the artist

She moved the chair all by herself so she could reach the special markers. I was going to stop her, take them away...but then I saw her laying on the floor, kicking her feet so contentedly as she colored, keeping the marker mostly on the paper this time.
So I let it happen and the house survived marker in the hands of Kenna while I just watched her being quiet and sweet.
Today she did it again. Quietly, again. I was not watching. The carpet is pink.

put it on the list

I have a thing for lists lately. To-do lists, baby needs lists, book lists, address lists...you name it, I'll list it. (I'm twenty-seven months pregnant, I believe I'm allowed this little obsession?)
That said, here's a random list for the day. Things that have made me happy or inspire me to do or just impress me enough to want to revisit them. Or maybe to make a list...

* Meghan's adorable quiet book. If only I had her skills.
* This fabric. Oh and this one too. And maybe this one...
* The daily bits of habit and this post of Pioneer Woman's photography.
* All those blogs listed over there under 'friends who blog'.
* A good long phone call yesterday with a dear friend. Blogs and emails are great for keeping up but there is nothing like hearing a familiar voice, laugh and sigh to help you feel a little bit less so-far-away (and also to leave you wishing you were not so far away!)
* And that little bunny's pom-pom tail...

b is for baby

And blanket...

and bunny...

and bear...

...and belly. Not sure I want to take a picture of that just now. It's beginning to scare me.

a request

I spent about four hours feeling sorry for myself in a purple chair yesterday morning. I was in the Naval Hospital waiting room with yet another sinus infection and a lovely case of conjunctivitis to go with it. I’m fine and most importantly, baby is fine, but still –bleh. That’s how I felt. Then I received a good dose of military hospital reality that made me stop feeling so bad about my little runny nose. While I was actually in the ER, I couldn’t help but listen to the goings on of other patients hidden among the maze of thin curtains. A man next to me had come in with his wife and daughter and was about to be wheeled away for surgery. I stared at the feet of the doctor and the marine's wife as they spoke. Apparently, this man suffers from night terrors and other symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. He wakes up screaming. What will happen when he wakes up from surgery? On my other side, a young marine was brought in by a friend after he spent the night awake, angry and suicidal. Apparently, he too suffers from PTSD and it had caused him to get into an altercation with a friend that set off his restless night. He sounded scared. I was scared for them both. Suddenly the harsh reality of where my husband works was all around me. The surgeon’s feet reappeared behind curtain number one and I listened to her tell the family that she likes to pray before taking a patient into the operating room. Could she pray with this family? They said yes and she did. She offered up the most sincere prayer for her patient and the work she was about to do and I found myself silently praying with her (and thanking the Lord that there are surgeons in this hospital who pray!) I was suddenly overwhelmed with gratefulness for my own husband’s safety and peace of mind and the need to pray without ceasing for him and others to be protected from the lifetime effects of combat and war. I don’t mean to be a downer today, I just felt this was important to share. If you could spare a moment, will you please, please pray for a marine, soldier, sailor or airman that you know? No photo in my post today as I’m sure we can all picture someone in our minds–a relative, a friend, a friend of a friend or just the faces you see on the news every night. Picture them and pray for them. So many have wounds only our Great Physician can heal.

goodbye snow

Except for sad little remains of snowmen and a few white patches in the shade here and there, our snow has melted. It has been four years since we saw this much and may be another four years before it happens again so I guess it's a good thing I took so many pictures. Now it's back to plain old brown, winter cold. But I'll keep looking for bright spots and colorful moments, camera in hand.

about that bird

A couple of you have asked about that fat little Cardinal up there. It was a lucky shot. I was setting up my camera on a tripod in the garage to get a whole-family-in-the-snow picture and I looked up to see him perched in the trees right in front of me. I zoomed in and snapped a few quick pictures and then tried to get closer to take some more careful shots but scared the little guy away. He kept on singing from out of sight in the bushes, taunting me. My kids act like that around the camera a lot too.

Here's a few more bits of frozen garden...

snow day

I got my wish! It is cold...but oh so pretty. And oh so fun.

In today's sharp sparkle, this winter air...

Inside, we watch the TV, sharing a moment in history with the world. Outside, we watch the snow, sharing a moment in winter as a family.

(post title from Elizabeth Alexander's inaugural poem)

a list of things lately...

1. Fourth Circle is on repeat shuffle in my car.

2. We started The Truth Project at church...wow.
3. I drink a lot of orange juice, not so much coffee.
4. I wish that if it has to be so cold we could at least have a little snow to make it a pretty cold.
5. The kids discovered that if they talk loud enough they can hear each other from their separate rooms. The post-bedtime giggling is adorable and sweet but we have to put an end to it after a while which is no fun for anyone.
6. The closets and corners of our home have been filling up with stuff. I've made a few trips to Goodwill. The kids didn't notice. I can breathe again.
7. My son loves to learn...reading, guitar, writing, cooking, games, the solar system...and I wonder sometimes if I can keep up with his hungry little brain.8. My daughter likes to be cozy. She brings me a blanket and says "cosy! cosy!" till I wrap her up and snuggle her close. I like to be cozy too, Kenna.
9. The kids like to call dad on the phone. We don't get to see him much during the week but we are thankful he is only a phone call away.
10. We love our weekends. Dad is home and makes pancakes. Mom makes lattes and hot chocolate. We play and we sit by the fire.I hope you have had a warm weekend...whatever the temperature outside may be. I'm still in weekend mode since the holiday is stretching ours through Tuesday...the weather man says snow is coming...

eighteen degrees and sunny

Sun catchers...

and fairy laundry.

