A Beautiful Mess

I slipped into bed last night and curled myself around a sleeping Rosemary.  Her little hand reached out and clasped around my finger and my lips found her forehead.  My last thoughts of the day were a prayer of gratitude for the privilege of raising this little girl - and her 5 brothers and sisters.  A privilege that I don't always see in the light of day, when the crush of so many obstacles weighs me down and I'm just doing the next thing.

This week has been busy.  Challenging.  I've not had much to say.  It's not until I look back through the photos of the week that I can see it clearly, and recognize the graces that have been here, all along - a beautiful mess.  So when dawn breaks speckled in raindrops and Peter's up before the sun with a fever, I know that the only guarantees about today is that it will not be perfect - but it will be soaked in grace.  I can take it, or leave it.

I can wait around for happily never after, or I can eschew the fairy tale for real life.  A messy, chaotic, flaw-filled life.  A beautiful mess indeed.

See you Monday?

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Gratitude Sunday

My dear friend Amy has recently begun a link up for Gratitude Sunday, a practice that I very much need to get back into.  There is so much to be thankful for in this life of ours, and joy comes from looking around and noticing how blessed we are.  Please consider joining in the fun - you may just find that in counting down those many blessings you become even more blessed.

For today,

So thankful for those who read, who comment, who email and who mention these writings of mine.  I know that this internet world is a big place, and I am humbled that you stumbled upon me and take the time to look around.  It's no small thing that you do - it means the world to me.  Thankful, then, for all of you.

I'm thankful for that messy, weed-infested yard of mine.  So much work to be done, some days it makes me want to bury my face in my hands and cry.  But then I hear Peter conversing with ants over there on that rock and I find myself offering up gratitude for this patch of dirt and grass.  A place, all ours, for our kids to begin their conversations with nature.

I'm thankful for my Mom, ready and willing to help in all situations, helping my Dinah with her reading.  It's a huge undertaking, the unlocking of a lifelong passion in a young person.  I'm thrilled that when I asked, she answered with a resounding "YES!"

I'm thankful for the safe and happy arrival of my newest love, Lyriel Joy, to my dearest childhood friend.  From the top of her sweet fuzzy head, past the dimple that stole my heart and right to the soles of these silk-smooth little feet, she is perfection.  Sometimes I look at 19 years of friendship and the beautiful things that have come about along the way, and wonder that God should be so good to us.  10 beautiful children.  What a breathtaking miracle!

I'm thankful for the friends who inspire me to step out of my comfort zone and aim for my dreams.  For those who inspired and encouraged me to start daily prayers and bible readings with my little ones.  For those who nudge me to throw of my discomfort and humbly learn the art of hospitality.  For all those who encourage me to keep growing in all the areas I need to grow, I'm so truly thankful.

For these late Spring days, the sun and the warmth and the plentiful moments spent exploring the world with the people I love the very most, as if it were the first time we'd ever encountered it.

For this Sunday, and every day! I am exceedingly grateful.


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