Morgan & Kyra's Engagement

My brother Morgan and his bride-to-be Kyra.

(All credit for the photos goes to our talented cousin, Rebekah. I stole them from her blog).

Beautiful pics, guys! Looking forward to seeing you in June!

Springtime

Spring.

A time of renewal. A time of birds chirping joyfully, colorful flowers budding happily, and green grasses peeking out and stretching upward for a friendly handshake with the blue sky after a long winter's hibernation...

That's what they say, anyway. For those of us in the far north, the beauty of springtime bloom doesn't come until we are well into summer. For us, spring is not a time of beauty, but a time of promise. Spring is in the air, but nowhere else. It's a time of warmer temperatures that bring the world out of the deep freeze and give us hope that sunny, colorful, dry days are just around the corner. The spring that now graces my backyard shows few signs of life except for the occasional squirrel scampering excitedly from tree to tree as if he's just realized that he's happened upon the season's first food supplies while all other creatures are still snuggled up in their beds. Our trees stand under the gray sky like withered 200-year-old men, gnarled, crooked, gaunt, weathered by a harsh life. They may have deep roots, but they sway in the wind, unsteady and tired. Bushes and shrubs sit and wait impatiently in burlap sacks like little children in straight jackets, waiting for the day when they will be freed and can burst forth with new growth, racing each other to see who can reach the highest over their few shorts months of glory. The snow melts more each day, and the resulting puddles and streams have made our yard with all its brown wilted grass into a smelly, muddy marsh. We hold our breath and watch the black, barren fields, praying the floodwaters water won't rise over the dikes this year. No, for us spring is not a time of beauty, but a time of promise.

We all feel the anticipation. As I watch the grass appear more each day, inch by hard-earned inch, I get the sense of seeing a long-lost friend approaching in the distance; with each step we come closer to each other mounts the anticipation of the joyful times we will spend together again.

This year as I look out at our changing landscape, I'm struck by the similarities of the seasons of our world and the seasons of our soul. We have all experienced in life a frosty dormancy, a deep-freeze that reaches to our core when although the sun is shining, it's not welcoming, and although the world holds beauty, it inspires you only to hide yourself away. And then, at long last, the air starts to warm, and we breathe a sigh of relief that life will be beautiful once again. We expect to jump from deep winter to full bloom like we skip through pages in a book. But that's not possible. To get to the beauty of spring, we must go through the thaw. It's muddy, it's sticky, it's smelly, it's mucky. This is the time when the snow turns to water and we are flooded, when everything that was held at bay by the frigid cold melts and penetrates our souls. The skies are gray, there's little sign of life, and we wonder to ourselves if the floodwaters will put everything in jeopardy. We want to return to the deep freeze. It feels safer and more predictable. In the midst of the changes, we forget that those same waters going deep and penetrating everything are what feeds and pushes to the surface the beautiful life that we are so desperately waiting to see. Finally, the snows disappear...and we wait...and we wait...We see only little changes at first; a little bud of green...a lone robin pecking at a worm...the earth of flowerbeds upturned with high expectations...and we wait and watch….and then one day we look around and realize that full bloom has snuck up on us! The withered old trees look like kings in all their pomp, gloriously crowned in canopies of green. Flowers cheerfully wave from every corner. The smells and sounds of life fill the air. The days are long and glowing. Even the occasional thunderstorm is a welcome diversion, washing the dust away and giving the world a fresh start. The sunshine is warm on our face and invites us to go out and become a part of the beauty. Life is as it should be. And as we lay in the deep grass and allow the fresh air to fill us, to lift us up, we know that Fall may come again, and Winter too. But then there is always......

Spring.

Flying A Kite

Yesterday was a flustery, blustery day in the Hundred Acre Wood. Christopher Robin, Kanga, and the three little Roos went out to fly a kite...

Christopher Robin and two little Roos staring up at the kite being battered by the wind.

Spenceroo doing his part to get the kite up.

Pooh suggested we tie a balloon to it, but Christopher Robin just said, "Silly old bear!"

Claire Bear boldly going where no baby has gone before...

