Finding Joy on the Journey in Faith, Family, and all Things in Between.
My kids ran everywhere. Racing the shoreline and dipping their toes in the shallow pools that collected when the tide went out. Sun, hot and foreign to the Oregon coast danced on my bare shoulders. Our coast is a fickle mistress, quick to turn frigid in wind and wave. So when she beckoned at 80 degrees with full sun I scoured the internet for a rental house and last-minute deals. We packed for … [Read more...]
My foot always landed with part of my heel over the line or my toe inching into the next box. I blame the fact that my feet outgrew my body and while I jumped and landed solidly, my sturdy little frame balancing in the boxes, I always seemed to be not quite in the right spot when my feet touched the ground. We'd dump the carton of chalk, always white never the rainbow hues, and scratch out our … [Read more...]
Dear Chihuahua of Fear, I remember when you used to hang around in my 5th grade classroom, sitting behind me as we recited the pledge of allegiance and I spread my thin palm across my already expanding chest. I remember when you whispered I didn't fit. Not just in the white cotton training bras but in life. I was old from youth, weathered already and tired. My almond-shaped eyes … [Read more...]
I expected outlines and three-point presentations on famous people. The kind you find on Wikipedia. Maybe Martin Luther King Jr, Mother Theresa, a singer, or a sports hero. Someone who lived big and wide and whose impact could be seen rippling out into these children's consciousness. Instead I witnessed each child's presentation on Someone They Admire and Why, spoken in reverent tones about an … [Read more...]
Jen says that bookstores remind her of hope. And I get that. Because the potential is bound within those covers, sewn into each page, the hope of learning new things, being changed by the words as they flow into our lives, sparking imagination and wisdom. We all enter in awe, almost reverent, each of us moving into different sections of the store. We browse the stacks slowly, moving … [Read more...]
I just got back from a mini vacation with my family and did not write at all. But this post has been in the back of my mind as I've seen the twitter stream fill with Hello Mornings devotees, committed to rising early and setting that time aside for God. I will be honest and say that shortly after this post from my archives, I failed miserably at the Hello Mornings and the only time I was up early … [Read more...]
Judah, There is something so significant in the relationship with one’s firstborn. You were the fire that tried me. And I know that often, so often, I failed in the flames. And yet, there you were, handed to me in that room, a perfect gift to a mother so unworthy. I studied you and you seemed to know that I was utterly clueless. Oh, I had my ideas, my goals, all dashed at the first nursing … [Read more...]
We gather pretty paper and stickers. I have actually printed out pictures from my computer, something I rarely do. And we sit to write. To our children. Nehemiah proudly calls him, "my friend Jonathan," and talks about Africa as if it were a place we might go visit this afternoon, like the park or a friend's house. He has no concept of oceans and continents and worlds apart and … [Read more...]
He's stomping. The heel walk thudding up the stairs. I hear his door close. Not slammed because he knows better but loud enough to display his surly temper. And I wonder at this eleven year old man-child, so like me in his temperament and yet I find myself constantly at odds with him. I go to his room. Pursue him. I am right in this. I am his mother and my decision won't change regardless … [Read more...]
I was seven. We had packed our old Toyota Landcruiser with blankets and pillows, suitcases and an old igloo filled with snacks. And we set off. My parents were good at this. Adventure. My dad would shuttle us all into the car and we would end up at a river diving in with all of our clothes and shivering our way home as he cranked the heater up. We were never prepared. Spontaneity is … [Read more...]
My fists are clenched. My first reaction, to rip the door open and release a torrent of verbal assault on these kids, is tempered by the fact that I am in fact an adult and a professing Christian. The neighbor boys, small and innocent looking, not much bigger than Kaia, stand on my doorstep. I tell them to leave, that Judah will not come out to 'play,' and that if they continue to come … [Read more...]
We have been knee-deep in book bags around our house. Our local library hosts a great summer reading program with coupons, prizes, and free books for every 3 hours of reading. They even have an adult reading program! Since we clock a lot of hours reading around here, my kids are especially excited to fill our library bags on each trip, since it now means prizes. So when my friend Mari asked … [Read more...]
It's Friday. Time to write free. Won't you join us over at the Gypsy Mama? This weeks prompt: Dance They twirl all tulle and ribbons flying out about their tiny hips. Wobbly pirouettes on baby legs, some with chubby rolls enveloped by pink tights Their feet alternate between tentative little skips with pointy toes and loud jarring thumps as they land on the glossy wooden … [Read more...]
They sit perched on the corner of my bed. I have yet to scrape away the eye boogies stuck in the corner of my lids. I haven't had my morning coffee. "What are we going to do today?" Can we have (insert friends name) over? Can we have a BBQ and invite everyone in the entire world over?" It's summer. During the school year, our days tend to run in an order of books, lessons, and activities … [Read more...]
No extreme editing; no worrying about perfect grammar, font, or punctuation. Just painting with words. Finger-painting even. So now on Fridays over here a group of people who love to throw caution to the wind and just write gather to share what five minutes buys them. Just five minutes. Unscripted. Unedited. Real. Your words. This shared feast. OK, are you ready? Please give me your best … [Read more...]
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