March Inn

Why"March Inn?" March Inn was the name of that magic place where I spent my summers growing up. I have alluded to this place before, and I probably will again. March Inn is no longer standing. The waters of Katrina rendered it unlivable so my children will never know that "March Inn." That makes me sad. In fact it brings me to tears whenever I think about it. I want my children to have their own "March Inn," and I want to capture our lives as they are growing and changing. I invite you to "march inn" to our lives. My hope is that you will catch glimpses of the real world. You will see our creations. You will see our chaos. You will see our affection. You will also see our frustrations, fears, and disappointments. Enjoy your march!

Thursday, April 19, 2012

Doors*

Throughout life there are doors ~

Doors that open~

Doors that open when you least expect it ~

Doors that you don't want to open ~

Doors that close ~

Some doors close without warning ~

Other times those doors should have been closed long ago ~

Doors that are always ajar ~

Doors that linger open and then gently shut ~

Doors that slam closed ~

Doors that we are scared to walk through ~

Doors that we joyfully bound through ~

It is 5:40 a.m. Frank just left for a weekend hike with some men from our church. The front door opened. The front door closed. It made a gentle click as I closed it behind him.

I waited...You see, doors often wake my children in the morning. Sure enough, I heard a sweet little voice, "Mary Frances" Nothing. Sweet Mary Frances is exhausted and sleeps hard these days. Then again, in sweet three year old speak, "Mary Frances, I come sleep with you." This time I hear a rustling of sheets and then scampering down the ladder of a bunk bed.

I lingered by the stairs long enough to hear them get settled and exchange sweet words that I could not understand. Then I came back to my office for a few more moments of quiet before we all started our day full steam ahead. I wanted to let them have there sweet times together. I didn't stay away long.

I quietly ascended the stairs and to my surprise both of my boys were in bed with their sister.
Friends, I know we might appear crazy to you, but this is why I love that my three big children share a room. I pray that these sweet moments are the the ones they will remember and cherish as they grow into adults.

* It is funny that this idea of doors came up today because just last week I was pondering the idea of taking pictures of all the doors of our house.

Sunday, April 15, 2012

Pump It Up

Pump, Pump, Pump It Up, Pump that Rockie Spirit Up
What a great Saturday! After a leisurely morning, we all headed to the ball park. Mary Frances had an 11:00 game. Frank took the big three so she could get there to warm up while I stayed at the house to clean the kitchen and let Betsy get a nap.
My littlest one is among the Rockies biggest fans. She thoroughly enjoys watching the games ~ either from my arms or standing at the fence. The bleachers aren't really her thing! She claps for the girls and even joins in the cheering.Yesterday, Stephen brought along a ball and played with his little sister.
But then he was off to play with the big boys. Stephen loves the ballpark! For my little mayor this is paradise. There is always someone to play with or talk to.
MaeMae plays outfield... To her credit she does a decent job hustling to and from the field, and she is typically in the ready position. Now if a ball comes her way, we'll just have to see if she knows what to do with it.
The Rockies lost...cookies and powerade made it better for some.It was fun for Mary Frances to get to be in the middle of the Rockies cheer. Despite the loss, Mary Frances had a great hitting game. There's something to be said for being the youngest, least experienced on the team. She kept a smile on her face and encouraged her teammates the whole time.
And now we interrupt this sportscast for a family news flash ~
Look mom it's a cup no handles!
~ at least for the moment and with a bit of bribery!

Saturday, April 14, 2012

And She Knew

If you check in here ever, you know that I have been a terrible blogger this spring. As with most everything about my life these days, I just can't seem to finish a task. I have several unfinished posts in my "draft" folder. Maybe one day they will either be posted or at least deleted.

For the passed two weeks I have been particularly bad about completing a task. My life has been a series of 45 minute chunks, and there isn't much I can complete in 45 minute chunks. Well that isn't entirely true, but I haven't set my mind to starting and completing some of the tasks I could have {and probably should have} completed. Therefore I will spend my Saturday catching up ~ grocery shopping, cleaning the house, putting away laundry, and the list goes on and on. At least we have company coming for dinner so it gives me something to look forward to and an incentive to complete the tasks.

So today, I'll leave you with a picture of my sweet Betsy. But first let me paint the scene... It was a beautiful spring afternoon. We'd read some Curious George. I'd struggled not to fall asleep. (Yes, dear I'm sure that is a sign of serious sleep deprivation.} We'd eaten a snack complete with veggies {zucchini dip on bagel chips} despite cries of protest from my younger son when he saw me bring out the food processor and shred a green thing. I heard cries of "I don't want that green stuff". Mary Frances and I had just finished making cookie dough. The boys were outside playing*, and I was trying to tidy the kitchen. Betsy was crawling around at my feet. I look over from the sink and this is what I saw ~
Yes, that's Walker's blabla that Betsy is loving on. And she knew it was going to get her all kinds of attention if she picked it up and loved on it. I'm not sure what Walker would have done had he seen her, but I thought it was precious and ran to get my camera.

Hope you have a Happy Saturday! You can find us cheering on the Rockies and catching up on life!

* the workman brought a fabulous sand pile this week ~ I'll have to snap some photos and fill you in on that

Friday, April 13, 2012

Color My World

Do you remember this? Well it's that time of year again! Crayons have gone up on mailboxes all over our neighborhood. And again, there is a crayon on our mailbox.
This time it is for my sweet Stephen.
He was excited, but not as excited as Mary Frances. I'm not sure if it is that he is a boy, the second child, or just being shy about being in the spotlight, but he was a little reticent about the whole thing. It probably didn't help that Frank and I were away when they crayon appeared ~ more on that another time.
In fact, from what I've heard I think Mary Frances was more excited about Stephen's crayon than he was. As you know, she has been walking home from school by herself. She told me that she saw a crayon on a mailbox as she was walking, and literally ran {her words} the rest of the way home so she could see Stephen's. They really do love each other so much.
To tell you the truth, I think Stephen has been more excited about the hat and shirt that he is wearing in the pictures than he was about his crayon.

These crayons always have such an impact on me. They bring tears to my eyes ~ always! Yes, that means even when I don't have a crayon on my mailbox. I think it is because they represent change and change can be scary.

It is hard to believe I have another child starting elementary school.
I love the tradition of putting the crayons on mailboxes. It is fun! It is happy! It is colorful!

My children certainly make my world a more colorful world.

Sunday, April 8, 2012

As Good as it Gets

Happy Easter ~
What do most mothers want on Easter {and Christmas} {and birthdays}. For that matter what do most mothers want on any other day when their children are looking or acting cute, sweet, well-behaved, well mannered, etc.
Pictures of course! We want to document all of those good times.
On this Easter Sunday, I leave you with the best I was able to capture.
At least it was a pretty day and fun was had by all playing outside for the majority of the day.

You will notice there are few pictures of my number 3. Sorry!

Friday, April 6, 2012

And they're off...

Betsy's walking...
and Mary Frances is walking home from school by herself!