Awaiting Easter

We finally managed the last piece of our Easter preparations this afternoon:  coloring our Easter eggs.  Mama prepared a great big pot of hard boiled eggs and asked, "Who wants to color eggs?"

Kathleen was there in an instant.

Madeline was right behind her big sister, saying "Me!  ME!"  (This might be one of Madeline's favorite phrases -- although sometimes it comes in the form of "too, too," which means "me, too.")

Everyone worked together.

And then each girl worked on her own.

(Incidentally, we're pretty sure this isn't the future the law firm envisioned when they gave Mama that mug long ago...  Mama was probably supposed to stay at the law firm and do, you know, law.  Instead we do crafts.)

And after all the eggs had been dyed, the girls applied stickers.  Very carefully.  This is important work!

We can't wait for Easter morning!

Holy Thursday: Behold the Lamb

A hymn that's been on my heart today as we prepare for Easter.   One day we hope to celebrate our own seder meal on Holy Thursday, but I've had to concede that with a three year old, a one-year old, and yet another sweet child due to arrive any day, this probably isn't the year to begin!  Regardless, this hymn one of my favorites, and I thought you might benefit from it, too.

Behold the Lamb who bears our sins away,
Slain for us—and we remember
The promise made that all who come in faith
Find forgiveness at the cross.
So we share in this bread of life,
And we drink of His sacrifice
As a sign of our bonds of peace
Around the table of the King.

The body of our Savior Jesus Christ,
Torn for you—eat and remember;
The wounds that heal, the death that brings us life
Paid the price to make us one.
So we share in this bread of life,
And we drink of His sacrifice
As a sign of our bonds of love
Around the table of the King.

The blood that cleanses ev’ry stain of sin,
Shed for you—drink and remember
He drained death’s cup that all may enter in
To receive the life of God.
So we share in this bread of life,
And we drink of His sacrifice
As a sign of our bonds of grace
Around the table of the King.

And so with thankfulness and faith we rise
To respond, and to remember
Our call to follow in the steps of Christ
As His body here on earth.
As we share in His suffering
We proclaim Christ will come again!
And we’ll join in the feast of heav’n
Around the table of the King.

— Stuart Townend and Keith & Kristyn Getty, © 2007 Thankyou Music, 

Administered by worshiptogether.com (USA) and Kingsway Music (UK).

A new addition

But it's not a baby.

And it's not a dog.

It's a playhouse!

The girls received a new playhouse this weekend.  Mama and Daddy had hoped to time the playhouse's arrival to coincide with a brother, but the toy store had other ideas.  A sale on the playhouse ended Saturday, so we decided to get it while we could save a bit of money (and we got the last one, too!) and hide it in the garage for a while.  Unfortunately, the enormous box had to be opened to fit into the van, which made hiding the playhouse in the garage a bit more complicated.  We decided not to try -- and showed the girls the pieces right away!

Daddy started to put the house together on Sunday afternoon, after church.

  

Nan and Grandpa came to join in on the fun.  Grandpa assisted with some house assembly, of course.   The house has a lot going on -- a schoolhouse side, a gas station side, a store side, and a sports side (with a soccer goal and a basketball hoop) -- so Daddy and Grandpa had plenty to do.  (Mama and Nan helped, too, but only with the stickers!)  And when the house was finished, its little occupants were ecstatic!

Kathleen tests out the phone while Madeline crawls through the 

"tire" on the gas station side of the playhouse.

Madeline models Grandpa's ND beanie.

The weather was absolutely gorgeous.  Mama and Daddy and Nan and Grandpa lounged in the shade while the girls romped.  And when the afternoon became evening, we grilled some steaks and enjoyed a tasty dinner together.

How to top off a day with a new playhouse?  Ice cream cones after supper!

And we finished our night with something even sweeter -- storytime with Nan and Grandpa!

If only every addition were as quick and painless (and fun!) as a new, plastic playhouse!

Madeline's First Haircut

This weekend we took Madeline for her very first haircut.  Our girls don't grow all that much hair before their second birthdays, it seems, so I'm always reluctant to cut it.  But Madeline's hair had gotten a bit scraggly, and since she won't keep anything in it for more than a moment, cutting it seemed the only option.

Our shaggy little Maddie Beth!

I had thought briefly about trying to cut Madeline's hair myself. While we were visiting Nan and Grandpa I trimmed up Kathleen's hair, and I've been mostly happy with that decision. But it was a stressful process for me -- halfway through I nearly stopped, frustrated that I'd ever begun cutting. I'm a perfectionist. And trimming up a wiggling three-year-old with superfine hair is not a good project for a perfectionist. I can only imagine that a wiggling eighteen month old would be even more challenging! 

