Good Things

Kris came home last night. His flight was a bit late and he was tired, but we made it to church and had a good evening. I am going out tonight, so it really won’t be until tomorrow that we can truly catch up and feel like we’re both back in the groove but it is so nice to have him back. Owen was excited and quite ready to have daddy back. He jabbered all the way home from church (he usually falls asleep) and though he didn’t talk about daddy much I really think it was an energy that came from having his daddy back.

While waiting for Kris’ flight I sat next to a woman in the baggage claim area who was also waiting for the same plane to land. Her daughter and grand-daughters were flying in from a visit to a doctor in Orlando. As we talked it became more and more obvious that we held the same belief system. I don’t think either one of us asked the other if we were Christians it just sort of entered the conversation on it’s own. We not only believe in the same God but have some similar experiences and challenges that have grown our faith and caused us to dig a little deeper in the Word for answers that weren’t obvious to us from the teaching we received in Sunday School. It was really encouraging to hear her talk about her granddaughter, Katie, who developed autism just before the age of two. They are praying for Katie and she asked me to pray and asked if I would ask my friends to pray (consider yourself asked) because they believe that God has already healed Katie and that soon she will talk again and react to things as a five year old should react. They believe in what God has done, but are waiting for it to be manifested in her little body. I got to meet Katie just before we left and she is a beautiful little girl. I didn’t get any contact information so I may never see them again but I know that God knows them and because of that I am as connected as I need to be. I will certainly pray for Katie.

I had to run to the church early this morning because I forgot to take a couple of things last night. I decided to let Owen play on the playground for a couple of hours while we were up that way and he had a good time. Joey was perfect, he sat in the stroller nearly the entire time and giggled and played with the little toy and blanket and the emblem on his shirt. This afternoon was a different story but I don’t want to talk about it.

While I sat there in the little coffee area Kristy Passons (wife of the children’s pastor) held up these 8 vinyl covered foam play pieces and asked if I knew of anyone who would like to have them. She explained that they came with the playground but the kids didn’t play with them well. They basically used them to beat on each other and even when they were nicely put away the kids, being kids, would seek them out to further their quest for foam fighting. The church had decided to throw them away. I told her that I would take them. I didn’t know if Owen would like them or not but I could see them being handy for several things and if I were wrong they could be thrown out in my trash or better yet…sold on Ebay.

Owen has enjoyed them already and Joey is contained by them. This is important as he has become more and more mobile of late. He is not safe left to himself downstairs as he is also very strong. Yesterday, he pulled my candy dish off of the credenza and shattered the lid ( this was somewhat upsetting as it was crystal and a wedding gift, one of my favorite things, but a thing none the less and no tears were shed) He was completely unscathed, thank God, and I was able to clean it up completely with the vacuum and a quick pick up of the quilt it all landed on. I was glad to be able to hand over a non-bloody child once his mother arrived just minutes later. That could have been a lot worse…not only could he have cut himself but had he reached in and started putting pistachios in his mouth he may have choked. I never had to baby proof this much with Owen and I am often surprised at Joey’s ability to get into things. He is also very attracted to my curtains and I am convinced that if he got a hold of them just right, he could pull them down on himself. He still doesn’t crawl, but he rolls with purpose and gets just about anywhere he wants to go. Most of the time he is here now is spent upstairs in the toy room where he is safe from most things that could hurt him, and the gate is always shut. He will be crawling proficiently soon, I’m sure, so next week being his last week here is somewhat of a relief to me. I just pray that this has not been a preview of the curiosity and drive that Ivan will bestow on us. Time will tell.