JOhnny ApPleseed

With a pot on his head, apple in hand and a few seeds in his pocket, Isaiah went trick or treating to the two neighbors with lights on and to my grandparents and a few of their neighbors. We enjoyed the simple way in which we could engage some more of our neighbors as well as bring a little joy to my grandparents and their neighbors.

Kitchen Curtains

Clint's aunt Sharon came for a visit to make curtains in my kitchen and Isaiah's room. Thanks to her expert sewing skill, we were able to make curtains for four kitchen windows, three doors and one big curtain for Isaiah's bedroom.

Just by Himself

This is one of Isaiah's favorite spots in our home. Around nap time, he will sometimes disappear to suck his thumb on this specific step and look out the window, waiting for me to put him to bed.

Thanks to the Skougs & Dafoes

Sharing meals with family and friends has become a bit easier around here thanks to a dishwasher. Richard and Becky, Clint love his new dishwasher! Thanks for helping Clint bust out some cupboards Mike. And thanks for keeping me distracted from the chaos in the kitchen Jessin.

This Blog is Changing

It was never my intent to devote this blog solely to "cute kid" pictures, and that is what it has been this past year. But, fortunately, that is also what much of my days are filled with, the handsome Isaiah. For about a month, I have been struggling to come up with something fresh that would inspire me and after a week of scattered thoughts, a baby squirrel that I mistook for a rat is what inspired the new title. So, starting now, what I want to bring you is "What Brings Us Together," the intentional and sometimes seemingly accidental encounters with my community, my friends, my family, my neighbors and strangers. Isaiah will not be left out, but I hope to share the simple ways in which he too shows love to strangers on the street, his neighbors and his family.

I was washing dishes one evening, Clint was working a night shift and Isaiah was in bed and out my window, I noticed a gray animal with a skinny tail, squirming in the neighbors yard. Initially I thought it was a rat because of a previous conversation about rats with a neighbor. So, after rationalizing that it is best not to bother paging Clint over a "rat," I call my dad, but end up leaving a long and dramatic message. While leaving the message, I realize it is probably not a rat but a baby squirrel. I knock on the neighbors door so they can call their daughter who cares for abandoned or injured wildlife. She instructs us to find a small container... to fill it with grass... to nail it as high as possible onto a tree... and then place the baby inside. After Jack climbs a ladder to nail the container to the tree... as high as I could have done it from the ground... Audrey, wearing hair dying gloves, picks up the baby to pass to Jack. The baby is squirming so much that Jack passes it to me and I reach up to put the baby in its man-made nest. But before I let go the baby screams, leaps out of the "nest" and I find its mamma coming to attack me. While this was rather exciting, I was more excited to be working together with my neighbors Jack and Audrey. So simple, but this tiny squirrel brought us together. What I have noticed in the week that has followed is that the conversations with Audrey have increased, maybe it is because of the little adventure we shared or maybe it is simply because I entered into their space... I went into their yard, instead of talking over the fence. Whatever it is I look forward to many future gatherings, whether intentional or not.