So we did a bit of research online about where to have Madeline's hair cut, settling on a children's salon about twenty minutes from our home.  We were quite happy with our choice. The stylist was sweet and patient; Madeline loved sitting in the little car and watching TV while her hair was trimmed. She spent most of the appointment looking rather serious, but when I pulled out the camera, she put on a big smile!

Cheesing for Mama's camera.

And we think the results were pretty darling!  (Of course, we'd probably think that no matter what!)

Green and Crunchy

It's April and spring is truly here -- at least of late.  The other morning the girls and I took advantage of the sunshine and moved our normal indoor activities, outdoors.  All that was required was carrying the girls' table to the back lawn!

(Can you tell Kathleen has been dressing herself?  I love the dress/tights combination!)

While I sipped a nice cup of coffee and wrote some notes, the girls entertained themselves with some green play dough and crunched on granola we'd made earlier that morning.  It seemed so spring-like -- the girls in their pretty pastels on the green lawn.

The morning was a treat for all of us.  We soaked up some sunshine and the quiet of a weekday morning.  The girls were amused by the novelty of using play dough outdoors.  And, in addition to the (practically unprecedented) chance to sip some coffee in relative quiet, I didn't even have to clean up the playdough crumbs -- I just left them in the grass!  

Spring Break in Brief

Last week (almost two weeks ago, really) was Daddy's spring break.  Mama and the girls did visit Nan and Grandpa for the end of exam week -- they enjoyed playdates with their little cousins at the park and the Bay Area Discovery Museum.  Mama and Kathleen even got hair cuts. (Mama at an actual hairstylist's; Kathleen in Nan's kitchen!)  And everyone enjoyed the time with Nan and Grandpa.   We reunited just after Daddy had submitted his last paper.

When the circus first checked out Daddy's academic schedule in the fall, we had thought that this spring break would be a great time for a bit of adventure.  We knew it couldn't be big, since Mama is so pregnant, but we thought we might be able to swing a couple days in Yosemite... or in the City (San Francisco)... or something.

We thought wrong.

Don't misunderstand me: we definitely enjoyed Daddy's week-long vacation.  But it wasn't adventurous.  For the most part, it was marked by sickness.  Kathleen was still recovering from what we'd thought was slapped cheek fever, but may actually have been an allergic reaction to her antibiotic.  (We didn't really figure that out until the Thursday night at Nan and Grandpa's where she didn't sleep AT ALL and complained of being itchy.  Good times.)  By the time Kathleen was getting back to normal, Madeline developed an on-again, off-again fever.  And when that receded, Mama developed sinusitis.  Just in time to head back to class, Daddy got a terrible, horrible cold.  It was as though we'd won some sort of viral lottery -- a lottery we certainly don't remember entering.

Still, we did manage a bit of fun toward the end of spring break.  Kathleen and Daddy went on a daddy-daughter date to the Children's Discovery Museum in San Jose.  (Mama and Madeline stayed home for some marathon-napping.)  They had so much fun together that after they left the museum they decided not to come straight home, but went to Stanford, instead, to buy Daddy's books for the next quarter.  There, they took advantage of the sunshiny weather, calling Mama to let her know they were dangling their feet in the fountain and drinking Jamba Juice.

We kept up the fun the next day with another trip to the Monterey Bay Aquarium.  Because they knew what to expect, the girls were even more excited about this visit.  They couldn't wat to get to the sea otters!  And this time we caught the entire fish-feeding "show."  We sat on the floor with a gazillion school children, watching the scuba diver descend into the tank. Even Madeline was entranced.

But the highlight of the show -- at least for our girls -- was the greedy hungriness of the sharks.  When the diver wouldn't feed them fast enough, they helped themselves to her bag of food.  (Mama was glad she wasn't the diver!  And glad that the girls didn't know enough to be scared, rather than amused!)

Monterey was just gorgeous. We reveled in the sunny spring weather and talked about how the ocean made us "homesick" for Oahu.  (Just look at what's waiting for you, Starlings!)

The last few days of spring break were spent at home.  We ran lots of errands, trying to finish off the big "before Indy arrives" checklist.  But since Daddy was around, even the most normal, everyday tasks were more fun.  

We walked to the post office to mail off some packages.

We worked in the garden, planting flowers and vegetables. The girls helped mix the potting soil.

