A New Day

Pride. I tried to tell her it's when you think you're better than God. Reflexively, she grinned, big. She laughed, a rolling giggle, a trickle of mirth like pebbles in a stream. She actually bent over. "That's funny that you thought you were better than God!"

















Laughter, the gift of dignity. Confident, humble hilarity.

















C.S. Lewis said that humility is the path to pleasure. For a moment now, I can see. I always thought that the humble were very, very good. I wonder if it is actually the distinct scent of pleasure that has masqueraded all this time as goodness. Perhaps my deepest longing is to be humble - fully, completely, myself.
























The antidote? "Sometimes at night when I am feeling prideful I just think about the Bible," she said.
























And then, "God, please make my heart clean in a secret way. Just surprise me with something good."

Snow Days

Hard to believe he loves coloring on walls with crayons and permanent marker alike from this photo. Now he sets out to conquer a world of fresh fallen snow, upon snow, upon white, white snow. It's at least waist deep on little Columbus here.
























Off to the side, Daddy is raking plumes of snow off the roof.

















It's demanding being a boss in clan like this. Thank goodness she has Jack and Lulu to practice on!
























This girl was born to lead.
























Lookin' for fun, always, always lookin' for FUN!
























CheeeeEEsse!!
























If you play it just right, this is how making snow angels ends.
























{Sigh}

Lulie Lu Hoo

Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,























And sings the tune without the words,
And never stops at all...

~Emily Dickinson


My friend Rose Emily takes pictures of moments you've forgotten anyone is watching. You could probably tell from the pics on this post.
http://rfeuersteinphotography.blogspot.com/

An Angel

Jack has a cold. With the devotion of two years old, he rubs sanitizer over both hands, front, back, waves them in the air. "Dry Momma. Touch Lulu?"

Hands already pulling toward Lulie, he resists, waits, I nod, "Okay." He grabs her hand and leans in close-close, kisses her, lays gently on her tummy, smiles. Sigh. Guess we didn't really need the sanitizer.























Janie participated in our Christmas Eve service this year. Her four-year old stride onto stage, smile, tiny shrug, seemed completely unconscious of audience. Half-way through she noticed the angel perched up above. The angel! She couldn't look away. At one point the angel waved at her. She paused, waved back. The night went on.

Yesterday tucking her into bed, we snuggled, laughed over our day. A couple of quiet moments and then, "Mom, was that angel on stage REAL?"

The Christmas Prayer

Perhaps Janie said it best:
God help me be how you want me to be.

Or Jack:
I like God.
I like Jesus.
He lub me.

Lulu:
Nuzzle, nuzzle.

The Heart of a Child

With decidedly more than two feet of snow, the world feels more like Christmas with each passing moment.


















Who knows why we went out the other day, but coming home Janie informed us that we were following a smoker. Yes, she is the bionic nose of our family. Enter, our first "drugs are bad" conversation. She was intrigued by nicotine and the idea that you can be addicted to something. I said, "It's sort of a yucky thing because if you are addicted, it means you can't be refreshed and happy without nicotine."

Long pause.

"Mom, I think I am addicted to God."



















This is the little man who rubs his face in my hair at night when I tuck him in. He hugs my neck real tight with both hands. "I like your hair," he says. Hug. Pause. Hug-hug. Blink. "God made you," he says. Snuggle. Hug. Hhhhuugg.

Lunch

They requested bread. Plain, dry, boring, sandwich bread.



















They ripped it to shreds and tried to eat like dogs.














I made my that-is-bad-manners face.

Janie countered with, "But Mom, it's manna!"