I’m experimenting with how to add video to the blog. Here’s a first attempt. Check out the bug eating dinner!

Need some help with budgeting? I sure do! Go on over to this post at Simple Mom, and enter her giveaway for a lifetime worth of free budgeting software!

A wedding is a very grounding, centering thing for me to witness. Being at a wedding always reminds me of what’s really important: my husband, and the covenant we entered into on March 11, 2005; my daughter, and the joy (and responsibility!) that she brings; my relationship with a covenantal God, and the ways that He has blessed me beyond all reason, beyond anything I could ever have planned for myself, far beyond what I deserve.

Tonight I went to a friend’s wedding. She is older - 36, I think - and one of those people of whom other people always say, “She’s such an amazing woman! Why isn’t she married yet?” (I won’t go into the reasons why this is a terrible way to think. But it is. It’s also beside the point.) The wedding was so beautiful and joyous, one of the most joyous I have ever been to. You could tell that everyone was just bursting with happiness for her, and she was absolutely radiant.

During the officiant’s message, he told her, almost as an aside, “Put away your preoccupations with what you thought your life would be like.” Isn’t that interesting? I found it extremely insightful. Marrying at age 36 is probably not what she had in mind for her life ten or fifteen years ago. Ten or fifteen years ago, she probably thought she would have been married for awhile by now, likely with a few kids in tow. Why did Dr. Taylor choose to say those words? Was it something specific for her that he knew she needed to hear? Or was it something more general to us as women, or even to all of our human natures?

I don’t know. But those words stood out from among all the others as though they were directed personally to me via a megaphone from heaven. I have been fighting to put away some preoccupations of my own for a little while now. It’s selfish and ungrateful to hang on to those preoccupations, I know that. Yet sometimes it is so hard to move forward. I don’t know what or where forward is. I don’t know what lies ahead - and of course, in reality, I never did.

I want to be content with my circumstances, ALL of the time. I want to be grateful, and cognizant of how BLESSED I am, ALL of the time.

And I want to dream new dreams.

1.  She loves to say “hi” and “hey” to everyone we pass, everywhere.  At the grocery store she is like someone riding on a float in a parade; everyone gets a wave and a “hi,” along with a sweet dimply smile.

2.  She loves my old Curious George doll; whenever she is upset all I have to do is give her George and she is instantly happy.  She gives him kisses and combs his hair with her little comb.

3.  She loves to give kisses to me and Fox - big, happy, slobbery kisses right on the smacker.

4.  She recently added sound effects to her kisses - something like, “mmmmmmmmmm-AH!” - mimicking me, I believe.

5.  She even more recently began blowing kisses - complete with sound effects.  It’s adorable.

6.  She loves to laugh and play games and giggle and try to get us to chase her and giggle some more.

7.  She is SO OBSERVANT!  She doesn’t miss a thing - though she has always been like that.  On our morning walk, when something catches her eye, she uses her arms to lift herself up out of the stroller and cranes her neck to get a better look - be it a squirrel, a cat, another person, a bird, etc.

8.  When the phone rings, she says, “Hi!”  Sometimes even before I can answer.

9.  She loves to swing in the baby swings.   She laughs and laughs.

10.  She is learning to walk, and she is sooo proud of herself!  The smile just goes from ear to ear.  Then she gets too excited or tries to go too fast, and plop, she’s back down on all fours.

11.  The other night she was playing with her food a little bit - not really eating it - so Fox picked up a piece from her tray and pretended to eat it, to show her that SHE should eat it.  Instead, she picked up a piece, and then PRETENDED  TO EAT IT, TOO!  With a big grin on her face, I might add.  She’s a smarty pants.

Wednesday night, we had a babysitter and went out on a date - it was our third date since Ladybug was born! And it was the first time we asked a babysitter who was non-family. A real milestone!

It was such a great evening. We had already eaten dinner earlier with Ladybug, so no dinner involved, but we went to the coffeehouse where we first decided to get married, and sat on the same bench where we sat that night almost four years ago. We talked and talked, then went for a drive around our old neighborhood, where our first apartment was. I miss that neighborhood so much. Then we went and found a bench and talked some more - we stayed out until almost midnight! On a weekday! Such extravagance! It was one of the best evenings in a long time.

Fox started summer school this week, and it’s a bit rough - on both of us. The class meets five days a week, as opposed to twice a week during the regular semester, so everyday he’s gone at 6:30 am for his hour-long commute to school. It’s hard not having him home in the mornings to help me out. Then he works all afternoon and gets home around 6. Long days. It’s been a long week. Thankfully, we had the date on Wednesday night to break up the week. And today is Friday! Yay! Two whole days together…bliss.

Ladybug started walking! She’s not consistent - she still falls a lot and crawls more than she walks, but she’s definitely walking. It’s amazing! I can’t wait for her to really be good at it and give up crawling - then maybe she’ll stop eating every single little thing that she comes across on the floor!

I would just like to announce that for the past two nights, Ladybug has slept nine and a half hour stretches!

Thank you, God!