When we'd gotten everything planted, everyone was very dirty. The only solution? The first sprinkler-run of the the spring!

Daddy's now back to class.  We're hopeful that this quarter will be a little calmer than last quarter -- at least academically speaking... because we know God has big plans for our little family this spring!

Scenes from the Circus: April Approaches

March is quickly passing. Each day brings us closer to meeting the next little member of our circus. The baby is growing well (Mama measured just a bit ahead of schedule at her last appointment) and certainly seems strong and lively.

The little guy is a frequent topic of conversation around here. The girls love to feel the baby move and to speculate about what he'll like -- whether we're talking about what to eat for dinner or where the baby should sit in the minivan. (On a recent trip to Babies R Us, Kathleen seemed confident that the baby would like a set of pink princess toys!) Of course, Kathleen does more of the talking; Madeline just likes to parrot whatever her big sister says.

Last week, Kathleen was sitting on Mama's lap (or what remains of Mama's lap) when she announced, "I really want a little baby."

"Well, that's a good thing," Mama responded, "because in a little while a little baby is going to come live at our house!"

Kathleen scowled for a moment, then turned to look in Mama's face.

"But I want a baby from your tummy named Indiana. . . and you keep talking about naming him something else!"

It's true. Mama has talked at length about naming this poor child something other than Indiana Jones, but she's the only one talking. No tactic has yet convinced Kathleen (or her father) that the baby should be named anything other than Indiana. We've talked about nicknames (pointing out that Kathleen is named Kathleen but called Sissy or Leenie and that Madeline is called Maddie Beth), but Kathleen is adamant that the baby be named Indiana, and not just called that. Daddy has acquired a keen ally in his firstborn!

Daddy and Kathleen were reading a bedtime story a few nights ago about the months of the year. Months are a new concept for Kathleen, so when they got to March Daddy explained that it's March right now. And when they turned to the page about April, Daddy started to explain about what might make April special.

"And in April, honey," Daddy began, "Baby Indy will come live at our house! Mama and Daddy will go to the doctor to take Baby Indy out of Mama's tummy, and then we'll bring Indy home to live at our house."

"But how?" Kathleen asked, "How will the doctors take Indy out?"

"Oh," Daddy replied, "The doctors are really smart and really good at their jobs. They know just how to take Indy out of Mama."

Kathleen frowned again, looked over at Mama working in the kitchen, then pressed on, "But will the doctors have to make a hole?"

Staggered by our three year-old's critical thinking skills, Daddy fell silent. Mama jumped in instead.

"No, honey. The doctors shouldn't have to make a hole. God has worked out a very special way to get the baby out of Mama. . . without having to make a hole."

Mercifully, this satisfied Kathleen.

And since then, Mama keeps thinking: let's hope they don't have to make a hole!

The girl's a quick study

Apparently, Madeline has this technology thing all figured out. If Mama or Daddy won't let her watch "Signing Time" or "Miffy and Friends," she'll just turn it on herself!

Well, that's a slap in the face

Kathleen woke in the still-dark hours of the morning Sunday, crying that she wanted a cup of cold water. Kathleen's our sleep-like-a-log sleeper; our child who, with what we have since learned is startling consistency, has slept through the night since she was a few months old. So we were surprised to hear her awaken, and quick to respond. As soon as I opened the door I knew what was wrong. The poor child had been sick hours earlier and slept right through it.

So we hustled her into the bathtub and the sheets into the washer. And although Kathleen initially protested that she didn't want a bath -- she just wanted to have some water and go back to sleep -- she was sweet and compliant and surprisingly affectionate. And aside from being a little groggy, the thing we noticed most was that Kathleen was very, very red. All over. If we were still in Hawaii, we might have thought it was a sunburn.

Between the redness and the sickness, we were a little concerned. That night had been the first night of a new medication for Kathleen. She'd been diagnosed with a bladder infection about 12 days before (not fun, let me assure you) and the pediatrician had prescribed a 10-day course of antibiotics to be followed by yet another antibiotic, which Kathleen will take until we know the results of more tests (those should be done Friday). It didn't seem like Kathleen was having an allergic reaction -- not exactly, anyway -- but we thought we should call, anyway.

By the time the pediatrician's office returned our call, Kathleen was fast asleep again. Jim and the nurse talked and decided that if she were still red when she woke, we'd call and bring her into the after-hours clinic. When Kathleen finally woke up (around 9:30, which would've been fantastic, had Madeline not decided to start her day literally 10 minutes after we laid back down in bed) she was still red, so we arranged for a visit to the clinic.

