moments of grace...

...i have them sometimes.

like when i let go of my need to think about all the questions that could ever be asked in a home study and just roll with it. i stop worrying about how i sound and just be me, and surprisingly the conversation flows and the social worker understands exactly what i'm talking about. pretty soon i don't feel like i'm sitting there being judged, instead i'm connecting with someone who is in a great position to help our family every step of the way. we finish and somehow find ourselves talking about hair. not braiding and beading, or different styles for kids. our own hair. and how it's such a huge part of our identity and can make or break our self esteem on any given day. fast forward another week to when kiya is in her room typing and the boys are power ranger-ing it up in the living room as the knock arrives at our door. whoah! the social worker and i have almost the identical haircut. say what? not only that, she has nearly the same curls that i do... we are cracking up laughing, because on top of all that, we both have a drastically different color than when we last saw each other. she likes the same music we do. she loved the night pirates in the nursery. she adored our gorgeous children (or at least pretended to). she talked to our children with ease and moved through our house like an old friend come over to explore. as i walked her out and thanked her, i didn't think twice about giving her a "drive safe!" call out usually reserved for close friends and family.

like when i strike up a conversation with brandon's mom at the t-ball game because our boys love each other and we adore our boys and so we have oh so much to talk about already. and i am beyond excited to watch my little guy, my sweet bug, get in there and hustle after the ball and throw it to first base, just like he should. and i can't believe this 7 year old that struts around the bases is the same little guy that once hit himself until he bled, the same little guy that went to early intervention pre-school and had an aide in kindergarten and still has an iep and loads of sensory issues. and i was so overcome with joy that i told this woman all about my sweet little bug and how far he's come, and i didn't think about whether or not she wanted to hear it. because usually that's what i do. i know that people don't like to hear about those things, partly because they don't know what to say, and so i'll usually keep that to myself. but yesterday i was so overjoyed that it all came tumbling out, and at the end of the game we picked up our boys and gave them hugs and talked about how we'll have many more great conversations in the games to come.

like when i see an awesome opportunity to put my craftiness to good use! i am *so* excited to be making blankets to support http://www.fovc.org/... check it out. it is a wonderful opportunity for me to pour some love into handmade blankets for children in rural ethiopia. i tried to see if "M" is in a village close to where they are going on the next trip, but he is not. there will be more trips, so maybe in the future i can make "M" a blanket... i would love that more than anything right now, for him to get a gift of warmth and from a family across the world who loves him. anyway, i've committed to make 10 blankets, and i've made 3 so far. i will take pictures of them before i send them off, and maybe i can convince lory to get a few pictures of the recipients of my blankets when they are delivered... i'm keeping my fingers crossed for that anyway.

i bet you thought i was going to go on... nope. i really don't have these moments all that often, and so there is no long list. just the three. that'll have to do.