Family Feature Spotlight: Grace

Everyone needs a little Grace in their life right?! 

When I met Grace she was a little spunky, creative, goofy 2nd grader who LOVED frogs, dressing up in a suit and a tie, laughing wildly for long stretches of time, sardines in the dark, and collecting random odds and ends until her room was flooded with little bits of outdoors and indoors that the sister who had to share room with her went batty... and thus entered the vacuum cleaner. 

Nothing would stop Grace's attentiveness to creating whatever her tinkerer was envisioning... For instance, I asked her to peel potatoes for dinner a few years back and I left for 20 minutes (to attend to one of our other 6 kids). When I returned I found her creating a potato peel water filtration system. Who does that?! It made me laugh but I was in awe! When we'd call her for dinner she'd be lost in thought on the 3rd story creating some sort of... who knows what?!! An instrument? A toy that had never been invented? A sling shot? I kept thinking she was going to build a rocket. "This child is bound to be a scientist of sorts!" I used to say when she was younger... I still wonder... it could still    happen. It wouldn't overly surprise me. She may even go to the moon.

Grace is now 14 and she's still spunky... she enjoys thrift shopping with her sisters and loves to check-in on WHO has the "best dressed outfit"... but her Dad has trouble answering the question (and I would too!!) because the rules are based on 80s & 90s styles... you know those ones we tried to forget?! Mom jeans, short shirts, Christmas sweatshirts... and now they purposefully cut up the mom jeans to include holes. Big holes. Holes that are "in" when the cold wind blows through them and one shivers. (I'm starting to sound old so I'll stop.) But Grace just laughs at me. It's fun. And I still like seeing her thrifting "treasures" because this is what she's into... 

She LOVES quality time... it makes her heart sing. Lately she's loved sharing her music. She doesn't play cello anymore... but she loves old records... and finding different kinds of music that others may never have heard of. Thanks Apple Music. Random is her gig so random late evening trips to cash in on freebie coupons for food she finds when she's actually cleaned her room (YES the Treasure Queen still abides closely inside the depths of this dear One)... a few weeks ago I cashed in on some time with Grace to "car-dance" to her tunes and get her some free chicken... on my way to the store. It's fun to watch her grow into the light-hearted, one-of-a-kind young women you won't forget. She surprises me with her desire to connect... and I love each moment she wants to "play" --joking around, dancing, laughing together, going on errands, or getting our mud masks on.

Grace, never lose that FIRE to be unique, beautiful YOU. You have so many creative, ingenious qualities that were instilled in you to solve the world's problems and light up the lives of those you touch. You are a gem. Your Good Father knew what He was up to when you placed you on this planet. It's a privilege to get to call you my Bonus Daughter. I love you.