There, the doctor confirmed that it was not an allergic reaction and instead diagnosed Kathleen with slapped cheek fever. We've thought that Kathleen had that before, but since you can only have it once (and a doctor never diagnosed it before, either), we figure we were wrong! Anyway, we spent the rest of the day lying low -- reading stories, watching some dvds, playing Candyland, and -- of course -- reenacting the visit to the doctor with Kathleen's doctor kit.

Our still red little girl, relaxing with some toast and ginger ale, watching a movie. She'd been entranced by the movie in the doctor's office waiting room. When I proposed that we go home and watch a movie, she said (and I'm not making this up), "I think that sounds like a splendid idea!"

Getting sick on Sunday was a double insult to poor Kathleen. First, it meant that she couldn't go to the nursery to play with her friends at church. Secondly, we'd been planning to leave from church to go to Nan and Grandpa's for the week. This is exam week for Daddy, and we figured we'd give him a bit of peace and quiet by heading to the grandparents'. Kathleen couldn't understand why we wouldn't go, since the bags were all packed and waiting on the kitchen table!

We're still hoping to go to Nan and Grandpa's in a few days, and leave Daddy a chance to tackle a 48 hour take-home exam without the circus raging around him. But that's only if everyone stays relatively healthy. Wish us luck -- we don't seem to have much luck in that arena!

Delighted about dessert

A few weeks ago we made some chocolate pudding for dessert. We'd seen this post about making pudding in a plastic bag on Chasing Cheerios (a homeschooling/unschooling blog we enjoy from time to time) a while back, and we finally got around to trying it out. Kathleen enjoyed the "squishing" part of making the pudding in a plastic bag, but Madeline mostly enjoyed eating the pudding.

And then, just a few days later, we had to make a visit to the after-hours pediatrician's clinic. Our appointment was at 6pm, so the girls ate a very early (like 4:45!) dinner at home before we left. To reward the girls' good behavior at the appointment (especially Kathleen, who actually needed the appointment), we all stopped at Cold Stone Creamery on the way home. That made Mama and Daddy happy, of course, but the girls were ecstatic. (And they don't even know about mixing stuff into the ice cream!)

And for the record, Indiana seemed pretty excited about the ice cream, too. He just wouldn't settle down after that! Apparently everyone in this circus likes dessert!

Good, Clean Fun

We here at the circus have recently discovered a new favorite -- bath paints!

We spotted the "recipe" on the Crafty Crow (where else?!) a few weeks ago and finally gave it a try after a particularly messy supper of pasta with marinara sauce. The paints whip up in seconds with ingredients we always have on hand (baby bath soap, cornstarch, and food coloring) and the girls love them.

Although the link to the recipe features a muffin tin's worth of paint, we've pretty much stuck to one cup of paint per child. The recipe makes a fair amount, but we like to have two colors! (I've been thinking that next time we'll just do one batch and split it between the two cups and then dye it. I probably should've come up with that solution earlier, but I'm claiming pregnancy brain.) With some of Ikea's marvelously inexpensive paintbrushes, the girls happily paint away. And -- even better! -- I've found that the paints clean up far more easily than some of those brand-name bath crayons I've purchased. When we're nearly done with the bath I give the girls some wash cloths, and they just wipe their paint off the tub. (Washing it off the girls is even easier, since it's mostly soap!) They like the "erasing" almost as much as they like the painting. And that makes everyone happy!

Like a Child

One day some parents brought their children to Jesus so he could touch and bless them. But the disciples scolded the parents for bothering him.

When Jesus saw what was happening, he was angry with his disciples. He said to them, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children. I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.” Then he took the children in his arms and placed his hands on their heads and blessed them.

Luke 10:13-16 (New Living Translation)

It's another rainy day at the circus, so the girls and I are camped out on the living room floor, playing with puzzles. Out of the blue, Kathleen leans in and peers up into my eyes.

"Mama," she says, "will you help me ask God for a rainbow?"

My heart wells up.

"Oh, sweetie," I answer, "of course I will."

So we bow our heads and pray, and we praise God for the rain He's sent, which our land so desperately needs. And we ask Him, if He wills it, to show us a rainbow. If He doesn't, we ask that He give us the eyes to see the beauty in all that He's placed around us.

