a change of heart

everyone i talk to comments on how fast this summer has gone. i agree. even though my kids aren't going off to school today, it still marks a change in season for us with the neighbor kids going back to school. they have been a significant part of our summer, and if you read this post i wrote a couple of months ago, you'll remember that it didn't start off gracefully. i don't know if it was before or after i wrote that, though, that God really began convicting me of my attitude, particularly toward the kids directly across the street from us who are in foster care. levi made a comment to me one day about these kids (based on something he had heard me say) that became the catalyst for my change of heart. hearing my attitude coming back at me through the mouth of my own child was quite convicting and made me quickly realize how NOT in line it was with what we want to be living and teaching to our kids. God began to soften my heart toward all the neighborhood kids, but especially these two across the street who don't even know right now who their real family is. we began including them as much as possible in what we were doing and the kids clocked hours and hours of play time together over the past couple of months. what could have been a constant annoyance became a real joy to all of us. and honestly, while it will be good to get back to more of a routine around here, i'm a bit sad that the neighbor kids will now be gone at school all day.