Monday, August 29, 2011

Right Now

Right now, I'm loving...

New milestones

Collapsible tunnels

Amazing bath stuff gifted from a dear friend...

...and the amazing baths they make

This week has started off on a cloudy, sixteen-one-hundredths-of-an-inch-of-rain note, and as August draws to a close and September kicks off, we can only hope this week holds many more signs of summer beginning its retreat!

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Day Is Done

Fading light dims the sight
 
 And a star gems the sky, gleaming bright
 
 From afar drawing nigh
Falls the night.
 
Day is done, gone the sun
 
From the lakes, from the hills, from the sky
 
 All is well, safely rest;
God is nigh.

Then goodnight, peaceful night;
Till the light of the dawn shineth bright

God is near, do not fear,
Friend, good night.

'Taps' adapted lyrics by Horace Lorenzo Trim

Monday, August 22, 2011

Right Now

Right now, I'm loving...

The results of a Sunday afternoon spent baking

A new book almost daily in the mail...

...and the inspiration they bring with them

A tough little girl who will play outside, even when (at 7pm) it's over 100 degrees

As this week opens with the first day of school for so many, we plod on with our every-day, and rejoice in the simple stuff that comes from being Home.  May your week hold surprises and beauty in the changes and the things that remain the same, and may everyone still gather, in the end, at Home. Happy Monday.

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Hold Tight

This summer has flown by faster than any I remember so far. Not necessarily a bad thing in terms of the weather... I mean, honestly, who would be sad to start coming back down in to the low 100's, or 90's for that matter?

It is, however, hard to accept in terms of the passage of time, which I know I wax poetic about quite frequently. However, with friends and family sending children away to various levels of school for the first time tomorrow, it really rings home how golden and fleeting these innocent, early years are with my own babies. I can still remember the first day at each new school I attended throughout my scholastic career, and my first night alone in the dorms as a college freshman still feels like yesterday.

I remember excitement, I remember anxiety, I remember fear, panic, and the intoxicating feeling of freedom... and I also remember how quickly all those feelings leveled out and things settled in to the new 'normal' of a new school year.

I can only imagine how hard it will be to be on the parenting end of those feelings in the all-too-near future. Thankfully, though, I still have a few beautiful, precious years left before paths start to diverge from the congruent family path we're plodding, and with every sunset, then sunrise, I vow to make the most of them.


I will enjoy the present. I will treasure every phase, stage, and milestone. I will look forward to the future, and be thankful for the past. I will learn from the hard stuff. I will learn from the easy stuff. My parents I will appreciate more with every hurtle, and my babies I will hold tight. 

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Before and After

We have salvaged yet another childhood handmade keepsake from my parents' storage... today, it's the step my dad built me when I was very small to enable me to wash my hands at the bathroom sink. In it's glory days, it was hunter green and very solid. When I got my hands back on it, it was a plethora of colors and stains, and though still pretty solid, had a few nicks and notches missing.

Before the heat of the day descended, my trusty helper and I gathered bucket, rags, brushes, and paint, and set out to restore this handy-dandy booster.

Step one: find some shade, then give everything a good sandin' (the little pink step mysteriously appeared in our garage at some point this summer, we're not sure where it came from... Gramps and Grammy?).



Step two: wash away the dust, grime, and cobwebs (as best you can).


Step three: give everything a good coat of a super-concealing primer.


Step four: let primer dry, take girlchild inside, get boychild up from "nap," feed everyone, play a little, put both Littles down for a nap, go back outside, debate over final paint color, settle on a warm dark gray, paint, sweat, let paint dry, go back outside again, realize that the shade has moved away, move everything back into the shade, sand to transform into shabby-chic, wipe down again, bring back inside, and add felt footies...


...and, ta-da! A two-step booster for a Little Miss to use when the counter is too full or messy to allow for a whole Audrey to sit upon it.


The verdict?


Love.

Monday, August 15, 2011

Right Now

Right now, I'm loving...

The before, during, and after of the first rain in months

The invention and joy of new games

The handmade cedar picnic table from my thoughtful in-laws...

...and the little girl who thought it was made just for her

The beauty that can be found in something ugly

As we start this week with the good, the bad, and the ugly of the previous days and weeks, I hope to remain in the present, and remind myself that this too shall pass. Happy Monday.

Friday, August 12, 2011

Slowly But Surely

Despite having the play room furnished and filled to capacity, we have yet to put anything up on the walls. During a brief trip to the craft shop yesterday, I stumbled upon some very simple wooden letter cutouts, on sale, and couldn't resist grabbing an 'A' and an 'H.' Once home, Sister set to work making them just right for the play room, and after drying over night, the kiddos put their hand prints on their own letters.


Now, we are happy to announce, there is one spot of wall that proudly is displaying a bit more than beige. We're on our way, slowly but surely!