Pre-Mothers Day

My treat to myself.  Red velvet cupcake you are delicious.

Love of Hats and a Boy and His Horse

One small hope Cory and I have for Edmund is that he enjoys wearing hats.  One reason being that it protects his head and two just because we are hat people.  I think he has started to grow a love for them. Generally one of the first things he grabs in the morning is this hat.

Trying his hand at dinosaur surfing

Not only does he love his hat, but he also loves to wear it on his trusty companion, Charley horse.

 It has taken him a while, but he has figured out how to rock it back and forth and really loves it!

(he is also getting into the weird smile phase..i knew this day was coming. ugh).

Thanks Santa for the hat and horse!  It's a hit!

Dick Van Dyke

When Cory was a child he wanted to be Dick Van Dyke when he grew up.  Can you blame him?  He got to fly Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and dance on rooftops with Mary Poppins.  Dick Van Dyke is awesome.

Who wouldn't want to sing and dance with Julie Andrews?  I am pretty sure that if Dick Van Dyke would have been in the Sound of Music Cory may find it more enjoyable.

Anyways, I digress.  Some mornings if there is a lot we need to get done Cory may throw in a dvd of some kind for Edmund (read, Carrie is still in bed catching up on a year of lost sleep).  Whatever DVD it is has A LOT of music to keep Edmund entertained and he is always up dancing.  Edmund really enjoys the special features on Shrek because it plays song after song after song.  Most recently Cory put in one of his favorites "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang".  After starting it, Cory told Edmund that he would be okay with it if Edmund only wanted to watch that and "Mary Poppins" for the rest of time.  Edmund loved dancing to Chitty Chitty and he especially enjoyed the title song.  I even captured some pictures of the two of them dancing together.

Please notice that he is also dancing with only one shoe.  If you need a good dance party Edmund is ready to host it up.

 

How to Feel

Generally this blog space is reserved for adorable pictures of my sweet  little man that should most likely make you piddle in your pants a little bit because he's so darn cute.  While I will include another one of those pictures for my adoring fans (thanks mom and dad), I wanted to share a different set of thoughts today.  This is the disclaimer that if you don't want to read deep thoughts, simply scroll to the bottom and piddle in your pants a little.

When I woke up two mornings ago and heard the Today Show being broadcasted in the background from Ground Zero I had to stop and think 'it's not September, so why on earth are they at Ground Zero?'  I then heard the news that Osama Bin Laden had been killed.  "Wow" I can remember saying to Cory and then sat and watched some of the coverage.

I don't remember exactly how I felt; was I happy, intrigued, relieved?  Maybe all three.

As the day went on something wasn't setting right and I started praying for clarity.  A friend shared this verse with me and it hit me: Ezekiel 33:11-"Say to them, 'As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live.  Turn! Turn from your evil ways! Why will you die, O house of Israel?"

And then I found this.  It was my "Ah-ha" moment.

Bottom line, Bin Laden was evil.  Period.  Bottom line for me is that my heart is wicked.  I'm called to love God and love others, to love my neighbors and enemies, and oftentimes I fail. I am a work in progress and thankfully there is a God who is merciful, full of grace, that loves justice and forgives.  

While I am thankful that a man who has harmed so many and caused unspeakable and unfathomable amounts of pain can no longer do so, my heart begins to ache for men like him.  For men who need Jesus.  For the boys at Blue Ridge, for my colleges, family and friends.  My heart aches for them to know the radical mercy of God.  I am thankful that my cousin's daughter had to ask who Osama Bin Laden was and makes me hope and pray that the pain and evil I've seen in my short life is not pain my son will grow up knowing.

While I am not super smart I do know these things:  God is good.  That his call on our lives is big (for he gave a great sacrifice for us).  That I need to do a better job of loving and praying for my "enemies". That Jesus' radical love calls me to repentance and my heart overflows with thankfulness for God's forgiveness and grace.  As the article says "I can be thankful that God is just, and very thankful that God is gracious".  What about you?

Easter in Mostly Pictures

The Easter Bunny Came!  We are beginning to train our own Bo Jackson in the ways of multi-sport domination.

Yes, there are bikes on his tie.

 The best picture we could get from the student walking by who we asked to take our picture.

 Next to celebrating Jesus' resurrection this was the best part of the day (and our new favorite activity), playing in the creek!

He had so much fun wading in and out and retrieving the bottle that he would send down the falls!

 AHHH!!! THIS IS AWESOME (translation from the open mouth above)

 Throwing the bottle in

Daddy is a man of leisure.

Happy Easter