So, uh....

Was I just saying something about trying to get on here and write more??

Wasn't that about fifteen minutes ago?

More like two weeks?

==sigh==

Time.  Do I need to say it?  Well, it does pass...

Holy cow; look at us.  We were all babies...
(But look at our cute little Pauliwog...)

Quicker than my memory disappears between one room and the next...

Quicker than the little boys forgetting I told them to clean something up...

Quicker than the nano-second that passed between my first glimpse of our first-born's golden brown eyes to the dewiness in my husband's golden brown eyes as he saw his little son for the first time.... and then meeting our first-born grandson twenty-odd years later with those same beautiful brown eyes.

The world is born in nano-seconds. And it passes just as quickly.  Years become like nano-seconds.

So, you can see how a couple of weeks can be lost, right?

But, it's been a busy two weeks.  Ridiculously so.  I'm sitting here now trying to mentally pin down the details of it and they're flying by so quickly and in such a blur, that I'm not sure it's possible to get it all down.  Forget trying to get it on a timeline properly.

In a nutshell, though, I have been to Omaha and back, returning Brother Philip (Diddle-diddle dumpling, formerly my son, Jon) and it was a lovely good long driving visit with him (gosh, I love that young man!), but a fast turn-around back to Denver....  Where I stayed for a week with my sister, Nina, catching up with

Known affectionately around here as
"BroPhi"...
Not to disprespect his vocation,
but because it just takes so stinkin
long to spit out "Brother Philip."

family.  I got to see my Mom and catch up on extended family news, spent some time with my Dad on Fathers' Day, helped unpack and organize my sister's new condo, and got to go antiquing in the quaint little antiquing mecca of Florence, Colorado over the weekend. Then, this past Monday, back to our valley on the western slope -- and home to my own wonderful, lovely, comfortable bed...

And no children!

Dan.  This guy here.  (I think this is him, anyway...)

While I was gone, Dan made an executive decision and kidnapped the kids, taking them to stay with his parents for a week at their timeshare on the beach.  Harumph!  But, I'm not complaining. Not really.  Beach visits really aren't as much fun for Moms as they are for kids.  I know.  But it's true.  A whole other topic for another day...

But, wow. It is strangely quiet here at the house without them.  Quiet-- and perfectly lovely...

Me.  Having "fun" at the beach.

Don't get me wrong, I love my children and am dying to see my husband again (It's been forever since I've seen that guy!), but this is a rare opportunity, being here in the house (almost) alone. Our good friend, Brian, is here, but he toodles around on his own and requires no attention from me.  In fact...  other than the cats and the bird and the chickens, nobody requires attention from me right now...

 Moms.  Think of it.  I know you know what I mean. (Kids and Dad-types, you can try to imagine, but you just won't get it like us Moms...) It is its own kind of little paradise for me right now.  I hope you'll indulge me while I brag on it just a little...

 Since Monday:

* I haven't had to do anyone's laundry but my own

* I've gotten to sleep in as long as I want (!)

* I make my bed in the morning and take care of my own dishes, but other than that, the house stays clean

* I can get up and go when I want, where I want, and stay as long as I want -- no questions asked

* I can eat what I want and don't have to keep tabs on anyone else's menu or eating habits

* I can make a pot of coffee and drink the whole thing if I want to!

* I can go to the bathroom without William standing outside the door trying to talk to me

* No loud, unexplained noises to have to get to the bottom of

* No whining

Though, my little William: he's so cute when he whines...

* I can hear myself think

* I don't have to think if I don't want to

Ahhhhhh......  It's lovely.  

The life of a slug.
 Don't think for a minute I couldn't get used to this.

Except for the fact that in my real life I'm totally spoiled by: 

* waking up to William's snuggling in with me first thing sharing  his crazy, random observations

* Theresa making coffee for everyone in the morning

Anna, who chooses ice cream to match
her outfit...

* Anna, being her own, inimitable, crazy, random, thought-provoking self

*  Gabe going around in full camouflage, making sure everything's taken care of (according to his eight-year wisdom)


* Dominic and Theresa providing the piano soundtrack for the day


* with Michelle accompanying on the violin








* Snuggles, hugs and backrubs from my husband





* the tantalizing aromas of Cathy's merciless Baking (dang my diet...)

* Being compelled to move outside my own selfish, lazy inclinations toward something better and bigger -- with beautiful rewards that transcend time and place -- but are also in the minutia and nano-seconds of this time and place.

It's good to have time right now to reflect, to realize that, though I lose track of nano-seconds, and days, and weeks, and years at times, God doesn't.  It's good that He holds me accountable, or think of how truly wasteful I'd be!  Though I don't focus purposefully enough on the fact of it, I'm truly thankful for every moment He's given me, and the purpose and accountability of each of those moments.  I'm grateful for the gift of this resting time; for the gift of the hectic times; for the gift of time itself.

God's always good to us, when we're paying attention and when we're not. Lord, help me be better about paying attention!  Help me not to miss a single moment.

And help me to be patient and mild when the crowd comes stampeding through the front door tomorrow afternoon!