Little wonders...

Ok, so I'm going to hijack Chris' subject matter tonight...our dear Shauna Niequist has published a gorgeous book about the joys of the minutiae of life. Albeit, I have yet to read the whole thing (aside from the sample chapters on her website), but I am confident I can assign the word gorgeous to it, because nothing she produces could possibly be otherwise.

Today was another one of those great days in which I got to hang out with Adam and Sarah's kids. There's four of them. They're very busy. They're usually clambering all over each other. But gosh, they're fabulous little people. I spent the evening lamenting the fact that I'd forgotten my camera (my apologies for the pictureless post)...but let me tell you the highlights of my day with each of them.

Lainey...at 14 months, she has just mastered the art of standing up on her own and will walk if you hold her hands. She loves to hold entire conversations with you...you may not understand all the dialogue, but no worries - she does. Everything she sees, she points at, looks at you, and says, "wassat?" Tonight I gave her and Preston a joint bath, and let me tell you - the girl loves her some splashing. As I got concerned about how wet I was getting, I had to keep reminding myself of the pure joy she was in the midst of, and to just savor it.

Preston...what a little man he is. It's so hard to believe that he was only five months old when I first met him. He's surely bound for MENSA membership one of these days, and the expressions he makes with his chocolate brown eyes (set against his white-blond hair) are just priceless. The last time I watched him, he announced that he wanted "cornedbeefhashandeggs" for lunch. Tonight for dinner, he requested salami and cheese. Gosh, it's SO hard to believe that he and Josh were born on the same day. (Ha!) I also had to put him in time out twice today. He gets so so upset when he's put in time out, but he totally forgives me. Immediately.

Evan...well, lately we've been a bit concerned about Evan because he's a bit of a drama queen. Something tiny doesn't go his way? Total meltdown. Today, though, he had the most fabulous day. I've never had such an easy time with him. He showed me how to use the ridiculously complicated TV/DVD/cable hookup in the living room. He told me that Lainey takes soymilk in her bottle. He dressed as Darth Vader for our walk around the neighborhood. He told me that yes, in fact, he would like broccoli with his dinner. Sarah and I later concluded that it was because Spencer wasn't home and thus Evan got to be my helper and was therefore involved. Poor kid. Classic middle child...so often, I think he's just trying to make sure he doesn't get lost in the shuffle. I just love Evan.

Spencer...well, admittedly, he was at a friend's house all day and I saw him for exactly 2.5 seconds when he got home. However, he called TWICE prior to coming home to let me know where he was at, and could I please tell Evan that he could sleep downstairs with Spencer in his room tonight? This was very important. What nearly-12-year-old boy makes such a point of having his six-year-old brother down to his room for a slumber party? I can't speak highly enough about Spencer. He's such a phenomenal kid.

Here's to all of us taking note of the glorious little moments of our day...