Be Mine

Caroline, our resident mini Martha, is my holiday queen. Even though we've never actually hosted a Christmas party, boy is there ever a bee in her bonnet about throwing a Christmas party. The timing of this party changes constantly -- it might be "in ten days" or "in six months" or "last week." But it's the event that's going to make all her dreams come true -- candy, decorations (which she's gradually gathering), etc.

But now a new interest has joined the ranks. On Monday, she received three valentines from children in her co-op class. Immediately, she launched her own Hallmark line. Industriously, she works her magic with crayons, markers, glitter glue, starting before breakfast to make valentines for her siblings. In fact, tonight she was cranking them out an hour past tucking time, armed with gel pens and magic markers which somehow snuck into her bed. Here's one for Eliza, featuring the much-to-doed Loose Tooth:


Ian's getting over being sick, although yesterday he lay feverishly on the couch all day, trying to clear his throat and blink his red eyes. Since I'm paranoid about pneumonia after my dramatic bout, I called my dad for free medical advice last night (I like to alternate between him and my friend Greta, and last week she got the dog-bite-on-face-is-it-infected? call). He said, in essence, what he usually does, which is: "He'll be fine."

Which, of course, he will be.

Since he was in no shape to do anything else, I read aloud to him and let him watch STAR WARS and THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK -- for the first time ever (we are a G-rated family, plus this is a child who had a major panic session at Winnie the Pooh when he was three or four). Which, of course, means his sisters got to watch parts of it too. Sigh. It's much harder to shelter the second and third children! ("Darth Vader is MEAN!" was the authoritative word during breakfast this morning.)

I was feeling rather sorry for myself this morning, so ran away from the children to go sit in my front yard and talk to the Lord, just letting Him listen without insisting on answers. The sunshine, the constant wind chimes, the breeze ruffling the branches of our pecan tree, the pitter patter of toddler feet behind me, the silent curling up of a small warm body on my lap, the knowledge that Someone understood. All good.