God Invented Hilarity

I've always believed that God has a hilarious side to His character. Just look around you...there are a lot of things to laugh at in our world.

Alicia Shockey laughs a lot, and she doesn't really seem to take herself too seriously. I love that.

God invented hilarity, and this moment of hilarity that I had the honor of capturing is but a glimpse of God's true sense of humor. Thanks for the reminder, Alicia.

You're the Reason for the Teardrop on My Camera

Every year in June, friends and family at church, in our neighborhoods, at our schools, celebrate the achievements and accomplishments of their children. For some it's graduation from Jr. High to High School, for some it's 6th grade to Jr. High, for some it's High School to College and for some it's College to infinity and beyond.

Every year in June, I go to somebody's graduation, or somebody's graduation party. And every year, I am touched by all the words that are spoken by both the parents and the grads. Sometimes I don't really even know the families of the grads but I am still moved by their emotion. I always leave these occasions feeling like I know everybody just a little better.

Such was the case with Beth's graduation party. Watching her open presents, listening to her banter back and forth with her Mom, hearing the stories of the relatives who had traveled from different states and what her plans are for the future...I almost felt like I was eavesdropping on a private conversation. Such an outpouring of love and pride for Beth and all that she has accomplished...it all made me wish that I had not waited so long to get to know this beautiful girl.

I shed a few tears that day. I probably ate way more Baklava than I should have. I embarrassed my girls by teaching the Electric Slide to some middle aged women such as myself. I got to listen in on and participate in some family intimacy. I left knowing this family a whole lot better.

I love that.

The Right Hand Better Know What the Left Hand is Doing

Jesse Bica, the world's fastest jump roper in the world.

This is no joke...he won the World Championship Speed Jumper title in South Africa last year. I never even knew there was such a thing.

Last summer, as part of his Eagle Scout project, he organized a fundraiser for a friend who had been in a near fatal car accident. This fundraiser was a jumproping exhibition and included routines done by the whole "Hot Dog" jump rope team.

I went to this fundraiser and I was flabberghasted by what I saw. It wasn't just double dutch...it was gymnastics, it was speed, it was teamwork. It was a variety of athleticism that I had never seen before.

What I was most impressed by was the intricacy of their teamwork...each jumper was absolutely and totally dependent on the turners for the rhythm of their jumping, the coordination of their flips and somersaults, and ultimately the safe outcome of their routines. One wrong move and a flip between two ropes could result in a broken neck and permanent paralysis.

The turners depended on the rhythmic sound of the jumpers to keep their own rhythm.

It was all a very coordinated group effort made up of individuals' precision athleticism that caused me to re-think my definition of team work.

And Jesus said, "Let the Little Children Come to Me"

This is Sadie. She is #4 in a lineup of 5 children. As her mom, Allie and I were preoccupied taking pictures of her newborn baby sister Lola, Sadie played contentedly nearby, talking to herself, laughing, and occasionally wandering back over to make sure that Lola was being well cared for. It was quite the photoshoot for Sadie...she wasn't really concerned about how many pictures were taken of her, what her hair looked like or even if there was chocolate cookie smeared all over her chin. She was just happy to be with us. Such is the life of a sibling so far down in the pecking order.

It has been said that if we allow God to be our birth control, we will have a huge family, because God loves children. It has also been said that we should never have more children than we can afford to take care of. It's a good thing that I have never heard both of those comments come from the same mouth at the same time.

Big families are a blessing. Children are a blessing. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them.

What Generation Gap?

When I was growing up, we used to talk about the "Generation Gap" a lot. What we were talking about was the inability for our parents to understand the choices we made...clothing, music, friends, religion, politics. There was such a huge difference in the way we perceived life and how we treated each other because of it. Now that I have my own kids, it seems that term is obsolete. In my home, my girls and I share clothes, all 4 talk openly about subjects that were forbidden in my childhood, they freely disagree with me and have their own strong opinions about things I didn't even understand until I was a young adult; and the most meaningful "lack of gap" thread that we share is music. My parents made me go in my room and close my door when I listened to music. They never knew who was popular and they had no idea what kind of music I listened to or preferred.

I am grateful that my kids share my love for music and that they love a lot of the same music that I loved as a teenager. I listen to a pretty wide variety of their music as well, and I even can name some of them when I hear them on their favorite stations.

I took this picture at Ellie's 1st birthday party, and I was intrigued by their interaction. The only real gap between right now is their age. Let's hope it stays that way.

"The most important things in life are not things."

I found this picture of Lexie (15) and Lucy (4 mos.) buried deep in my Photoshop catalog, and although it was taken in December of 2007, I couldn't help but post it. Lexie is now 17 and Lucy is almost 2. It reminds me of how fast our children grow and how time flies. Lately I've been spending a lot of time reminiscing and trying to remember different events in my childrens' lives; what they looked like, what they sounded like, how they acted. The harder I try to hang on to their childhoods, the faster they grow. Letting go is not one of my strengths.

Lately, my advice to all my friends with babies and small children: "take a lot of pictures, even under protest, and make sure not to blink."

Auntie Becca's Helper

Every child needs to feel like he has a purpose. This day, Tavion's purpose was to help match socks. He didn't quite get the whole matching thing, but he figured out how to put the socks on. He was willing and cooperative long enough to let me photograph this process, which this photo concludes.