and is ready for 1st grade!  She loves to read picture books and to draw. She ran a marathon with her classmates during the month of April.  She likes to sing and dance and entertain.  Her class did a program at the end of the year and she has shared the songs and verses with family and friends over the last few weeks.  She is sensitive and loving.  She shares hugs with everyone she meets.  I cannot believe the school year went so quickly.  I look forward to watching my sweetheart grow- spiritually, intellectually and physically.  She is so special!

A child can ask questions that a wise man cannot answer. ~Author Unknown

Andrew is almost 4 and a 1/2.  He is ready to leap out of his 'leaping frogs' classroom into the superstars.  He is very inquisitive and likes to share what he has learned with family and friends (he'll be glad to tell you about earthquakes, sea monsters, insects, cheetahs...).  He loves to snuggle.  He enjoyed soccer this year and thinks he can run really fast.  He likes to be the center of attention.  A relative recently told me that they never thought we would have another baby after how difficult AJ was as a baby and an early toddler.  You'd never know that now.  I love communicating with him.  I love having time with him in the car to and from work because he tells me all about his day and really wants to know about mine.  I hope he never outgrowns snuggling with me!

While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about.~Angela Schwindt

Hiatus

A gap or interruption in space, time, or continuity; a break: "We are likely to be disconcerted by . . . hiatuses of thought" (Edmund Wilson).

I will offer no excuse for my hiatus.