A few of my favorite things...

Just came across this little diddy,

which {insert huge sigh of relief} still makes me smile...

..

.

Quite possibly my favorite picture that I've ever taken!

.

Sometimes,

when I least expect it...

amid all the underwear wrestling...

the bumps and dents in our walls...

the disturbingly unexplainable "mystery" bruises...

the constant coat of caked mud on their shoes...

the stained sleeves they borrow and use as napkins...

the wall murals painted in sharpie and/or white-out correction tape (Umm... yeah)...

the glitter glue I'll never get out from between the floor boards in the Craft Room...

the incessant arsenal of whirling plastic weaponry...

the indian burns and purple nurples...

the super-hero dress ups...

the little growling dinosaurs...

the blanket forts and bubble baths...

the entire cast of miniature 'CARS' cars which magically drive themselves all around our house...

the Legos... {insert exasperated sigh}... oh, all those darn LEGOS...

the skateboards and scooters and bikes and rollerblades and ripsticks...

the crayons, paintbrushes, colored pencils and markers...

the dog-eared UNO cards...

and otterpops...

Amid Diego and Sponge Bob...

Zack & Cody, Drake & Josh...

Mario Kart and Lego Star Wars on the Wii...

Piano lessons and Pine Wood Derbys...

the grubby smears and fingerprints...

Basketball Courts...

Soccer Fields...

Football Turf...

Batting Cages and Baseball Diamonds...

Bouldering Gear and rock climbing harnesses...

various scattered ski paraphernalia...

the beloved Webkinz and super-powered Sock Monkeys...

the mountainous piles of homework...

the pirate eye-patches and the nerf dart guns...

the CTR rings and zip-up neckties...

the holes in... well... what DOESN'T have them these days?

Yes, amid merciless pillow fights until someone cries... (and that would usually be Trevan)...

the never-ending grass-stained jeans...

Amid "I Love you Stinky Face" and "Where the Wild Things Are"...

the bubblegum tape and the pixie sticks...

and pants that are too short... too quickly...

Somewhere...

Sometimes...

Every once in a while...

I get a glimpse of the amazing, incredible men these boys are growing to be.

And I find myself in the presence of greatness.