Bright spots in a very cold day.

something to do

We have a box of broken crayons to use up so I thought I'd try to re-create an art project I remember my mom doing with me and my siblings. First, we peeled the paper from bunch of crayons.

Next, I grated the crayons up into a bowl till we had a nice mix of colored shavings (that cheese grater may never recover).
The kids sprinkled the shavings over a sheet of wax paper (and pretty much everywhere else). We then placed another sheet of wax paper over them and gently applied an iron on low till the colors were just melted (too much heat and they turned to mud).

The result is a colorful sun-catcher. You can cut them into shapes to hang in a window or keep them as they are. The fun for the kids was definitely in the making of the mess.
Now on to my next task. Sew up those darn pants Kenna is (almost) wearing to avoid any more falling down pants pictures.

letting ourselves go

Kenna likes to wear brothers old pajama pants over her own pants. Tristan still hasn't had that haircut. I can't reach my feet and have resorted to wearing polka-dotted garden clogs pretty much everywhere I go.
We're going to stick around the house a lot this month.
Oh, but we will enjoy it. We're liking the cozy, scruffy, easiness of it all.

play it again

I think Shawn was annoyed when I snuck in with the camera. He didn't know that this simple little pre-bedtime moment was, for me, a big deal.

Because in my head I was seeing this moment, captured almost five years ago.

princess kenna day

It began with blueberry pancakes and gifts -oh so many gifts from family we wish we could share days like this with. Kenna has been crying boat! boat! all week so this was her day to sail. I had to draw the line at swimming, however. Yes, the little stinker actually wanted to swim in that cold, choppy water.

Dad decorated her birthday cake himself with such sweet care. It was sparkly and purple and perfect.

Between her new outfit and her new backpack we heard many exclamations of ah me mommy! ah me daddy! (translation: look at me mommy! look at me daddy!)

It was a fun day of celebrating our spunky little girl. I'm pretty sure she had a lot of fun too.

The day ended with a freshly bathed Kenna laying down in her bed, surrounded by her animals and dolls (and I do mean surrounded, it's hard to find space for her among them sometimes) and asking to be covered with a cozy blanket. Sweet sleep at the end of a very sweet day.

missing my garden

We've had strangely warm weather lately making it possible to spend a lot of time outside (barefoot, even!) Tristan is beginning to master his big bike (a $10 garage sale find for a growing boy) and Kenna has decorated the driveway with sidewalk chalk. The only problem with spending a lot of time in the yard in January is that it makes me look around and wish I could do something about the deadness. Besides Kenna's artwork, everything is brown and bland. All is as it should be in January but I can't help it, I miss the growing things. I have to remind myself of the importance of winter's sleep. We all need this season of rest. This time to be still. This time to quietly gain strength for the seasons ahead. What could I really drag my pregnant self out there to work on anyway? No, for now, we rest. And a closer look at the bleak world does reveal the promise...

There are seeds. Lots of seeds.
The flowers will come back and when they do I too will be rested and ready to be working among them again.

Well OK, let's get real. I'm having a baby in about five weeks so come Spring I don't know about the rested part but I will certainly be ready to dig my hands in the soil with this babe in a sling rather than my belly!

To everything there is a season... Ecc 3:1

more visions on the carolina coast

saturday sail

The pelicans greeted us at the docks on a beautiful, balmy Saturday. As much as I talk of loving winter and wishing for cold and snow, I do know how lucky we are to have days like this in January.

There was hardly any wind but we didn't care, it was a gorgeous day. The air was not too cold, the sun was warm and parents and kids alike were happy to be sailing, well, motoring along the coast. Tristan prefers to have the sails down because it means he gets to hang out in his favorite spot at the bow and clamber around topside in the fresh air. I can't say I blame him. Kenna likes to sit wherever she can reach out to throw crumbs to the bish. At nap time she is content to relax inside and needs very little to be comfortable. You know, just the essentials like her blanket, her paci, her pink sunglasses, her book, her cup, her Tad doll....

I get in trouble when I'm at the wheel because I usually have a camera in one hand, the wheel in the other and more attention focused on the camera than where I am going. But how can I help myself when have this sweet moment in my viewfinder...

two years ago today...

I can't believe we are celebrating two whole years with you, Kenna Bear. Two years of your smile, your adorable personality, your sweet voice and all the joy you bring to our family. We love you and thank the Lord for the blessing that is you, little one.
Daddy was sad to miss your first birthday and has to work such a long week, he has plans to make this Saturday with you Princess Kenna Day. You are one special little girl and I have a feeling your Dad is going to do a good job of making sure you always know it!
Happy Birthday Kenna Marie!

one more day

Today we said goodbye to our Christmas tree and carefully packed away all the little memories that made it sparkle. Shawn and I are not nick-knack-souvenir types so whenever we travel we look for a special ornament to commemorate the time. Over the years we have collected quite a few and it is fun each year to hang them on the tree with exclamations of oh, remember when... or I forgot about that! Now, added to the vacation memories are "baby's firsts" and preschool glitter creations making it even more special.
Yesterday I began the New Year's task of putting away the Christmas decor but I just couldn't bring myself to start on the tree. One more day, I decided, and while the kids napped I sat next to it working on that baby blanket instead. The blanket (you may remember seeing the beginnings of here) has been a heap of trouble I didn't expect, but it is beginning to come together and I love the snugly, soft, winter weight of it.
The tree may be gone now but the fire is lit and there is a new blanket in my lap -already snuggled around the baby it will soon welcome. Post-holiday life is still cozy in the Campbell house.