Dear reader, there's so much going on that I want to sit down for a moment and not think about any of it.
I would rather think of this: Caroline's hand tattoos. May they bloom on.
Izzy's wee scarab.
And this fantastic picture sent me by one of Sophie's friends, taken while he was out adventuring on the sand dunes. He said he thought I would like to see it.
A teenage boy interrupting his fun to send a picture of a beetle to his friend's mom because he thought it might be of interest.
Let's hear it for the rising generation, dear reader. We're in good hands.
I would rather think of the pancakes my cousin made while I was at his house over the weekend.
The recipe is from his mom, my dear aunt, who assured me nothing in the world can compare with Magic Baking Powder.
I smiled, but she was not joking around.
She even sent me home with a bottle of my very own.
And now I know she's right. For how much more magic could a pancake possibly be??
Please don't smile, because I'm not joking around.
On Veteran's Day, we visited with a friend I deeply admire, James Ruffer.
He let me pin a Canadian poppy on his lapel and proceeded to give me and my girls a riveting tour through time. If you ever get a chance to visit with him, you may count yourself one of the luckiest people alive. It is completely rare to meet a man of such valor, a little bit like meeting a storybook character from King Arthur's knights of old. He's lived a life of daring service, patriotism and love of freedom are at the core of his soul, he is well read and a fascinating source of knowledge, he is gallant and mannerly, a wicked hand at Hearts, and has a beautiful wife and ten children.
So many men and women have given a great deal, even all, to protect the freedoms I hold dear.
Yesterday Sophie signed her official letter of intent to play volleyball for BYU. I find myself feeling a bit like a lost tourist through such moments, as if I've stumbled onto someone else's grand event and am left to make sense of it from a distance.
In a way, I don't think I've quite gotten over the fact I had Sophie in the first place, I don't think I've processed that initial awe.
So sometimes it's hard to keep up with everything else.