Dancing Fiends

The little guys in their "morning garb" as we head to breakfast in the comedor. We are obviously at the height of fashion at 7:45... =)

Listening to the Pirates of the Caribbean soundtrack... enthralled... lol

Andres' face after I told him to share his crayons... =)

During and after our chili lunch at church on Sunday... (L-R top): Moises & Timi, (L-R bottom): Gabriel & Andres

Shower time... where there is always, always lots of water on the floor outside... lol

A day of GREEN: Strangely enough, Sunday evening at dinner everyone in the kitchen was wearing green, the food was green, and how could we resist a photo shoot? Yes, you're right... there is one exception... but Denise, we promise to avoid analogies such as "the black sheep" or somesuch ridiculous thing... lol...

"DANCE, DANCE, YEAH"

It started with just a little bit of Ben E. King and “Stand by Me” making us tap our toes. Then Gladys Knight and the Pips got us soul-searching with “Midnight Train to Georgia.” Then we really got going with Al Green and “Let’s Stay Together,” started bobbing with Billy Paul’s “Me & Mrs. Jones,” and grooved out to the rest of the Incredible Soul Collection (circa 1960) while trying out incredible dance moves (like the “water sprinkler,” “shopping cart,” “twist,” and “Tifani in Walmart”), incredibly executed by incredibly talented, incredibly agile, incredibly young chicos... oh, and their “Mother” for two weeks... =P

Andrés shook his hips like a madman, Gabriel swayed back and forth, eyes closed in rapture while yipping out barking noises, Timi (with a huge grin) hopped up and down from one foot to another, and Moises got so excited he started running into walls... lol.

This is just another day in the two-week music saga we have been living lately. We began with an education in the Pirates of the Caribbean soundtrack, which the boys found fascinating. All four climbed up into the blue armchair, squished together, eyes huge, heads tilted to catch the shifts in melody, looking at me with huge, accusing eyes every time a song change came and no music was forthcoming! Andrés kept asking me if there were soldados adentro de la música? [“soldiers inside the music”?] I love it...!

Next, we moved on to Spanish Kids Bible Songs (during which I stood at the kitchen sink, washing dishes after breakfast, singing at the top of my lungs – admittedly in English – and the little boys stood behind the wall partition peeking around at the crazy, wild-haired idiot splashing soap suds everywhere). These songs were an obvious favorite that might have even beat out Marvin Gaye.

Our next educational experience was The Beach Boys, to which I’m pretty sure I perfected Mom’s “twisty dance” from my childhood memories – I suddenly see the appeal in dancing around the living room going totally berserk while little kids watch and laugh, Mom... lol. I held Moises in my arms and we waltzed around the room to “God Only Knows,” while visions of homecomings, airports, and family floated through my mind from Love Actually. It was one of the best slow dances I’ve had in my entire life, and I think Moises liked it too... =)

WISDOM FROM DIAPERS

Sometimes kids are the best philosophers I know. The other day Gabriel was sitting on my lap playing “let’s-poke-Stephanie-in-the-stomach-and-the-eyes-and-the-mouth-and-the-ear-and-see-if-she-responds,” when he suddenly stopped and asked, “Donde está tu cafe?” [“Where is your coffee?”] Smiling at him (because the four boys now constantly ask me where my coffee is, if I’m going to bring my coffee, if the coffee is sleeping in my room, and whether or not it’s still “hot, hot?”), I started to answer when he interrupted me and said, “Es como Cristo.” [“It’s like Jesus.”]

I thought for a moment, and then it suddenly clicked... “Como adentro? El cafe está adentro como Cristo?” I asked. [“Like inside? The coffee is inside like Jesus?”] He shook his head “yes,” eyes bright, and smiled at me... after which he received a big, rib-cracking (not literally) hug, and lots and lots of kisses... what a great reminder of Christ’s presence in us!

It also made me think of Christ being in us temporarily or for the long haul. In Spanish the word “está” is temporary... but the word “es” is used for permanence. Gabriel used “es” to describe the permanence of the coffee inside me... like Jesus. And though the coffee may not be inside permanently, I pray that every day Christ’s permanence will remain and grow even stronger... =)

God bless you today!