Tales of the Ordinary Days

Grant at a Creighton game ~ Fall of 2007 Baby Grant got his school driving permit yesterday. My days of carting kids and playing taxi driver are almost behind me. A bitter sweet time. Although I will be gaining a new found freedom, I have actually enjoyed this car time with the kids. But instead I am reminded daily that my youngest is now a young man, not a child, and that he is no longer just the tag-along little brother. He played that role well for many, many years. From the toddler to junior high, Grant watched hundreds of baseball, basketball, and football games with his brothers on the field. Grant's vantage point was typically in the stands, under the stands, or behind the stands. With his dad as coach for many of the teams, Grant would also tag along to practices; learning great skills in keeping himself busy and finding fun in people and things on his own. Now almost 16, this training has served Grant well. He never lacks for something to do and is quite skilled,...

Picture of Ben and his Uncle Jason on my shattered phone I dropped my cell phone today. I have done this many times. But today it shattered. And the culprit for my carelessness? I was trying to take a selfie while hiking. Fail. My first phone call post-hike was to my middle son, Ben. For years I have scolded him for having a phone with a broken screen in his possession. This was more often the case than him having a nice, unbroken screen. I have often lectured him on the need for using a durable phone cover and the merits of ‘being careful’. Common statements from me to Ben… "Don’t text on the trampoline in the rain" or "Don’t put your phone in your athletic shorts pocket while attempting a basketball slam-dunk." Today it was me, not Ben, making the call from a completely shattered phone. Ben’s phone is beautifully intact and has been for months. But just as I have asked of my own kids, I had to own my failing. And then I complimented Ben o...

Boys playing a charade game in the back seat in route to Vegas I went to bed last night planning on writing a blog about my three sons. The story in my mind centered around my observations of their spending time together again. Brotherly bonding for them. Heart warming for me. And then I awoke to terrible news. Our friends' son died tragically last night. My parenting perspective quickly changed from one of warm fuzzies to a feeling of complete disbelief and heartache. Life can be so cruel. God has a plan and although that plan inevitably includes death, it is so difficult to grasp the death of the someone so young and so full of good. Perspective. Life changing overnight is a wake up call to embrace the fullness of life. We do this by centering ourselves around the people in our lives who really matter, while walking away from the noise that holds us back. So often we get caught up in our daily routines without perspective in our focus. We need to be more like the you...