Teachable moments

I have begun the process of packing to move. I grab tiny pieces of time between my motherly duties to wrap, pack, tape, and label. Today during Josiah's morning nap I took the time to pack some of the things in my china cabinet, including the tea cups and saucers that I treasure as an inheritance from my grandmother. Lucy came over to ask about the pretty cups, so I started to tell her about them -- what kind of flowers were painted on them, where they were from, which was my favorite -- and our conversation went something in this direction:

Lu: So, are these from my grandma?
Me: No, they belonged to my grandma, Grandma Opal Emiline, your grandma's mommy, who you are named after.
Lu: Oh. [thoughtful pause] Is that your grandma that died?
Me: Yes, honey, she died when I was 13, and now she's in heaven with Jesus.
Lu: Oh.

I glance over to see that she is starting to tear up through a fake smile. I put the cups down and knelt down by her so I could see her at eye level.

Me: Does it make you sad to talk about my grandma?
Lu: [now letting her true colors show and bawling] No, I'm not sad!
Me: It's okay to be sad when we talk about people dying, because we miss them.
Lu: I'm not sad about that [sob, sob], I'm sad that I didn't get to color with my friend Jenna.

Too often I try not to let my emotions show in front of my kids so they don't think I'm a blubbering mess, but recently I've begun to realize they need to see that it's okay to let emotions out and be real and honest about them. When I heard this response from Lucy, I knew that it was time for us to have a good cry together, and particularly for her to see me cry. Friends of mine know that it's my policy that no one cries alone in my presence, so you can imagine when it's my own daughter it doesn't take much to get my waterworks going.

We've had a similar conversation before, and it has been hard for me to choose to talk about my grandma. It's been 20 years, but there are times I think about her and still miss her. There are definitely times when I wish that my husband could have known her (to see where my mother and I get some of our quirks), and especially that my children could have known her. But today I sat on the floor by my innocent 4-year-old and grabbed a kleenex for each of us.

I told her a few stories about the many times I spent with my grandma, and I told her how much I loved her. We went upstairs and I dug out some old photos of me with my grandma when I was Lucy's age. We talked about how my brother (her Uncle Scott) and I would spend the night with my grandma and grandpa and play in their yard and eat sweet treats that my mommy didn't usually let us have at home. And I told her that I was sad when my grandma died because I knew that I would miss her. But I also told her that because she is with Jesus in heaven, that we would see her again someday.

Then Lucy surprised me by asking questions about heaven. She particularly wanted to know what my grandma was seeing up there, and if she would still be there by the time we arrived. It was a unique opportunity to open up my Bible as we sat on the floor and read scripture to her about heaven and eternity. I read a few verses here and there from Revelation -- ones I though she could grasp, mostly pertaining to the streets of gold and the pearly gates, etc. She just soaked it up, asking to hear more. I skimmed and read aloud as much as I could.

We heard Josiah waking up, and our special time came to a close. We dried our tears, and I returned to my packing and Lucy to her play time. But just a little while later she surprised me with a picture that she drew and had placed on the fridge. To the untrained eye, it's a bunch of scribbles and lines, but she showed me what each little mark meant: it was a drawing of my grandma in heaven, on a street of gold, with her arms open wide because she loved me. She had me help her spell out "HEART" with stickers, because then I would always know that my grandma loved me even though she is in heaven now.

I was so touched by this, and so pleased to know Lucy was listening -- really listening. And I was so thankful for the prompting to use this moment to teach her something of lasting value, instead of choosing to do it 'some other time' because I had so much to try to accomplish today.

Sharing this story takes more time out of my very busy week of furnace cleaners and house inspectors and packing to move and preparing to leave for a 10-day trip to the Midwest on Friday. But I also want to encourage you to grab a hold of those moments when they present themselves! I know how easy it is to let life slip by just by being busy. It seems that over the last few days thoughts of life and death and eternity have presented themselves in the lives of so many people around me, and I'm so grateful I had this opportunity today -- and that I chose to use it -- to talk with my daughter about her great-grandmother and eternity.

Good grief

My dear friend Jen told me a few months back about the battle her college roommate/maid of honor/best friend was fighting. Last fall, at age 32, Leslie had a brain tumor removed, and over the course of the last few months, what started out as a bothersome sinus problem became the fight of her life as cancer overtook her lungs. I got the news yesterday that Leslie 'defeated cancer,' though her body did not, as she went home to be with the Lord on Saturday night.

As I've been following her husband's blog for several months, I've been amazed by the perspective he and Leslie have had about life and death. His honesty through these struggles have taught me so much. If you have a minute (and a box of kleenex), his last blog post is worth your time. A few days ago he also posted a link to this essay with an amazing perspective on cancer's unexpected blessings.

