A March Daybook

Outside my windows... are signs of spring -- warm sun, melting snow, puddles, geese flying north, deer nibbling at the trees, children's laughter, longer days -- intermingled with more (and more) winter -- cold temps, howling wind, blowing snow, sleds back out. I can handle it though, because spring is here, whether Mother Nature likes it or not, and the sun will shine again, and it will look like spring soon enough!

(This was how every window in my house looked last Tuesday ... couldn't see out!)

(I had to open the door to take a picture of what it looked like outside!)

I am listening to... my son becoming more and more proficient on the guitar. He's finally playing a song he REALLY likes. (Thanks, Jamie, for the inspiration!)

I am thinking... mostly about trying to find a home. And trying not to stress about it.

I am thankful for... so many things. Today ...

237. morning prayer time on the couch next to my husband
238. talking to my dad on the phone
239. laundry mostly caught up
240. many nights of eight hours of sleep
241. slowly letting go of my addiction to clock-watching
242. soft baby cheeks
243. a hot pink bracelet that say LOVE given to me by Miss Sunshine
244. how this bracelet is a reminder to me of how much God loves me
245. my wedding band that reads SEMPER AMICI

I am hoping and praying... that a dear, dear friend realizes soon that life does not suck.

From the kitchen... homemade chicken vegetable soup -- thought I better use up the broth in the freezer before spring gets here and all we want to do is grill!

From the schoolroom... the kids did their first exhibition tonight, just for Daddy and Mommy, similar to the one Laura participated in in Little Town on the Prairie. The girls recited paragraphs about each of the first sixteen presidents, plus a poem, all from memory. The Boy recited two poems. I was so proud of them. Next time, we'll have a real audience!

I am creating... dishcloths. One of these days I'll get around to learning something else, but for now it's nice to knit without having to think.

I am reading... The Spear: A Novel of the Crucifixion with the kids for Lent -- 39 chapters -- almost perfect for a chapter a day from Ash Wednesday to Easter. We are all loving it! I am also reading One Thousand Gifts. This feels like a life-changing Lent for me.

Noticing that ... what the eyes see is better than what the desires wander after. (Ecclesiastes 6:9)

Around the house... Daddy!

(The Boy got the Old Maid!)

One of my favorite things... spending one-on-one time with one of my kids. Last Wednesday, after The Boy and The Baby went to bed, Miss Rose made cookies with Daddy, and I spent the evening giving Miss Sunshine a manicure and pedicure, playing cards and eating pizza rolls. Priceless.

Pondering these words ...

Prayer without ceasing is only possible in a life of continual thanks.... The only way to be a woman of prayer is to be a woman of thanks.... Life change comes when we receive life with thanks and ask for nothing to change. (Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts)

A few plans for the rest of the week: The Boy will be celebrating his seventh birthday on Friday, and so ends the 2011 Birthday Season. (5 birthdays in 7 weeks at our house!)

For more daybooks, visit here. Happy Lent!