We have another runner in the family.  It's still not me. This time it's not long distance either, but track. It's been a lot of fun to watch his events.  It's like a three ring circus in a good way.  Something is happening both on the track and inside the field at any given time.

I wasn't a big sports fan or participant in school but I have come to really value what it offers our kids.  More than competition and teamwork, which are also great, it is fresh air, lots of tiring exercise, time away from screens.  It fits in well with our "just go outside" outlook. Stressed?  Go outside awhile.  Run it off.  Get a change of scenery.  Most things look better afterwards. 

Some afternoon fun with their friends. Maybe it works, maybe not. So far they have loved watching the seeds sprout at least.  I will be watching a patch in the yard since the dog walked through and upended one tray.  We may or may not see some runaway zinnias this summer. : ) 

"Give the children an opportunity to make a garden.  Let them grow what they will.  It matters less that they grow good plants than that they try for themselves."

– Liberty Hyde Bailey

"Glorious St. Joseph, model of all who are devoted to labor, obtain for me the grace to work in the spirit of penance in expiation of my many sins; to work conscientiously by placing love of duty above my inclinations; to gratefully and joyously deem it an honor to employ and to develop by labor the gifts I have received from God, to work methodically, peacefully, and in moderation and patience, without ever shrinking from it through weariness or difficulty to work; above all, with purity of intention and unselfishness, having unceasingly before my eyes death and the account I have to render of time lost, talents unused, good not done, and vain complacency in success, so baneful to the work of God. All for Jesus, all for Mary, all to imitate thee, O patriarch St. Joseph! This shall be my motto for life and eternity."

– St Joseph the Worker Prayer

When I read this prayer for the feast day today it painted such a convicting picture of how to apply ourselves to our daily work, whether at home or away. It is arguably even more essential to approach work done at home and for our family with those virtues as our guide. 

Here's to a peaceful, productive week!

When I walked to the driveway the other day the boys mentioned, "Bat."  

"What?" I said.  

"There's a bat stuck in the tree." For whatever reason the first thing that came to mind was they had thrown a baseball bat into the tree and it got tangled someplace.  Not that they play baseball. I didn't say it was a logical thought, just that first one.  Anyway it wasn't a ball bat but rather a real little brown/black bat sleeping soundly smack on the side of the tree trunk at about chest height. 

I ran through my limited repertoire of bat facts which includes the part that seeing them behave out of character during the daytime is often a sign of a sick bat and could spell trouble.  Rabies alert went off in my head, except that he was doing appropriate daytime bat stuff, namely sleeping.  

After a quick check with my favorite biologist, we decided to leave him alone and see what happened after dark. It seems they can get disrupted and displaced and sometimes fall back asleep in unlikely spots. Amazingly he slept straight through the noise of the boys' game of horse which could normally wake the dead. His little side fluttered ever so faintly so we knew he was alive though not budging.  Finally one of the times I walked out he had up and flown away and was not spotted again. 

I'm a little slow on the draw with travel documenting. It was such good luck that our trip to Washington State coincided with tulip season. To be honest, we had no idea there were bulb farms there until days before we arrived. Another blessed coincidence is that our friends from Germany are now living nearby and joined us for an afternoon touring Roozengaarde farms. 

The land was level and fertile, so similar to our English fen lands.  The weather was warm and breezy making for a perfectly beautiful day. 

"God arranges everything for us, so that we need have no more fear or trouble and may be quite sure that all things will come right in the end."

Heidi

It has been a couple weeks of challenges that hit like a spray of pellets. Separate issues to sort through with  friends and relatives in crisis along with the big and little decisions that must be made daily in a large household.  While we could begin to troubleshoot and make a plan of action for some of those things, others have not been so clear cut.  There are layers to peel away to get to the bottom some things and all you can do is be patient and think as clearly as you can each baby step along the way. 

We have just a few more pages and Heidi's story will be finished. (We always have to make a date to savor that very last chapter of a read-aloud together.)  There have been so many beautiful passages.  The other day Heidi was reflecting about her fervent prayers in Frankfurt and her despair when day after day, week after week, they went unanswered.  That despair was contrasted with the utter joy she was feeling at the end of the story when so many unexpected blessings showered down upon them all.  Those blessings were only possible because of the terrible pain that had come before. Had the relief come any sooner, the blessing would have been lost. 

It is the wait that tries us though, the worry, the wondering, our absolute certainty at times that it's all going awry. Her words come back to me reply:

“We must pray to God everyday to show we don't forget that all gifts come from Him. But if some wishes remain unfulfilled we must show our confidence in Him, for He knows best.” 

It all comes right in the end.  In the meantime we relish all the good and beautiful things sprinkled generously in between the trials. In fact the greater the trials, the more crucial it is to discipline yourself to find joy. So that is why you see cupcakes and sunshine over here even though there are some much bigger things unfolding at the same time.  This is how we show our confidence. 

Cupcakes, that is.  What happens homeschoolers grow up and become college anatomy lab instructors? They treat their students to thematic cupcakes at the end of the semester of course. Extra credit question on the final was to identify the organs in your dessert.   That's heart and brain fwiw, though they ended up getting credit for suggesting intestines given the pink tint versus gray. 

Or what is on my phone right now.  Provides a decent snapshot of life this week. 

Orange love.  I was peeling absent mindedly while reading morning devotions.  When I stood up to clean up I saw this tiny heart. 

Abbie's new how-to-draw. 

Fluke snow.  It was all gone by the end of the day. 

Decided it was as good a time as any to tear through all the kitchen drawers and reorganize.

Spring picture books lately. 

My baby dog with his first grown up clipping. 

Dinner courtesy of the Six Sisters Stuff book we just got.  Fun!!  Don't let my pitiful phone snaps turn you off.  This book has been fun.  Chock full of homestyle food and crafts.  Above is the 7-Up Grilled chicken.   The chicken was so tender it cut with a fork. 

Six Sisters Root Beer Cookies with cheater frosting on my part.  We made the cookie dough as directed but Alannah had leftover white frosting so we just added some of the extract to that.