Installment II: A day in the life...

The first photo here shows Oliver looking rather tough. The story behind the carpet burn on his forhead? I was at the computer, Oliver was playing with every ball in the house -basket, volley, ping-pong, exercise, e&.- near my crafting desk. (I use the word 'craft' loosely to mean creating and inventing, not painting little wooden cut-outs. Just thought I'd clear up any questioning of my character). So there he was playing so vigorously with balls, when suddenly I heard him saying, 'ba ba,' in a panicked voice, then start to whimper. I looked over and all I could see were two little feet kicking away, the rest of his frame burrowed under my desk. Stuck. What choice did I have other than to pull him, by the wiggling foot, out of there?
Hopefully Oli and I both learned a lesson from this misadventure - he, not to crawl under my desk in search of a lost ball; and I, a better understanding of how parenting is a glimps at the way God feels about us.
Last weekend Andrew, Oliver and I had the privilege of worshipping with Mom, Dad and the fam at their church. The pastor talked about Samson and his deadly desire that essentially got him killed. He wanted something so badly, that he couldn't see the danger in pursuing it, just like Oliver went after the ball even though he knew the space was too tight for him. I feel bad about the pain I caused in dislodging him, but the pain of being stuck in that place would have been far worse. Imagine how God must feel when he has to pull us out of our messes. I'm sure his heart aches seeing us so blinded by our excitement that we can't foresee disaster, but he loves us enough that he doesn't want us to stay in that place. If we cry for help, he'll rescue us. He's always there, waiting to pull us out by the kicking foot. Those are my theological thoughts for today.
The second photo is the view out Olive's bedroom window this morning. Remarkable.
P. S. Oliver doesn't know how to smile without the involvement of his nose.