I am rejoicing that Leslie is indeed free from pain, free from gasping for air, free from fear. But I grieve on behalf of her husband and her 3-year-old son, the rest of her family, and my friend Jen who will miss her best friend.

Happy 1st Birthday to my Baby Boy!

A year ago we welcomed sweet baby Josiah into our family. Look how precious and tiny he was that first day, weighing in at 7 lb 1oz!

We had a very relaxing day today, and I spent some time reminiscing about how everything went on the day of his birth... How I woke up feeling like I was going to be pregnant forever (even though I still had 10 days until my due date), and how the contractions I was having at noon were 20 minutes apart and not very intense... how John finally came home at 3:30 because I told him my back hurt and I could use a rub, and how he finally convinced me to finish packing and get in the car... how I cried as I said goodbye to Lucy when our friend picked her up, and how I thought it could be days until I saw her again... how I became unable to make phone calls on the way to the hospital (during rush hour) because I had to start to focus on breathing, and how we got to the hospital at 5:15 p.m. and had to check in at the ER... how the hallway down to the delivery rooms seemed miles long, and how I barely had time to get into the gown... how it seemed like an eternity until my midwife arrived from the building nextdoor (though John says he couldn't believe how fast she got there), and how less than 10 minutes later, at 6:18 p.m., we were holding our baby boy!

And look at him today! Today we celebrate a very fast and very fun year with our bundle of snuggles and lovin' -- our sweet Joey.

Home Sweet soon-to-be Home

The last two weeks have been a bit of a whirlwind for us. From selling our condo, to starting our search for a new home, to leaving our kids for the first time on our trip to California, to coming home and searching some more... it feels like this amount of activity should have been spread out over several months, not just a few days!

With my parents still here for a few days after we returned from our anniversary trip, John and I were able to go together to look at 16 different homes. We quickly narrowed it down to three that we liked the best and revisited those yesterday afternoon. One of them stood out to us, head-and-shoulders above the others, and we were in solid agreement that it was our desire for this be our next home. We took a walk with our whole family around the neighborhood, we spent a lot of time praying throughout the day, and we asked some of our friends and family to pray as we made this decision. And then we made an offer. Several times this morning we went back and forth with the sellers, and they finally accepted it, so... the house is ours!!!

It's still sinking in, and it will probably take packing and moving in to truly feel real, but in this moment we are very pleased and praising God for so many things: that my parents were here and could watch the kids while we looked (and their joy and willingness to do so!), the relatively fast sale of our condo enabling us to do this, finding a house in such a short amount of time, a real estate agent who has been so fantastic in every aspect of this process so far, the fact that we love a house that's actually in our price range, a closing date that works perfectly with the sale of our condo, and the fact that the sellers chose to work with us over another comparable offer we were told was on the table as of last night.

And it goes beyond that for me, in thanking God for the ability to upgrade to a beautiful home on one income, for a husband who has a tremendous amount of financial sense so we are in the position to make this move, for a relatively short 9-mile commute to John's office (though we've been so spoiled by being just one mile away for the last four years), for the excitement of making new friends with our neighbors and seeing what is in store for those relationships.

In looking back at how this has all played out, we can see that God's hand has certainly been in it all, and He is SOOOO good! As one dear friend put it, it is a sweet victory of God's provision!

Californi-aahhh!

If you read my blog entry six months ago, you might remember that my husband was surprising me with a trip to California to celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary! Is knowing about an event six months in advance really considered a surprise? It was to me! And those months flew by before we finally purchased tickets for us and made arrangements for our kids to stay behind for our first vacation without them.

This past weekend we took our trip -- It. Was. Fabulous. We had such a wonderful time in beautiful Dana Point, Southern California! We spent our four days there lying in the sand, sleeping, eating, laughing, reading, digging our toes in the sand, watching surfers, breathing deeply, wading in the waves, reminiscing, and wondering about what the next ten years might be like.

We had dinner on our anniversary at the amazing Cannons restaurant on the cliffs above Dana Point Harbor. John managed to get us a table at the window.

Love was in the air! There was a wedding reception that we could see going on below on the terrace, and dining next to us there, we met another couple who was also celebrating their anniversary on that same day. Ten was a big milestone for us, but this couple was celebrating 66 years of marriage! They were so sweet! We had to have our picture with them.

(We had several conversations with them throughout the evening but realized at the end that we didn't know their names. Our guess was Horace and Mildred. Turns out their names are Don and Kris. Reality is boring! We decided to call them Horace and Mildred anyway.)

Back at home, Grandma and Grandpa were taking such good care of our kids that we considered staying and extra day or two. Not really, but they said the whole weekend was far easier than they anticipated, and that our kids were absolute angels. We loved hearing that they all did so well, especially because it means that there is a possibility of doing something like this again in the future!

