Mother's Day

I've forgotten how busy life is in May when there are children in the house.  As the school year winds down there are concerts, recitals, tests, and so forth that come up in abundance.  Before the arrival of Seth and Angelica, I had allowed school events to slip by unnoticed.  But now we are wound up in it all over again.  It has been fun to have the kids here with us.  I have discovered that I struggle with the same parent issues that I did with my own children.  And here I thought I was ever the calm woman now, so mature in the dealing of my emotions.  Hum.  Well, perhaps I am a little better, but I'm definitely still a passionate woman, with strong feelings leaking out without my conscious permission.  Still, I have come to love and admire Seth and Angelica more than ever before.  There is something about living with a person that brings out, in spite of occasional frustrations, a deeper love.  I have found that to be true of this experience with these grandchildren.

Abigail sits in the foreground of this picture, taken at Rayne's wedding reception.  In the background you can see some of our grandchildren, including Angelica and, in the left background, Seth.  These children bring joy to my heart.  There is not a single grandchild that does not bring me feelings of gratitude, for the quality of their character and to have them in my life. 

My mother-in-law once told me that, once you have a child, you never stop worrying about them.  She is right; I think about and pray for my children and grand-children much of the time.  But I'm thankful that I have been blessed to experience a family life of my own, in this life.  My life's purpose centers around the people the Lord has sent into my family circle.  While there are many ways to experience a joyful life, I feel grateful for this one.  

Here I am, with two beautiful Mother's Day bouquets, one from Layne and one from Ben.  Angelica made the colorful cupcakes, and Layne made me carrot cookies, my favorite dessert.

Spring brings our Treble Clef singing group into action with a spring concert series.  We sing about 20 times, at various convalescent homes and assisted living centers.  It is a lovely experience.  Friendships grow, we bring pleasure to lots of people, we gain confidence and experience with music and we donate earnings to charity. Its sort of a win-win-win-win.  Here we are at one of our singing locations singing a song about California.  The theme this year is about traveling through the United States, through song.  Some of the gals sit behind the cardboard green car (which I made) for some of the songs.  It is full of fun as you can see from our appearance here.

Here I am with one of my singing buddies and neighbor, Carol Wintersteen. She is the one who got me involved in the group 4 years ago.

Spring is a lovely time here in Idaho.  Everything springs back to life.  The weather is unpredictable.  We had one day that brought wind, rain, thunder and lightening in such a dramatic way that I just had to sit outside on our porch swing and take it all in.  This picture doesn't really capture it, but here it is anyway.

Soon, another wedding will take place.  My sister's son Brent will remarry in a week or so.  This has been quite a year for weddings.  That's much better than funerals, don't you think?