On this Wednesday....

As I prepare for school...
I peaked through my pictures...
just looking.

My eyes fell on this photo from the spring of 2007 and I smiled. My oldest daughter looks so very young. Cuddled up beside me is a dear one who was not yet a teenager. The young lady who I will wake in just moments looks me in the eyes and is 100% fourteen.

I love photos,
they catch moments in time that might otherwise be lost forever to the recesses of tired minds.

I pray you have a box somewhere to dig through or a computer cache to happily sort. Perhaps today, if you can spare a moment, you can find a favorite one as well.

Now and always,
I wish for you the knowledge that you are loved.
I firmly believe...
...that we are all here for a reason.
... that you and I are meant to be blessings to others.

May your walk be a beautiful adventure!

Just Playing

My two youngest children and I took our dog for a walk tonight.

On the way back toward home,
I picked up two pine cones.

Round and hard,
they are good to throw.

I tossed them at my youngest daughter and laughed as they zoomed by her head.

I fetched the missed missiles and chucked them again
repeating the process until she picked them up and threw them back.

With a laugh the game ensued,
my dear one chuckled and tossed.

It was fun.

A moment of whimsy in a world that moves too fast.

So many times I get so caught up in the day to day that I don't take time to reach out to those who need extra help to have "fun".

Like my youngest,
my Katie has autism.

Unlike my son,
my dear daughter is so typical in so many ways that sometimes it is hard to remember that her self absorption isn't purposeful. It is hard to remember that she would actually like to be goofy... that she just needs some help.

We all have our moments when we need mercy.
When we need someone to reach out to us and meet us where we are.

Tonight,
my Katie Bug and I were both blessed.

A bitty happy thought floated through my mind and I was moved to seize the moment and play. She was blessed with the knowledge that I enjoy playing with her, I was blessed once again with the realization of how very endearing my precious baby girl is to me.

May you be given mercy when you need it and may you offer it as well.
I am sure
you will be blessed.

Cake

In all the world,

my favorite dessert is chocolate cake.

The simple kind that comes in a box

and is adorned with frosting.

Cake makes special occasions better

and ordinary days more lovely.

Can you imagine a birthday without a cake?

A graduation

or a wedding

without all that yummy frosting?

Tonight,

along with dinner,

my eldest

made an absolutely lovely chocolate cake.

With a smile in my heart,

I know with all certainty

that my affection has been passed along.

She will always equate cake

with happiness,

with family,

with love.

Betty Crocker

and Dunkin Hines

should pay me dividends.

Behind the confection,

is a message of care,

of love.

I am blessed to have such very dear children.

May you,

May I,

always keep those we love close to our hearts.

May we be grateful

for the loved ones given to us

and treat them with care.

Each day is a blessing,

a gift.

May yours be beautiful!

Frozen moments

When my eldest's name was called the other night,
she walked to the front of the church.

Tentatively she stepped,
as if she could sense she's on the brink.

She was recognized for who she is,
her intellect a shining example,
her sweet spirit a balm to those around her.

I smiled wide,
my heart full of emotion.

This is my daughter.
My dear one.
I held her when she was but a minute old.

Ready to walk,
her road ahead,
her adventure,
just beginning.

May she,
may we,
be blessed.

This day
and always
with the wisdom
to keep our eyes
on the One
who makes our adventure possible.