A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

This afternoon Rachel and I took Jacqueline and Abigail over to visit our neighbors, the Phillips, who have lived on our street for over 50 years. We went over to thank them for some books they gave to the girls. They are elderly and don't get out of the house much, so the other day their cook, Angela, delivered some books to us. I was very thankful that Rachel joined me so that I could visit with Marilyn a little while Rachel kept tabs on the girls. They liked exploring the Phillips' home! One thing I'd really like to do as a family is commit each week to visiting at least one neighbor. It meant so much to Tom and Marilyn to have us there today. None of their kids or grand kids live in town. They had fun watching the girls dance, give "loves" (snuggles) to a stuffed bunny. and show off their vocabulary and sign language. Abby spotted some bananas in the kitchen and started signing "please." Angela grabbed a banana for the girls to share. After our visit and walk home the girls were pretty tired out and fussy! Good thing papa was on his way...he kept them laughing from dinner to bath time.

When Micah came home from work today he saw Miguel next door and invited him over to "play at 7." When I looked out the front window after giving the girls baths, Micah had Champ out front and was playing disc golf with Miguel. Bella and Max from across the street had come over to join them. Each of these precious children come from broken homes and I don't know how much they see their dads. It was a beautiful thing for me to see Micah reaching out to them and giving them quality time with a man they can respect and look up to!

I hope our home continues to be a safe place for kids to play and that we take time out of our busy lives to invest in our neighbors.