B is for blonde

(once upon a time)

and brave

(seeing as you have a scary reptile on your shoulder)

B is for beginnings

(with Noah, 2006)

(with Jude, 2009)

B is for beloved

(by your family, and so many others)

B is for bold

(because you have to be to run a marathon. Bold, and a little crazy.)

B is for backyard

(where I still spend much of my time, no matter where you live)

B is for blessing

(which is what you are to me, in more ways than I can count or express)

B is for Beki

and it’s her

B-day today.

Happy Birthday,

my beautiful friend.

Love, Lauren

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.” (John 11:25-26)

Praying God’s blessings on you and your families
as you celebrate this Easter day! He is risen indeed!

February, how I love thee! Let me count the ways:

1. I love your warm, sunny skies and lack of Florida humidity (though today happened to be an exception). Sunshine = outdoor playtime + picnics + good hair days + good mood.

2. I love Valentine’s Day and all its trimmings: cards, hearts, flowers, candy, the color pink, and hugs and kisses from my sweetheart. Any holiday where chocolate is the main gift is A-okay with me.

3. I love being done with the bulk of the tax forms for my bookkeeping job. WAHOO!

4. I love coming to the point where I realize most of my New Year’s resolutions were worthless and I can show myself some grace. And eat more chocolate.

5. I love having a six-month-old and a three and a half-year-old (those half-years make a big difference).

6. I love when people visit us. This is the month when Mickey Mouse and palm trees start to look really appealing.

(At Downtown Disney with Uncle Dan & Aunt Liz)

7. I love dressing my children up like this:

(Noah, age 6 months)

Even when they react like this:

Here’s to a fabulous February!

I have no idea what happened to December. I mean seriously, someone abducted an entire month and left me standing here with a Christmas tree and the last of the cookies. I know I didn’t sleep through it, because frankly, lack of sleep is most likely the problem. Someone snuck past me in my dozy stupor and robbed December out from beneath my nose. I blame the Grinch.

It’s a good thing I took pictures, or else it would all be a blur. Let’s see if any of these jog my memory:

Oh yes. It’s all coming back to me now. The decorations, the celebration, the grandparents, the fun. So much goodness crammed into one month that I’m almost dizzy.

January, I am keeping you on a tight leash.

Wishing you all a very happy Thanksgiving, from our house to yours!

Love, Lauren, Pete & the boys

It will be a different Thanksgiving this year for our family, in big ways and small. Watching the news this morning in the early morning hours, bouncing Jude on my lap, I saw the long lines of Thanksgiving travelers snaking through the airports and my heart lurched. Normally we would be among them, wrangling our way through security and sipping a well-deserved Starbucks at the gate while awaiting our flight to Denver.

This year we decided to stay home. It was the right decision, but a difficult one. We are in a season of learning to live with less, and the sacrifices that entails are testing me on every front. Less travel, fewer splurges, and constant deliberating over what I want versus what I need. I find myself taking the newspaper, glutted with Black Friday ads, directly to the recycling bin. In a way, it is a relief. The maelstrom of holiday shopping swirls around me like a Florida hurricane, and I am trying to stand in the eye of it, clutching my hard-won peace to my chest and counting my blessings, which are many.

This Thanksgiving is also different because it is marked by loss, a loss which makes any other seem trivial by comparison. On Monday, my brother-in-law Justin’s father, Rob, went home to Jesus. God answered our prayers that his pain would be relieved by taking him quickly, ending his battle with lung cancer. Rob will enjoy a different feast than the one we’ll prepare on Thursday—this one marked by freedom from suffering, supreme joy, and sweet reunion. But for the people he left behind, it is a time of grief. I write this to ask you to please uphold their family in your prayers.

It is a curious crossroads: to mourn the loss of a loved one, and to celebrate the joys that remain. To marvel at the two baby teeth preparing to adorn Jude’s gummy smile one moment, and to cry on the couch the next. The beauty and the ache are inseparable, as they will always be this side of heaven. I suppose, if it weren’t for the ache, we couldn’t appreciate the beauty.

Which is thanksgiving in its purest form.

When selecting a Thanksgiving centerpiece, one should always consider the following questions:

(1) What is my centerpiece budget?

(2) What materials do I already have on hand?

(2) What is my decorating style? Country Casual? Minimalist? Shabby Chic? Traditional?

(4) What will serve as the most memorable accent to our Thanksgiving feast?

For those of you still looking for ideas, here are some suggestions:

“Harvest Tableau” ($20-$25)

“Pumpkin Cluster” ($5)

“Classic Cornucopia” ($10-$25)

“Indian Baby in Bumbo Seat” (Priceless)

You can guess which one I’ve selected.

Happy Halloween!

From Ironman

… and Little Lobster!

Have a sweet & spooky holiday!

On the front page of this morning’s Orlando Sentinel

I think I could make a small fortune designing Halloween costumes for children in subtropical climates. Masks, long sleeves, and thick polyester would be banned. Shorts, leotards, lightweight capes, and sweat-proof face paint (SPF 45) would rule the day. How about “Surfer Batman” in swimming trunks? “Sand White” instead of Snow White—a princess without the petticoats? Babies dressed as cherubs, with only angel wings and a diaper? Let the kids in Minnesota dress like the Michelin Man in those puffy muscle costumes. We are roasting down here!!

Meanwhile, this is the scene at my parents’ house in Colorado:

Apparently, they are all going to dress like Eskimos for Halloween.