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Today we visited “Gum Grove” in Seal Beach. A sweet treasure trove of nature tucked away near a residential neighborhood. I would never have found this place on my own; it’s a hidden treasure that was shared with me. Again…..a glorious Tuesday. Oh how I love Tuesdays! Days spent out in nature. Kids playing. Kids delighting in creation. Observations being made. All the discoveries made today…..the difference between young and old eucalyptus tree leaves, a dead lizard, snake skin, the seeds of eucalyptus, bark peelings. Loved it that Noah was able to make use of his swiss army knife to cut off a piece of the broken rope and that James was able to tie four knots that would hold the weight of each kid for each of their turns for the hours they played. And those two 9-year old boys did it all on their own without any guidance or support from the moms. Love that! A ton of cheers, smiles, fun screams and Tarzan shouts as they played over and over and over again on that rope swing. Some of them built a fort out of branches and leaves. Others ran up and down and around on the banked curves of the trail. Mamas sat on spread out picnic blankets. Some kids painted in their field journals. We talked some politics. Then went on another hike. My heart pounding as Jacob and Natalie carefully walked on a waist-high wall that was just wide enough for them to walk one foot in front of the other. But this is the group that they will learn to be kids and have good balance and climb in trees. This is the group where I will learn to let go of my hovering ‘no, no, no that’s not safe’ mothering. Let them live a bit more adventurous instead of safe under my wings. And they were just fine. Just as all the kids were. No need to instill my fear in them. They are cautious enough and that’s what I need to rest secure in. We all had a grand time. Looking at flowers and different types of tress- identifying species. My heart is happy. I just want to sit and paint in my field journal. But more special than even all of this is the number of times both Jacob and Natalie sweetly said aloud “I love you Mama” at different points throughout the day while we were on our adventure. They were frolicking with their friends and then one of them would skip by me and sweetly say “Mama, I love you!” Each of them more than once. Several times. Different times. Unsolicited. Their hearts must have been happy too.

Today was indeed a mixture of eclectic things. But, then again, that’s what life is like as a homeschooling mom. The day began with my kiddos pouring themselves a bowl of cereal and working together trying to find the hidden spoons in the illustration on the back of the cereal box. All the while I sat neatly writing out, in teacher printing on ruled strips of  card stock, the last few lines of the Jabberwocky poem. So then homeschooling began. The kiddos and I have already worked on memorizing the first 16 lines of Lewis Carroll’s famous poem, so today’s work were the remaining 12 lines. This coming Tuesday our Adventure Club homeschooling friends will gather at Gum Grove. There in the middle of nature will be a group of elementary-aged children reciting this poem together. Oh the thought of it already makes my heart happy. Oh what a sight it will be, watching and listening to little ones saying things like “Beware the Jabberwok, my son! The jaws that bite, the claws that catch! Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun the frumious Bandersnatch!” One of my favorite lines is “O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!” That line just makes me smile. So there at the breakfast counter, with his eyes sealed shut, reciting this whole poem I watched my son…..wondering to myself if he closed his eyes to see more closely the words in his mind….or if he were doing it solely to shut out the distraction of all that was around him. He was focused and was able to recite it all from memory. What joy.

During the day we talked about ways to construct shapes with an area of 4, using a GeoBoard and rubber bands. Lots of stretching….both of rubber bands and brain cells. Loved it!

We brainstormed the different jobs involved in a roller coaster….the investors, the owner, the mechanical/structural/electrical engineers in the design and building of it, the  maintenance crew and ride operators. We researched various aspects of the jobs both online and in books. Jacob dreamed of which job he feels he would most love.

We played 90 minutes of Empire Builder- North American Rails. Picking up loads of coffee in Veracruz, Mexico to deliver in Seattle, Washington for huge revenue returns. Who would be the first to make a $250 million profit? Mama? Jacob? Which track layouts would provide the most efficient transportation routes and incur the least amount of expense? Jacob was the banker– turning in $11 million of his own money when he was expecting a revenue pay off of $39 million so that he could claim for himself a crisp $50 million bill. Oh those beloved green $50 million bills! Oh and then the exciting announcements of railroad strikes….and the worst for me…..a flooding of the Mississippi River that took out 4 of my bridges! Oh the delight in Jacob’s eyes. Ha ha ha ha.

All this while “The Best of Tchaikovsky” played in the background. Jacob at one point remarked “why did he make that note stretch out so long right there?” Huh? What? I was in the middle of deciding whether to pick up uranium in Santa Fe or go to Savannah for cotton and yet all the while his ears were listening to the beautiful musical notes dancing through the air…..this particular one catching his attention and causing him to remark aloud about why it was suspended for so much longer than the others. Before I could even process what he was talking about, the note was gone……I could never tell you again what piece was playing, even if I wanted to. But that moment was glorious. This is why I homeschool.

Tonight at dinner time as the kids ate their pasta, they begged that I would read them another “Just So Stories”. They love the Rudyard Kipling stories! They just devour them with great delight. But, no, tonight I had a different plan. Tonight I had a book for them called “Tchaikovsky Discovers America” by Esther Kalman. A beautifully written book with exquisite illustrations about the year 1891 when Tchaikovsky sailed to America for the opening of Carnegie Hall in New York City. The actual, historic observations of his diary are woven seamlessly into this fictional account of a young girl who has a brief encounter with him. As I read, both kids became more and more enraptured by the story. At one point I looked at Natalie, her eyes twinkling with almost uncontainable excitement as she put herself in the shoes of the main character, imagining that moment of honor, getting to meet Peter Tchaikovsky herself. She whispered “oh I wish I was her!” as I continued on with the story. It was as though each page of this book brought with it new ‘ooooohs’ and ‘aaaaaahs’ from Natalie. She was completely immersed in the book and living in the character’s footsteps and feelings. Nights like tonight are worth more than gold to me. To see the excitement of getting to live in the life of book’s character….on my daughter’s face. Seriously- Natalie’s eyes were beaming and her cheeks were round and rosy. If I could capture that excitement and that smile and awe, I would. And just to think….that in 15 days I will be sitting with Steve and the kids in the exquisite Royce Hall on the campus at UCLA, listening to pieces that Tchaikovsky himself composed……live…..his notes that once danced in his mind…..on that night filling the music hall with the fullness and brightness as only can be done by gifted musicians of a complete orchestra. On that night, I pray, Natalie will dream of this girl Jenny and her encounter with Tchaikovsky on the train….with the tea cup….and red jam…..and Jacob will be imagining the placement of the cities of Moscow and St. Petersburg on his Ticket to Ride game board….each imagining in their own mind about this Russian man with the white beard who lived in the 1800’s.

Nights like tonight are treasures. There are many things I feel I don’t do well as a mother. But this I know I do well. I have brought the richness of books into our home. I have brought stories and people alive through my tones and cadences. The kids have sat mesmerized as I have read texts aloud…..their imaginations actively building the settings and characters in their minds as their ears made sense of the details. This I know I have done well. My children love books and love to read. On the days and nights I feel like a lousy mom, thinking on the things I should have done or not done…..I should look back at this entry and give myself some slack. Today is a day I want to treasure.

