Boxes

The husband was in New Jersey last week. I was missing him something fierce. It never feels right to go to bed alone when he is gone. He returned early Saturday morning, while the moon was high in the sky and I was long past sleep's doorstep.

He took a peek at the fairy garden by moonlight and then came up to bed. The children were beyond excited to surprise him with it upon his return and I made him vow to be surprised when they showed it to him in the morning. He stood back and gave proper admiration. And told us it was a job well done.

And then I was off to spend all day Saturday without the man I had just reunited with. And I missed him again. Something fierce.

The husband and I have not spent a Saturday together in over three months. I'm aching for a Saturday spent with him. But, I have felt the blessings flow as we have sacrificed our Saturdays.

He has had a three month calling as a veil worker in the temple and it ended just two weeks ago. When this calling was first issued, I must admit I was a little Bitter Betty. I found myself wondering why he was blessed with such a calling? Why was I not able to receive such a calling? Wasn't he already serving enough? Was the Lord really requiring him to spend more time away from our little family?

And, it took a couple weeks for me to humble myself enough to be open to the blessings that were just waiting. Like, I think the Lord had a box full of them with a giant label that said,

"Not to be opened until attitude improves."

And I found myself one night, kneeling beside my bed, praying that I was" grateful for the husband's opportunity to be in the temple each week. And would you please allow me to feel the blessings that temple service brings?"

And the box opened. And poured down blessings on our family. And even greater blessings on our marriage. Our relationship grew in ways that I didn't ever know I wanted or needed, but I truly appreciated. And, how did He know?

I had murmured. I doubted. I pouted. I begrudged. And still the Lord boxed up a few blessings and sent them my way. Who does that? Who gives even when the recipient has not shown any indication of being deserving? I was spiritually spanked. And truly humbled.

I never knew I could receive the blessings of the temple just by allowing my very own husband to serve there. And I'm just a little bit sad that his calling has ended.

I have a feeling there may be a lot more boxes out there.

And some of them have my name on them. I hope the tags say,

"Attitude much improved. Open any time."

Tune in Tuesday to meet an awesome blogger!

Vacancy

I believe fairies fly south for the winter.

In that case, won't you send your fairies our way?

We have just about completed their accommodations

and I believe any fairy

would love it in our little fairy garden.

The children and I dreamed and schemed.

And we ordered some tiny plants from a miniature plant company

and some magical stones and glowing mushrooms from another magical place.

And we had them throw in a few fairies,

who are enjoying the waterfall at this very moment.

The children decided to add the prisms

that we had purchased

(thanks to our recent viewing of Pollyanna)

to hang in the kitchen windows.

They think they cast a mystical glow

and are perfect for a fairy garden.

I must say that I agree.

We began construction early Wednesday morning.

And completed just as the sun was setting last evening.

Perfect timing for little fairies to fly in

and settle down for the night.

And we are pleased with our work.

We are just waiting for that pretty moss

to fill in a bit and a few flowers for more color.

Then I think we need a little fairy pathway

and maybe a little fairy hammock.

Those things can be added later.

Each of us chose our favorite element

in the garden.

We can't get over how much we love

the little plant from the miniature plant company

called Dragons Blood.

It's red.

And it belongs in a fairy garden.

And the magical stones are a brilliant blue.

But they glow green when it is dark.

We have a couple miniature trees

that we planted on the hill.

Can you see that we have a hill?

Well, we do.

And there are a cluster of mushrooms

that glow.

They are intoxicating.

And the fountain.

We all love the fountain.

The children thought it was the perfect spot

for the little fairies to bathe.

And so, there they sit.

In conclusion,

I think this is just what I needed

this week.

A little escape from reality

and a chance to tune-in

to my inner-child once again.

I think the children have

seen a whole new mom.

And I think they like it.

I think the husband

has even had a grand time

listening to our fairy garden

status reports.

The kids keep asking me if fairies are really going to come visit our little garden.

I told them yes, they are.

Something's Missing

Image found here

I have come to the conclusion that the children are missing something in their magical little lives. And I'm determined that they get that something.

In preparation, I have spent the week dreaming and researching and sketching and plotting it out. Because a Fairy Garden takes dreaming and researching and sketching and plotting. You have to find the right miniature plants to welcome little fairies. I think I have settled on some. And I have found some magical accessories.

Once I had these ideas gathered, I presented them to the children and I watched as smiles spread across their cute little mugs. And the girls have added their ideas of the perfect fairy garden retreat.

It's a tricky thing, fairy gardens. Especially in this desert environment. But I feel confident we can pull it off. And now is the perfect time for planting. So, we will spend next week during their fall break getting it all planted and built. And then all the little fairies with no place to go will come and inhabit a little section of our very own backyard.

Everyone needs to dream of a fairy garden. I'm confident that once the garden is planted, the children won't want for anything- it will definitely take care of what was missing in all our lives.

What would you plant in your fairy garden?