a common bush, afire: little house on the farm

Well, I think it's time you met my people.

Lil' Snip chewing on his lion toy

Let's do Lil' Snip first, since he's the cutest and if we save him for last, everyone else will fade in your memory. Lil' Snip is so full of life that if he's not trotting around, he often has to wiggle to let out extra joy. His toy of the minute is a dolly stroller that he can push and - far more importantly - shake! He also likes to "play" piano and put his head into a box (any box will do, as long as it's big enough) and take toys out of whatever container they're in. (No, I haven't taught him to put them back in yet. Feel free to offer lessons.) He loves trucks and tractors and loud noises and all music (but especially Daddy's piano and banjo music). He laughs at funny faces and rough-housing and tickles. I am having fun wowing him with my lightswitch magic - on! off! on! off! Mommy is so amazing!!

Everything Nice, posing with her snowman

Next up, age-wise, is Everything Nice. You've heard the expression "still waters run deep"? That's Nice. She keeps mum about a lot of things (the first one we've had to encourage to "use your words.") but comes up with some doozies sometimes that let you know she's got a lot going on in that pretty little head. When she's not "still", she has an intuitive flair for drama. Her favorite things are cutting with scissors, writing, and playing with kitties, water and Lil' Snip. She hops, sings, hums, and otherwise be-bops to her own internal, never-stopping rhythm. Food passions include popcorn, pasta, and lentil sprouts. We credit Nice with getting us Lil' Snip – she used to pray at night, “Jesus, you give me a baby boy?”, pause, then tell us, “He says not yet.” A little over a year later God sent us Lil' Snip! Nice has always been a baby-lover, and at last she has one of her own to dote upon (although that “baby” is picking up speed daily....!).

Spice, tickled with an oyster mushroom find

And then there's Spice. Spice is nothing if not spicy. Taking after one of her parents (you may guess which one), Spice doesn't feel things by halves.

“There once was a girl,

who had a little curl

right in the middle of her forehead.

When she was good,

she was very, very good,

and when she was bad, she was horrid!”

Except for the curl, that's Spice – saucy, sweet, tender, terrible, bright, furious and full of potential! Spice loves her cats and understands them like no one else. Ever since she succumbed to reading, she has made many friends in books. Spice is a natural teacher, and Nice has benefited many a time from her patient tutelage. When I give Spice a job to do, I can be sure that she will do it with excellence. Her standards are high, and she is not often satisfied with her efforts to meet them. Spice, Spice, life is never dull when you're around! We're glad you're ours!

Sugar, with a bear she made for an orphan

Ah, Sugar. Sugar, our first-born, is an eldest's eldest. She is organized, mature, capable, and neat. She is also beginning to develop some inherited tendencies towards practical joking. I believe April Fool's Day ranks right up there with Christmas and her birthday with Sugar! Her memory puts mine to shame (and I put hers to use remembering things for me!) and she likes to know what is coming. While her siblings do not always appreciate her “leadership abilities”, we see her tempering them more and more often with kindness and humility. When Sugar puts her mind to a task, she does it briskly and efficiently. Sugar is an excellent helper around the house and with her adored Lil' Snip. She is a sponge for learning and her mind seems to be particularly tuned to the natural sciences and the Bible. A wonderful mix!

my Farmer, playing piano with Lil' Snip

And what can I say about my Farmer? He is constant, he is funny, he is wise. He works hard, laughs easily, forgives quickly, advises gently, accepts always. He is my friend, my companion, my encourager. He amazes me with his memory for obscure facts, his courage for risk, his capacity for vision and hope, and his ability to learn, and learn, and learn some more. I think I know him, his limits, and he re-invents himself again. I could live with him a hundred years and he would never grow old to me.

He is or has been: a history buff, a sharpshooter, a jazz trombonist, an English teacher to foreigners, a bow-fisherman, a car salesman, a gourmet home-chef, a landscaper, a loving but authoritative father, a gardener, a manager of mentally and physically challenged workers, a Sunday School teacher, an expert on grafting and a grower of tropical fruit, an improv pianist, a manager of an organic community vegetable farm, a butcher, a capable amateur plumber / electrician / carpenter, a banjo plucker, a greenhouse nurseryman, a hobby mycologist. How can I help loving this remarkable man who inexplicably chooses me?

My family: I am so glad God put us together!!