tremendous week

a baby was born 6.5 weeks early
5 lbs, 6 oz
nameless for a day (or two)
surrounded by machines
intrusive "plugs"
now UNPLUGGED!

two men in central america
one, a neighbor
helping a friend whose husband had just died
one of them shot driving the wife of the deceased husband
lots of hiddenness involved in both deaths
neither reported in the americas
neighbor home safely
still in shock

war in iraq is over
REPORTEDLY
9 years
hundreds of thousands dead
caught in the fight against evil. hmmm
PTSD running rampant

pit bull
snuck upon my kidlets and me
while strolling the block
nice one, thankfully
confusion and anger

building blocks
learning letters
reading books
coloring and stickering
and lots and lots of wrestling and snuggling
(sadly still no running)

printing letters
writing letters
stuffing letters
sending letters
enjoying tim. giddy with postage paid on so many letters

buying gifts for others
drop-in at local non-profit receiving gifts
silly staff

lots of friends with STUFF going on

planning neighborhood christmas cookie capers

talking about st. nikolaus (the saint)
and treating others special
and we've been treated so special too

need more sleep
more time

thankful for shelter and food and WARMTH and friends and abundance

a tiny glimpse into a week in the life of us...