the weekend must have thoroughly worn out the kids. its nearly 8:00, and i am still sitting in the kitchen alone. i haven't heard a peep from them. so, i'll just enjoy the quiet and my coffee.

the slumber party/fashion show/dance off/ birthday party was a success!! i promised cana i'd post a picture. its not even technically her birthday yet, and she's had a friend party, went on a "date" with dustin and me, and shared a birthday gathering with her baby cousin. i hope the actual day doesn't come with let-down that most of the excitement has already happened! perhaps she'll want to pick out something special for supper on Wednesday. i suppose the double-digit birthday does deserve a weeklong celebration!!

in other news, if there is one thing i've learned from being a mom for (only) ten years, its that there just is rarely a black and white/right and wrong way to raise a baby/child. i was talking with my cousin the other day about things i said i'd never do when cana was first born. things like use a crib tent, bottle feed, homeschool. also, i would never ever ever let cana get messy. but...things just change. ten years later, i've used a crib tent (simone), bottle fed (all), homeschool (older three), and sometimes i have to think back to when the most recent bath was (mostly eden). when i'm in a group of mothers--old and young--i do a lot of listening. i have so much to learn, and i hope that someday my experiences can guide other young moms into lives of parenting grace. all i know for now is that there is more than one way to skin a cat. whether in a grocery cart or a baby wrap--in my bed or in a crib--educated at home or in the public school--i pray that above all else i would be able to teach my children to love God, to love people, and to love LIFE.