Highlights (September 2014)

Some fabulous highlights... speaking of fabulous...

I was able to spend a few days with a wonderful lady. I have found in my life there are some people with whom I am confident our time will be spent around an absolutely fulfilling fellowship. Dawn Spryn always encourages a conversation that is not only worth while but also encouraging and positive. So when I glanced at her calender and saw this little entry I was totally charmed by its perfectly "Dawn-ness". I hope she doesn't mind me sharing. And I hope she has an absolutely "fabulous" anniversary!

So after taking these photos...

I figured it might be time to give this little man a trim. I kept having to remind myself that it was actually okay to cut Ittai's hair. What with Rogers persistent objections to my wielding any form of sheers within a yard of his head, I was pleasantly surprised by my perfectly compliant little pal.

First hair cut at 5 months old. Looks like I'm gonna get enough practice. Maybe one day Roger will let me cut his hair too! 

This week I really dove into my latest book selection. I am constantly amazed by how C.S. Lewis can delve so deeply into a topic until it is perfectly flushed out in ones understanding. It may take you a repeated perusal of his writings to truly grasp all that he says but the effort is entirely worth it. Here's a quote talking about appropriately placed appreciation.

" Say your prayers in a garden early, ignoring steadfastly the dew, the birds, and the flowers, and you will come away overwhelmed by its freshness and joy; go there in order to be overwhelmed and, after a certain age, nine times out of ten nothing will happen to you." C.S. Lewis

Grocery shopping is always exciting with a toddler in toe. Grocery Shopping at Walmart is a positive adventure. A few weeks ago we were hiding from the man in the "Cracker Jack" costume. And to be honest if I were I not an adult of 27 I might have been under the blanket with Aria. No amount of free chips could make that terribly conceived costume even slightly approachable.

 Last time we discovered something that in one moment seemed deliciously glorious and disturbingly unnatural. Honeycrisp apples the size of Arias head! The picture doesn't do them justice but I'm pretty sure fruit like that only belongs in the Promise Land guarded by armored giants.

After a fantastic girls trip to Ikea I came home with 10 cushions in need of covers. That's right...10. 4 pillows down 6 to go!

And what better way to end my lovely week then a tea party with my little lady. I can't express how excited I am to know that I have the rest of my life to enjoy these precious moments with my beautiful girl. Right now she talks about her our favorite flavors of cookies and the squirrels she can see running on the telephone wires. One day she'll talk about boys, clothes, and dreams. And some day we'll sip tea while talking about her own children. Perhaps as they beg for cookies just like she does now.

Levi Wallace. Truly a "Borrowed Angel"

Writing has always been cathartic to me. And I have so say it has taken me quite a while to sort through the pain of losing someone who was the closest thing I've experienced to having a little brother. So many wonderful things have been said and I know that I lack the words possible of expounding upon Levis undeniably Christ-like character. So this I suppose is for the sake of my own comfort if nothing else.

I wrote a poem "Borrowed Angel" just a few months after Aria was born. I remember experiencing something that I wasn't prepared for. Something that no one warned me about. It was an inexplicable undeservedness. God had reached down and handed me a treasure from whom an awe inspiring light had just barely begun to show. Even at this tiny glimpse of splendor my heart was won and God gave me a love that I had never known before. As I held this tiny beautiful life in my hands I was abruptly over whelmed with the realization that my hands were utterly too small and feeble for such a treasure. So I found myself clutching my child to my chest in the natural, while simultaneously thrusting her into the hands of God with all my heart, mind, and soul.

This is the great conundrum of being a parent. Going against the very fiber of our natures that scream “Protect! Keep! Shield!” and every single day placing your child in the hands of God knowing that by doing so you are also giving your heart into His keeping. The day that Levi’s precious light had grown too bright for this world was the day that God caught him up in His hands and took him where all of God’s treasures deserve to be. However by taking Levi God also took a piece of the hearts of everyone who loved him. For those who loved him the most, the void is greater. For his Father and Mother, it may be unimaginable.  

There is a song we sang at Arias dedication called “Help you find your wings” and these are the lyrics.

Its only for a moment you are mine to hold

The plans that heaven has for you

Will all too soon unfold

So many different prayers I'll pray

For all that you might do

But most of all I'll want to know

You're walking in the truth

And if I never told you

i want you to know

As I watch you grow

I pray that god would fill your heart with dreams

And that faith gives you the courage

To dare to do great things

I'm here for you whatever this life brings

So let my love give you roots

And help you find your wings

May passion be the wind

That leads you through your days

And may conviction keep you strong

Guide you on your way

May there be many moments

That make your life so sweet

Oh, but more he memories

Its not living if you don't reach for the sky

I'll have tears as you take off

But I'll cheer as you fly

I truly believe this is how Bruce and Mendy raised Levi and the countless stories of his Christ like character are testament to that fact. Levi was walking in the truth and heavens plans unfolded for him exactly as they were meant to.

Although we are racked with tears of both joy and sorrow as we watch you fly Levi, all of our comfort is knowing that you fly into the strong, capable hands of God and someday we will be reunited with a piece of our hearts when we see you again.