A child's prayer

Mary is a very intense person, as many of you know, and her prayers have given us a lot of insight into the stresses she feels. I would have never guessed that so much could concern a little girl. The other night her prayer went something like this,

"Please bless us to never be separated as a family."
"Please bless us to all be together in eternal life"
"Please bless us to have enough food if there is a famine"

I wish I could remember everything she included, but Moss and I realize we have to be a little more careful about the things we discuss with her. In my excitement about getting food storage underway I showed her the things I had in the storage room. Later she asked, "What if our neighbors don't have food storage? Would we share with them?" When I told her we would, she asked, "but what if we don't have enough after that?"

Is it Spring?

Somehow it is April, and spring is still struggling to arrive. While the grass and flowers give you a sense of spring, it snowed over the weekend. Today at our playgroup we all showed up full of hope that the weather would prove to be warm, but instead we all froze in our sandals and bear ankles. The poor kids were subjected to our false sense of spring as well. Poor Jacob ran around with pink cheeks and goose bumps, but unwilling of course to put on his sisters pink fleece in the van. Fortunately it did warm up this afternoon and the wind quit blowing. Anna and Brooke stayed out as long as possible enjoying our backyard's natural habitat. Some might think we have weeds growing, but we prefer to call it our flower garden. Anna even picked some for a center peice.

Silky and Pip (squeak)

"I have a pet!" was Anna's joyful song after we brought home our two new hamsters Silky and Pip. I have been feeling so guilty for depriving her of her passion for animals, especially since we gave away her beloved Copper last year. She still sheds tears for her long lost Copper, but soft and cuddly Silky seems to be filling the hole for now.

Mary is equally thrilled with the new additions. She picked out the runt of the litter, hence the name Pip Squeak. They really have turned out to be the best pets for us- a little food, a little poop, and a little cage (not to mention the 2 year life span). Best of all, they want to be left alone and they don't want anything from me. (Well except to be recued on occasion.) So far they have proven to be friendly and docile. So if your kids are pressuring you for a dog, you might consider a teddy bear hamster!

My Red Kitchen

So I have been wanting to paint my kitchen red for several months now. After seeing my sister's red kitchen on my trip to Utah I finally decided to do it. It was a very tense morning as I remained convinced that it would look good despite Moss' and his mother's doubt. Charlotte worked all morning and into the afternoon with me to finish it. When it was all said and done, the common consensus was "I can't believe how good it looks. I would never had believed it." I really do love it and was relieved that it turned out as well as I'd hoped.