Beyond Bringing Up Boys

I cannot remember a time when Easter was not my favorite holiday. In my early years maybe it was because I loved Spring so much.  Being a Pennsylvania gal, sometimes the season arrived too late for my satisfaction. At nearly the first chirp of a robin, I'd be asking my dad if there'd be any more snow.  He'd always laugh and reply that there'd probably be more. Much to my disappointment he was always right. As my relationship with Christ grew, I loved Easter for more than just the season of the year but for the reminder of what Christ had done in my life. From death to life.  Spiritually, with the new birth but almost literally after the birth of Seth. This year meant even more.  I contemplated the words of  Michael Card's "Love Crucified Arose," And these words especially spoke to me.  "Love crucified arose And the grave became a place of hope For the heart that sin and sorrow broke Is beating once again" The grave became a place...

I heard someone say recently that the month of May is as busy as December but she hadn’t planned for it. I can identify! May is always busy with end-of-the-year school activities then add a birthday, piano recital, and at least six baseball games a week and we wonder if we’re coming or going. I LOVE celebrating David’s birthday but because of the above stated annual activities, it sometimes gets a little lost in the shuffle. But I really wanted this year to be different and because we obviously cannot get too much baseball, the boys and I gave him the gift of a family night at Turner Field. It was a late night and so we celebrated over two days and had cake the next night.                              (delivering the candy bouquet we made, along with his favorite drink) David is a lover of God, his family, and friends. I am forever grateful fo...

Zachary and I after his last day of middle school at Veritas It's after midnight and I should be sleeping.  I'll wish tomorrow morning that I'd closed this laptop and chosen sleep instead, or that sleep would have chosen me. I happened upon a picture of what-would-have-been Zachary's eighth grade class if we had stayed in KY. What a shock! In my mind's eye, I still see them as little first graders but the picture showed differently ...and then that wave of " homesickness" hit again. I felt a little like rabbit in Winnie-the-Pooh , "Why, oh why, oh why?" Monday was Zachary's last day of eighth grade at Veritas. There are still times he misses KY too, but he told me Monday this was his best year yet. And through my tears, I smile.

Looking over Zachary as a newborn, David’s mom mentioned how long and slender his tiny fingers were. “Piano fingers.” We already knew he responded to music in in utero. And over the next few years his love for music grew. His favorite group was The Gaither Vocal Band and his all-time favorite song was “God is Good.” He’d belt out that song out ALL the time. He also was fond of the theme song to Clifford the Big Red Dog; would run to his room, grab his guitar and jump on the stage (the hearth) and sing along. He loved to sing in church and sang the Brooklyn Tab’s version of “Happy Birthday, Jesus” in front of several hundred students at Whitefield each year at Christmas from about age three. He’d stop and sing at anytime for anyone. I took him each week to Kindermusic and it just seemed natural that we would pursue music lessons (for him). Samuel was about 9 months old when we took Zachary to the University of Louisville to determine whether to pursue the Suzuki method of violin less...

How do seven years pass so quickly? It still seems like yesterday that I held this sweet boy close and cried tears of gratefulness for his safe delivery. We long ago decided that our special events are much more fun--filled with those we love and so, if necessary, we move the date to celebrate forward or back depending on when Grandma can come. Grandma B was able to come a few days after Seth's actual birthday so we celebrated on the 2nd of April.  Well, everyone but me celebrated. I slept, mostly, but that's a tale for another time. David's niece, Courtney, was here and she and Grandma helped pull off a happy birthday for Seth.  I'm so grateful! I have absolutely no qualms about admitting that I'm very deficient in my cake-making abilities. However, I do enjoy making the boys' cakes and, so far, they've been pretty tolerant of my amateur skills. When Seth chose his cupcake-cake, I thought it wouldn't be that difficult. And it wasn't really, it ...

It has been such a pleasure to have Zachary at Veritas Classical School this year. Veritas provides classroom instruction one day a week, with an emphasis on classical subjects from a Christian perspective. It is the goal of Veritas to create life-long learners who think Biblically and logically. For the Literary Tea in February, Zachary was required to memorize poetry.  He quoted "The Road Not Taken." Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth. Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim, Because it was grassy and wanted wear; Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about the same. And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back. I shal...

Sing with me! "Take me out to the ball game, Take me out with the crowd, Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jacks, I don't care if I never get back, Let me root, root, root for the..." Dodgers, Blue Jays, and Athletics... At least that's what I'll be singing for the next several weeks. Today was opening day for the boys' baseball teams.  They were pumped and ready to go! The weather was not exactly cooperative, although Samuel and Seth did get to play. Samuel has dreamed of playing catcher for a few years now and finally has the skills for the position. He played very well today, even from my unbiased opinion, of course. Chances are if Seth is awake, he is thinking about baseball!  He uses cushions from the couch to make bases and has imaginary games nearly every day.  In his mind, he plays every position--even the play-by-play announcer! In real life, he played first base today.  We were all disappointed when Zachary's game was called off due to the sto...