Friday, October 26, 2007

Smoke and Ashes

... everywhere, but we are home. Sadly, many are not, including atleast one family from our church. All the different stories of how this fire has changed people's lives are being told. Some are really heartbreaking and others quite beautiful. For me, I am just made me more grateful for my family and friends and a little less concerned with my stuff. That's always a good thing. All those who have lost are in my prayers and on my heart. Thanks for all the concern and the prayers said. We ended up stayeing with Evan's mom who took such good care of us and Johnny loved his long slumber party with Grandma. It was a very relaxing evacuation, except for the hour where the fire almost evacuated us from our evacuation spot. Needless to say, we were happy to come home yesterday morning. The internet connection was down, so I couldn't blog any sooner. Our church is just fine, however, Pearls baptism will be postponed. The Bishop is sending a Chancellor of our Diocese to visit our community this weekend. which I think is just wonderful!
So, life goes on for the Keelings..I've been cleaning and trying to keep Johnny entertained since the air is too gross for outside play. Although, today his Grandpa came and drove him to the beach where the air was clean and the weather cool. I guess it's about time I put some recent pictures of Pearl up. She has changed from the newborn to a chunky, smiley, happy baby. By the way, I feel have to admit thatI don't think I am doing a very good job with this whole transition to two kids. The house is often a mess, meals are not terribly thought out, I am just happy when I make anything, and I am a wreck to behold. In case I've ever made myself sound like I have it all under control or something please know that I don't. It's been hard. But, I do have two amazing kiddos, and a loving, hardworking husband that don't seem to mind too much. Atleast for now. I know I have to cut myself some slack, but somedays I just feel very overwhelmed by the smallest chore. Okay, I feel better having blurted that out.
Here are some recent pics..

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

My dear sweet friend don't worry about the small things. You are doing an amazing job. Just because things are not perfect it doesn't make you any less of an amazing mother and wife. Just enjoy your two beautiful gifts and the rest of the world will soon come back to some sort of a routine. Give your self a little break. Trust me I know how hard it is to balance it all. You have two wonderful and adorable kids that I know will never think back about how perfect their dinner is they will just be glad that they had their mother there. I love ya and I am glad to hear that you are all safe!!!! :)

Anonymous said...

Oh yeah... I can't believe how big Pearl is getting she has changed soooo much!!!! She is adorable!!!! :)

RainaRo said...

I think that's my favorite picture of Johnny.

Xenia Kathryn said...

What beautiful children you have! I just want to poke Pearl's cheeks.
I'm glad you are safe and at home!!!!
I'm kind of dreading the transition to "two kids." I hear it's the toughest. Hang in there Annie, it's all a learning curve! I'll be right there with you come May. ;)
God bless!

Xenia Kathryn said...

To clarify, I meant I'll be "right there with you come May" as in I'll definitely be struggling once my second baby is born. :) I didn't want to give you the impression I was coming down to stay with you and offer my sub-par services. hehehe

Elizabeth said...

I'm so glad to hear that you are safe and at home and that St. John's is fine!

It took the transition to two children for me to realize that I was not "the perfect mother." But that's okay! We are not perfect, and it may not even be desirable to be perfect. Being a good mom is about so much more than keeping the house clean or planning wonderful meals. Let those things go for now--you can always come back to them when your kids are older. (And that part does get easier when they're older, I promise!)

Mimi said...

Whew! I'm so glad you and your church are ok, but prayers for those affected. Lord have Mercy.

Beautiful photos~!

Bluecanopy said...

good news........good to hear you're safe.

annie, you are completely normal....2 is hard!!! you're not alone in the struggle, my friend.

here's something that i just read that haas been encouraging me.....

"I prefer the monotony of obscure sacrifice to all ecstasies. To pick up a pin for love can convert a soul."
St Therese

As long as everything is done out of love , and offered up out of love, it doesn't matter the size of the sacrifice -

- getting out of bed early when still tired...
- biting the lip instead of speaking sharply when one's morning mood is grumpy
- accepting with grace that the coffee maker wasn't turned on
- cleaning up the doggie doo-doo on the kitchen floor
- saying a chaplet before having a sip of coffee
- changing the cat littler again...
- staying home when one prefers to go out

Nothing is too small to make a difference, to save a soul.
I believe Christ and the Mother of God want a "little crown" of self-sacrifice from us mothers throughout our days - a little crown of hidden mortifications - which become a tremendous tool of salvation.

And the greatest tool is to simply love God - to love Him from the midst of a world who ignores Him, mocks Him, dismisses Him and dismisses the sacrifice He made to save us. We then become His consolers.

We are called to imitate Christ. Let's do so, by offering up EVERYTHING that happens to us, as coming from the hands of a loving God, for the salvation of others.

As long as our offerings are done out of conscious love for God, we help save the world. Not a bad payback for putting on a load of laundry - something we had to do anyway!

Heidi said...

glad to hear you are safe and back at home. I understand how you are feeling and remember we can not do it alone. But we can do it through Christ. take care.

Jules said...

Whew! I'm so glad that you all are safe and sound and that St. John's is still standing. You are all still in our prayers and they've set up a great donation link on the webpage for the diocese of the west.

You are a terrific mama. It makes me feel slightly better to know that I wasn't (who am I kidding - still am) just going out of my mind with the two girls - I just mean that it does seem tough(er) for everyone. She is a sweet treat to see, and Johnny is such a...kid!

We love you guys!

Paul and Kameron Morton said...

Praise the Lord that you guys are home... we were praying for you and your family AND your stuff ;) Thanks for the exceptionally honest post... I will be reading it again in a few more months when I am in your shoes. It hardly seems possible to do it all, especially at first. God is so good though and as time gets on I'm sure that things will get back to some resemblance of what "normal" was... and in the mean time, I'll just continue to pray for you!!