Soaring and Stillness: Life with the Chickadees

In the last few months, I've bitten off  a bit more than I can chew. Between homeschooling in both the seventh and third grades, two new dance studios, piano and tumbling lessons, the house, a work project, a new puppy and then ahem  re-landscaping the house last week, I've gone a bit coo-coo-la-choo. I'm behind on the normal, my inbox is a disaster, and my time here has slowed. Not a new  occurrence for me . I enjoy challenge. I go full throttle. I realize exceed my limitations. Of the heart Of the body Of the spirit I'm a work-in-progress.  I know that . It seems that my online friends seem to have quite the insight; I've received sweet words of encouragement that lift my heart. Perhaps I'm learning the art of transparency. Here in these words ,  I'm finding freedom. In sharing the truth of my story, I'm giving myself permission to be me,  just as I am. Just as He intended me to be. I am incredibly thankful to all of you for ...

"I've decided." "You've decided what?" "I've decided what I'd like to be when I'm older." I knew this would be good, but nothing could have prepared  me for what came next. "I'm going to be Einstein. Or, you know, maybe Sally Ride." "Albert Einstein?" I managed to say, the smile showing only in my eyes. "Yep. But without the hair. He had CRAZY hair." She was serious. This wisp of a seven year old had plans. Apparently big ones. "You know what Einstein did, right?" Her father asked gently. I was so proud of him. If I'd been driving we may have been off the road at this point. His grin huge, all but hidden from her view by the angle of the seat. "Well, you do love school. You have to love it, a lot, if you want to be the next Einstein...You may be able to do it...", his voice trailing off as he shrugged his shoulders and smiled at me. I was also proud of the Grac...

Our life is loud. It's filled with passionate voices, daily piano playing, and lots of music as the background to the daily activities we take part in. It's my heart, beating hard and fast as the elliptical cycles and I try to outrun disease activity that may someday make more still than I desire. It's in the crowds of people I try to avoid at the grocery store by shopping in the odd hours. Loud . The girls don't mean to be this way. They can't help their voices going up in pitch and volume with excitement and desire for attention. I often ask, "Are you just getting off of a helicopter?" To combat my desire to hiss "shhhhhh...." I turn to humor. Because the loud? It gets to me. I am a girl of quiet.  I love music, but will often turn it off and go mute for periods. I crave silence. The older I become the less likely I am to fill up the space with sound. I think, though, that maybe it is not the loud that I take issue with. It's ...

...He's One Great God. So thankful for a Savior whose love echoes around the world and back.

I carry His words in my heart, knitting them in and working to live them out. But... There are those days I need a visual reminder. It has been one of those days. So, I've captured images that give a glimpse of promises He has made to me that I'm carrying on the outside... For patience, for love eternal, for the hope I'm being renewed...In the knowledge it is all possible only through His grace alone.

Today I'm joining my friend The Gypsy Mama for five minutes where I'll write without editing, backtracking, or second guessing.  I'll write to find the beauty in the words...writing on empty in order to uncover a piece of me in this week that was crowded full of kids and deadlines, a  new pup and midterm giving husband. Ready, Set, go. EMPTY .  .  .    It's where I'm at right now, after a week where my limits were exceeded on Monday and then left in the dust. Where were the energy police when I needed them? No one stopped to give me a ticket or permission  to slow myself in the chaos of the week. My patience lies there too, plumb run out, as I cringe at myself after correcting my little about, of all things, brushing her teeth with excellence . Who brushes their teeth with excellence? I mean, good gracious , we brush them well, but excellence is reserved for other items, like speech, education, our treatment of each other, sharing what ...

Sorry I've been mostly absent this week; I've had my hands full with our newest member of the family... She's four pounds of fluff and cuddles, and has been a full time project in addition to all of our other regularly scheduled activities  for the last four days. We chose a breed that is a fantastic family pet, has a charming personality, does not shed, and stays small so I can easily handle her when my hands/wrists aren't in top form . She's had her first bath, played for endless hours with the chicks, and goes with us in the car everywhere  (I want to create a fantastic traveler). The only issue right now is changing her sleep schedule and wake-up time to better work with mine. Hmmmmm....any suggestions? Welcome to the nest, sweet Maizey Blue!

A friend and I were recently discussing having a “soundtrack” to our day. Do you have music that fills your head? Or does it fill up your heart?  If I was to ask my Little Bit this question, the pondering would be immense.  My babe, whose fingers grace a piano for at least an hour a day, loves music. It fills her up inside and bubbles forth as she hums and sings and fingers her piano from memory in all of her spare moments. This child? She goes to bed listening to George Winston on the piano and awakes with a song in her heart.  It fills her up. The Grace Girl is different than her sister, but not really . She doesn’t spend hours at the piano a week, simply the required amount. She hears music with her body. I watch her, dancing in her moments, to the music that fills her head. Toes pointed, arms positioned, she just hears it in a different way. Outside of prayer, music is the main way that I connect best with our God. It’s where I experience His pre...