And we say "amen," and Kathleen returns to her puzzles without another thought. I'm left thinking about her confident, childlike request. We've not seen many rainbows since we left Hawaii. What will I tell her if there's no rainbow? I lift up a silent prayer of my own -- for faith and for wisdom -- and set about making lunch.

A few hours later naptime is over, and I'm heading into Kathleen's room to get her. I know she's up; I've heard her bouncing around on her squeaky bed for about ten minutes. When I open the door, I see that she's perched on the edge of her bed. She's pulled open the long drape that covers her window and she's peering out.

I'm about to reprimand her for playing with the curtains (a known no-no), when she turns to me, beaming.

"Mama," she exclaims, "God made me a rainbow!"

At first I'm confused, and I think she's asking whether God will make her a rainbow, and I take a deep breath, preparing myself for difficult explanations. But my girl persists, challenging my fearful and faithless heart.

"Mama, look! My rainbow!"

I cross the room and pull the curtain open to look for myself. The rain of the morning has given way to sunshine -- and a rainbow, arching over the airfield.

We pause to to give heartfelt thanks for the rainbow, a gift which seemed impossible to me and inevitable to Kathleen, before we quietly hurry downstairs, so as not to wake little Madeline, who's sleeping in the next room.

Kathleen sits at the table for her afternoon snack. I dash out the back door with my camera, eager to snap a photo of "Kathleen's rainbow," but it's gone.

The rainbow has always been a sign of God's faithfulness (Genesis 9:13). But, for me, that afternoon it was more -- not only a sign of God's faithfulness, but also a fleeting glimpse of the faith I hope will last far longer than my daughter's fleeting childhood.

Not "Kathleen's rainbow," obviously, but one of the many rainbows we'd see in Hawaii. This one was photographed from the beach at Waimea Bay.

A Pretty Little Picnic

It's been rainy again this weekend, but about a week and a half ago we had a few brilliantly sunny days. We decided to make the most of the sunshine and we packed a picnic to join Daddy for a mid-week lunch on campus. Since it had been raining for days and days before, we couldn't camp out on a picnic blanket on the lawn. Instead we picked out some benches in front of a beautiful fountain. The girls couldn't have been happier.

We ate our lunches first. Madeline particularly enjoyed her pear.

Once we'd finished our lunches, we broke out the real fun: bubbles! We'd stopped to pick up new bottles of bubbles on our way to school -- one bottle each for Daddy, Kathleen, and Madeline. (I was planning to take photographs, so I needed my hands free!)

Before we knew it, Kathleen and Daddy had filled the air with bubbles, much to the amusement of the college students walking and biking by the fountain. Madeline had a little trouble managing her toddler-sized bubble set. Daddy helped her out a bit, though, and she caught on quickly.

Our lunch hour flew by. We soaked up the sunshine, chased after bubbles, and just enjoyed the chance to be together in the middle of the week. Eventually, though, we returned Daddy to his studying and we headed back for naps. We're happy for the sunny memory, especially since the rain has returned!

So, it's March

An actual conversation on the way to church this morning.

Daddy: Hey, you didn't happen to remember to bring the checkbook with you, did you?

Mama: Um, well, it should just be in the pocketbook in the baby's bag. (Rifling through over-packed diaper bag.) Yeah, I've got the checkbook.

Daddy: Great. You're amazing.

Mama: But, uh, why were you asking? I mean, it's still February, so... (By way of explanation: we do our tithing on the first Sunday of the month, which is why Daddy knew we needed the checkbook and Mama was confused.)

Daddy: Actually, no. It's March 1st.

Mama: It's March? Today?

Daddy: Yes.

Mama: Wow. I missed that one. . .

A full minute passes.

Mama: Oh, good heavens! We're having a baby next month!

Another wet afternoon at the circus

Apparently, my admonitions to "keep the water in the sink" did not have the intended effect...

We recently borrowed "Mary Poppins" from the library and let the girls watch it for our weekly pizza-movie-picnic night. The girls were much impressed by the scene in which Mary Poppins doles out medicine on spoons. (They've never gotten medicine from a spoon -- only from a syringe or a tiny cup.) When I set the girls up at the sink for water play, Kathleen decided to help herself to a salad server to reenact the scene, which certainly contributed to Madeline's drenched state. Too bad they weren't as impressed by Mary Poppins saying, "Good enough is as good as a feast!"

Of course, I can hardly complain about two little girls who splash in the kitchen sink. It keeps them diverted for nearly half an hour and they're always more than happy to grab rags and do (or at least begin) the drying up of the counter and the floor. (And, as far as I'm concerned, that just means I don't have to mop as often!)

