Five!

 Dear Lena,
      Sweet girlie, you are five!!  This week I  have been remembering your birthday- your sudden arrival almost a month early, fast and furious, with spirit, just like you.  I'm not really sure how it's been so long already, but we love you dearly and we thank God for your life.  You are strong, beautiful, smart and energetic. You feel everything so deeply. When you are happy you are so very happy and when you are sad, you are Puddleglum and Eyore all mashed into one.  You have learned to read and you are so pleased. You are good at numbers and have a beautiful voice. We think you even have perfect pitch.  You like veggies and fruit most right now and adore your big sister Emmeline. (Most of the time). You can be shy but you love fiercely. Your favorite color is purple and your favorite animal is the flamingo.  Here are a few of your phrases I want to always remember:  "the windwipers are really going mama",  "can you shut my blinders " (shades), "I want to sleep in my sleep sack tonight"  (sleeping bag)...   Lena darling, you see the world through your own wonderful eyes and we're all still trying to catch up to you. How we love you.  Happy Birthday.

Spring Happenings

 In the whirl of spring activities we have been trying to slow down enough to savor the beautiful spring awakening. We went for a walk on the Perkiomen Trail in the rain just so we could see the bluebells, the fiddleheads, the buttercups. We've spent time getting dirty in our soil planting tomatoes, lettuce, celery, radish, strawberries, carrots, zucchini, squash, potatoes, basil, thyme, oregano, onions. We've had piano and ballet recitals and have become the proud owners of eight chickens! As we wrap up our school year we are savoring all of the new life around us.

Showers of Flowers

 How we are enjoying the burst of bloom around our home.  As we prepare for Easter we are rejoicing in the new life around us! We've been ever so busy with visits from dear people and trips to see Nana and to Mom's grave on her birthday.  How thankful we are that because of Christ's death and resurrection we have hope of true life eternal!

The blur that was March

 Here we are to April 1 and I realize March blurred by in a haze of continued morning sickness and busy learning days.  We're finishing up co-op activities, preparing for ballet recitals and slowly preparing for spring.  As we smelled the dirt in our seedlings we breathed deep for it has felt like a long winter. The sun grows stronger and the peeping frogs have returned.  We wait for warm temperature but are thankful that the signs are coming!