Foggy

Well, we made it. We are here in the Dallas area, currently living with dear friends who also happen to be family. I've been feeling just a little foggy for several weeks now - you know the kind of surreal, dream-like fog that spins all around you and you feel like you're watching a movie, but it's really your life and you're actually one of the main characters.

The good news is I went for a really wonderful 3 mile run today, and those of you who have known me recently know that this was a huge step in the reclaiming of my life from the fog. The fact that I could do it, and in fact, loved it means that this could be the beginning of the beginning. The weather was gorgeous. We travelled back in time, season-wise, and didn't miss fall in Texas. Those of you who know me, know how marvellous that is for me. And yes, the sky was deep gray with golden sun breaking through and glimmering on trees of vibrantly red, yellow, orange, and green leaves.

Thank You, Creator, I noticed.
And I'll keep you posted on where He takes us from here.

Hints from a moving mom...

Cover your kitchen table with newsprint paper and throw lots of markers and crayons and pencils in the middle of it. Surround the table with children who have little else to do, and they will stay happy indefinitely. O yeah, add a little Gracie who carries cookies and candy and bread around (without asking her mother first) to keep everyone from getting hungry.

Some dear and gracious friends who bought some paper to help us with packing had no idea how versatile it would be. Beyond stuffing, wrapping, layering... it also becomes the entertainment for the children in the house while their moms are helping me. Thanks, Lapps! And thanks ALL of you who are giving of your time and resources and energy and food to encourage and sustain us. You are amazing; I would be drowning without you.

Grace's morning song

The fun in our house is getting seriously sparse with most everything in boxes now, so the girls have been getting more creative in the simplicity. Several decks of playing cards were out yesterday and today for building card houses.

This morning, Grace sang this song while looking at the cards spread out on the living room floor:

I can't draw a 5
I think they are boys
But they are really wild girls...

(Long dramatic pause)
And I can't really draw 4 either.

Friday

Don't have much to say. We'll be moving to Dallas in a little over a week; here are some recent pictures in the meantime...

Bursting

I have been wondering if it's okay to brag about my own children on my blog - not that I haven't done it before, I've just been wondering if it's okay. I decided that since reading my blog is a voluntary activity, not one that is forced upon you, and since it is my blog, that yes, it is okay.

In light of this disclaimer, I have to share that Abby came home from her end of season volleyball party on Monday with an award. Each volleyball team gave out 4 or 5 awards to those who were voted by the team to have most exemplified whatever the award was for. Abby came home with the "Attitude is Everything" award for her 7th grade team. I was so proud of her; in my opinion that is the best award she can win, especially when fellow teammates are voting. Congratulations, Abby! You've had an excellent season.

To help offset any dangerous head-swelling, I also have to share that my brilliant daughter who is doing tremendously well academically, spent two late evenings in a row looking ALL OVER THE HOUSE for her tennis shoes which she "PROMISED" came home with her and mysteriously displaced themselves. She took them out of her bag, remembered putting them in a certain place on her floor, and then POOF! they were gone. She wondered if she had hidden them in her sleep (which she has done before with other things); she even blamed me for playing some kind of trick and taking her shoes. And BOTH times, they were actually sitting right in the locker room at school, abandoned by their owner.

I also received an email from Emma's homeroom teacher yesterday letting me know what a delightful, mature, and bright student she is. He was saddened to hear that we'll be moving because of the influence she is within the class. Congratulations, Emma! I'm so proud of how you've adjusted to school.

And we spent a delightful week with my sister Erika and my precious niece Lucy who came to visit. Here are a couple of favorite pictures...

I went for a

5 mile run today - which for me is pretty much a marathon. I did it; I ran the whole thing without stopping. I needed it today.

The only thing that kept me going was this:

"Put one foot in front of the other.
Repeat."

Plus the ipod.

jogging again

I should be working on dinner, and I will be soon, but there are so many potential blog posts in my head and NOT ENOUGH TIME... like showing pictures of the first ever time I was in a parade (which, by the way happened last night in our little town. I made it in, because I'm a barista! You just don't make it into San Antonio parades for such accomplishments. I walked along with fellow baristas in front of our owner's jeep made to look like a giant cup of steaming coffee - dry ice on top. We wore our aprons with pockets full of candy to toss out along the way. The whole parade lasted about 12 minutes).

OR I also want to share how recently revisiting the wonderful children's book Betsy-Tacy inspires my whole concept of true friendship anew - that will be to come, I'm sure.

BUT today what I am most needing to post about is my morning jog. It was gorgeous this morning, and I didn't take the ipod because I felt the need to completely experience creation. I was energized by the coolness and the songs of the birds and insects and frogs. I was overwhelmed by the visual impact around me, struggling to know where to let my eyes gaze.

I thought about the structured beauty of the gardens and well-ordered landscapes that make up much of what we experience in nature. I also thought about the gardens and forests that grow out of nature's chaos, out of seeds dropped wherever and allowed to sprout and grow. I thought about the "stuff" we clear out to make room for well-ordered beauty.

I thought about how my Heavenly Father is actually in charge of all of it. In His goodness, He gives us minds that love to create beauty; He gives us resources to do so. He allows us to "control" creation in such a way that we are satisfied with our work and refreshed by its beauty. He is the author of the beauty as the Creator of both the "stuff" we have to work with and the "us" that works with it.

I am also thankful for the beauty that comes from the "chaos" of nature - the unplanned landscapes, untouched by human hands, out of our control, and yet remarkably beautiful. As if some Divine Creator takes what seems like chaos to us, because it is not ordered or controlled by us, and lets us see The Beauty and in fact, the Divine Design of it. It is at those places that we feel most blessed, like we have discovered a treasure meant only for our eyes. The overgrown forest that, if you look underneath the lowest branches, becomes a hidden playhouse for children (or fairies). The monarch that decides to fly just at your right shoulder at the last curve of your jog as if challenging you to a race, keeping you going.

The reminder that divine beauty can come from things outside of our control.