blessed beyond measure

Though it's taken a while to develop, we are so thankful for the friendships both we and the boys have here in our community. Friendships that go beyond, "How have you been?" to, "Got your back." Trey and Eli, who might as well be an honorary member of our family, teamed up for the science fair this year and spent Saturday doing their experiments with baking soda and vinegar, and then Coke and Mentos. Because science is at its best when there are eruptions. Aden and his some of his basketball teammates have bonded as brothers this year. He and Cutler work out plays communicated solely through eye contact, while he and Gage are the dynamic duo of defense. They all cheer each other on and do that thing where you jump up and side bump each other. Good stuff. Then our tribe spent Saturday evening together, laughing til we cried, offering presence instead of shallow solutions where we are struggling, remembering how great it was to grow up in the late...

So back in November I went very non-Ashley and quite impulsively decided to swap out the light fixture above our kitchen table. Never mind my tremendous lack of electrical experience. Never mind that I could have easily broken or dropped or ruined both fixtures through the process, or even electrocuted myself or burned the house down. If those thoughts even occurred to me, apparently they didn't hold much weight as I put full blind trust in a bearded guy from YouTube and plowed through. It's so pretty, y'all. And yes, of course, praise the Lord for not letting anything bad happen. But isn't it pretty?? Sometimes I just stop and stare at it. It sings to me of accomplishment and even a bit of self-worth. But it does something else too. It makes me stop and stare at other things in the house, and just wonder. Hmm. And now, years too late, I know exactly how Aden felt when he learned to walk. "Can I touch that? Yes, I can! Ooh, can I touch that? Yes, ...

Can't even remember how it got started, but a few years ago Aden christened a new game called "Pets". His stuffed animal collection had started growing bit by bit, and of course it only seemed right to this huge-hearted imaginitave blue-eyed boy that these creatures should all be real . As time has gone by, every new stuffed thing through our doors has joined this diverse family, all of whom have developed personalities and each of whom has its own voice. Provided by me, and in turn provided by God's grace to a Mama who had no idea her vocal chords could do so many things. So for the sake of posterity and to offer a glimpse into the wonder that is Aden's mind, I now introduce to you the pets. Top row, left to right Green Bear He's actually a member of the Green Twins - his brother, MIA at the moment, is the same except with blue eyes. These guys do everything together and talk sort of like a toned-down Julia Child. Max This fellow comes from the mov...

So y'all know Trey. The firstborn. Little man. My super-smart, chatterbox, crooked-eared, analytical, competitive and endlessly entertaining boy with the huge hazel eyes and mile-long eyelashes who first called me Mama. Yeah, that one. We have our moments both good and bad, with most of the bad stemming from the fact that he's so much like me, except he's missing the pleaser element. But there is so much good. So much fun together playing and laughing and sharing knowledge. I love being his Mama. He is so funny and loves making people laugh. There is always a song in his heart, and rest assured that whatever song is in his heart gets stuck in the rest of our heads for days at a time. Trey is faithful at his paying job, tagging Daddy's basketball video. Not as faithful at his schoolwork anymore - we've discovered procrastination and it's all too intriguing. Considers his brother a mortal enemy. Every so often, right out of the blue, volunteers to he...