Reconnecting

What a fun weekend it's been.

C & S arrived around dinnertime on Friday night. As I walked out the front door to greet them, their little girl Julia (4) climbed over the front seat, jumped out of the car with a bouquet of flowers in hand, and shouted, "Hi!" What a welcome. I was shocked to see how big Caleb was. After hugs and handshakes, we went inside. Julia and Caleb inspected the house. Julia found all our books and immediately started pulling them off the shelves for us to read to her. (Ira Sleeps Over, George and Martha. D said she had good taste.) Caleb busied himself with a truck and some play tools.

I threw some Cokes in the freezer to chill quickly. We sat down to a rather disorganized, but pleasant, meal together (thank you, Panera & Kraft Macaroni and Cheese), put the kids to bed, and stayed up chatting til midnight. Right before we went to bed, D and I heard a muffled boom - or thud - or something. We looked around the kitchen and basement but couldn't figure out what happened, so we went to bed.

The next day we trekked over to Cosley Zoo (which S coined Snuggly Zoo - so much more appropriate than the original) a nearby petting zoo geared for kids up to six years old. Horses and llamas and giant Flemish bunnies...?

Oh my.

During our weekend, Julia convinced D to read to her, let her pet Boo & Kanga (the gerbils), and play his guitar. Together they sang Joshua, & Fruit of the Spirit. D was impressed because Julia already knew a lot of the words, although she'd only had the CD a week.

Caleb followed me around the house, laughing and trying to headbutt my knees. C said that was a sign of affection.

At naptime, D & S bonded over Atari (which means I'm off the hook for a few days), and C and I took a walk to a nearby park to talk and pray. It was an encouragement to me. Her words must have been something I needed to hear, because my pastor repeated them almost verbatim in this morning's sermon. God is good.

And of course, you readers must have figured out much more quickly than I did what the muffled boom was...

Yes, Mom. I am my father's daughter.