thankful thursdays 2/11

Feb 11, 2010

* A beautiful baby girl was welcomed into this world by my wonderful friends, Kari & Gary. She is adorable and perfect and sweet and a great nurser and a lovely spirit and she has kissable, chubby cheeks, and, and, and…yes, I am in love! I got to hold her very first day here on this earth and I love her, plain and simple, I love her.

Here she is with big sister Natalie:


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* Tami’s baby, Jace Leon, arrived safe and sound on the 2nd…still waiting on a picture of this cutie-pie (hint, hint!). She named him after our great-grandfather. I can’t wait to love on this baby when she comes to visit me in April!
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* Richard’s dad came and took all four children on a Grandpa Date last night. I didn’t even know what to do with myself! Instead of being productive and working on laundry, cleaning, or one of the thousands of things that actually needed doing, I stitched up a pillow that is turning out so stinkin’ cute! I think I may have a giveaway on here if I can get the whole thing finished up in the next couple of days. It is calling me right this minute…
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* I got to stay up late talking to one of my best friends. We laughed, shared stories, and caught up. I hardly ever get to see Miss Tina, so when we do get together we have to cram months of stuff into a short visit. This woman is more than my midwife – she is my friend and I can’t imagine my life without her. I can just see us as 90 year old ladies sitting in our rockers sharing stories and yummy food.
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* Liberty Girls starts today! Keziah is so excited! Her group is reading Little House in the Big Woods and they will get to have oodles of fun learning all about bread and butter making, bullet making, fiddling, sewing, and lots more. Their leader is simply amazing and I am so grateful she created this group that both Blythe and Keziah have had the privilege of being part of. It has been a large part of their education and the molding of their young souls. Thank you Becky!
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* My grandmother wrote poetry her whole life through and recorded some of her writings in books for her posterity. This week Keziah had a talk to give at church about “Jesus is Our Savior” and she forgot about it till the last minute (so did I, of course!). She couldn’t figure out what she wanted to do and was kind of falling apart over the whole thing. I finally gave up trying to help her and told her I knew she could give a wonderful talk if she just thought about it for a few minutes with a calm spirit. I continued getting children ready for church and then found her with my grandmother’s books searching for a poem to give. After reading several, she chose this one:

Fantasy

Sometimes I dream of a fantasy land
Where children are princes and kings
Where I am the captain of all of the band
With helmet and medals and things.

I visit the court of King Arthur of old
Brave knights and fair maidens to see
They sit at a table that’s round, I am told
Each voice to be heard equally.

I fly on a carpet o’er valley and hill
The magical place to see
Where the lamp of Aladdin can bring forth at will
The riches of old Araby.

With Robinson Crusoe I live on an isle
In the midst of the western sea
The beasts are our friends and they held all the while
As we build a house in a tree.

We sail on a raft down the river so wide
Tom Sawyer, Huck Finn, and me
We search out a place for our treasure to hid
Oh, bold, fearless pirates are we.

I travel to Europe and Asia and more
As fantasies dance in my head
They all are familiar; I’ve seen them before
In the pages of books I have read

In the land of the Bible, I met someone there
Who was loving and kindly and wise
He said to love others, their burdens to bear
That we may to heaven arise.

He died on a cross for the sins of all men
Forgiveness to us to bring
I know that the Savior will come back again
In glory, to reign as King.

He’ll love little children, their ills he will heal
And take them upon His knee
And when that happens, it will be real
And not just fantasy.

~ Myrtle R. Smith~

Isn’t that beautiful? Keziah knows all of those stories, which is probably why she identified so strongly with this poem. I am so grateful my children really knew my grandma, well enough for Keziah to know she could open one of Grandma’s books and find something wonderful for her talk.

I miss her. Last night, Fisher was curled up in his blanket that she made for him and I said “Who made that blanket for you?” He responded “My Grandma GG” (a name Blythe gave her when she was very little and was confused by all the grandmas in her life – GG is for great-grandma) and then he continued “I miss her. I am wondering, when will she be resurrected? When will she come back so I can see her again?”

This wonderful woman embedded herself in the hearts of my children so deeply that a little five year old boy is missing her over a year after she died. He wants her to come back and read him more stories, talk about airplanes, and give him hugs. When he was little and didn’t let anyone hold him, he let her hold him. He always felt safe with her and gave her kisses long before he opened up to anyone else.

I miss her and want her back too.
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I can’t see the screen anymore through these tears, so I think I will get breakfast started…or should I steal a few minutes and go work on the pillow?