With silver bells and cockle shells....

.... and muddy little fingers all in a row!


Today we planted our garden! Well, we started. Mark is on nights this month, but he got a whopping one call last night, so slept for 6 hours and came home ready to play in the sunshine! We planted carrots, lettuce and cucumbers today, in the raised beds he made at our last house on his parents' land. We still have to put in tomatoes and peppers in the second bed, but we decided to save those for another day. We had extra seeds from today's little batch that we'll probably plant in pots at our house so we don't have to drive 4 miles down the road to harvest our salad EVERY time we want fresh veggies! I also have basil, cilantro and parsley that I'm planting here at home, so we'll be all set for a summer of delicious greens :)

Preparing her little plot....

.... for the seeds - carrots, lettuce and cucumber, yum!

She was very careful not to rip her little seed strip that we gave her to play with, and planted it many times over :)



She dragged that watering can around all over the place before finally deciding to water the garden...

... with a little encouragement from dada!


Guarding her little plot of garden!

SO thankful for Mark's easy night last night, it is always so nice when we get surprise down time with him! And when we get to play in the sun too, it is all in all a very good day :)

Paradise found

Paradise.... We found it!

It is in the Bahamas ... Pelican Point, on Grand Bahama Island, to be exact :)

We got back on Saturday morning from having spent 5 days there on the beach with our very dear friends the Mayers (and without our very dear baby girl -- thanks Mimi & Papa!!), soaking up everything Pelican Point had to offer: picture-perfect beach & water, great snorkelling, fishing, lobster hunting (the boys caught 8. EIGHT! And yes we ate them all!), exploring nearby beaches and blue holes, eating at Bahama John's Rib Shack just down the beach, laying out in the hammock, kayaking, and plain old chillaxing and enjoying each others' company.

IT. WAS. AWESOME.

Here are some pictures, so you can get the general idea of our week away and salivate just a little over how wonderful it was :)




Mark getting some early-morning reading in before breakfast. This was the view from our porch!




Our awesome host Steve took us out a few times in his boat to fish, snorkel etc.







Real beach golf should always be played with driftwood clubs and a sea urchin.



Mark caught a 12lb barracuda, and nearly got pulled into the sea with it trying to reel it in! It was a fighter!



The boys after day 2 of lobster hunting. Victorious again!!



Delicious lobster dinner, with Bahamian rice & beans, some fried grouper that we also caught, veggies, plantains, mmmmmm :)




The boys.....



.... and the girls :)




On the beach right outside our little villa. It was perfect!



Sunrise




We miss you, beautiful beach -- we'll be back one day, though!!

A mixed bag

This post would be simpler if I was referring to vegetables, but I'm talking about feelings. Specifically, mine! Last week marked the week our baby would have been born. It was also the week I found out that a good friend of mine is pregnant.

It's hard.

I don't like grieving. I don't like being patient, being forced to wait for something that I want so much. I don't like not being in control. I don't like it when other people so easily achieve what I want to. I don't like feeling like a bad friend for feeling heartbroken instead of rejoicing over new life.

I wish there was an easier way for my faith to become mature, for my character to develop perseverance and patience. I wish I understood why God lets some people have (what looks to me from the outside) what they want, when they want it. Why couldn't I be one of those people?

What would I miss out on if I was?

Would I have the same experiential level of trust in God's unwavering goodness and gentle strength? Even when bad things with no happy ending happen? Would I be able to reach out to other women in the same way? Would I treasure my children as much, never knowing what it was to lose one?

I can't answer any of these questions. I can say that I'm inexpressibly thankful that God redeems. He redeems things that look to me like they're bad, wasted, ugly and painful. He can make them good and beautiful when I can't. And He can help me wait well.




photo credit