May 31

The weather couldn't seem to make up its mind today. It alternated repeatedly between warm, sunny, windy, cloudy, and cool. But the sky was always worthy of notice.

It's never a bad thing to look up at the wonder in the sky --the colors, the way the clouds dance in the breeze-- and think of Heaven. I'm thankful for that.

May 30

I hear a lot of what my kids say, but I don't think I usually pay enough attention to their creativity.

Today, as we walked down one of our usually traversed streets, Brady ran up to this tree and excitedly twittered that he was about to take a trip through the jungle. I watched as he carefully bobbed and weaved his way through the tree's branches.

And then, just a few seconds later, the moment was over, and we continued on our way. It's so easy to miss the sweet little moments, but it's a blessing when I remember to pay attention to them. (And yes, I feel like I've had several similar observations lately, but that must mean I need to keep the idea in mind.)

May 29

I wasn't really "looking" today. It's been a frustrating few days, and my heart just hasn't been in the hunt, so I probably missed a lot of nice little winks. I'm going to make a concerted effort to do better tomorrow. But this is what I came up with for today.

This morning, the school held its annual volunteer recognition ceremony. It's held out on the blacktop behind the school and features the kids singing songs for the parents who attend. When I arrived, I spotted Isaac's class pretty handily, but didn't see Abby's. I circled the group, looking at each face from a distance, and finally determined that her class was missing from the bunch.

I was confused over why they weren't there with the rest of the school and a little disappointed that they'd miss their very last one (since they'll be off to middle school this fall).

Well, just as the other three fifth grade classes stood up and began singing their tune --the last of the bunch-- her class finally emerged, single-file, from a nearby classroom. I immediately spotted Abby, who was marching along and singing in rather animated fashion. They may have been late, but they made an entrance.

Don't think that I'm saying that God is ever late --His timing is perfect, after all-- but I think we see a lot of what He does in this fashion. It can often feel like we're bound for disappointment but then voila, He pops up at the last possible second with an amazing solution to our issue that's even better than the "perfect" solution we'd had in mind.

So for those unexpected but surprisingly cool and notable "entrances" we sometimes encounter in this life, I'm thankful.

May 28

It'd been a while since I'd seen a brand new little Corvette, so I was kind of surprised to find one this morning at Target.

I was especially tickled over it because it wasn't with most of the other Hot Wheels cars; instead, it was on the pegs alongside --what else?-- the Pixar Cars. The Cars with Faces, as I can recall Logan calling them.

I know I'm a broken record, but the love is so often in the little things that are so easy to miss.

May 27

As the school year winds down, the end-of-year activities ramp up. Today, Abby and her classmates took the annual fifth graders' trip to an Oakland A's game. Since Adam was able to work from home, I went along as a chaperone/driver. These five were my girls for the day:

As we drove to the Coliseum, I listened to the twittering and giggling and singing from the back seat and felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude wash over me. I won't pull any punches here: Abby absolutely makes me nuts sometimes. In fact, she made me nuts this morning when she had a massive tantrum over me brushing her hair for her. (It was a mess. It had to be done.) But listening to her laughing with her friends --with these girls she's been in class with since, in some cases, kindergarten-- was like listening to a clip of the best symphony ever played.

I'm thankful that I now have that special memory, and for good and kind girls who were raised by good and kind parents.

May 26

I don't bring it up often because it's not something I choose to focus my energy on, but I have arthritis in a few different joints. I've been very achy over the past few weeks, and haven't slept particularly well as a result.

After clunking around all day today, this evening I went to a meeting at church --that quite truthfully, part of me wanted to skip-- and felt so blessed to find this marvelously comfy chair sitting there like it was waiting for me.

It was, as always, a blessing to spend time with my fellow deacons. But it was also a blessing to be comfortable while I was there since recent times have seen me feeling decidedly not so.

It's one of those very, very small things that means a whole lot.

May 25

We walked a path we don't usually take this afternoon.

The Little Boys ran along, kicking up dust with the toes of their shoes, while Abby stopped now and again to examine the flowers that still bloomed amid the dried-out weeds.

At one point, I stopped for a moment to listen to the breeze as it rustled those golden stalks. It really is God's music, I think. And I'm thankful that I took the time to appreciate it.