I could tell my Natalie girl went to bed happy. As I lay next to her tucking her in, she held me and sang “Mama is my Mama” over and over and over and over in the sweetest angelic voice. It was the only line of her entire song, but she sang it so sweetly and with variations of notes that it had its own little melody. It was so sweet. She sweetly stared in my eyes, had the biggest smile on her face and kept singing it over and over and over again. I seriously just wanted to cry. Today…..the same day that I got very mad at her for not emptying her lunch bag…moldy food in it since she didn’t take care of emptying her lunch bag 3 days prior….ugh….this Mama was ranting this morning about how these two children seem to think that life is only about playing….and not taking on responsibilities of their own accord, without Mama’s reminding……and on and on I went. And, yet tonight she held my face so delicately and sang this ever so sweet song “Mama is my Mama”……that rant from this morning was gone and had been long erased in her mind. Even this afternoon’s rant from Mama…..”NATALIE! Look at this dirty, crumpled up clothes you’ve just smashed back into your dresser drawers!!! Come over here right now and go take these to the washing machine and spray them all with Spray ‘n Wash!!” Even that…..all that was gone……in Natalie’s mind I was a Mama to be treasured and sung to. A sweet melody for this tired Mama. A gift.

Natalie extended an ever-so-sweet gift of kindness to a new girl at school today. Sophie is her name. Natalie came running with leaps and bounds to find me after school and introduce me to her new friend- Sophie. A girl new to the classroom today. Natalie showered her with kindness- introduced herself to Sophie, sat with her, played with her, invited her into the sandbox at lunch….and then after school came running to me with tons of excitement, hardly able to contain herself- she had SO much excitement to introduce us and ask if please, pleeeeeeeease, pretty please we could exchange contact information and set up a playdate soon.

Perhaps Natalie’s heart was full with the friendship of this new sweet girl at school. Perhaps it grew fuller as she heard me sharing with Steve how proud I was that Natalie shared such kindness and concern and care for a new girl at school today. Or perhaps it was because I read a beautiful book aloud to her tonight….and she loved it so much. Or maybe it was for all those reasons. Tonight Natalie went to sleep as a truly content little girl. So much so that she sang me a song.

This Mama’s heart is full to overflowing. I thank God for the gift of children. Thank you Lord for them, their hearts, their minds and the affect they have on me.  Thank you for the privilege of getting to be called “Mama”.

Tuesday is one of my favorite days of the week! Tuesdays are my built in days-of-solitude. Well kinda. I’m still in Mama mode and surrounded by a group of kiddos and other mamas, but that doesn’t deter from the fact that I get an up and close personal encounter with God on Tuesdays. Last year during 2nd semester we joined a group of homeschool moms that intentionally set aside every Tuesday to go out exploring in nature with their children. They’ve been doing so, every Tuesday, for the past 7 years. Wow! I am so incredibly grateful that they welcomed us with open arms into their group. My heart is filled to overflowing on Tuesdays. It doesn’t phase me at all that we spend an hour or more driving to our nature destinations. It’s a beautiful feeling driving away from the urban jungle of concrete, cars and jam-packed homes and buildings…..to the great outdoors. It’s a delight to my mama heart to hear my kiddos squeal with delight that it’s “Adventure Club” day! To watch Jacob and Natalie eagerly pull out their hiking shoes and pack up the car with a whole pile of books to read on our drive out to our destination, makes me so happy.

This morning had all sorts of delights….

I loved being able to sit on the couch this morning at 7am with my kids eagerly listening to a story about the famous composer Tchaikovsky. Then moving into the dining room with them, where we sat listening to his music, while making our first entry in our Field Journals. I’ve been inspired by these other moms to set aside this time and let my kids reflect on their findings while being out on the hikes. Last week we went to Crystal Cove. Jacob came back with a piece of an abalone shell. Natalie came back with this weathered rock. They were their treasures. Watching them carefully sketch and try to recreate the colors of their treasures on paper was such an incredible treat. I can’t even begin to describe that feeling. They were searching our oil pastels, coloring pencils, crayons, water colors for just the perfect hue to match what they had found in nature. Oh how I loved, loved, loved their desire to try as best they could to mimic the colors God had created in these items. How exactly do you show on paper the pearly-iridiscent color of the inside of an abalone shell? Watching Jacob carefully study it and try, try, try to get that color on paper brought me to a closer appreciation of the richness in letting my children study God’s creation. They were examining the finite details of these natural treasures. What joy!

Then we headed off to Oak Canyon. I do realize that being a part of this Tuesday homeschool group will cost a pretty penny in gas. But you know what? I’m happy to do so. And so thankful that my husband gets excited for us on our adventure days. He came home from work today to see our dining room table sprawled with acorns, bark, leaves and all kinds of art supplies. The first words out of his mouth? “It looks like you had a fabulous day! I’m so happy when you get to go out with the kiddos to do things like this.” Yay. Yay. Yay. This is seriously a win for everybody! Steve is thrilled we’re going out on these nature field trips. The kids delight in it. My soul gets replenished being immersed in God’s creation for 4+ hours on Tuesdays. It’s just an amazing day- these Tuesdays. So thankful.

The joys of today’s nature adventure included….

• discovering the various colors of oak tree acorns….green…..green with brown….brown…..super dark brown

• doing oak tree bark rubbings and realizing that the older oaks have very, very rough bark that is very difficult to rub!

• Jacob whispering into my ear…..”look Mama….Wren Trail…..like Jenny Wren”. Ohhhhh sweet boy! Yes! Just like Jenny Wren, the chapter we read in the Burgess Book of Birds. He remembered the chapter dedicated to familiarizing children with wrens. Love it when my kiddos carry over their knowledge and make connections!!

• watching two butterflies flutter this incredible dance in the air……the kids and moms stood there watching for minutes on end. The beauty continued on and on. We stood there right in front of a sign marking “Tranquility Trail”, 8 kids and 3 moms in complete silence and reverie at the sight we were beholding. At times one or both butterflies would stop and rest on the tip of a branch. And then they would begin again. Once one butterfly rested on the dirt and the other one waited in the air, fluttering, to then pair up with it as it returned to the air. Once one landed on one of the girl’s heads. Oh the sheer delight. The kids were ecstatic. My heart and soul were at peace. This is beauty. Thank you God for all that you have created. Thank you that I have days like these to cherish with my children.

• having a picnic lunch under the expansive canopy of very old oak trees

• watching my Jacob be the trail-blazer for a group of 20+ kids, when last year he was always at the tail end of the group. My mama heart is so glad that he went from feeling like the ‘new kid’ and feeling awkward about that, to being eager to lead up front and chat it up with all the kids. So thankful! And yet, he was also so conscientious of being in conversation with the new kids to the group. He remembered quite well how awkward and shy he felt last year, trying to make an inroad into the group. And today he cared for the new kids. Oh the compassion! Thank you Lord! 

• watching my Natalie hike all day long holding our newly purchased Tree/Flower field guide and a bendy, blue ruler. She would stop and measure so many things! She measured the circumference of branches, the width/length of signs on the trails, the length of leaves….and on an on. She was in her own little world of measurement- it was soooooo stinkin’ cute to watch! Her joy was through the roof when I showed her I had purchased a field guide for us. She was now like the other kids in the group- in possession of her very own field guide. She was SO excited! And eager to determine what particular species of oak were along our trail.

• finding seeds we can’t identify. Natalie exclaiming “Oh Mama, can I please put them in my baggie of treasures!!!” Cupping them in my hand and discovering they make a beautiful wooden sound as they were jostled around. Perhaps we’ll make an instrument tomorrow! 

An incredible day.
Oh how I live for Tuesdays. Can hardly wait for our next outing!

