One day at a time.

Note the storm clouds and the puddle by the house.
And yes, sometimes you just have to play outside,
even if it means mud between your toes
and on the kitchen floors.

I'm going to be honest with you.

There was a time, just a few weeks ago, when I honestly believed it would Never. Ever. EVER. stop raining. That every evening of the rest of our lives would be spent under a severe storm warning. That we would start stocking our backyard flowerbed with fish because the puddle that developed there appeared to be permanent. That my children would forget the feeling of sunlight and that I would go crazy from having them indoors.

And I'm not kidding when I tell you that I considered the possibility of moving to one of those states that never seemed to have tornadoes.

This picture was taken during our refueling stop,
mid-flight from NYC to DFW (yes).
Needless to say, this amazing kid charmed
every person on the flight in spite of its being
craaaaazy long.

I spent the last weekend in May in New England, thankful to have left the storms behind for a few days - but even then, my Sunday flight out of New York City was nearly canceled because of the onset of a major storm system. We powered through it, much to my own terror; but I was on my own with Andrew, so the alternative of finding a place to stay in New York was no more desirable. (The rest of that trip is a story all its own; suffice it to say, we survived, and as one of my fellow passengers noted upon landing in DFW, "Now you know that you and your baby can survive a flight to Paris!" Because that's how long this flight was. And rest assured, the next time I fly to Paris, it will NOT be alone with an 8-month-old on my lap.)

But thanks be to God - the sun has returned!! Not a single storm in a whole week, and it won't be long before we are dying of heat and dreaming of raindrops, but for the time being, let me just do a little happy dance for clear skies and dry flowerbeds!

In other news, Andrew is crawling, pulling up, and waving "hello" and "goodbye" (with about a three minute delay). Luke has "graduated" from kindergarten, and with school out for Sarah as well, they have spent the last few weeks at each other's throats and acting like two-year-olds who never learned to share, but I'm hopeful that will subside as summer moves along. (Please, Lord!) As always, I had big ideas of how I'd plan out our summer so that we'd have equal parts fun and discovery as well as housecleaning and "summer learning," but here we are and I've done no such planning. I'm guessing we will survive anyway.

Look, Ma!...

This morning after our church service, I was visiting with a mother of four seated behind us who was reminiscing over "the days of Cheerios and coloring books," since even her youngest is old enough now to sit with the youth group. We both laughed over the chaos of having little ones, as I explained that, as the eldest child of four, I finally understand why my mom did (or didn't do) some of the things she did (or didn't do), and she reminded me that these days will pass swiftly. I'm not sure I even need that reminder, for it has become such an evident fact of life. But I do appreciate the reminder that although I cannot choose how quickly time will pass, I can choose how I will spend many of the moments.

My little buccaneer with her purple pirate owl.

There are an obscene number of things on My List that I am not managing to accomplish right now - both things that I ought to do (read: clean) as well as things that I want to do (read: write, read, watch a movie, organize the pantry...) - and some days that is downright frustrating. However, I cling to the knowledge that I am choosing to spend my time wisely, even if My List never grows shorter. Because absent from My List are the important things for today: time spent on a beanbag thumbing through a magazine while Andrew crawls around on the floor beside me, time spent playing Twenty Questions (yes, still) or "Where's Hello Kitty"* with the two big kids, time spent listening to an update on what the Elsa doll is doing right now, time spent fixing dinner and then spoon-feeding the baby and then numbering the bites that need to be taken before a certain child may be excused from dinner, and time spent reading or singing or praying together. Some days, I forget those important things, but I think God is merciful to us moms. Because every early morning infant wake-up call is another opportunity to spend my time well.

[Cue random photo montage. I mean, it's been a while since I've done that, right? I figure we're overdue.]

Her daily uniform.
(The cold never bothered her anyway.)

Where's Andrew? 

Failed Pinterest activity.
(Foil does not make a river.)

Favorite time of day.

*This is a real game with a a game board and everything. Try not to be jealous. Better yet, come borrow it sometime! And keep it as long as you want!