And for those concerned for how Josiah would do in regards to nursing, everything turned out far better than I had hoped for. Within an hour of returning home, he took to nursing again like a fish to water. [Insert BIG SIGH of relief here.]

It's hard to believe that this trip we looked forward to for six months is behind us, but we have plenty back at home to keep us busy, and plenty more to look forward to in the days ahead.

Pitter Patter

He's walking! Josiah took his first independent steps today! He has seemed ready to go for at least a week, standing from a squat, bouncing on his knees, and balancing. And he gets that mischievous look in his eyes when he does it. With our anniversary trip coming up in a few days, John and I were a little afraid that Grandma and Grandpa would be the first witnesses of this milestone and that we might miss it. No more worries. Look at him go!

Rejoice with us!

After 44 days on the market and what feels like a gazillion showings, we are under contract to sell our condo!

We've had an increase in traffic this past week with several showings each day over the last few days, and then... yesterday we got an offer. This morning we counter-offered, and we were hopeful, though we fully expected that we'd go back and forth several times like this over the course of the next few days. We were hugely pleased when our super-dee-duper agent called us back an hour later and said we have a signed contract!

There are still some things that need to fall into place, so until we all sign our names repeatedly on those many dotted lines, it's not a done deal. But it's in process, and we are indeed excited! Particularly, I'm excited that I don't have to spend an extra hour cleaning each time I walk out the door!

Now begins the extremely fun and stressful part of finding our family another home. As I looked to the Bible for some encouragement in the face of this task, I found this:

"My people will live in peaceful dwelling places,
in secure homes,
in undisturbed places of rest."
Isaiah 32:18

Okay, so this was written to the nation of Israel, and I'm seeking promises for my family... I still found comfort in these words and know that God has taken care of us this far and He will continue to be present with us as we move.

Tonight, I celebrate by leaving dirty dishes in the sink. Tomorrow, we pull the baby gate out of storage.

Real estate update

Like my friend Jess over at Sassy Pants, I've been resisting the urge to use my blog as a real estate diary. I'm trying to pretend there is more to my life right now than Windex-ing, vacuuming, picking up after my kids, leaving my counter tops spotless, and making sure the fake flowers are arranged just right. However, enough of you have asked what the latest is in our endeavor to sell our condo, so I suppose it's time for an update...

Days on the Market: 38
Number of showings: 14 (with the 15th scheduled for tomorrow afternoon)

We had a couple of dry weeks in the middle of June with no showings. I started to grow lazy, apathetic, pessimistic in letting the place go. I didn't worry too much about making sure things were cleaned up before we left the house every single time.

But on Friday it came back to bite me. I got a call for a showing with only 45 minutes notice. Yikes! Fortunately both kids were napping, so I raced around, putting things away, stashing stuff in the dishwasher and clothes dryer, and making the place presentable. I wasn't able to get to the floors, but the kitchen looked pretty good, and the beds were made. I've been trying to leave home at least 10 minutes before the showing times, but I had just woken the kids up and had them by the front door while I got my purse and keys when I heard voices in our stairwell. For those who may be seeking advice on showing you home, the way to greet potential buyers is NOT by a frumpy-haired girl, a crying baby boy, and a sweaty mom. They admitted they were early and graciously said they'd take a look outside for a few minutes as we made our way out. Ugh.

Saturday's showing went a bit better. John was out of town, so I took the kids out to the mall to burn some energy in the A/C on a hot Denver day. This time I walked out the door having left the condo in relatively good condition -- clean and presentable, but not perfect. (I did some deeper cleaning after we got home on Friday.) We had been at the mall a while and I was about to offer to buy Lucy lunch in the food court when I got a call for a showing. This time I had an hour and 15 minutes notice. We left the mall and went back home. I left the kids in the car for six minutes while I ran in to put away the highchair and the rabbit ears and a make sure it all looked good. Then I took them to Wendy's for lunch and afterward they both napped in the car while I read a magazine. Not bad!

On Sunday John was still out of town. I needed to run some errands and was going to try to make them fun since I had to drag the kids with me. This time, I left the condo in spic-and-span shape. Just in case. And when I got the call saying there was an agent currently in my neighborhood with some clients, asking how much time I needed before they could see our place, I was able to say with confidence, "Right now is fine! It's all theirs!" Beautiful!

During this past week we had two more evening showings, and another is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon. The feedback we've gotten has been positive: priced right, beautiful unit, blah, blah blah. The biggest hangup is that we don't have a garage.

Please, people, if you MUST have a garage, DON'T come look at our condo and get our hopes up that you might actually be interested!!!

And so we continue to wait while we work on things like creative napping and practicing patience.