This post marks an attempt to get back to blogging. I won't lie. I'm feeling a little defeated at the moment - not depressed, or even sad, just defeated. A massive to-do list builds up through the school year and the only thing that sets my mind at rest is the thought that we will tackle all the to-do's when the summer arrives. Yes, the summer as panacea. And, here we are, almost mid-summer and nothing has been done and the house seems to be getting dirtier and dirtier. In fact, major appliances are breaking at record pace, the dog needed to be seen by the vet and have I mentioned that I haven't purchased or written in a baby book since Joseph was born? Well, Isaac and Sarah have baby books; it's just that they're empty. They also have wall calendars stored in a box with milestones scribbled between doctor's appointments and school concerts. I suppose my inability to keep up becomes part of the story, doesn't it.
Yet, in the midst of it all, look at these photos! Look at the life that continues on. Look at the joy, the growth, the relationships forged. So much goodness. As my dear Uncle Larry often says, "Look at the love."
There was a lot of love this summer. We had a family reunion of sorts for almost all of July. Family came and went from Texas, Nova Scotia, Toronto and the UK. Cousins met one another for the first time; young and old swam together, laughed together, danced together, prayed together and cried together.
Some of us also scaled mighty walls at the parish family fun day.
Jacob organized a fabulous Amazing Race: Family Edition and we closed the family reunion with races, clues, games and laughter. Well, tears as well - someone is always bound to skin a knee in the opening event.
My Aunt Pat from London, England surprised us all by printing family reunion t-shirts for all members of the family - 26 t-shirts - size XL down to 6-12 months. Dave is sporting the white version while he plays goal for the Amazing Race.
When Jacob asked Dave what his favourite event in the Amazing Race was, he answered, "When Uncle Nathan's beer can got hit by the soccer ball and exploded."
Poor Uncle Nathan. There was lots more where that came from.
Sarah and her first cousin Miriam formed the team Pinkalicious. Team Pinkalicious was inseparable and daily defied one another to wear more pink, more sparkles and more nail polish. When designing the Race, Jacob asked me if either Sarah or Miriam could read. When I answered in the negative, he said, "Pinkalicious might be at a significant disadvantage." What they lacked in literacy, they made up for in cuteness and the resulting cheating that playing the cute card allows.
Mariana seemed to swing between extremely happy and completely confused for the majority of the reunion. Poor little girl: every time she awoke from a nap, someone new seemed to have arrived bearing hugs and kisses. So, there we go, life goes on, even when I fail to record it. The photos are precious, the baby books are great for reminiscing, but what is written on the hearts and souls of these children is what really matters and, inevitably, the only thing that will last.