On November 1, 2012 I began the venture of recording a thousand blessings. Eight months later and I’ve only recorded 238. Wow! At this rate of my reflection it’s going to take me about 3 more years to get to 1,000.  Not that I’m in a hurry or some great race to get to a thousand, but the reality is that this is a practice of identifying the blessings in my life. It’s designed to reframe my thoughts on those days when I just feel icky and unaware of how truly, truly blessed I am. There’s an inherent need in this process to be more diligent and disciplined about looking for the blessings in each day. Granted, as some have pointed out to me, the way I’ve been recording my 237 entries so far, I could have at least 500 by now if I would simply have teased out one-by-one the blessings from each paragraph long description that I wrote with abundant detail. But truth be told I feel like each of those are tiny capsules unto themselves. Yes, each of those moments have countless blessings all wrapped up in them- but I feel like I want to give each of those, as a whole, as gifts of praise to the Lord. The goal is not merely to get to 1,000. The goal is to train my heart and mind to look for all the blessings in each given day and specifically each moment. So here it goes….the purposeful looking continues…..

238. Thank you Lord that my children are growing up getting to know all of their grandparents. Thank you that Jacob and Natalie have been in years of relationship with Grandpa, Grammy, Dide, Grandma and Omie. I am so thankful that they all live in Los Angeles. I am so thankful that each of them are willing to carve out time and come together to celebrate my children on their birthday. What a gift- to sit around the dining room table in each other’s company- on each of Jacob’s past 7 birthdays and Natalie’s six. So thankful for them and the love they pour into my kiddos. It is without question that my kiddos feel their immense love. So thankful.

239. Thank you Lord for the gift of stillness. Those moments in the day when the only thing I hear is the ticking of the kitchen clock and the chirping of outside birds. I love that glorious stillness.

240. Thank you Lord for Natalie’s crinkle-nose smile, just like mine. Thank you that when I see pictures of us together that I can see in her smile a mini-me. Love that!!! Thank you that she loves to smile so much.

241. Thank you Lord for Natalie’s attention to detail. She is so observant. She noticed that Mrs. Siomacco and I were wearing the exact same black flip flops. She noticed that the little monkey from a book called Mr. Artichoke was in one of the illustrations of another book by the same author called Dim Sum for Everyone. She is always watching, observing and registering details in her mind. I catch her studying people when we are out and about. She and I have that in common. What a joy to see a mini-me with that trait…..something that you oh Lord instilled within her….not anything I specifically taught her to do. I love how amazingly awesome genetics are when they surface in ways like this!!!!!! God you designed DNA and it is absolutely fascinating to me!!!

242. Thank you Lord for the creative ideas you give Steve on how to bring greatness to the world of education. Thank you for each and every idea you’ve given him…..how to greet students at the school on opening day, mastery-based grading, a hs student-led summer science camp for kids from the neighborhood, year after year of overnighters for the incoming freshmen, buying a super high-tech amazing mill and 3-D printer for the school, encouraging the growth of a robotics team, changing the tradition of Senior portraits and bringing in Stacee Liana to bring beautiful, natural pictures of each Senior, having amazing pictures of kids’ learning framed and hung in the hallways, intentionally leading the school through a disaster drill that includes intruders…..and the list goes on and on. Thank you Lord for the ways you drop these ideas in his thoughts and give him the vision and wisdom to unfold these marvelous plans.

243. Thank you Lord for each moment I see Jacob and Steve in the backyard playing catch. With each ball that gets thrown and each ‘thump’ I hear as the ball whacks the inside of one of their gloves, my heart smiles. That is beauty in the making- a father and his son spending minutes and hours together…..throwing….throwing…..throwing. I love it that we have a backyard with beautiful green grass as the setting for that relationship building.

244. Thank you Lord for Erin, Steve’s right-hand admin. She allows him to execute incredible plans for the school. I am so thankful she is such a hard worker with a goal of excellence in all that she does. I am so thankful that they can plan/brainstorm/run the school together and they are on the same page with their values and goals for the school.

245. Thank you Lord that I finally was able to categorize and hole-punch years and years of YL paperwork into specific binders. Thank you for the organization that now exists, instead of boxes of heaping loose-leaf papers.

246. Thank you Lord that the Oakbridge campers and leaders arrived safely at camp. Thank you that you are at work there- in their hearts. Thank you that lives will be changed for all of eternity because of this meaningful encounter with you this week.

247. Thank you Lord for Young Life donors who have hearts of wanting to serve you with their money. Thank you that our great need in campership scholarships were covered this summer and we can enter the new fiscal year without any deficit from camp. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

248. Thank you Lord for pictures and how they help me retain memories.

249. Thank you Lord for how fueled up I feel by your Holy Spirit when I walk out of church each Sunday. Thank you that church gets to be a place of recharging and reconnecting with the importance of you.

250. Thank you Lord for the power of prayer. Thank you that you let us communicate with you. Thank you that you hear us. Thank you that you listen to us. Thank you that you say we can ask for anything in your name. Thank you that you are alive and present and eager to hear our prayers.

251. Thank you Lord for how often you remind me of how fragile this life is and how much people need you. When I hear of tragic car accidents, of young people trying to take their life, of the heavy, heavy problems that weigh on people’s hearts, of kids that are abandoned by their parents……I am reminded of how crazy it is for me to get sucked into the minutia and stress of daily living…..but instead I should keep my gaze on you and my energy focused on the things of your will. More and more people need to know about the hope you offer. Our mission is to share you with them. To give people the escape from the stresses and anxieties of this world and introduce them to you- the Prince of Peace.

252. Thank you Lord for Shannon Olson and her heart’s desire to see your kingdom work be done. Thank you for her partnership with me to be co-chair on the YL committee. Thank you for what a sweet, loving, passionate person she is and how fun she is to be around. Thank you for her maturity and her zeal to see your name be known. Thank you that ministry work is her heart’s desire. Thank you that she and I get to work together and neither one of us needs to try to go at this alone.

253. Thank you Lord that right now as I sit here typing this, Jacob is delighting in the world of lego robotics, snap circuits and all things electronic at Science Camp and Natalie is delighting in the world of colors, paper and brushes at Art Camp. Oh how I love how differently their brains are wired and how passionate they are about different things….and that we have DV camps to send them to, to fit those yearnings of theirs.

254. Thank you Lord for the vibrancy of color and the money we have been able to spend on birthday decor to fill our dining room this past week. A whole set of teal/aqua colored decorations for Omie’s birthday and then a whole set of pink/purple colored decorations for Natalie’s birthday. Thank you for the fun of twisted streamers swooping down from the ceiling to the lamp, encircling the table. Thank you for fun swirls of colors and beautiful tissue paper foldout frilly fun things. Thank you that a tradition has begun and continues from year to year…..of the dining room being a place of warm reception and celebration for the person whose birthday it is.

255. Thank you Lord for the yumminess of food and our content enjoyment of it. Thank you for the surplus of it too. We never go hungry and I am so thankful for that. Thank you for filled pantries and a filled refrigerator day after day. Thank you.

256. Thank you Lord for Charlie and Annie. Thank you for their companionship of these past 10 years. Thank you for their loyal dedication to our family. Thank you for the whap-whap-whap tail-on-hardwood-floor thumping I hear when I walk into the room and they are happy to see me. Thank you for their faces awaiting our arrival at the slats of our back gate. Thank you for their silly personalities…..with Annie ALWAYS wanting to carry something in when we first unlock the back door and she greets us with….a plastic water bottle or a shoe or a towel or her food dish….you name it….she looks around and grabs whatever she can so that her mouth is never empty when she first greets us. I guess somehow she feels it’s ungracious to enter empty-handed, or in this case, empty-mouthed. Gifts abound from Annie girl. I love my Annie banany and Charlie barley. Love it that they have aged with us. So much gray.

