Sweet memories ...

This blog that I've been somewhat keeping up with for the last six+ years is nothing fancy or beautiful or amazing with graphics or design or content ... but ... it is quite simply my photo journal. I haven't always kept this little journal current ~ sometimes life is too sad and heartbreaking to write an account, at least a public one, for sure. But I have found that blogging is a good way to record some of life's sweet memories ...

 To finally have my grandchildren "home" from Texas is a dream come true for me. For most of the years they were there, I could only see them a few times each year ~ and it just wasn't enough. There is nothing in the world like the love of grandchildren. 

Yesterday the children spent a chunk of time here at the Beach House with me. I've been setting up little "centers" around the house where each of them can play separately and have a little space to themselves. Christopher is a very good artist. He is intense when he draws. He especially loves to have several pieces of paper taped together so that he can make a HUGE drawing. I love to watch him sketch and take pleasure in the gift that God has given him. I think he has a lot of artistic talent.

Dear Matthew is eight now and has grown into such a sweet person. He loves to be here at my house and will play and play with LEGOs and Matchbox cars and make whole cities out of blocks and other toys. These few shots are just simple ones of him being ... happy to be here ... and me being overwhelmed with how much I love him. 

Emma Joy is a lover of music and dance ... and many other things as well. Last week, she requested that I record myself on my digital piano playing Fur Elise (Beethoven) so that she could press the PLAY button over and over again to hear this beautiful song. I don't play it perfectly, but I've been practicing and can do a passing performance. These pictures are of her dancing to Fur Elise. Emma was so filled with JOY while listening and dancing. She told me many times how much she loves this song. She has a deep love of music and I think she has very good musical aptitude. This will always and ever be a sweet memory to me ... 

We also folded and flew dozens of paper airplanes yesterday (which I didn't photograph). We had such a fun time testing all of our designs out, with the help of a wonderful book I ordered through Amazon: "Build Your Own Paper Air Force." It's an excellent paper-airplane book, the best one I've ever seen, and the very one my friend, Christine, introduced me to last year while I was a temporary nanny for her family.

Emma and I also cuddled up in my reading chair yesterday and read three books together. (1) "The Girl on the High-Diving Horse, An Adventure in Atlantic City," by Linda Oatman High, based on a true story. Emma loves horses and really enjoyed this book. Christopher and Matthew came in and out of my room as I read and I think they caught most of the story. (2) "BOB" by Tracey Campbell Pearson, an amusing little story about a rooster who didn't know how to crow ~ the illustrations were really fun and colorful, and we found ourselves cracking up at the story. (3) "Rickie and Henri" by Jane Goodall, a true story about an orphaned baby chimpanzee and a little dog ... with a happy ending.

We've also been trying to do a Bible story or a devotional each time we've been together. We are working through THE BOOK for Children, which is basically a narrative of all the major stories in the Bible, nicely paraphrased for children. And we are supplementing that book with "Bible Stories for Children" because the illustrations are incredible and very helpful to the stories we are reading. We're also reading "Thoughts to Make Your Heart Sing" by Sally Lloyd-Jones because ... it is a wonderful daily devotional type book that is SO beautiful and original in its content and full of JOY because of the unfailing love of Jesus.