Twinkle, Twinkle Little Stars

 
Last night after we watched the American men win silver in the 4/100 relay, the last track and field event of the London Olympics, we headed outside to watch a meteor shower.  Slade, Addy, and I pulled the trampoline into a open spot with a clear view of the sky (over sixty fully mature trees makes this task a challenge).  We all laid on our backs, gazing and waiting, and after a few minutes we saw our first meteor blaze across the sky.  It had a beautiful arched tail, and as it traveled it lit up the dark with a flash of white.  Everyone oohed and when it was over the horse in our neighbor's pasture neighed so loud that it made us all laugh.  When the horse neighed at every meteor from then on we decided that he was enjoying the night sky as well.  It was hilarious, and even Elinor listened for the horse.  She would say, "The horse neighs, horses neigh, daddy."  When the horse stopped neighing, we decided he was tired, and it was time for us to head to the house as well and go to bed after a long day's work.
 
The day was very productive.  The girls and I cleaned out the closets, organized the clothes bins in the shop, while Slade cleaned out the barn, and cleaned and organized the shop.  The closets were full of unused clothing, clothing that was out of season and not the right sizes.  We sorted piles of keep, throw away, and give away.  The same went for my bins in the shop.  We sorted by sizes and seasons.  I culled deeply, and it felt wonderful.  Although, it was sort of emotional.  Going through baby clothes is bitter sweet.  I was having so many memories surface of the girl's, each outfit revealing another time and another place.  It is hard to accept how fast kids grow up.  Maybe that's why I have avoided dealing with the mountain of clothes chaos that was in the shop.  Maybe that's why my scrapbooks are unfinished.  However, today as I write this I feel such a sense of peace and harmony.  Being stuck in a rut, or in the past is not a healthy feeling.  Things change, and nothing stays the same...might as well jump in the river and keep moving, enjoying the now.  Now that my closets are clean and my seasonal clothes are organized I feel stronger and better equipped to deal with the clothes issues that a family of 5 girls faces...oh my, the laundry, the accessories, the outfits, the drama...it's great!
 
Slade did man stuff... hauled off trash, cleaned tools and lawn equipment, organized the work spaces, and made room in the barn for more bunny cages.  He has been like a bird out of a cage sense he finished graduate school.  The three years of school took a toll on the outside maintenance regimen, however since May Slade has been steadily catching up.  Things are looking great around here again.  I love to see the progress of family, husband, wife, and children, working together to make a home beautiful.  My attention to details, Slade's big picture vision, and the girl's willingness to work alongside us both makes work meaningful and surprisingly fun.    There is nothing like shared vision.  When we as a family think of  our family we have a certain vision in mind, the way we want things to be, the feelings we want to have, the atmosphere we want to create.  As we work together to bring that shared vision into existence and with each accomplished goal, the family grows up, grows stronger, and creates the family experience; together.

When the day was done and as we all laid on our sore backs on the trampoline everyone enjoyed the stars a little bit more.  We enjoyed the ice cream after supper a little bit more.  Hard work has a way of making play meaningful.  Everyone chimed in as I sang to Elinor, her all snuggled up next to me with her blanket and sucking her thumb.  I sang, "Twinkle, twinkle little star. How I wonder what you are.  Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky."  It was fun, and we all giggled and wondered how far away the stars really are, and how scary space is, and how mosquitoes bite, and what the difference is between meteors and comets, and what Haley's comet is, and how dark the sky is in West Texas, and how we had a great day, and how we were going to sleep hard tonight, and how it was amazing to think of all the people who were watching these same meteors, and how much we enjoy being together.  

 Work Together, Play Together