257. Thank you Lord that as of late Jacob has grown very very fond of the doggies. Thank you for the time he spends sitting on the floor rubbing their tummies and petting their heads. Thank you for the sweet surrender I see of the doggies- when they roll over and grunt ever so quietly and contentedly as he loves on them. They make these tiny, tiny short grunt sounds as though they are thoroughly in heaven with the massages he gives them.

258. Thank you Lord for the joy of pool time. The glorious blue water and the coolness of it as the kiddos are refreshed in it. Thank you for affordable swim lessons at the Hawthorne pool. Thank you that the kiddos love being in the water. Thank you for how refreshing it was for me to be in the pool once again yesterday. There’s something just so relaxing gliding through the water. Thank you for that joy.

Jacob had a huge win today! 1st place from all the 1st graders in a chess tournament! What a very, very, very exciting day for him. It was exciting alone to be invited into the tournament. At Jacob’s school, DVIA, they hired Mr. Ra Ra the Great, a chess teacher to come in and teach an elective class about chess. It was one of the most popular elective classes. This man is a very gifted instructor!!! During first semester Jacob enrolled in RaRa’s Beginning Chess class. Then second semester Jacob was enrolled in his Intermediate Chess class. So once a week, for an hour, he received chess instruction for two semesters. Jacob’s chess skills skyrocketed! It got to the point that when he practiced at home by playing Steve, daddy had to really concentrate to stay in the game. Oftentimes Jacob wanted to play first thing in the morning; Steve smarted up to the idea that he indeed had to have his morning coffee before taking on his 7 year old son, if he wanted any chance of winning. Jacob had learned things like the “4-move Checkmate” and could literally win Steve in four moves. Insane! Steve is still trying to figure out how to defend himself whenever Jacob pulls out that strategy.

Today was the Grand Match Gala- a tournament where specific chess-playing students from 18 different schools in Los Angeles were invited to compete. They set up tables by grade level.

Jacob took his seat at one of the 1st grade tables. When the tournament began he needed to play each of the kids at his table. He played a total of 5 kids, so 5 games. For each one he had the distinct privilege of getting to raise his hand proudly to indicate to the judges that he had checkmated his opponent. 5 checkmates. Wow!

Before the official tournament began, when kids were just waiting at their grade-level tables, they were told they could have a practice game with those sitting across from them at the table. The one boy across from Jacob was a sweet looking 1st grader. I looked away for awhile, was chatting it up with some moms…..and then the next thing I knew…..wow, I looked back at Jacob and this boy and saw that Jacob had a whole bunch of the boys’ pieces were in Jacob’s captured pile. The boy started to lose his smile and seemed to be getting more and more nervous and/or discouraged. I couldn’t tell exactly what emotion the boy was feeling, but it was definitely an “uh-oh, this isn’t going well!” face. This was before the tournament had started so parents were still standing around. I started to take notice that before making every move, the boy would look at someone with eager eyes. As I scanned to my side I noticed it was his dad he kept looking at. His eyes almost seemed to be pleading with his dad “Dad, dad, is this a good move?” or perhaps it was “Dad, dad, help….I don’t know what to do…” or maybe even “Dad, dad, I need your encouragement because I’m getting creamed over here.” Not sure what the exact thoughts were, but based on the intensity of his look and the pleading nature of his eyes, something along these lines could have been the real thought bubbles.

After Jacob played all 5 kids at his table and won each one, he came and sought me out in the restaurant I was sitting in. I couldn’t believe he was already done, so I sought out his chess teacher just to double-check. When Ra Ra the Great, his teacher, checked his clipboard he saw 1’s all the way across Jacob’s row. Only wins. He looked at Jacob and said “You dominated this table!!!” Wow- a wave of ‘feel good’ washed all over Jacob. Words like that from a teacher or coach can have a lifelong impact and today I had the privilege of witnessing the very moment that forever changed my son. “You dominated this table” was received by his ears and were forever lodged into some part of his memory. Such a powerful moment.

Another powerful moment was during the ceremony where each and every kid was called up by name and received a medal on a ribbon to wear around their neck. They were being commended for their bravery in accepting the invitation to attend the tournament and sit face-to-face with an opponent. The chess teachers commended the students saying they were the best-of-the-best of the chess players from their school but they were also VERY brave students. Some students received the invitation to the tournament but choose not to attend because they are afraid of losing. Yet, all of these students who arrived today were willing to meet ‘loss’ in the eye and accept it. When you sit across from someone and it’s just your mental capacity against their mental capacity, that takes A LOT of bravery. So they commended every student for their bravery in taking on that challenge even in the face of possibly losing. One kid they called up ended up receiving two medals- they announced that he had lost every single game he played in the tournament. He did not have a single win. And yet, he continued to play and did not give up. The chess teacher asked everyone- all the students and all the parents to give a round of applause to this boy who did not give up. They have a saying in their chess class: “Your setback sets you up for a comeback.” Yes. Indeed. So today in front of everyone this boy was applauded for not letting his setbacks cause him to get discouraged and to quit. Instead, they encouraged him- saying that it’s all setting him up for a comeback. I got all emotional. That was a beautiful message.

When we first arrived, I asked Mr. Ra Ra “since this is Jacob’s very first tournament, is there anything he should know to be in the right mindset?” I absolutely love what RaRa took the time to tell him. He bent over, looked Jacob in his eyes and said “Jacob, you came here to have fun playing chess. You may win or you may lose. If you lose, just keep your head in the game. If you lose one game, or the first two games or even the first three games, just keep your head in the game. Don’t let yourself give up. Don’t let yourself get discouraged. Keep your head in the game and keep trying. Some kids may try the “4-move checkmate”, do you remember how to defend against that?” Jacob responded that yes, he remembered. And then he recounted the defense move to RaRa. “Good, Jacob. So if you see the Queen and Bishop move out, a red flag should go up in your mind and then position yourself to defend. You can do this.”  As I stood there studying Jacob’s face and watching him soak up every word of encouragement from Mr. Ra Ra, I could see Jacob growing at ease with each encouraging word. These were words that held their weight in gold. His teacher, a master chess player, was stooped here giving Jacob his undivided attention and filling him up with encouragement. A mama can not ask for more in a situation like this. I am so, so, so thankful that Mr. Ra Ra is not bent on having kids win. Instead, this is a man who teaches the mechanics of chess AND the big life lessons.

“Chess can help define and refine character. A game of chess is a constantly changing battlefield wherein both daring and caution are required, and either may be rewarded or punished. Win or lose, all of these students today will learn about: The value of employing strategy; the need to adjust ones strategy to adapt to unanticipated events; and the need to cultivate personal resilience. Let us wish them all good fortune and good sportsmanship.” (Bobby Crawford, Director of Communications for Chess Tutors)

What a great day!

As they announced on the microphone the 1st, 2nd, 3rd place winners for each grade level, I found myself feeling two things: 1) ohhhhhhh I hope Jacob can experience the fun of winning and 2) losing is also a really important lesson in life. And yet, I wasn’t sure what exactly I was going to say if all the 1st grade winners were announced and he wasn’t one of them. What do you say to a child in a situation like that? So they began with the 3rd place for Kindergarten. Then 2nd place for Kindergarten. Then 1st place for Kindergarten. The suspense was mounting. But then they announced they were going to skip over 1st grade and come back to it. Okay. So they did 3rd place for 2nd grade- Tensaye Ballard. YAY!!!!!! One of our friends from school. I screamed for joy for her!!!!! 2nd place for 2nd grade- Xavier Ballard!!!! Woohoo!!!!! Then 1st place for 2nd grade- a kid we didn’t know. Then they went on to 3rd grade for each of the places. Finally they came back to 1st grade. There was so much suspense in the air!! 3rd place for 1st grade …..from Farragut Elementary…… 2nd place for 1st grade….from Farragut Elementary……..ohhhhhhhh the suspense was now very, very high. There was only one trophy left to be awarded. Did Jacob have a chance of being the winner? Eeks. I couldn’t read how he was feeling. Was he hopeful? nervous? I couldn’t tell. And then “1st place for 1st grade……from Da Vinci Innovation Academy……and before I even heard Jacob’s name I heard all of our friends SHOUTING, HOOTING, HOLLERING, CLAPPING, YELLING for Jacob…….JAAAAAAAACCCCCCOOOOOBBBBB WALLIS……..oh what a fun moment. That burst of loud excitement and cheer from all of our friends- what a treat to my ears. What very, very sweet friends to make an audible burst of cheer for Jacob. So Jacob got up, walked down the red carpet and then received his 1st place trophy.

