Eliza at 1

One-year-old Eliza Jane.  Isn't she starting to look like a little girl already?  Hard call on this photo:  do I  insist that she sits down in the wagon or go ahead and take a picture?  She was just so delighted with herself, with the wagon . . . with Benjamin's socks. . . 

A photo with the coreopsis, below, should have been better, but the sun was quite glaring.  

We spent Eliza's birthday weekend in Sulphur Springs combining the celebration with JB's dad's 70th birthday.  Here's just a few pictures of a fun weekend characterized by excellent food, great music, and delightful company.  Of course I could say that of all our weekends in SS, but the birthdays added a little something extra.  

E danced along with the music...especially when her grandmommy was
playing her violin.  

And with such a gracious and capable dance partner...

It is getting too late for me to reflect much on my little girl tonight. I am so proud of my little one-year-old, and I truly delight to think of her presence in our lives in the year ahead.  She's her own person, this one.  Strong-willed and confounding at times, but that is all part of the greater joy in getting to know her little spirit.

And two more photos back at home. One of E's first words
has been "backpack."  She loves Benjamin's so much that
we got her one of her own.  

But perhaps her favorite gift is the card Ben
made for her glued all over with fuzzy balls.  

Four years later

Four years later, and I've still got it!  Such as it ever was anyway.  I have never been a fast or even a dedicated runner, but I have been a runner.  Well, let's just say jogger.  

Jogging is about the only form of aerobic exercise I enjoy doing regularly.  It started when I accidentally signed up for the cross country team in middle school and stuck with it for a whole season.  (I meant to sign up for track, not distance running--oops!)  I've enjoyed running much more without the races.  One day I ran about 9 or 10 miles up in the Shawangunk mountains, and remember feeling so full of life and strength, connected to nature, energized by accomplishment and potential, content with being alone.  That is truly one of my favorite memories.      

So after having two children and living daily in the chaos of caring for the wee ones, jogging feels different.  Not just physically--yes, my knees could be better and I have never been so SLOW--but also mentally and emotionally.  Getting out for half an hour to run by myself is precious alone time now. A good morning run has a way of setting me up for my day emotionally.  The time away from the house in a different environment gives me a little perspective and allows me to gather to my thoughts.  The endorphins get going, and I return to the house feeling energized, centered, ready to face a demanding 11 month old and a daydreaming 3 year old.  I am better able to care for and teach the kids when I start the day with a run.

My 33-year-old self no longer sees running primarily as an accomplishment, and I think this is good for me.  My life is not much about accomplishment right now and I need to learn to live with that.  When I don't exactly feel like running, I even tell myself that if I don't make it very far, I can just stop at the St. Albans episcopal church courtyard and enjoy the morning quiet for a few minutes instead.  That has only happened once so far, but there is something about having that as an option that is so freeing.

With all of that said about accomplishment, I did run a 5k out at the Lake Waco Wetlands a few weeks ago, and it felt great.



A "prediction run" was perfect for my current state of mind (and body!):  the winner is the runner who comes closest to running his or her predicted time.  So even at the back of the pack, I actually came pretty close to winning, having predicted within 30 seconds of my finishing time.

It was really just a fun family outing.  We all managed to get out the door at 7am, and the kids enjoyed playing around the marshy grassland while I ran.



Eliza Jane enjoyed her backpack ride, and Ben came back with lots of bug bites from lying in the tall grass.



I had an absolutely lovely time running.  I especially loved having my family there to cheer me on at the end.  And I felt proud to be running again.

A visit to Bonnie's

Eliza Jane chased the guinea hens all around the soggy grass at our favorite greenhouse 

Bonnie's is the best garden store in Waco.  A trip to Bonnie's is an
 all-Saturday morning outing for us.   

Early summer

lovely Eliza rests in the hammock

The tree house continues and the roses bloom 

Watermelon is eaten

Kite festival attended. Kites flown and sun hats worn. 

And then all of a sudden, Benjamin is ready for college. 

...or just too sick to go to school but not sick enough to
keep me from bringing him to Baylor so I can put the finishing
touches on my students' final exam.  

And Eliza inspects the four-nerve daisies.