I am still here.

I am thinking. I have had no time to blog recently. I have been trying to stay on top of homeschooling, cleaning out and organizing my house and writing a little. I have been trying to spend a lot more time with the girls reading. I have been researching new floors for our house, we are adding a bath tub and shower to our half bath...in a while...so i have been looking into that...and I have been traveling.

When I say "traveling" I am not referring to Cabo or Maine...just a quick trip to St. Louise. I, my friend Lee Ann, and my friend Diane, all flew up on Monday and returned on Tuesday. Our friend's father passed away this past week end and we went to attend the wake and the funeral. I am so thankful that we got to be there and be a part of this important time. (For the record, I am glad that we made it home alive...because our flight home was traumatic.) Life is fragile. There is a very real sense in which "growing up means saying goodbye". It is a sad, sad "thing" to have to do. I will never get over it. Her dad died of lung cancer. He was a strong man, artistic, athletic and outgoing. He had very real interactions with people. His mail man showed up at the wake with his arms full of pizzas for the family. Many people stood in line to share words of praise, gratitude and sweet memories with the family. It made me want to live more thoughtfully. I left wanting to really listen to people and truly interact with them more...not just have a pacifying conversation. Death interrupts everything. It re-orients the lives of those who are still living. It demands your attention.

I was so glad to touch my family again, give them hugs & kisses and hear them argue with one another. After Greg picked me up from the airport, we ended our evening by wrestling with the 4 kiddos at On The Border. I was not pre-occupied with all of the things that I needed to get done, or bothered by the busyness that always accompanies us to the dinner table. It was sweet and I was thankful for life.