Wordless Wednesday {Moriah on Her Half-Birthday}

He's Only 78 Days Early

Some time ago, the clock that we had on the mantel in our living room stopped working; but rather than replacing it immediately, we waited.  Even though my brain knew very well that the clock was gone, my eyes did wander innumerable times to the mantel when I wanted to know what time it was (habit is strong!), and each time was a reminder that we no longer had a clock there!

I didn't go on an all-out hunt for a new clock, but I was aware enough of our void to perk up when I saw a beautiful picture (on someone's blog, although whose it was I do not know) of a clock hanging from a wall in a kitchen, with the time visible on both sides.  I instantly knew that with the wall between our kitchen and living room, we had a perfect place for such a clock; and I emailed Jeff that night, showing him a picture and suggesting that he might want to get me something like that for Christmas.  :)  

By the way, we strongly believe that making one's spouse guess and mind-read about such things is something akin to torture, so we don't hesitate to let each other know what gifts would be appreciated; and I think we both breathe easier as holidays and birthdays approach, not having to fear that unmet expectations will creep in to cast a pall over the celebration.

But back to the clock...

A package arrived here today, but that's not terribly unusual, and I didn't give a second thought to what it might be as I set it on the counter to await Jeff's arrival.  He opened it pretty much as soon as he got home; and when he saw what it was, he said, "Well, there's no sense in THAT sitting around here in a box until Christmas!"  And with that, he took it out of the box and presented to me my first Christmas present of 2013.

After supper, he went right to work and got it hung for me.

I've only admired it about 529 times this evening!

It's just a clock, I know--simply an instrument to tell time, whether looking from the kitchen or from the living room.  But when I look at it, I see two other things.

I see beauty.

And I see love.  :)

Flying High

This little girl

 was flying high this afternoon,

 tossed ever-so-gently into the air,

 then returning to Daddy's strong arms

 to be caught safely by him.

 She smiled and laughed

and wanted more.

Tonight I'm flying high,

buoyed by the realization that this is the 1,000 post I've written for this blog.

Nearly three years have gone by since that very first post; 

and in those three years, there's been a whole lot of living that's slid under the bridge 

while I've watched the stream go by and tried to catch little pieces of it.

Most of the time, I've smiled and laughed;

and always, I've wanted more.

More time to write,

more time to photograph,

more time to fill up these pages of life's scrapbook with the wondrous moments that glide my way.

I savor the 1,000 posts that have gone before.

I look forward, with great joy, to the 1,000 more, Lord willing, that will come after!  :)

Counting to Ten

It's just a common cold...I guess...this sickness that's been plaguing us this week.  Josiah got it on Monday and felt so poorly that he stayed home from children's choir practice--a highly unusual event for him to miss practice!  Some of the rest of us have succumbed to the germs as the week has progressed.  My worst day was Thursday; but actually ever since Tuesday, I've been feeling poorly.  I don't remember feeling quite so run-down by colds in the past, but maybe my memory is too optimistic--forgetting the actual degree of discomfort during previous sicknesses.  :)

At any rate, it has not been the greatest of weeks for me; but here at the end of it, I want to get my mind going in a different direction by making a simple gratitude list.

10 Reasons to Give Thanks, Even During This Challenging Week

1. I couldn't pull myself together to get much regular school work done with the boys this week--for one thing, my voice and throat wouldn't cooperate--but the timing was perfect, because the standardized tests Josiah and David needed to take had just arrived in the mail, and I was able to administer those to them (it didn't require as much talking as a normal school day would!).  I didn't feel so much like our days were wasted because we used the time to complete those tests.

2. When the thought of making dinner on Thursday was overwhelming, Jeff kindly brought home pizza for us.

3. When I still wasn't feeling much better by Friday and our plans for David's Family Night (going to our children's museum and then eating at Cracker Barrel) were needing to be cancelled, Jeff stepped up and made it a really special night for David: bringing home food from McDonald's (not something we get often, but definitely something that David loves), a new movie, and even donuts!

4. The boys are old enough to play really well independently; and during the times when I couldn't force myself up off the couch, they didn't seem to mind a bit because it gave them extra time to play!  :)

5. Moriah didn't get very sick--at least, not yet.  She might have had a touch of the cold, but nothing major.  She was her normal sweet self--maybe a little more snuggly than usual, but that was just fine with me.  And one great thing about her is that she's such a good sleeper and is happy to go to her crib when it's time for naps or bedtime--a huge blessing.

6. Although some things were on my agenda for this week, there was nothing too important that couldn't be changed or eliminated.  It was a good week to be flexible and to start cutting things out of the schedule so we could hunker down at home and recover.

7. It's amazing what a dose of acetaminophen does to help my aches and pains, particularly the troublesome headaches I've had this week.  I feel blessed to live in a country where medicines are available, cheap, and (usually) safe.

8.  Tonight I started to feel a surge of energy, a welcome sensation after feeling so sluggish the past few days.  The energy surge didn't stay as long as I would have liked, but at least it gave me hope that more is on the way.  :)

9. There was no throw-up!  And every time we get sick with no vomiting, I say, "Thank You, God, for this great blessing!"  :)

And the final blessing on my list for tonight?

10. Even when I'm sick and grumpy, I'm still surrounded by people who love me.

And I love them back.  :)


(By the way, David's joke of the day for day 3 and for day 4 are posted on his blog.)  :)

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday {She's Getting to Be an Old Lady...}

...but we still love our first dog.

Our sweet Molly girl.

(And, as promised, here is the link to David's blog which now has Joke of the Day #2 posted on it.)  :)

After Her Nap

I know I've been posting a lot of these little home movies recently, and maybe everyone is tired of them.

But I'm not.  :)

I'm posting one again tonight because I wanted to blog about something, but the time I had set aside for blogging has been eaten up (delightfully so) by the work I'm doing to get the daily jokes up and running on David's blog.  So, rather than staying up frightfully late to write the original post I had in mind, I'm substituting a short video instead.

Very often when I go into Moriah's room to get her up after a nap, she'll hold something up for me to look at or have.  For example, she might hold up her favorite doll, and I'll gently take it from her, give it a hug and kiss, then give it back to Moriah for her to hug it.  Or she might grab a book she's been looking at, then hand it to me so I can turn the pages and tell her what the pictured items are; she usually taps the pages with a finger, just like I do when I'm identifying an item.  :)

But on this particular day, Moriah was a little distracted by the camera, so she didn't give me anything.  I didn't mind.  I just wanted to look at her and notice - really notice - what she's like at this fleeting stage of her dear little life.

Mission accomplished.  :)

Joke of the Day

I have it on rock-solid authority that laughter is good for us.  And so, to make the month of October even more cheerful than it usually is, I asked my favorite comedian for some help.  Very convenient, since he happens to live in my house!  :)

David responded favorably to my idea, and we are pleased to present a series for the month of October: 

Joke of the Day!  

If all goes as David desires, every day we will post on his blog a short video of him telling a joke.  Didn't know he has a blog?  You're not alone; most people don't know that.  But now you do. :)  I need to get the kinks worked out of the system, and then we'll begin posting there (and I'll always link to it from this blog, too).

For now, however, here is the first joke.

Drumroll please! 

Another laugh coming tomorrow...  :)