My little cousin has battled with leukemia for 1 1/2 years now. This morning, she got home ahead of us, and is now safe in the arms of Jesus. It’s not hard to imagine her being scooped up in Isaac’s arms as well, and hearing his gentle words, “Hey, what’s going on, little girl? Who are you?” I wonder what he’ll say when he finds out that Janelle’s big cousin was sort of his big sister. I bet he will keep tabs on her just because…

Once again- joy and pain so closely intertwined, they are one…

Please pray for Janelle’s Mommy and Daddy and her brothers and sisters who love and miss her so much (Darren, Rodney, Becky, and Sherilyn).

Click here to see a slideshow of Janelle and her family

A lovely good-morning to the world.  I told PD this morning that I was going to be busy today without time to be on the computer…  I just had to pop in here for a few seconds and say how much I love that man.  Well, I couldn’t really do that.  It would take too long, and words are too cheap at times like this.  But I was looking at his really cute work up there on our header, and just bursting with the joy of his humor.  And I just realized how crazy and full and delightful life really is, living with him and his three intelligent, mud-puddle-loving, summersaulting, life-loving girls.  We are all so not perfect with all our little personality quirks and training potential (at LEAST the girls but especially mama) and plenty of ground to cover on the journey of life with God and each other.  But I’m telling you, we love each other, and that makes all the difference!  On Sunday, I listened with deep admiration to my husband expounding on 1Corinthians 13.  I was so convicted and challenged and blessed with the wisdom of God expressed through His Word and my man.  And I was thankful… thankful for all the things God has done and is doing in our lives to make that a part of us.  Today, even as I realize profoundly how needy my heart is, I want to thank God with all my heart for what He is in our life.  And I want to thank my husband for showing the love of Christ to me.

Especially… when he comes home far too many days to find crumbs all over the floor, laundry half done, clutter not picked up, girlies with hair in their eyes, kittens mewing in the bedrooms, wife looking weary, food still cooking or worse yet, not cooked at all, etc., etc..  but he smiles at us, hugs us and still tells us he loves us. 

Thanks, Honey.  Maybe soon I can make this all up to you.  Thanks for your patience through my sickness, and even when there is simply no excuse.  I love you!! 

So we decided to do a family photo shoot. Not feeling it necessary to hire a professional photographer, we turned to none other than my (little) sister! (And [of course] her gifted and attractive sidekick) This is some of what we got, with the kids and all. They’re really into nature and stuff. I mean REALLY INTO it. So much so that photo shoots go totally and completely against their natural tendencies. We had rocks, sticks, bark, branches, flowers, weeds, and a baby bird involved in the shoot. I am not making this up. And if you notice, ALL of my children are girls. You know – sugar and spice and everything nice!

The girls certainly have a wonderful mama, don’t they?

It was a beautiful day, in more ways than one. I faced this day with some trepidation in my heart. Memories from last year’s church picnic are still vivid- there was such a brilliant gleam of joy in that day for us when Isaac showed up unexpectedly. He was attending summer classes at SMBI in PA… and he suddenly got a brainstorm (the kind only Isaac could produce) to just make a bee line home for the church picnic. I still remember his triumphant little grin… he was so pleased with himself, and we were equally pleased with him.

I wondered if we would feel a weight of sadness at every turn today, since we all knew he could not bee-line-it home from Heaven so easily. I wondered if I would feel like playing ball today or if I would feel more like stretching out in the grass and staring at the sky so far above us to ponder and weep for our loss. I just didn’t know.

It was a gloriously beautiful day. Everyone seemed so precious today, so cherished. I could have spent all day just going from person to person, hugging them and telling them I love them. Don’t worry. I didn’t hug everybody. :) quite…

We played ball and yelled and cheered for each other. We brought each other drinks and told each other how beautiful we were and how much we loved each other. We talked some. We sat in silence together. We sat alone and watched each other. We kissed the kids and snuggled them and loved on them. The guys let the little guys play with them and coached them kindly. Then they left the little fumbly ladies as well as the grand slam ladies get involved and cheered ’em on all the way through. We enjoyed the living today.

We remembered Isaac. We blew the spider webs out of his ball glove and fingered it reverently. We used it to catch balls. We wore pins with his picture, sometimes on the outside, and other times tucked inside our pockets. We hugged his sisters, his mother, and we cheered them on. We loved them. We missed him.

It was a good day. The hours vanished all too quickly. The sun set. We picked up trash, said good-bye and “I love you.” We wished for another day just like today… tomorrow.

Tomorrow is Tuesday, another day to live if God wills. I will awake and thank God for today, for the healing He brought to our hearts just being together.

Isaac, we love you… forever.

I took Esther on a little date the other morning, and no, that’s NOT Coffee she’s drinking.