And yet through it all he was exercising the newly discussed trait of modesty. In his last homeschooling research assignment, Jacob had read all about the famous baseball player Lou Gehrig. He is described as having been an incredibly modest man despite all of the records he was breaking and holding in the sport. Jacob and I have had discussions, as a result, of the difference of boasting your wins and being modest about them. I was so proud of Jacob as he held his trophy and received the congratulatory remarks from friends- there was no flaunting or boasting on his part. It was sinking in to him- the internal satisfaction feeling.

We left our home this morning at 8am. Didn’t get back until nearly 5:30pm. It was a very, very long and very, very hot day! And yet he never complained about the heat. Just asked for water as he read his body and knew what it needed.

A fabulous day.

Words that describe this morning’s activity:

“Perfect. Unmitigated happiness.” (Steve Wallis)

“Ethereal.” (AnneLisa Butcher)

Started off with an incredible breakfast of toasted english muffins, poached eggs and canadian bacon. Mmmmmm. Coffee in a glass mug with just the perfect tinge of creamer and milk. Yummy o.j. Wow- that was an incredible start to the day!

Then chilling…..relaxing…..letting my body  relish the slowness of the morning. Oh how glorious not to have to go anywhere, have any to-do’s to attend to, get homeschooling underway. Everyone was perfectly content and preoccupied. Mama was just happy to sit still and exist in a low-gear, a quiet humming.

After we were all suited up and I received sweet compliments from Steve that he liked my new bathing suit, off we went to the Delta.

Oh the giddy sounds of delight……the squeals of excitement from the kiddos…..knowing that water sports were about to unfold. James showed us first how it was to be done. He was ready to jump off the boat’s swim step and get into his Ski-EZ. Absolutely incredible how much confidence he has for being a 2-year old in the water!!!! I love it!!! So there he was sitting up in his Ski-EZ, tethered to the boat by a 30-foot rope, his blonde hair shining brightly in the sun and the most awesome smile wrapped across his face. And then to hear his sweet 2-year old voice shout out “hit it!”…..oh….it just melted my heart. I just absolutely loved seeing his confidence and comfort in the water. This boy is going to grow up being a water adventuring amazing athlete!!!

After skiing to the Marina and back, it was Natalie’s turn. And boy was she ready. As soon as she got into that Ski-EZ she was up and standing, smiling her million-dollar smile. She was one veeeeeeeeeery happy girl. And everyone in the boat was clapping, cheering and hollering encouragement to her. What an incredible sight- to see my baby girl, with her sun-kissed hair pulled back in two low pig tails, putting her arm up in the air showing off her one-handed operation of skiing in the wake. A 5-year old beauty on the water, full of confidence in her ability to ski. Loved it, loved it, loved it!

Next was Jacob’s turn. He couldn’t be showed up by his younger sister, so he made sure to go out there and try to stand up as soon as he could. He was smiling, twisting the rope with his hands, doing the one-handed operation, pushing the envelope with how he was positioning/balancing his body on the Ski-EZ. When he stood up straight and held out his arms in their fully extended, straightened position I was reeeeeeeeally struck by how fast he is growing up! Here’s my 7-year old, very tall boy now doing amazingly fun water sports. Wow. Perhaps it all felt so surreal because I was holding 4-week old Charles in my arms while soaking up this first-time skiing event by Jacob. How is it that he used to be as tiny as Charles, nestled into me, held up by one arm? And now here he is smiling his grown-up two front-tooth grin, trying to show off his agility on the water. Incredible.

Charles himself was incredible beyond incredible! From the moment we stepped into the boat, through three rounds of Ski-EZ water skiing, a return to the dock, momentary Delta swim time while the Ski-EZ was swapped out for two inner tubes, and then awesome tube runs for James, Natalie, Jacob and even a run for 4 all at once…..during all of that Charles slept soundly in my arms. What a sweet baby boy. Seriously- through the spray of water, the roar of the boat’s engine, screaming and cheering on-board and the toasting of the sun’s rays on his blanket-enveloped body……he slept. Soundly. All in my arms- what a luxurious treat for my mama heart!!!! After lunch he sat in his infant car seat while the rest of us swam in the coolness of the Delta water. What an absolutely incredible baby! I keep saying it’s like he’s under the radar. We wouldn’t know he’s here except we know he is, so we look for him. What a gift and joy- such an easy going baby!

It was soooooooooooooo much fun watching my dear friend AnneLisa step out into the world of active water sports once again! I had to keep reminding myself these past days that she just had a baby four weeks ago, she seemed her normal, active self as she moved about the house. And today was the marker of full return for her- what a happy day! To watch her, with her son James, riding the inner tube was just glorious. She was screaming, squealing, shouting non-stop with exuberant enthusiasm and excitement. It was happy beyond happy listening to how happy she was. I couldn’t help but keep smiling and laughing myself as I watched her. How freeing for her to have moved on from the life of being pregnant! I was SO happy for her. Yay!!! The happy smiles, the sounds of laughter, and the sight of her playing bumper cars with the other tube that had Jacob and Natalie in it, as they were moving in and out of the wake with every fun turn that Brad was navigating- oh. pure. fun.

Oh and then there was the stop at Bob’s- the restaurant in the Marina. We literally got to drive the boat up to the dock, throw on our flip-flops and walk up to the restaurant. How awesome is that! So we ordered our hamburgers, fries, tuna sandwich, shakes and sodas and sat there under the umbrellas enjoying life. Man was that tuna sandwich amazing. The slices of wheat bread were toasted and grilled perfectly. The tuna was super flavorful and refreshingly cool. Oh man. And the kids’ vanilla shakes were a testament to what a truly awesome shake ought to taste like, made with real milk and real ice cream.

And then the day got even better when Natalie pointed out the wild blackberry bushes right alongside the walkway towards the ramp. Seriously!??! I stepped in, poked my big toe into some gnarly thorns- ouch!, but that pain was quickly forgotten as I dropped into my mouth the most luscious, sun-warm blackberries. Oh wow- that yumminess sealed this day with pure awesomeness. Blackberry juice ran down my fingers. This was a glorious day.

We headed back to the Butchers’ home, our tummies content, our faces feeling the warmth of the sun, our hearts content with the joy of the whole morning of fun and relaxation.

And then the stillness of nap time. Everyone asleep. The quiet house. The afternoon breeze blowing through the living room. My feet up on the couch, my mind replaying the morning’s activities, my heart happy beyond happy. A slice of heaven indeed.

So thankful.

