Time for time

Most people know I LOVE homeschooling- it's been such a blessing for our family and I think I just like having TIME with my babies. And yet everyday at bedtime I think of how I wish I'd had more time with this one or that one or more time spent on some subject, etc. I can't imagine how I'd fit in all the conversations and stories and prayers I want to fit in if they were gone 8 hours. Tonight I was thinking of the wonderful conversations I've had with Marky lately and wondered if I would have had them under different circumstances.

While riding in the car to the wine-stomp festival I asked him "Why do we call Jesus the "new Adam""? We talked about it for 30 minutes- it was wonderful. Yesterday just sitting around talking about Julius Caeser (one of his favorite story CDs to listen to) I said what do you think Marc Antony meant when he said, "The evil that men do lives after them, The good is oft interred with their bones"? I realized he hadn't thought about it and we took our time and slowly, logically went through it. While eating breakfast I said, "what does it mean to say 'all roads lead to Rome? Do all roads still lead to Rome?'" Breakfast is never hurried around here- we take a long time and talk because we don't have anywhere to be. These moments are so precious to me and they almost always happen organically when we just have extra TIME together and aren't rushed.

And with Julia- she has so much to say and it's so precious if you catch her at the right moment- which usually means alone. The other day in a store a clerk said, "oh you have three boys and a girl- she's the boss isn't she- do you boss your brothers around?" I said, "no she doesn't". And she said, "Oh yes- little girls are bossy and sassy" and I (getting perturbed) said, "not my little girl- she is not bossy or sassy- she is very sweet to her brothers". And she is- she has her moments- but most of the time she is a giggly, silly, precious girl. Today she was flitting around the playroom in a princess dress with wings and saying "Marky will you kill all the dragons so I will be safe?" And she read me an entire Angelina Ballerina book perfectly.

Tucker is always shocking us with his ability to understand us and I love having time to discover what he knows and songs he loves. Today he was singing "oh little playmate, come out and play with me, and bring your dollies three, climb up my apple tree..." And everything he does comes with a big smile and dimple and curls over his ears that I adore.

And of course, it takes lots of time to hold Charlie the way he likes to be held and I work hard to earn his smiles. And we take naps together every day- I don't think we could if I had to be in carpool.

I'm just so grateful for this slower lifestyle and time to talk and time to think and time to LOVE. I want to be a good steward of it and a faithful servant with this precious gift from God.