Collin admiring the kite's brief debut in the air. When everyone was thoroughly chilled and the kite was tuckered out, Kanga suggested everyone go inside.

A favorite pic of our little nephew Owen...just because he's precious.

Pics of Kids

This morning I wanted to post a few of my favorite pics lately of my kids. I have an amazing number of photos of Claire, but fewer of the boys. They don't hold still long enough for me to get many good shots. :) Is everyone as fascinated with their own children's photos as I am?

Collin's kissable eyelid.

Little butterfly.

Spencer with his favorite sister. :)

Evidently, underwear on the head is the funniest thing going.

Claire started it.

I'm missing one....................Baby Katya! Unfortunately, the hospital isn't too obliging and all I have of Friday's sonogram is the picture of the little pug nose, straight-ish lips, and perfect miniature fingers that I tried to inscribe on my mind. It seemed to me that she looked quite a bit like Spencer, but I guess we'll wait another 3 1/2 months to see for sure! I say "she" because I have that hunch, but it's not an official diagnosis. At most hospitals in this city they won't tell you what the sex of the baby is. But they did give me a really good vantage point to figure it out by myself, and stuck the camera right under the bum area. The legs were open and gave me a good view, and I couldn't see anything floating there, so I'm still sticking with "girl." Again, we'll see.... The sonogram was amazing. Sometimes it was almost photo-clear with its detail, and other times I felt like I was looking at alien life form. But she was all there - little feet, little arms, little hands cuddled up close to her face, heart beating 50 miles-per-minute...a perfectly formed little baby of 1 lb, 3 oz. Unbelievable! Wasn't it only 5 1/2 months ago she was invisible to the naked eye?! She had her face nuzzled close to my hipbone, so it was difficult to get a good view. The technician had to really push and dig in my belly to get a clear picture. Then Spencer told her "Hey, don't push on my mommy's belly like that, doctor!" No lack of confidence in this child.... He's very excited to about the baby, and was oohing and ahhing over how "cute" she was during the sonogram. Looks like he's already quite protective, too. So now we're waiting excitedly for the last little addition to our clan.....

How To Eat a Pear......by Claire Nicole

Stuff the pear as far as it will go in your mouth.

Consider carefully if you should use a napkin.

Decide against it, and continue stuffing.
Remember to chew carefully!

Blow some raspberries, just to keep things interesting.
Besides, it's funny to see Mom run for a napkin.

Stuff! Stuff! Stuff with all your might!

Ask Mom if there's something stuck to your face.

Give an adorable smile to thank the chef.
Then they'll be sure to let you do this again tomorrow.

Pick leftovers out of your toes, careful to get everything.

Check both feet.

Give up and point to the bathtub so Mom has no doubt where you need to go next.

Happy Eating!

-Claire

Starting Our Family Blog

On the first day of starting our family blog, I was very excited to wrack through the files in my brain and come up with some interesting material to blog about. The all-important question was: how should our family blog start? Surely such an important and monumental undertaking as tracking the daily happenings in our life should begin with a detailed description of the highlights of all of our lives!! Fortunately for you, the reader, I decided to simply jump in where we are. But what to write about?! Fortunately for me, I have a very obliging three year old who quickly decided to help me out and give me some breaking news. We were getting the boys ready to leave for school, and sent them off to brush their teeth on their own. A few minutes later Collin and Claire came out scrubbing away on their teeth with little toothbrushes. Evidently he'd loaded her brush so she could play along. :) I was feeling rather smug that I'd finally gotten the boys to the point of independence in this area, until I went back to the bathroom and found a tube of yeast infection cream on the counter with the lid off. *Groan* "Collin, did you put this on Claire's toothbrush?" "Yeah!" *Another groan* Of course, the back of the tube said to call a poison control center immediately in case of accidental ingestion. So, I did. The lady on the other end of the line said the amount of cream that can fit on one baby toothbrush isn't enough to poison anyone, so no emergency trips to the doctor for us today. Nothing that a proper tooth brushing and a bottle of juice can't cure! Hooray!

Welcome to life in our family room fast lane!