Today was indeed a beautiful day. It began with Jacob, Natalie and I piling into the car at 6:45am. Okay, granted the day did start with some bickering about whether or not Natalie could actually borrow Jacob’s San Francisco Giants baseball hat. After some mean Mama growling about the indecency of not sharing…..then, yes, the truly beautiful day began. We drove up the 405, to the 118 freeway. I don’t recall ever having driven on the 118. It was beautiful! There was one very picturesque area with tons of rocks and hills of rocks along the freeway. Before we knew it we had exited on Los Angeles Ave. and were headed to Somis, on a two-lane road through farmland. I felt sooooooo removed from city life. It was a great way to start the morning! We had our praise music playing in the car and I felt like we were on a mini-roadtrip.

We arrived at the Underwood Family Farm, with half hour to wait for their 9am opening time. As we stepped out of the car, the smell of farm greeted our noses. Aaaaah, it sure is awesome getting to treat my kiddos to the great outdoors. Natalie was ecstatic to see that they had pygmy goats, sheep, chickens and an alpaca out front. We encountered 3 itty bitty just-born rabbits that were in the dirt right outside front the farm entrance. Two of them had just been run over by a car that had pulled into the parking lot. The other one was there breathing. Not a single hair on their bodies- just plain pink fleshy bodies. What a sight to behold! The smallness of their bodies. And wondering how in the world these tiny newborn bunnies found their way to this dirt parking lot. Just then our friends, the Chans and Bakers arrived. We purchased two small bags full of chopped up carrot pieces, which the kids happily fed to the animals.

And off we went to the berries.

Blueberries. I can’t even begin to describe how incredibly sweet and amazing these blueberries were. Nothing like store bought blueberries. Nothing at all. These were pure heaven on my tongue. Sweet, sweet plump yumminess.

This was a very different picking experience than last week’s cherry picking. For some reason I found today’s blueberry picking more peaceful. I’m not exactly sure why. Perhaps it’s because it required such delicate fingering of each piece of fruit. Or perhaps because we had the sweet melody of chirping birds in our presence. This farm didn’t go to the extent as the cherry farm had, with ‘noise bombs’ and ‘hawk-killing’ recorded sounds to keep the birds away. The sky was gray with cloud cover, we were crouched low in the blueberry bushes, birds were chirping, my fingers were carefully pulling off these blueberry beauties……I was one very happy soul.

The kiddos learned today to appreciate the time-consuming work of picking berries. We pondered how many hours of labor it is to provide berries for markets. We wondered if there are machines that shake the bushes to get the blueberries out. But we came to our own conclusion of ‘no’ when we found out that Natalie’s running between aisles of blueberry bushes, resulted in blueberries being mashed from the side-to-side jostling in her plastic container. They must all be hand-picked and ever so delicately. I have a newfound appreciation for blueberry picking and the workers who toil so that I can purchase these with ease at the store.

Picking raspberries is even more delicate! You have to pick with just enough force to remove them from the plant and, yet, not too much force to squish them. Delicate work for the fingers indeed.

Watching Jacob and Natalie walk in and among the berry plants, happily and intently focused on the selection of ripe berries and the careful removal of them from the plants, left me feeling like one very, very fortunate mama. I am SO SO SO thankful that I have a husband who encourages these types of efforts! He and I both believe so strongly in the power of learning through experience; I am grateful that we are one in that belief. I am so thankful he is willing to go to work and work so hard to provide for our family!!! His smile and celebration of our homeschool outings means the world to me. Sooooooooo thankful for him! I feel truly blessed when I see my kiddos crouched down low beholding the small, barely breathing life of a newborn bunny…..and when I hear Jacob say grace at lunch: “thank you God for the farmers who were willing to welcome us into their land and share their blueberries with us”…….and as I beheld Natalie’s blueberry stained lips and teeth today…….knowing that all of us had our tummies filled with glorious sun-ripened blueberries…..our fingers marked with the evidence of purple juice streaks…..oh this is glorious motherhood. This is fun. This is living it up as a mama. These are days I would never exchange for any other.

Since we were only a 15 minute drive away from Steve’s grandparents’ home, we decided to stop in and visit with them. That just made the day even better!! What incredibly welcoming and loving people. They have always made me feel so genuinely loved and truly welcomed into their home. They have a gift of being able to make someone feel like a million dollars, welcoming us into their home with the biggest wide open arms of welcome. As soon as we crossed the threshold, we were in their arms of warm, tight hugs. And smiles. True, sincere, beautiful smiles. Oh, what an incredible way to be greeted. I hope and pray I am able to make people feel so welcomed when I see them. It truly is a gift they give us time and time again, whenever we visit them. And oh the gratitude and joy at the sight of the hand-picked blueberries. Such truly delightful grandparents of Steve’s. What a treasure that Jacob and Natalie get to know their great-grandparents. Oh how I pray that days like today get locked in a special place of their memory forever and ever.

We sat together around their kitchen table. Learned that Great Grandpa used to raise rabbits, he was in his last year of high school when Lou Gehrig made his farewell speech, he used to collect newspaper pictures of baseball players and put them in a scrapbook (it was a pastime of his and his cousin), that cousin used to invite him when their family went on vacation to Manhattan Beach. The two of them would walk in the alleys picking up discarded newspapers, to leaf through them and find the printed photos of the baseball greats. Great Grandpa made his very own first radio- a “crystal set”- which only required some wire and a tiny crystal. He recalled reading his very first book and his 1st grade teacher Mrs. Fulture. We learned that just this morning there was a cottontail rabbit sitting in their backyard- and Great Grandpa chased it away. Great Grandma made us really yummy iced tea!! It was so yummy it didn’t even need any sugar in it! And then she made us laugh our heads off when she popped up a WHOLE lot of popcorn…..but ended up putting in too many kernels into their popping machine so it was just coming out and out and out. It was hilarious! Lots of laughter was had. 🙂 Times like these are precious. I’m so thankful we had time today to stop and soak up these beautiful people.

Then off we went home. The kids fell asleep in the car. I love it that even at the near age of 6 for Natalie and Jacob being 7 1/2, that they can still nap. Ohhhhhhh how I love that! When we arrived home and I unbuckled Jacob, I realized it really won’t be too long when I truly can not pick him up anymore. I can barely pick him up these days. I picked him up and awkwardly lumbered into the house holding his loooong legs and heavy, grown body. When I lay him down on his bed, he opened his eyes and smiled this super super playful grin. “Ohhhhhhhh you little stinker!?!?! You were awake!!!!!” “Mama, I just wanted you to carry me” he grinned. How could I not just melt in that moment? He acted asleep so that he could still feel the joy of being carried in. Those days are numbered indeed. I was grateful today that I had the muscle strength to do it. And that his body is still one I can barely pick up.

When I went around to Natalie’s side of the car, with her head completely covered by her fuzzy soft pink blanket, I was sure she had to be asleep. Nope. That one too had woken up when I had pulled into the driveway. As I was unbuckling her seatbelt I saw the ever-so-slightest curling of the corner of her mouth into the beginning of a smile. She was caught!!! “Natalie, you’re awake, aren’t you?” I jested. “Yes, Mama. Yes.” So I helped her out of the car and walked hand-in-hand to the front porch. “Mama, I wanted to be asleep just so that you could still carry me.” Awwwww, my heart melted again. These kiddos love being carried. So I asked her: “would you like me to carry you to your bed?” She quickly looked up at me and her big, beautiful eyes sparkled with excitement as she said “ohhhhhh yessss Mama, yes yes yes!!!” So I scooped her up in my arms, she wrapped her arms around my neck, I held her in tight, gave her a kiss on her head and walked her into her bedroom. She was so thankful, it was precious. Oh Lord, I pray that on the day when I physically can no longer scoop them up into my arms…..that the two of them will know that I will forever still care for them like they were my precious little babies that I brought home from the hospital….able to hold their tiny bodies that didn’t even span the length of one of my arms. Oh Lord the growth of their bodies is a daily miracle before my eyes. It is unbelievable to me how their bodies grow. It happens so easily. So naturally. All part of your beautiful design. Oh Lord you are such an incredible Creator. Incredible. Thank you for teaching me about your power and creativity and design simply by having me watch them grow up.

