December 7

Okay, so this photo is slightly fraudulent.

The Little Boys have a tendency to run ahead during our walks, and that's precisely what they did this afternoon. But for once, they listened to me almost immediately when I called out for them to stop. Not only did they stop, but they stopped, and struck the sweetest pose as they waited for Adam, Abby and I to catch up. They stood side by side, stock still. Isaac put an arm around Brady. It was just so sweet and precious.

Of course, Brady bolted the second I pulled out my phone to take a picture, but hey, we can't catch all of the moments all of the time.

Like I've said many times before, the way they love one another is such a blessing.

December 6

I chaperoned my first field trip today. It's kind of shocking that Abby got all the way to the fourth grade before I was able to step up and help out in that way, but circumstances were what they were. I won't dwell on the things I've missed out on.

Anyway, here are some of the girls from her class after we'd left the wildlife museum:

I realized, after spending time with several of them during the car ride and inside the museum and at a picnic table during lunch, that they're all really neat kids. They're sweet and kind and honest and thoughtful and in some cases, amusingly quirky.

They really gave me a sense of hope for the future of this world.

And that, especially in this day and age, is an exceptional thing.

December 5

It's been cold here. I don't really do cold particularly well, but I could still see the wonder of the frost on my car this morning:

The detail was really remarkable; the ice looked like bits of lace thrown like a veil over the windows and the hood and the roof.

There's nothing like natural loveliness.

December 4

Today marked my older brother's 40th birthday. I think he'd probably smack me upside the head if I used a photo from our childhood, so I plucked one from my wedding day back in 2002 instead:

He's a little more than four years my senior, so we didn't "grow up together" in the same way that my younger brother and I did; we didn't play school on grandma's front porch or perform a very special rendition of the "Sisters" number from "White Christmas." But I still remember a few select good times from way back when: sledding in the snow down the massive hill in our back yard (that, in hindsight, is probably more of a mole hill than a mountain), fishing, playing treasure hunters at our old house, reading the page in my baby book where he told his preschool teacher that he liked to help mom take care of his baby (who would be, in case it's not clear, me).

Of course, as a self-respecting older brother, he also did his share of sister-tormenting, but I'm pleased to say that he's grown up into a responsible husband and dad who no longer tries to hold me down and crack my toes for kicks. ;)

So, happy birthday, Bobby! My first sibling, and my first friend.

December 3

Isaac isn't a natural when it comes to motor skills. I'm sure I've mentioned this before, but over the summer, I had to fight him to get him to even write his name. So I'm thrilled any time he expresses interest in writing. Yesterday, he brought home Cookie the cat from kindergarten, and today, he wanted to write about his adventures with said fluff-filled feline. So he did, all by himself:

It's true that I spelled out all of the words, helped him with remembering how to shape a few letters and made sure he put spaces in the right places, but I was so pleased --amazed, really-- to see his continued growth manifest itself in his work. Entering the school year, I didn't really expect it, but I'm so glad that he's proven to be such an enthusiastic, dedicated student. And I'm incredibly glad that I don't have to fight him to use a pencil.

It's a big blessing!

December 2

As we trooped back to the car after retrieving Abby from school this afternoon, Brady showed me a piece of wood he'd found and announced that it was a cool car ramp. I'm not a huge fan of allowing "nature" inside my van, but I didn't feel like arguing, so in it went. And he proceeded to set it up right there in his seat.

The obvious adorableness aside :) it's amazing to see his creativity blossom over time. I'm surprised every day by something he says or does. And I know that he wouldn't be the clever little man he is if not for God's hand in his life. (And of course, the same thing can be said for all of my kiddos.)

December 1

Every year, we make gingerbread cookies and the kiddos decorate them. I've amassed a truly impressive (and some may say decidedly alarming) collection of seasonal sprinkles, so Adam and I kind of let them go wild getting their creativity on.

Like I've said numerous times this year (and dude, can you believe I've been doing this for almost a year?!), family and tradition are huge blessings to me. So tonight, I saw God in how well they worked together. I saw Him in Lambie, who sat on Abby's shoulder overseeing the action. I saw Him in Isaac carefully crafting his designs, and in Brady dumping at least an entire container of sprinkles on a single Mater cookie. And I saw Him in the Logan angel Abby made. She used red hot cinnamon candies to give him red hair, but they melted in the oven. At first she was dismayed, but then I pointed out that the melted candies gave him a halo. And they certainly did.

Lots of God to be found right there at our kitchen counter, in the same place we've found Him in years past doing the very same thing. And that predictability... of course, a blessing.