The letter

Dear Santa,

My name is Jack. I am three. I have good behavior. May I have a castle, please, Santa? And may I have a lot of puzzles, please? And a more lot of puzzles? And that's it. I love you, Santa.

Jack

My girl Kheematah

Let me introduce you to Kheematah. I feel like she has been a part of our "family" for so long that I hardly remember when she wasn't sitting in the kitchen critiquing my cooking, putting Jack deservedly in his place when he misbehaves, and singing at the top of her lungs. I met Kheematah through her grandmother, Loyce, who joined our church a little over a year ago. Kheematah, who just turned 11, lives with her grandma. Her life story is hers to tell, but it has certainly been a tragic one. You wouldn't know it by the sunshine she carries with her. I pick her up from school a few days a week and she comes over to do her homework and just hang out. One of her favorite past-times is karaoke on the computer. Did you know you find just the karaoke version of just about any song on YouTube? Kheematah knows. This video is long, but I had to post it all. Jack wanted to join her jam-session so he sat on her lap, never having heard this song before, and tried to join in. These two are best-of-buddies. Seeing them wrestle, laugh, tease, read and sing together is a great, great joy in my life. Here they are in all their splendor:

delusions of grandeur

Me: "Where do you want to go in the park, Jack? I'll follow you."

Jack: "Yes. Follow me, Mom. I'm the prophet."

Jordan and Israel

We just returned from our 10 day trip to Israel and Jordan. We had a wonderful time, but we are definitely happy to be back home. We've posted pictures from our trip at http://gallery.me.com/chadlarson . I'll post more details on our trip soon.

Sister Dear I love you so

Today I have a good reason to end my months long blogging hiatus, a hiatus for which I have no good excuse. Today, you see, is my sister's birthday. Though I have no memory of her birth, Bice legend tells a tale of yours truly (at about age 2) taking Molly from her crib (really? is that possible?), lovingly carrying her to the bathroom in hopes of bathing her, and promptly dropping her on the tiled bathroom floor. After the telling of this legend it is impossible not to say "and that is why Molly is the way she is." So, I guess I can take credit for Molly's personality. Maybe it was that bump on the head that made her so funny, so open with all the details of her life (in a good way, but watch out for the in-depth recitation of what she ate and how it made it her feel), so caring, so beautiful, so talented!, so sweet, so fantastic. Every time we get together, and I mean EVERY time, something will be said, something that is usually not funny to anyone else, that will make us laugh so hard that anyone observing us will just stop and stare at us in a confused stupor. We can't just stop with a hearty chuckle. We do the soundless laugh that dissolves into tears and near hysteria. As soon as we think it has subsided we will look at each other and it will start again, this time even more intense until our stomach muscles reach exhaustion and we slowly (this could go on for almost 10 minutes) wind down. And I can't do that with anyone else. No one else can make me laugh that way. No one understands me like she does. And though I know I try to mother her more than I should, she always listens and tells me how great I am and how much she loves me. But I don't think she can know that she has the strength and the wisdom that I long to have. She amazes me and I love her. I am so happy she was born on this day 31 years ago. Now that both of us are mothers I think we realize how important a birthday is. Not the presents or the cake, but the remembering. Mothers remembering the birth experience, fathers remembering that feeling of holding his child for the first time, siblings remembering long-ago moments of play (remember when you use to sneak into my bedroom and night so we could read and play together?), and friends remembering how their lives are different because of this person's birth. I can say with assurance that so many people are remembering you today, Molly. HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Hope the sun in Cancun is warming your body and reminding you of the love that SO many have for you, both on earth and in heaven.