Happy Day

Snow.

So simple.

So happy.

Glimpses of Christmas

I hope your Christmas was very merry! Our 10 days in Texas included:

Time with family...

Time with friends...

And remembering it really is all about

little Baby Jesus.

(Although Meghan's new Tangled dolls were quite a hit.)

Why my coffeepot is perfectly positioned

Happy 7th Birthday (25 days late!)

Meghan~

How did you shoot past the soft-little-kindergarten-numbers 5 and 6 so quickly?

You are growing up, sweet girl. Age six has held so much for you:

reading chapter books on your own

~and sometimes, thankfully, still reading them aloud to me~

reading your "big-girl" Bible at night

~you just decided to start in Genesis and took off!~

loving soccer, specifically loving to play defense

(though you scored several goals this season, too!)

losing teeth -- three in three months!

~but keeping your "dragonfly freckles," thankyouverymuch!~

You are a girl who

cannot

be

rushed.

Ever.

Sometimes that makes me crazy, but maybe God knows you are just what we need around here.

You love to laugh, especially when others join in.

You make a decision and stick with it. From homemade brownies and ice cream for your birthday dessert, to saving (determinedly) for a horse over the past year. And Little Meg, knowing you, I'd better start looking for saddles on sale, now.

The upside

The upside to coming down with the flu (or some flu-mimicking 48 hr virus) on Sunday:

1. SLEEPING.

12 hours Saturday night, 8 hours during the day on Sunday, and about 10 hours Sunday night.

2. Learning that if I just sit and relax and do absolutely nothing around the house (occasionally), the world does not stop turning, nor does the house fall around about our ears.

*OK. So Darin picked up a little slack for me...

3. Realizing that I love to snuggle our children so much that it is painful to tell them to "stay away from mom because she's sick right now."

4. Missing classes as I recouped Monday, and reading 148 pages of this awesome book in one sitting, on my couch with a cozy blanket around my shoulders, and hot coffee in hand.

5. Not being the throwing-up type of sick person.

Unless it's that poltergeist in my GI system kind of urge...

So perhaps just not having that poltergeist in my GI system urge with this particular illness.

6. Time to think about all of the blogging I need to catch up on!

7. NOT coming down sick on Saturday, when we

went ice-skating

then came home and had a popcorn-and-cranberry-stringing race.

*which the boys won, incidentally, in case you couldn't tell.

And guess who else is hitting the books...

~yours truly, making pharmacology notecards~

Hello Teachers, Hello Books!

Out with a Bang...

Two days until Thing 1 and Thing 2 walk through the doors of their new school, into grade 5 and grade 1, respectively.

Summer. Has. Flown.

Lest we end it on a boring note, our family escaped to San Diego, CA for one last run of fun before hitting the old blackboard again. (Or dry erase board, I suppose. And what, pray tell, is a smart board...?)

~Legoland!~

~nuttin' but legos~

~one sand crab; one sand piper~

~ La Jolla Cove: crashing waves and sunning sea lions~

~Tall Things in Balboa Park~

~Seaport Village and the Navy Pier~

So it begins...

Riding home from the pool with Meghan (6) and Caleb (10) in the backseat.

Meghan: "Caleb, I think that boy at the pool likes me."

Caleb: "Why, did he say so?"

Meghan: "No... but I could read his mind."

Girls' weekend in Breckenridge

~the view from our lodge above town~

~have pedi's... will travel!~

~until, that is, it turns out the trail from your lodge is one leg of a mountain bike race!~

~ice-cold river water to soak our walking feet; perfect coffee-sipping spot~

~I only pick on her because I love her...~

(my sister-in-love's reaction to the heights of the gondola)

~and we did! Three, in fact.~

What's Missing from this Picture?

In this case the "mice are away..."

~ at Gem Lake on Father's Day~

For 10 days now, Caleb and Meghan have been with grandparents in Texas. Almost every evening, Darin and I have gone for a walk with Keeper, or taken off on our bikes. I have cooked alot of recipes involving mushrooms (despised by both children!), and we have started our Netflix episodes of 24 at around 7 p.m. instead of the usual 9 p.m. Last weekend we hiked so much that our legs were cramping, then went out for margaritas two nights in a row. We have talked without interruptions and laughed and held hands and well... you get the idea.

~on top of Horsetooth Rock~

I am thankful for these times. It comforts me that years from now when the kids venture out on their own, Darin and I will still "know" each other, that we still remember how to have fun as a couple. And yes, whether you believe it or not, the time away has made me miss Caleb and Meghan -- the way they fill our home with so much life and energy. When Meghan called homesick one day, my heart ached for her far more than it rejoiced over being missed. I hope she doesn't lose her first tooth while she's away, and wish I could see Caleb tubing on the lake. And while some days I do savor the quiet, at other times it drives me from the house!

So thanks to our parents, not only for time to bond as a couple, but also for letting us "miss" our children for awhile... for the perspective to see that the grass truly is green on both sides.

Faith-Building Yoga

For the longest time, I was under the impression that practicing yoga would conflict with my Christian faith. Apart from Christ, yoga does indeed embrace "other" spiritual connotations -- an exaltation of oneself and of the "energies of the earth", as opposed to an exaltation of the Creator. As a child of God, however, when I have remained mindful of Him during practice, He has used yoga to strengthen not only my body and my self-discipline, but also my faith. For example...

Sleeping pigeon pose: As one instructor explained that this pose offers a sense of belonging, the Lord reminded me that "He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you will find refuge; His faithfulness will be your shield and rampart." ~ Psalm 91:4

Warrior I pose: "Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power."

~ Ephesians 6:10

Standing bow pose: "He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze."

~ 2 Samuel 22:35

Savasana pose (corpse pose): "Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God." ~ Colossians 3:2-3

When I [frequently] fall out of balancing postures, I remember that "Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles." ~Isaiah 40: 30-31

And as the instructors frequently encourage us to "shake off" our mistakes, to face the upcoming challenges as a clean slate, a fresh start, I am increasingly thankful that "Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness." ~Lamentations 3:22-23

Where can you look for Him in your day? And where have you already found Him?

Swimming Lessons

The kids LOVED their swimming lessons this year! The instructors were so encouraging, and the HEATED pool was a definite plus!

Love from Texas

~ PaPa Bill's zany bedtime stories (Hunting for Froot Loops?) ~

~ a hike in RMNP to a still-frozen lake, along a still-snow-covered trail ~

~ and smiles x 3 ~

Prima Ballerina

In spite of tummy-butterflies and hundreds of onlooking strangers, Meghan's dance recital was wonderful! Her class looked just like little music-box dancers as their song started up: Dancin' in the Moonlight.

*In spite of raving reviews by her family and instructor, Miss Meghan has opted to focus her energies on soccer next fall. Somehow those butterflies don't find her stomach on the soccer field.

Of nearsightedness and shortcuts...

A couple of new "accessories" around our house...

... and make sure you note those summer-time freckles!

Blew their cover!

My family is in big trouble!

I just learned that if we all work together, we can clean our entire (small) house in one hour.

They grow up so fast...

Memorial Day Hike

It was a steeper-than-we-thought day

a picnic-in-the-breeze day

a "butterfly-rock" day

a hummingbird-hover day

a scent-of-earth-and-pine day

a wildflowers-in-bloom day

a kids-are-getting-tired day

a meeting-in-the-middle day

we-didn't-make-it-all-the-way-legs-cramping-in-the-car day

a fire-up-the-grill day

a happy-to-be-home day

a couldn't-have-been-better day