And then this afternoon Jacob had a huge surprise!!! What arrived in the mail?!?! A package from Alan R. Moon!!!!!! The Alan R. Moon!!!!! The game designer extraordinaire whose Ticket to Ride games Jacob has been madly obsessed with for the past 6 months. At Christmas time Steve and I gave Jacob the game “Ticket to Ride- United States.” Little did we know how much of an obsession this game would become for Jacob. He loved it beyond loved it!!!!! It spoke to his already long-lasting love of trains. So every day since Christmas we have played this 45-minute game at least twice a day, sometimes more. Then began Jacob’s quest to begin collecting all the Ticket to Ride games. He saved up his own money to buy the Europe version. Then we surprised him with the Marklin version. Steve came up with the brilliant idea of having Jacob design his own Ticket to Ride- California version which became one of our big homeschool projects. And then when we found out that our good friend Beth was friends with Alan Moon, she kindly reached out to him and requested his permission for Jacob to write him a letter. So Jacob spent time brainstorming a letter, writing a draft, editing it, asking Beth to revise it and then he wrote the final draft. He mailed that letter about a week and a half ago. And TODAY arrived a package from Alan R. Moon. A PACKAGE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Not just a letter. But a package!!!!! In that package was a typed letter, answering the questions Jacob had posed in his letter. But also included were 3 games: a card game, the Alvin/Dexter edition, and TICKET TO RIDE-NORDIC!!!!!! Ohhhhhhhh my goodness. Jacob was on cloud 9!!!!!!!! Alan R. Moon sent him a game that he had been saving up money for!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And now he received it as a gift from the game designer himself! With Alan’s autograph on the front of the box. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. This day kept on getting better.

But it doesn’t end there. No. Tonight was Jacob’s end-of-the-year music concert from Music Rhapsody. He has been attending this music school since he was 6 months old. Now he is 7 1/2 years old. We’ve been to quite a few of his concerts in the past 7 years, but tonight’s concert was absolutely incredible. They played such difficult pieces and were absolutely a-m-a-z-i-n-g!!!!! I know that he, Teacher Ute and all the students put many, many, many hours of practice learning all the pieces. As I sat there tonight listening to the 10 pieces, watching all the kids walk around the stage to different locations for each piece…..I was struck by how truly complex this concert was! Each piece required students to be in different places. Sometimes they were dancing. Other times playing Orff instruments. Sometimes recorder. Other times piano. Also standing at the microphone for singing solos. Oh my goodness, there were SO many changes and places to be…..not to mention the complexity of the music pieces themselves. I was in awe. I sat there watching the happy faces, the dedicated intense look on Jacob’s face as he sang along to the songs, how his body grooved to the beat on some songs, how there was SO much talent represented tonight and I seriously just wanted to cry. This 30-year old music program that Lynn Kleiner has been running is absolutely phenomenal beyond phenomenal. They know what kids are capable of! The beauty of tonight’s music program was absolutely astounding. It was a solid hour of beautiful music.

And sitting there with Steve, Natalie and I were Grammy and Grandpa!! That was the cherry on top of it all. Here we are, blessed by having them living in the same city with us, willing and able to drive out to his concert.  To see Jacob’s beaming face as he looked out from the stage to see them; his cute hand waving a quick ‘hello’ trying to let them know he saw them and was happy they were there. Oh, what a beautiful end to this already beautiful day.

Oh. my. heart. is. full.

Thank you Lord for the gift of this day. This very beautiful day.

227.  “But I want you to stay soooooooooooooooooooooo badly.” Oh I’m just going to soak up those words right now. I can only imagine there will be a day within the next 10 years or so that Natalie will be saying ‘please give me my space Mom.’ But tonight, just like almost every night, Natalie longs for me to lay down next to her after I tuck her into bed. She yearns to have me wrap my arm around her body, as she lies on her left side. She pulls my arm up and around her and holds onto me. I guess there’s something about having my mama presence and my loving arm around her that soothes her and gives her peace as she unwinds from the day. It is sweet beyond words. I always try to slip away before she’s totally asleep. Sometimes though I linger and wait for that heaviness of her body to mark the sign of her having fallen deep asleep. But typically I let her know that I have a whole kitchen full of dirty dishes waiting for me. She begs for more time. She says “ohhhhh mama just a few more minutes??!!?” And today this: “But I just want you to stay sooooooooooooooooooo badly.” Beautiful beautiful words of yearning. Gosh those are magical words. I’m thankful that Natalie enjoys her time with me. I pray that will always be the case. But I tell myself ‘prepare yourself for some stage in her life where that won’t be the case.’

228. Today we went to the El Segundo Public Library to retrieve Natalie’s “Little Pet Shop” collection that had been on display for the past month. The sweet librarian Carol told us it could be Jacob’s turn next to put a collection of his on display. So in he walked with his shoebox full of Lego City vehicles. When the display case was opened, Natalie treated each and every Little Pet Shop animal as though they had been long lost friends finally encountering each other after a very, very, very long time. Without letting up, she very enthusiastically said hello to each one and gave each and every one two little kisses on their noses. It was adorable beyond words to watch!

229. Thankful that Jacob is such a voracious reader. Oh my goodness he eats up books!!! I can’t get enough books to keep up with his appetite. Today I walked in to the El Segundo Library with 41 books to check back in and we walked out with 51. That’s just over the course of three weeks and doesn’t even count the books we have at home from the Wiseburn Public Library. Today after setting up his Lego vehicle collection in the library, he asked me where I had put the roller coaster books I had found. We had piles and piles of books on the table. He simply couldn’t wait to get his paws on them. He pulled one out and started reading it right away. Then after going upstairs, checking them all out and putting the bags and bags and bags of books in the trunk of the Passat, he asked me “can you pleeeeease take out one of the roller coaster books before you close the trunk?!” I obliged and handed him one. “But Mama can you get me another one too?!” I told him it was a short drive home and one would do. Oh my goodness!?!? Who has to say that?! One book only son. One book. I am definitely thankful he loves to read.

230. I am thankful for libraries.

231. Thankful for Norma, Carol and Eric at the El Segundo Library who know us so well and are always so nice to welcome us back.

232. Thankful for DeeDee at the Wiseburn Public Library who is so easy to interact with and knows us so well also. Thankful for how down-to-earth she is and her laughs. Thankful for her “Weeeeeeelllllll, helllllllooooooo”

233. Thankful that when I read books to the kiddos while they eat lunch or dinner, they are engrossed! I’m talking SERIOUSLY engrossed! So much so that I need to require them to take a bite of their food before I turn the page. Love it that they ask for another book whenever I finish one.

234. Thankful that Grammy thought of gifting Jacob and Natalie with a stocking stuffer of a Veggie Tales Devotional Book.

235. Thankful that every day since Christmas…..now almost 5 months later….the kiddos are just as eager to read their devotional as we tuck them into bed at night. Thankful for the diligence and eagerness they have in reading from the Bible each night and learning a lesson and saying a specific prayer.

