Classic Hilton's

Week two has gone really well.  I feel like we're beginning to find a groove.  I've let go of some of my public school baggage. Or maybe it would be more accurate to say I've loosed my grip on some of my public school baggage! By far the most important lesson I am learning is how to talk to Brooklyn after she's been at school all day.  A couple of questions about key things are plenty to get the conversation started, but too much peppering and the story gets lost in her fertile imagination.  What's also neat is the stories that come out through her play.  In watching her pretend to be the teacher I can see Mrs. Pope come to life in my living room!  The day is still long and she is exhausted.  I spent this week getting into car line between 1:30 and 1:45. It's an hour wait for me (and Grayson), but it means she is among the first kids released, which she loves, and we're home by 2:30. I would love for dinner, clean up, bath, and bed time to not  be marked

Dear Brooklyn, I'm walking upstairs to go to bed, thinking about tomorrow and our plans for the day, and it hits me like a ton of bricks...tomorrow you are starting kindergarten at Blackwell Elementary.  I am thrilled for you and the adventures I know you will have. But I am in tears because you, my baby girl, are growing up into a big scary world where I cannot protect you.   So I turn to the Lord for comfort and wisdom and grace to get through this step which I know feels so much bigger to me than it will to you, and He leads me to one of my favorite passages, Psalm 139.  As I read it, I realize that tonight, it is not for me. It is for you.  You can't read yet (won't be able to say that next year!!) and while I would like to run upstairs and drill these words into your head, I think doing so would do more harm than good! So for now, I'll put it here and pray it for you. O Lord, you have searched Brooklyn, and you know her. You know when she sits and when she

August 5, 2011 - 5 months old That which was impossible yesterday is achievable today. This is how I sum up your life right now. At five months old your world is all about discovery.  In the last month you have discovered... how to talk ! You are a chatterbox of various vocal sounds -- coos, giggles, guffaws, raspberries, cries, and yes, even screams. how to smile ! Where before your smiles were almost accidental, you now know exactly what or who you are smiling at. You are the happiest little guy and you share your joy so freely. how to laugh ! Nana sings "Row, Row, Row your boat" and you start laughing because you know what's coming! You also find the Tickle Monster, Splish Splash, and Brooklyn very funny!  how to eat solid foods! You enjoy Mum Mums (a special rice biscuit that dissolves easily and feels good on your gums), rice cereal, bananas, and peas. Mealtimes are a very messy occasion as you really prefer to feed yourself and you are quite impatient

Today was a struggle. I confess, I did more sinking than walking.  But even in the midst of some major unpleasantness, I was strengthened by His Word, comforted by family, and covered in pixie dust!  Ray and I have often teased that we wanted a dog first.  Instead God surprised us with Brooklyn.  Her presence in our lives inspired many changes and was even a catalyst through which God has drawn me so much closer to Him.  Sometimes I wonder how different life would we be if she hadn't been born so early in our marriage.  I look back on those years now and remember such joy.  As I was reawakening spiritually, she was a spark of pixie dust!  Now we are facing difficult times again, being called into deeper fellowship, and my joy has more than doubled.  Brooklyn and Grayson are delightful. An ever present reminder.  As I learn how to be their mom each day I am humbled by the way our relationships are a reflection of God's character.  When I do not understand grace or uncondit