Finding beauty in Spring, books, and children.

One thing I am not used to is Chelsea asking me if we can go the park everyday!! We have a nearby park and a bike trail less than a block away, and with the weather being so perfect...it's hard to say no. Even during the school days. I said to her as long as you do your homework, and practice piano she can have some 'recreational' time. Having that extra hour of sunshine sure is a blessing.

 Every time we go to the park we walk past a house where the petals of the flowers are falling from the tree. Luckily we love our neighbors...as they love us, and don't mind when Chelsea pulls some of the flowers from their tree. 

This is the first time in the four years we have lived here where we have had a very mild winter, and spring came early. I don't mind it at all. Especially with our car breaking down, it helped my better half figure out what the problem was with our van by taking apart what's under the hood in warmer temperatures rather than in freezing temperatures.

Alexandra is my mini-mom. She will practically do anything for Noah! She hasn't had a lot of homework this past week so she is the one that has been taking Noah to the park...instead of me! Should I feel bad? Does that make me a bad mom? I don't think so. Sometimes I need a tiny break from him...sometimes.

 Having her take him for an hour or so gave me some time to catch up on my reading, and I am currently reading these books...

If your looking for a more peaceful tempo in your life...Gift from the Sea is the book to read. It was so inspiring. This book has been published for 50 years, but just now found out about it. It makes me want to live by the ocean, and to always find simplicity in life.

I am loving "A Million Miles in a Thousand Years". It's about a writer who is editing his life in hopes that when people read his story they won't roll their eyes up in the air or have anything negative to say. I have to say that so far I am not rolling my eyes or feel the need to close the book. I am halfway done, and can tell that this story will have a happy ending.

As I was reading the excerpts of the book, it truly does define me. As much as I live to write and tell stories about all the days of my life with kids, trials, adventures, church, etc. I strive to find the beauty in everything that I write about. Every day is a new day which means everyday we change. It is nice to write about things that are meaningful in hopes that others will find inspirational, and not boring.

I'm no Donald Miller, but telling my story in my own way on 'my blog' makes me happy, and when I leave this mortal life...I want to believe that in all my days of living, that I lived a good story.  I just hope my small chronicles makes others happy, or perhaps puts a smile on their face.

"And once you live a good story, you get a taste for a kind of meaning in life, and you can't go back to being normal; you can't go back to meaningless scenes stitched together by the forgettable thread of wasted time."

~from the book,  A Million Miles in a Thousand Years"