Why so downcast oh my soul?

Today the words of the psalmist are resonating within my soul. Though I am personally discouraged--it ebbs & flows, I'm okay, really... . I see the awesome news from my friends Brandy & Carey (see One Family's Journey link at right) that they get to go pick up their kids in Africa soon. God is good. My family is healthy. God is good. My needs are met. God is good.

So... Why are you downcast, oh my soul?

Thanks, Patty....

Thankful for the weekend

I am so thankful for weekends--especially now that I'm working more hours each week. I wish this whole deal would instantly make me more organized, and an instant neat nick, but no, things pile up, and I hate it that I don't discipline myself better. On the other hand, I am definitely more about enjoying time with my family, and not hassling so much over a neat house. I personally feel better when it is orderly, but hate getting it done. Ugh. Saturday is coming, and the kids each have their assigned zones to clean. I have laundry to get caught up on (again) and should be about getting prepped to paint Hannah's bedroom. All in due time, I guess...

For now, I love Erma Bombeck's famous quote, "Cleaning house while you have kids at home is like shoveling the driveway while it's still snowing." I like Erma...

Created in Memory...

Since we had to put our dog down, I created this "poster" for the kids in her memory.

Co ed 08 09

Daddy Daughter Routine 08 09

Tough weekend for a birthday

We've had a tough weekend here. It started Friday afternoon when we had our dog put down. It was sadder and harder for me than I thought it would be.
Over the last year, Muffin has been becoming more aggressive towards people who weren't our family. We just couldn't trust her anymore, with little neighborhood kids running around and potentially getting bitten. One of Hannah's friends was nipped at pretty hard last weekend, and that was the last straw that unfortunately sealed it.
It's been weird since...a couple of times on Saturday, I thought I heard her barking, so did the kids. And we've definitely become used to her heralding the arrival of visitors, because now when people knock on our door it's completely unexpected.
The kids are asking to get another dog. I don't know if we're up for that just yet. I think we'll take our time and do some careful searching for just the right animal for our family if we do choose to adopt another.
So as far as birthday weekends go, I think Peter and I would put this one towards the bottom on a scale of 1 to 10. In spite of the sadness, I wish Peter a happy birthday, and am amazed again and again at the things he's taught me. Here's a few pictures of his early childhood--see if you notice a pattern!

Climbing in the window...

Climbing on the door...

Climbing on the toilet tank....

Climbing on the high chair tray...

But who can resist those eyes?