Rainy Days and Mondays

Listening to the gentle sound of the steadily falling rain, Beethoven playing, and the warm scent of coffee brewing is a recipe for my perfect Monday morning. I am snuggling up under the softest blanket within reach and spending some alone time with God. I need to thank Him for this wonderful start to a new week.

(Missing my girls, and these sweet pictures of them picking blackberries on our back to school fun day makes me miss them even more. We had so much fun at the berry farm though, and now have 2 dozen quarts of freshly frozen blackberries frozen for winter goodness.)

First day

Normal Is Good

Healthy kids. A happy marriage. Parents who love me.A good job with an amazing boss. The ability to worship my God without fear of consequence. Clothes to wear. Food to eat. A car that is reliable (even if filled with fast food wrappers.) Great friends. A puppy who provides unconditional love. Air conditioning on hot days, and heat on cold ones. Money in the bank. A Christian school that shares God's love with my children as well as academics. A bus that picks them up and brings them home. A pantry full of food.

Sometimes I need to remind myself of the "normal" things that aren't normal for so many hurting people in our world. My prayer is that in the daily rush for more or better, I never lose sight of the abundant life I already have.

Back to Reality

No more hanging out in hammocks, swigging soda and rocking in the breeze. Today was orientation day for the girls, and tomorrow the first official day of school. Well, it was fun while it lasted.

So long summer days of leisure. See you next year!

Chincoteague Round 2

Summer has been busily humming by, full of so many sweet moments to treasure. I have learned so clearly over the last 12 months to savor the time we have with our family and not to sweat the small stuff, and have found life to be so much more enjoyable and relaxed as a result. However, if I don't wake up and record these memories I'm sure to forget them all too quickly in the chaos of back to school preparations.

I have teased the girls that all I've done this summer is pack, unpack, launder, and re-pack their matching rolling suitcases. The joke isn't far from the truth! We spent some time in Williamsburg as a family, came home in time to pack the girls up for a week away at camp, returned home, and then set off with Nana and Papa to Chincoteague. We met them for the weekend, and had so much fun we decided we needed a return trip.

Here are some pictures of that second trip after Daddy and I had arrived for the weekend. (The girls, once again, went Wednesday with Nana and Papa, wore them out, and then reinforcements showed up for the weekend. Tag team parenting / grandparenting!)

One of my favorite shots... Papa teaching the girls the intricacies of crabbing, ie... tying the chicken necks on rope to be dropped into the marsh below." Good times", as Cassidy says. Woohoo- a keeper. They have to be 5" across and male to keep. Next time maybe we will have enough time to catch enough to make a meal. This trip was purely recreational and competitive for the sisters.

Trust me, Cailin very quickly caught her 5 incher. She decided it was 5 1/4", of course. Anyone spend much time with pre-teen sisters?

OK, these little carts were the most fun! They were basically moped bikes underneath and Daddy and I had so much fun driving around the island. Cailin was initially quite concerned that I was going too fast and was going to plow right into Daddy and Cassidy, but she settled down just in time for ours to flat out die. Right beside a cemetery. We had tons of fun taking pictures while we waited for Daddy and Cassidy to rescue us. It is always something with this family.... usually something fun:-)

After bicycling out to the pony overlook. Brought back so many fun memories of my own childhood vacations. Also made me glad that at 39 I am comfortable enough in my own skin to not care about being photographed with what is conceivably the worst hair of my life.

So that is the second trip of the summer to Chincoteague Island, and the beginning of a love affair for another generation. I am beyond thrilled that the girls have fallen in love with a place that holds such a special place in my heart.