If I were truly crazy...

A few days ago, the girls and I got home from the commissary just before lunch. Since the sun was shining, I let the girls play in the yard while I unpacked the groceries and prepared some lunch. Because of the way our house is set up, I can see them playing from the kitchen (through the laundry room and out the back door), so this is a set-up that works pretty well for us.

Just before I was about to serve lunch, though, I looked out and noticed that the girls weren't actually playing. They were sort of hunched over at the fence. And then they weren't just hunched over -- in fact, it looked as though they were lying on the ground. Every now and then Madeline would jump up and chortle with glee. But then she'd get right back to the dirt by the fence...

Leaving the lunch plates on the counter, I headed out (camera in hand, of course!) to see what had so fascinated the girls. A few seconds later, the object of their fascination appeared.

Apparently, our neighbors had gotten a puppy -- and apparently that puppy wanted to play with our girls! He was digging his way under the fence, bit by bit. As he could stick his head under, the girls would pet him and let him lick their little hands and then they'd shriek with delight. He'd join the chorus, barking happily.

Eventually it became clear that the puppy really would make it all the way under the fence. Not wanting to be accused of dog-napping, I hustled the girls inside and rang the neighbor's doorbell to let them know what was going on. They stopped the puppy before he escaped and, within a few hours, had filled in the dog's excavation with some bricks.

End of story. Well, almost.

Yesterday, we again ran errands in the morning, preparing to host our community group for dinner and Bible study in the evening. The girls were running around the yard before naptime, picking up their outside toys (not to mention burning off some of the energy that had been pent up in carseats and shopping carts) while I attended to some chores in the kitchen. A little more focused on cleaning and organizing, it took me a while to realize that, between barks and laughter, the puppy and little girls must be up to their old tricks. By the time I got outside, the dog was wiggling halfway under the fence.

I herded the girls inside the house, hoping that removing them would remove most of the incentive for the puppy's digging. After the girls were inside, I moved the last of the toys into the garage. I was two steps from the back door when the puppy darted between my legs.

I quickly slid inside the house and scooted out the front door to let our neighbor know that their puppy had escaped. Our apologetic neighbor said she'd meet me at the back fence so I could hand the dog over to her.

"Sounds great," I said.

Well, it might have been great -- had the puppy been slower and had I not been 32 weeks pregnant. I raced around the backyard, trying to corner the puppy, laughing at my own ineptitude. The girls, who'd been not-so-patiently waiting in the kitchen, simply couldn't bear being left out the puppy fun. Kathleen opened the back door.

The puppy saw the opening. He took it.

And then the dog was in our house. Fortunately, we have a safety gate on the stairs, so he was confined to the downstairs. The girls chased him through the living room and dining room, laughing the whole time. After about three rounds, we herded him back out into the backyard.

At this point, the puppy and the girls were running through the backyard, laughing and barking. They were delighted with each other, and the three of them were just starting to slow down, tuckered out from all the excitement. And it was then that I thought, "Hey, maybe we should get a dog. Look at them run! This is fantastic!" And in nearly the same moment, my sanity returned. "Sure, I could get us a dog. If I were truly crazy, I'd get us a dog."

And I'm not. I'm not.

Right?

Three Favorites

Do I love these people, or what?

Rainy Day Fun

It was rainy on Tuesday. Very rainy. We didn't have any errands that had to be run on Tuesday, but well before lunchtime, it became clear that we'd need to leave the house, just for sanity's sake.

So we decided to take a little walk to our post box. (Ostensibly, the trip was to allow Kathleen to return her "Sherluck Holmes" Veggie Tales movie to Netflix. Honestly, it was to preserve Mama's sanity.) It's only a few blocks, but everyone was happy to be out of the house.The chance to use umbrellas was the real high point, though.

Kathleen blazes a trail.

Madeline checks out some mailboxes.

Who'd have thought half an hour in the rain could make little girls so happy?!

On our walk home, we talked about the rain and about the One who sends it -- about how He provides for plants and animals and even us. And we were reminded that even on the rainiest days, we can rejoice.

For I know that the LORD is great,
and that our Lord is above all gods.
Whatever the LORD pleases, he does,
in heaven and on earth,
in the seas and all deeps.
He it is who makes the clouds rise at the end of the earth,
who makes lightnings for the rain
and brings forth the wind from his storehouses. -- Psalm 135:5-7

This is the day that the LORD has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it. -- Psalm 118:24

Umbrellas are fun, but they're not the best photo props!