With Boots On

Luke and Ellie finished reading The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe Friday night. About a week ago, Ellie found our DVD of the recent film adaptation, recognized the lettering on the cover, and begged to watch it. We told her that when she was finished with the book, we would watch it together and fast forward through any scary parts.
Saturday, while Clar was napping, we sat down with Ellie to watch the movie. We muted the television during some really intense scenes, (spoiler alert, I guess, in case anyone doesn't know what happens... but really, you should stop reading this and go read the book right now), including the wolf chase scene and the killing of Aslan. She loved the movie, and was excited to start listening to Luke read Prince Caspian during her bath Saturday night.
After her bath, she out on her robe over her pajamas, pretending it was her coat, and insisted on wearing her boots to bed. She said she was Lucy, and I know she was getting ready to go to Narnia. I remember hoping, in every big house and in every unexplored yard, to find another door to Narnia. And I know she was getting ready, just in case she found herself suddenly in Narnia during the night.
My favorite scene in the movie is not explicitly from the book, but it captures so well for me the feeling I have after reading the books, the desire to go to Narnia. Part of the way through the credits, Lucy goes back to the wardrobe and realizes that the Professor is already there in the room. He tells her that she won't find the wardrobe open to Narnia again, and that he knows, because he's tried. The look on his face is so sad, and it reminds me of my own desire to go to Narnia.
And since Narnia, like all that is truly beautiful, points to the one Truth, I recognize that I should desire heaven with the same intensity. That, in fact, when I want to go to Narnia, what I really want is to be with my Lord. All these things are saying, "It is not I. I am only a reminder. Look! Look! What do I remind you of?" And I must, like my daughter, prepare myself for a sudden adventure, go to bed with my boots on each night, and say with the same passion, "Come, Lord Jesus!"

Happy New Year

This feels like week 2 of back-to-normal. Luke came home from deployment, and then it was the Christmas season, and now we're finally settled in at home with things pretty much the same from week to week. Except that there's no "back" to normal! It's a new normal all the time! Clar isn't walking yet, but he easily pulls himself up to coffee tables and shelves and chairs, so there's a whole new level of the world accessible to him. Ellie has been asking about school, so we're trying some very first wobbly steps into the world of homeschooling. I should know this already, but it turns out that with small children, there is always a new normal.

I know I didn't post anything about Christmas. We celebrated Christmas, at least twice, but I was so busy celebrating that I didn't take many pictures. The highlight of our trip was sledding in the Colorado snow. Ellie received a sled from her grandparents and responded with all the excitement a parent or grandparent could ask for. She boldly sledded down the hill by herself on the first try, went straight for a tree, leaned back, and slid right underneath the branches. As she says when she tells the story, (which she will do with very little prompting), "Good thing Daddy wasn't in the sled!"

Clar also tried sledding and loved it, although he prefers to go with Daddy rather than Mommy, who is not the world's best sled driver. Usually, when we come to the end of the year, Luke and I find ourselves looking back and marveling at all of the unexpected changes the year brought. And this year is no exception. Luke's entire deployment, from finding out he was going to coming home, was all part of 2009. Additionally, this year, we look forward to lots of changes that we know will come in 2010. We're planning a big career change and a big move. And those are just the changes we're planning! It is good to know that God is never surprised and that He is in control of all things. We look forward to 2010 with joy and excitement as we wait to see what God will do.