I am not even kidding

Found by my dad via super internet search. This was our bunk bed when Kendall and I were kids and shared a room. After years of trying to explain it to people by strange sketches on cocktail napkins: here it is!

It gets even wilder.

Dad built this HIMSELF. From scratch! With like, heavy machinery. I can still hear the scream of the shopsmith.

Of course my parents upped the game a little by painting this bed in girly pinks, purples, and light blues and instead of a ladder my dad built some steps and magically opened up for more storage. My grandma sewed our mattress covers (since they had to be specially made).

I slept in the top bunk and Kendall slept in the smaller bottom. I still remember the first night they tucked us in.

"Good night!!"

"Good night!"

Door closes. And BAM Kendall's head pops up so she's peaking into the window of my bed. I think we lasted about 5 minutes before we were separated. In fact, I don't remember ever going to bed at the same time in those bunks. Kendall would go to sleep in my parents' room while I read for hours--I was usually still reading when my parents brought her (sound asleep) back into her lower bunk.

But seriously, are these beds amazing or what? Not pictured: if you go into the little playhouse and take a hard right, there is a secret cave underneath the smaller bed. It's a great place to hide Christmas candy.

I don't think Dad has used the shopsmith since then.

Sunset Clarity

Holy, Holy, Holy, Heidi says. Oh, how I wonder what it all means to her right now. My deepest, earliest memories include such phrases, Holy, Holy, Holy, Worthy is the Lamb, No Man Shall See Me and Live. And now that Heidi can repeat these things on demand, I can only wonder what is registering in her little soul, in her innermost being. It certainly branded me for life.

We are all sick as dogs around here. It's funny, we caught it at "Survivor" night--it's like, who can survive this? Last night we were at the Polkadots and I had to laugh at how pathetic we were. First of all, what crazy mom drags her 4 month old with a temp to go watch Survivor? But then I felt okay about it because we caught it there in the first place (what crazy mom brings all her kids to a friends' house when the friends are sick?) so we were really just completing the circle of sick. And making good memories.

This was a 4 out of 10 for New Mexico sunsets--and our camera makes it look pretty ghetto. But what is translated for us is the never ending worship as the earth waits. We take our evening walks and it's like walking between worlds, as if we can almost hear the singing and the arrival of that day when every knee shall bow, every tongue confess that He is Lord.

The babies snuggle in their blankets (Heidi with her handful of ever-present, ever growing stuff: note the dolphin book behind their ears...last night I accidentally woke her up at 4 a.m. looking for a thermometer and her words were: "hey! My stuff! My stuff!" I pointed to her that it was right by her face where she sleeps with it and she happily went back to sleep). The headlines and the jargon drift away slowly, into the clouds as our souls feast on what is Real.

The longer I blog, I realize, the less coherent this gets. But the world is less coherent. My life is less coherent. All I can remember is what was and is and is to come.

too many pictures

A few from the last beautiful weeks. Yes, I bought Heidi some high heels. Used. And yes, it was totally worth it. These are all courtesy of Gramps--more to follow.

Family Hike

We are trying to get some good use out of a book we bought in April, "Best Hikes With Children - New Mexico" and took note of a relatively short (0.5 miles each way) hike to a travertine waterfall and cave in the East Mountains. We even found some fossils!

Wilderness is exciting!

This Ponderosa Pine was so big and stately. We had to stop on the way up and the way down. Its bark smelled very sweet!

Heidi was all set to go, complete with her own backpack. I must say... she loved all aspects of hiking and did over half of the hike each way all on her own! Elsa was her typical, easy self. What a great Saturday morning. And now as the temperatures are more pleasant, we'd like to continue doing some short outings like this. Anyone interested in joining us?

Heidi really thought a bear was living in this cave, but "Oh No! She's not scared." The Celtic-style cross was interesting. It was actually chipped out of the travertine.

Heidi can't go on a hike without her purse and books, apparently. She did dutifully carry all her belongings in her backpack, though!

Elsa's Baptism

The Matching Suits

Seems so long ago that I saw these on the rack and tried to imagine two little girls fitting into them. The Christmas card isn't there, but these are still presh.