Re: the title of this post, Alek is eating Life cereal this morning for breakfast. This led me to making the above comment in total non-seriousness and then saying, "that would make a great title for a book." I don't write books.
It's been an interesting week. I have come to terms with not going to Arizona for Christmas. The hardest part is going to be not having Alek around, but I think we can still have a good day. We finally decorated the tree and the house this week. I still have to put up the stockings (I have to make Charlie's first), but otherwise the house is decked out. Christmas shopping is almost done, except we haven't gotten anything for Charlie yet. I even wrapped presents last night. So I am feeling more in the spirit of things.
A big part of the reason why is because of the wonderful Enrichment night we had at church this week. The sisters in the ward had a Christmas dinner and filmmaker Kieth Merrill spoke to us. His remarks were touching, and he showed clips from movies about Christ that caused tears all around. I had to sing to close the program and I was terrified. I sang "Breath of Heaven" by Amy Grant, and if anyone knows that song then you know it is definitely written for an alto. I am definitely not an alto, and my practices did not leave me feeling confident about performing. However, my singing ended up being pretty good -- so much better than I had anticipated. When the first notes came out and I heard myself, I actually couldn't believe how good I sounded. Please don't misunderstand me -- I am not bragging. I had the distinct feeling as I sang that I was not alone. I felt that the spirit was with me, that I had heavenly help. It was an uplifting experience. And the whole evening helped to get me into more of a Christmas mood.
In fact, this whole week has served as a testament to me of the reality of the Savior and His Father. I know that they are aware of me, of my family and that they are helping us along our way. Things get scary and difficult at times, but when I turn to God, I receive his help. Things do not usually work out the way I want them to, but they work out and I always come out the other end -- and sometimes I have even learned something.
The kids are all doing well. Alek is enjoying school, but also looking forward to break and his trip to Arizona. There are so many great things about Alek. I love that his imagination and his love of pretend have not diminished at all as time has flown by. He told me recently that when he grows up he wants to make comic books, movies and video games. What I hear when he tells me this: 1) I want to be like my Dad and 2) I am a storyteller, a creator. Even now he is reading over my shoulder and making suggestions on what to write next. He's so funny. I love that he is helpful with his brother and sister. I love that when we ask him to clean his room, he listens to music and sings as he picks up. I love that he is confident in his abilities in so many ways, but still needs and wants my help in others. He wants me to let you know that in addition to making up comics, he also creates inventions.
Katie continues to be, as Josh would say, our red devil. I remember when I had my ultrasound that the technician said we had a "feisty" one on our hands. That has definitely proven to be true. She is a sweet, affectionate girl, but she definitely knows her own mind and loves to be into everything. Some of Kate's most repeated quotes? "I don't want it," "I don't think so," "Stop it/that," and, her new one, "I'm not going!" She loves to read, draw, color, play with Mr. Potatohead, dance and sing. She loves to wear Dad's hats and Mom's shoes. She loves potatoes. Whenever I am on the computer, she asks me to see "shark whale", which really means she wants to see a whale, because if you show her a picture of a shark, she starts whining and saying, "that's scary."
Charlie is getting around pretty well these days, which means he is into everything. The bottom three feet of our Christmas tree are not decorated because Charlie would make a mess of that in two seconds flat. I am looking forward to Charlie growing up more and getting to know him better and seeing what he will become. My guesses? He'll be sweet, easy-going, relatively quiet, unassuming. But I could be completely wrong! Children are such an adventure. You think you know what they'll be like, who they'll be and they have great ways of proving you wrong. I am strapping myself in and getting ready for the ride.
Josh is doing well in school and enjoying it a great deal more than he was early on. He's getting good grades and is preparing for future internship opportunities. I've inserted some of his recent work above, both Corel Painter works. Josh loves being a dad and he's super at it.
That's my family life in a nutshell. Although I worry often, everything really is fine. There are so many wonderful moments in my life and I have so many people to love. I am blessed. If life is just a cereal, then cereal is the greatest gift we've ever been given.
