Advent Day 14 :: Sleep in Mom and Dad’s room, originally uploaded by earthchick.

I have found it difficult to write ever since the horrible news from Newtown on Friday. I have felt too sad, and my little crafts and Advent activities seem so trivial. My heart goes out to the families of those little children and their teachers, to all the survivors and their families, and to the whole community there.

I have been hugging my own children especially tightly these last few days, and finding it hard not to cry. I am reminded all over again what a profound blessing it is to have these people in my life, and to get to care for them, teach them, learn from them, and love them every day. Our life together is in fact made up of many trivial moments. I hope that in each of those trivial moments, I honor and treasure my children, and help them see the goodness and beauty of life.

On Friday morning, the activity I put into our Advent calendar was “Sleep in Mom and Dad’s room.” The boys were excited about this, and I was relieved not to have too much work to do for their activity, as we were having friends over for dinner. This way, the boys would camp out upstairs in our bedroom watching movies while we enjoyed time with our friends.

After we said good night to our friends, we came upstairs to find the boys asleep in our bed. It was precious and tender. We moved them to their sleeping bags on the floor, and I was so grateful to have them near me all night, and to wake to their sweet faces the next morning. I did not take these gifts for granted.