Lessons

It started with a cooking lesson.

He made the trail mix and she made the sandwiches.

My little helpers were more than enthusiastic.

The little miss insisted on using a real picnic basket

to tote the yummies.

Then, packed up with extras of everything, 

we headed out 

to spend the day out here.

We called chickens

and named goats

all the while giggling at their antics.

My children have taught me so many lessons of love,

teaching me to slow down,

to pause to examine, to hesitate to wonder, how to hold on just to admire,

soaking up the new.

Like this,

Tristan's enthusiasm for this part of our field trip was unquenchable,

his expression gets me every time.

My cautious one, however, was a little more unsure of her feelings about the goats when they were on the same side of the fence.

Another lesson appreciated in motherhood,

watching the littles fulfill their own design from day one,

each one niched so perfectly with their own set of gifts to the world.

The explorers, the caretakers, the thinkers, the risk takers,

we have them all. 

Did I mention the ladies' men?

I have one of those too.

Anyway,

our day was wonderful,

lessons in butterfly chasing,

turtle watching 

and fish spotting,

with a good measure of baby toting

and a good dose of how-much-crap-can-we-lug-along-with-us.

Another day leaving me thankful for the lessons in friendship

and the everyday beautiful.

Here

Around here...

we've been doing a lot of teaching,

a lot of playing,

and a good amount of just-for-fun redecorating.

With some much needed input from a gifted friend for decorating inspiration

we've started in our breakfast nook with a little pizzaz on one side

and a little functionality on the other

but my favorite of all favorites is this piece.

I mentioned a recent motto for our family in a previous post 

and Hayley from Signs From Scraps made it happen

so we remember it daily in a pretty way.

And it's been just perfect.

Peace

A mantra has been repeating, 

sweetly, 

serenely as of late,

I find myself dwelling more deeply on the promises each day.

Peace like a river.

Bubbling, rippling, flowing.

Inwards, outwards, watering, refreshing.

From Philippians 4.

The author writes while imprisoned,

"I've learned the secret of being content in any and every circumstance,

whether well fed or hungry,

whether living in plenty or in want..."

And how our stories could all add to these descriptors...

in bright morning of well-rested enthusiasm,

and in the dreary clouds of drained exhaustion,

in the romance of fresh budded love and passion,

and in the darkness, when we find ourselves trudging in existence beside a spouse,

in the harmony of excitement and anticipation,

and through deflated hopes, 

in the color and the grays,

I know we've all found ourselves in each of these moments,

and we've pressed through one obstacle, we've secured one decision 

often to walk only steps before facing another.

Here is the secret.

"I can do all this

through

Him

who gives me

strength."

And so,

with this secret 

this promise

secured

may we

ripple on in choices of peace today.

Friendships

I'm in a particularly thankful season watching the littles grow in their friendships,

holding hands, performing songs, tickling tummies,

together.

We did it with fourteen littles and their mommas the other day,

and nearly kept track of all of them,

just one was stuck in a bathroom for an undetermined amount of time,
one ending the playdate only half-dressed,

and one good solid head bonk.

The next morning we held the second of what I hope to be a series of preschool playdates.

Another teacher-turned-momma and I

just like to play school really.

So we read books and make lists,

color and paint,

while our littles

 soak it up.