High Hopes

Well, I had high hopes of writing a profound blog post this evening... BUT I ended up writing a long email to a friend instead. And you know, that was exactly what I needed to do, so I don't actually feel guilty about it. I will, however, try to share something on the more profound side of things here soon, I hope.

The most pressing thing I need to share at the moment is that my calves are absolutely killing me. In light of my poor husband's recent awful back pain that came upon him for no apparent reason, my terrible calf pain is the direct result of my own stupidity. AND the result of a HORRIBLE MACHINE called the "elliptical".

I'm used to: easy to moderate outdoor jogs of about 2 miles. I paid for this clever "workout while you wait" option while Grace took her very first round of swimming lessons over the past two weeks that was really a very good deal. The idea is to watch them swim through the big window while you're using the exercise equipment, and I am all about killing two or more birds with one time slot (actually I was ALSO learning wonderful decorating techniques while I watched HGTV and Grace, of course).

I thought to myself, "Why don't you change up your routine a little, Kelly? You always get to run outside; you could get a little cross training in, instead of just running on the treadmill." So because I am so brilliant, I acted upon my good idea and used the elliptical machine for about the same amount of time I usually run.

Now, I cannot even shave my legs without wincing. I'm never doing that again.

Long Overdue

Summer has come in with a flurry of FUN, so here is my long overdue Texas vacation recap in pictures:

Feeding the ducks in Boerne

The girls and Grandma and Papa

Mama Ann and Pampa (my mom's parents) the wonderful woman who gave me my red hair!! My color will be joining yours in no time, Mama Ann!

The infamous first BEST TALENTS EVER show including the Clayworths, Holmes, and Stevensons. We have the whole thing on DVD; only VERY close family (the kind who have to love you no matter what) will ever get to see it.

SEA WORLD!!

Paddle-boating on the Guadalupe

and fishing

and catching geckos with cousin Melanie

Not to mention the amazing barbecue and fried catfish we devoured throughout the trip. And our anniversary gift to each other of a one night's stay in Austin (the capitol city of fun and culture and cuisine) was wonderful! We took the girls on their first tour of the U.T. Austin campus and then sent them away with Grandma and Papa. Pretty fun to be on our old stompin' ground, where we met, dated, and spent our first year and a half of marriage.

We don't feel old enough for fifteen years... Maybe we'll still be saying that at 30.

Really There

Somewhere around 3:00 a.m. last night, I heard Grace calling me. I stumbled into her room as I once again heard a panicky "MOMMY!?" She was sitting straight up in bed looking scared. I put my arm around her back and said, "Here I am, Sweetie. What's the matter?"

She looked at me and reached out her hand to touch my arm. She ran her hand down my arm, sleepily smiled, and laid down again, eyes closed, contented expression on her face. She fell right back to sleep.

I went back to bed and laid there for awhile thinking about what a privilege it is to "be there." With all of our wacky vacation sleeping for two weeks, Grace was disoriented and just needed to know I was there. My heart was full as I contemplated how often I long for that exact fulfillment from my Heavenly Father. I have His promises, but sometimes I don't know where I am or where He is, sometimes I'm scared and confused and disoriented, sometimes I just need to reach my hand out and feel His Presence, just know He's REALLY there, that's all.

temporary blog post flunkie

So I've been a temporary blog post flunkie; I've been on vacation. We are home; we had a fabulous time; I'm currently doing laundry and trying to find myself again. More to come...