236. Thankful that Natalie was appalled and in tears the other day when her two little friends suggested that she make up a story about why she had lost the bracelet Omie had made her. “They wanted me to lie Mama!!!!” She was sooooooo shocked and upset by the fact that these two friends suggested it!!!!! She was already upset about having lost the bracelet. But on top of that to hear of their suggestion was just too much for her sweet heart. “That would be so, so, so wrong Mama!!” Oh how thankful I am for that desire of hers to have truth rise up above all. So so thankful.

237. Thankful that Natalie and Jacob are learning how to pay attention to their bodies, their minds and their hearts. Thankful that they are beginning to understand that when they are hungry or low on energy, they need to address that need instead of getting irritable or letting their emotions snowballing into huge emotions. Thankful that they can express when they need space. Thankful that the other day when I began to share with them about the tornado that had passed through Oklahoma, that Natalie let me know it would be too much for her to know about. I had told them I had a video of a tornado- she asked to please not watch it. I wasn’t even going to show them the destruction- just the actual tornado spinning across the fields. But Natalie knew enough about herself- it would be too much for her heart. I’m glad she has that self-awareness and confidence to share that with me.

Today was a special day in the life of Jacob as a baseball player. I wish I could freeze-frame the look of sheer joy that washed over his face the moment he caught a pop-fly. It was the very first pop-fly he ever attempted to catch! And he kept his eye on the ball the whole time, positioned himself on the field as though he had calculated where the end of that arch would have the ball land, stretched out his arm waiting for it to arrive and BAM! that ball smacked straight dab into his glove. And his teammates and all the parents went wild. Shouting, hollering, woohooing! Oh what a precious happy moment for my boy. Oh if I could just capture that look of genuine excitement on his face- his smile stretching wide from ear to ear, his eyes sparkling with out-of-control amazement of what had just happened. It was a perfect catch. But then all of a sudden, instantaneously everyone broke out into yelling for him to do something with that ball! The Diamondbacks had a guy on 1st and on 2nd. Both of the runners had begun to run before that popfly had been caught. They needed to run back to their bases, but getting them out depended on Jacob doing something with that ball. There was immediate loud feedback from everyone for him to kick it into high gear and do something with that ball. Oh the look of mega confusion on his face- what?! huh?! where do I go? What do I do? Where am I supposed to go? But man that kid is smart- he looked straight at his coach at 1st base and listened to what he was saying. So he ran to 1st base, stepped on the bag and got the guy out. The crowd went wild again! Since there was already one out, that caught pop-fly and out at 1st ended the inning. It was awesome beyond awesome.

Not only was there that excitement in the short-stop position for Jacob……but today he was able to pitch in a game for the very first time! Since their Saturday game had been moved to Sunday, Maddox and Benjamin couldn’t pitch. League rule- pitchers must have 2 days off of no pitching between games. So Brady started the game, with Jacob catching. Then Jacob got replaced by Maddox for catching, while Brady got replaced by Moses for pitching. And then near the end of the game the coach brought Jacob in to pitch. I know Jacob was so excited to get to be in reverse roles with Maddox, his new good friend; Jacob as pitcher with Maddox as catcher. Not only that, but he had the fun of pitching to his good friend Jack, on the Diamondbacks. What a fun day for Jacob! To see him out there on the pitching mound with Steve encouraging him from the sidelines- what a sweet picture. It was a great first introduction to the world of pitching. We were so proud of him.

In one game Jacob played catcher, short stop and pitcher. An exciting day for him indeed!

207. Thankful that Natalie was my morning alarm clock when she crawled into our bed at 5:30am. Glad she gave me reason to wake up from my deep slumber and get myself to the gym as I wanted to. Not sure I would have woken up otherwise.

208. Thankful for the return of that great feeling of swimming in the morning.

209. Thankful for super mega hot showers.

210. Thankful that when I came back from the gym, I came home to a sparkly clean kitchen. That is NOT at all how it was when I left. Last night I collapsed in bed too tired to even touch the dirty dishes from the day. And while I was out exercising this morning my awesome loving hubby washed all the dishes this morning. That is some serious ‘acts of service’ love language!!! I am so thankful for him!

211. Thankful for the sight of my precious Jacob and Natalie crouched down low below the kitchen counter, with their sock puppets putting on a puppet show. That was pure hilariousness.

212. Watching Jacob and Natalie take a black sharpie marker to their socks, drawing eyes, mouth and hair…..too precious to even care that they were marking up their white socks. I asked them if they could at least just use socks that are no longer part of a pair. They said it was fine- they wouldn’t mind wearing socks with faces on them. 🙂 I laughed. That was a great morning laugh to be thankful for.

213. Thankful for how filling my toast with cream cheese, chives and salmon was. Years ago I couldn’t have imagined myself eating something so gross-sounding for breakfast. Thinking happy thoughts of my Oma who used to love to eat chives on her buttered slices of bread in the morning. Thankful to reminisce about her this morning. Thankful to have awesome protein as part of my breakfast with that salmon.

214. Thankful for the suuuuuuuper long hug that Natalie gave me before going to school this morning. That hug lingered and lingered. She simply wouldn’t let go. She was so happy to be loving on me and I was soaking up every second of it.

215. Thankful that when I dropped Natalie off at the school valet line, she jumped up out of her seat and said “Mama, I want to give you another hug!” I’m telling you this is quite extraordinary coming from Natalie. She’s usually such an independent one that sitting and snuggling is not her normal fare. But this morning it was and I was so happy to be the recipient of all that love.

216. Thankful that I have friends who believe in God’s power and remind me to ponder on Him and His power.

217. Thankful for the hour-long phone conversation I had last night with my Madre. So encouraged to hear her be so excited to have us back in the same city again. I am so thankful for how much she loves me and loves the kiddos and how effusively she articulates that to us. There is no doubt in our minds how much she loves us. That is such an overwhelming awesome feeling.

218. Thankful for the song “Walk with me”

219. Thankful for the half hour this morning that the kids and I sat at the computer and watched a ‘Little House on the Prairie’ tv episode. Such an incredible feeling sharing with them a snippet of the tv movie that was such a significant part of my childhood.

220. Thankful for the powerful visual imagery of the life of the settlers. Thankful for Natalie’s utterance “wow, they worked really hard!” I love it when the kiddos make connections to different time periods and conclude how blessed we are now with all of our comforts.

221. Thankful for the kids’ exasperation when I read to them that Laura and Mary Ingalls got a penny for Christmas. “ONE PENNY!?!??!?!?!?!?!?!??!??! One???????!!!!!” Yes. One penny each. Wow. Times have changed. Thankful for that moment of realization of how truly rich we are.

222. Thankful for each night that I get to sit in the hallway with my back up against the wall, the hallway light illuminating the words of the chapter book I read to the kiddos. We used to sit on the couch reading hundreds of illustrated children’s picture books. But now the kiddos are hugely interested in forming their own imagery as I read aloud chapter books to them at night. There they are lying in their bed, with their eyes looking up at their ceiling, imagining with their mind the characters and plot of “Little House on the Prairie” or “Little House in the Big Woods” or “Ruby Lu- Empress of Everything”. I love it that my kids love to listen to stories and imagine.

223. Thankful for this day.

224. Thankful for the miracle of our bodies.

225. Thankful for medication that healed Jacob of his horrible croup last week and is now healing him of his sinus infection. So awesome to watch a child spring back to health with the administration of medicine. It simply is awesome. I’m so grateful to have access to medical care.

226. Thankful for the hours that lie ahead of me of quiet and stillness, with both kiddos at school. Thursdays are my happy Mama-by-myself days. This 9:30-2:30 glorious time is what my body and mind long for. Pure silence. Awwww the sound of it is heavenly. It’s my day to be refreshed. 🙂