The week in reverse…. Today we enjoyed the longest day with lots of outside. Splashing in the backyard before dinner. Morning at the beach with Auntie Jess and Lady Dog. Lovely lovely day. Mom! Put the camera down! We’ve been here all of three minutes and haven’t eaten anything yet [signing and saying Eat]. I concede with the 11am lunch….Whitney puts new meaning...
Tyler, I love how you do Daddy. …with snuggles, and tosses up in the air, sleeping giants, and kiss-chases. With walks, stories, strength and comfort in times of pain, guitar and piano lessons, talking about the wonders of nature, pulling bike trailers, singing songs to help with calming. With building block towers and typing ABC’s, signing questions, and practicing prayers. We are lucky to...
We’re still in the afterglow of a great trip to see family in Colorado this past weekend. The piles of laundry are disappearing and the kids are back to taking good naps, and finally I’ve gotten to go through my photos and reminisce some of the good times. We haven’t been on a plane with them since Christmas…and travel days can be tough…here are...
We participated in an exhibit called Testify at our church that showed this morning. Our story and the image they used are below. Delighted laughter and the thumping of dancing bare feet sound from of our backyard deck. Our eyes meet and the familiar twinkle says what we don’t have to: we love our kids. Praise God, for life is good. If feels good...
I’ve taken it upon myself to do some family screenwriting lately. It goes like this:Act 1 Scene 1: garage door lifts, child runs shrieking with glee toward the street as mother frantically chases yelling all combinations of ‘stop!’ ‘Freeze’ ‘wait!’ ‘[name!!]’. Child turns a corner into neighbors yard and dares mother to hurdle waist-high shrub. And on and on.Act 1 Scene 2: [sound of...
I love gatherings with loved ones! We have been lucky to have a few special visits lately… First, the amazing and wonderful Aunt Patty and Uncle Bruce (were there ever two people more kid-fun?) it was a tutu and boots day. their visit included a BBQ with other fun [local] family…cousins copying and chasing each other through the grass while adults relaxed...
I’m learning how to take a walk from my toddlers….here’s what I’ve got so far. 1. The alphabet is amazing. Any time you see a letter it is cause for excitement. Point and name it (or guess). 2. When you see big rocks, embrace this opportunity for physical challenge. 5. Every living thing deserves a pause for a greeting, this especially includes people, cats,...
We took a little drive up the Eastern hills this Friday for a fun family adventure. This time of year the hills are a lovely green and there’s mustard blooms proclaiming spring all over the place. It is trips like this one that make me well up with pride to be a native Californian. When we actually take the time to explore I find...
The pressure/tension/stress around here has been of epic proportions in the past month…so I thought I’d share some of the things that has kept me from losing it altogether…. Love notes. The support and prayers and texts and emails of dear friends from various parts of my life have been a lifeline. Knowing one is not alone must be the single-handedly most comforting reality. ...
Whitney’s homecoming from the hospital was a week ago yesterday. We are thrilled with how “normal” our life is already…the surgery successfully closed up the hole in her heart and her resilient little body is recovering quickly. Here’s a recount of the day-by-day… The night before the surgery…bath time with Gramby. Day 1: Daybreak arrival. Happy drugs. Emotional parents not wanting to let...
sike: A misspelling of psych. Knowing Sonia was thirsty, Jonathan teased her with his soda. “Here, you can have a sip…psych!” www.urbandictionary.com What a whirlwind. The hospital cried wolf. I feel like I had a baby. Exhausted and yet euphoric. I escaped my worst nightmare. I woke up to a reality where my sweating,panic and screams fizzled into the “you’re safe, it can’t get...