A New Habit

This is a view I see very often these days. I know, I know, it's dangerous to let him do it in the first place let alone run off to get the camera while he's perched up there.
But really! How could I resist?

This next picture I'm including to give a bit of a before and after effect. Charlie has officially entered the walking/running world, and the baby chub is falling off him like nobody's business!

Back to the point...

He will often stand up here for 15-20 minutes at a time just looking around. (In fact, he's doing it right now. Don't worry, I'm not far off!)

It's not everyday he sees someone on the front porch!

The neighbors get a kick out of it and he encourages all interaction. This smile was for the benefit of the lady across the street.

But mainly he's very serious about his observations.

Spring Scenes

I bless my husband and all the work he put into our backyard on days like today!
We have a beautiful patio that, as it turns out, is an excellent play-pen with its own source of amusements, educational opportunities and health. It's also one of the few places I can release my conscience long enough to pick up a book and enjoy watching Charlie play.

Megan and I do our best to get the boys out on walks as frequently as possible. This happened to include a picnic.

Just really like this one a lot...

Keeping on keeping on

Last night and this morning I came across some convicting and practical wisdom in a couple books I've been reading. Though it is nothing new, nothing I haven't heard from my own mother, seeing the words on a page and having the luxury of reading and rereading them stirred my heart and exposed to me my habits and motives for what they really are.

"As you deal with your children, deal with yourself always and first. This is what it looks like and feels like to walk with God, as a mother...our children sin against us, annoy us, and mess up our stuff. We want to hold it against them, complain about them (if only to ourselves), and feel put upon by their sin. We have a much harder time accepting that every failure from them is a wonderful opportunity for repentance and growth and not an opportunity for us to exact penance.

It is no abstract thing--the state of your heart is the state of your home. You cannot harbor resentment secretly toward your children and expect their hearts to be submissive and tender. You cannot be greedy with your time and expect them to share their toys. And perhaps most importantly, you cannot resist your opportunities to be corrected by God and expect them to receive correction from you." --Rachel Jankovic (Loving the Little Years)

"He said not, 'Thou shalt not be troubled, thou shalt not be travailed, thou shalt not be distressed,' but He said, 'Thou shalt not be overcome.' It is God's will that we take heed these words, that we may be ever mighty in faithful trust to weal and woe." --Lady Julian of Norwich (from Madeleine L'Engle's Two-Part Invention)

Hannah and Ebenezer

Today is the second anniversary of the birth and death of our niece and nephew, Hannah and Ebenezer Moon. It's a gray day, but the flowers are out and things are turning green all around. The incongruity is still so heavy in my heart...death in spring?
Come quickly, Lord! Make it right.