What Month Are We In??

So Saturday, we decided it was finally time to rake up the leaves in our yard. Our neighbors have some great Poplar trees that provide us terrific shade in the summer. However, come Fall, the trees drop all their leaves into our yard. I guess that's the price we pay for getting the shade. As much as we are disappointed that we haven't had snow yet, we are blessed in the fact that we haven't had snow fall on our foot or so of leaves that have been sitting since October. So, since I am getting my energy back and breathing better, we decided we should tackle this job. We bundled up and headed out to the cold.

My job was to rake the leaves from the corners and out from under the swingset. Mark's job was to run the lawn mower over the leaves and frequently empty the mower bag into the dumpster. Maggie's job was, well, to keep busy and stay away from the lawn mower. As I started raking up leaves, the piles began to get really tall. So, we created a new job for Maggie. She got to kick the leaves to make a smaller pile for Mark to mow. What child, or adult for that matter, doesn't enjoy kicking huge piles of leaves that have just been raked up?

It was such a beautiful (allbeit, chilly) day, that we had to keep reminding ourselves that we were in the first week of December and not the first week of April.

Every once in awhile, Maggie took a slide break while Mark and I took a coffee break.

It's a strange feeling to already be reminiscing about when she was "smaller." I mean, she's only 3 for goodness sake! But, as we were taking our break, we were thinking about when we first got the swingset. Maggie was terrified of the slide. Then, when she wanted to use it, we had to lift her up to the top of the slide. Last Spring, we were teaching her how to climb the ladder, with one of us standing right there to catch her when she missed the top step. Now, she goes up and down like she's been doing it from birth. It's amazing how fast she is growing up and how much she needs to learn from us.

I didn't intend for this to be a PSA, but these thoughts just lend itself to what Pastor John preached about last week. How have I been spending my time, especially when it comes to Maggie and her spiritual growth? Yes, climbing slide ladders is an important part of childhood....but what about the most important part of her life? The part where Mark and I are supposed to be guiding her and instructing her in the path of righteousness?

Yes, Maggie is only 3. Next year she will be 4 and so on and so on. When is it the "right" time for this? NOW. Not when I think she is "ready to handle the gospel truth."

Now.