Through the Eyes of a Child: A little bit of this, a little bit of that...

It all began with three strangers...freshman at a large university, biomedical engineer majors, followers of Christ. Many years later, the friendships formed in and among the challenges of college have only been strengthened as the numbers in the families have increased. Today, the gang totals 15, nine children aged 10 and under; the relationships are so close that we begin to forget who went to college together and who married into the "gang."

Amongst the six of us, we have said goodbye to parents and grandparents dearly loved, clung to one another as the ten year old in the gang was diagnosed with leukemia at age 4, we've logged many miles flying and driving back and forth from east coast to midwest to be there for each other, we've cried on shoulders in the early morning hours, questioned faith, military, child rearing, diet, health; faced a parent with alcoholism, a mother with cancer, a father with cancer...there is something to be said for friends in Christ. Modern technology allows us to text and call at will; jobs and children keep up from being in contact as much as we like; but when Christmas vacation arrived and we all descended upon Door Co Wisconsin for a week of togetherness, the conversations kept us up way too late, the m&m's went way too fast, the games were hilarious and crazy, but most importantly, God was exalted in and among the friendships formed so many years ago.

Coming home after that drive to Wi, the kids and I continued a New Year's activity that I started two years ago:

Andrew, Jan 2010

Andrew, Jan 2011

And a list of 2010 favorites, with some side comments:

"Cocoa Puffs make delicious chocolate milk."

Years ago, I was a long term substitute in a second grade classroom. The teacher had three bins full of random bits and baubles that were seasonally coordinated. She called it the "Imagination Station." When indoor recess was required, the kids clamored to play with these dollar store treasures. Trying to entertain my three young ones has proven to be challenging at times and so, I decided to give this idea a whirl. Never did I imagine the response it would get...hours of playing together, sorting and collecting, sharing and swapping, creating and imagining, making the little brother belly laugh. My $6 spent at the Dollar Store was well worth it!