Saturday Rhythm

Obscene piles of debris have been cleaned out of my yard today. My bushes and perennials harbor shocking amounts of leaves and other yard debris over the winter, so every spring, I get to "discover" the rest of the leaves that hid from our fall leaf-raking efforts. Without the help of the two boys living in my house, it would have taken me at least twice as long. I never thought I would be able to say that. But, wow. It was a treat to work side-by-side with them. They even helped me get the deck hosed off and cleaned up. (I keep having to do that because it keeps snowing. No complaints about snow. At all. It just leaves a huge amount of dirt behind.) I am just so surprised at how much harder Elijah works than he did last year and how physically strong Joseph is becoming. We are totally ditching the yard and moving into an apartment when they no longer live here.

Yard work isn't on my list of favorite things to do, but my favorites list looks suspiciously limited and self-indulgent, so maybe that's not a healthy measure. I do, however, enjoy a well-kept yard and spending time in it. Every year, the tension begins. Take care of the house? Or take care of the yard? The two are mutually exclusive for me. Today, the carpet needs to be vacuumed and the bathrooms need to be cleaned, but the yard won out.

Brian is currently outside on the front porch and has been for hours. It's finally time to put a new screen door on our house. When we moved into this house almost a decade ago, the front screen door needed to be replaced. And so did the side door. And so did the back door. And so did the garage door. And so did the shed door. Some of the doors were more terrible than the front door, so we've put up with a crooked, broken door for a long time now. Today, it was time. Our mortgage company sent us an escrow refund that covered an inexpensive front door. And so...voila. Well, not really voila. Household projects that come in boxes labeled "easy installation" never live up to their labeling. We learned that on the first two doors. And the garbage disposal. And the toilet. And the bathroom exhaust fan. And the blinds. And.....so on.

I'm glad for the rhythm of a day spent in physical labor, studying for a Sunday School lesson, and cooking. My mind has been working overtime, jumping from wondering where in their trip my friends are who are headed to Cambodia and then jumping to when, oh when, is my friend's baby going to come?

I am so deeply grateful for an ordinary day.
Wearing comfy clothes.
Kicking back in the sun to read for a few minutes.
Whipping the yard into shape.
Trying a new recipe.
Working with the boys.
Watching my front door get installed.
Catching up on laundry.
Finalizing my Sunday School lesson.

And thinking about Cambodia.
And anxiously waiting for baby news.