Ahhh, the Blessing of Rain....

Finally ... real rain today.

Last year we received barely three inches of rain. So when I woke up to the patter of rain on the roof this morning, I found myself praying in thanksgiving for the blessing on rain.

And it has continued to rain all day. After taking the boys to Victoria Chapel today for Morning Prayer and Holy Eucharist, we stopped by Starbucks and picked up kids' hot chocolates and ciders to celebrate a rare rainy day. My Monet umbrella received quite a workout as I dropped off the older two boys at Keith's office to work on their schoolwork and then proceeded with B to the chiropractor's office. After seeing Dr. Burns, B and I stopped at Henry's for a few items and then went to our favorite Starbucks to complete his schoolwork, our usual Friday treat. The Starbucks in downtown La Mesa feels like a cosy living room, with beautiful wooden tables, deep burgundy armchairs, plus our friend Posie works there, so her smiling face is always welcoming.

B and I ducked back out of Starbucks into the car, and after filling the Corolla with gas, we were back at Keith's office to heat up our packed salami-and-cheese sandwiches and hang out a little while Johanna tutored E in algebra and the older boys worked on their math assignments. We greeted Keith's dad with "Happy Birthday" (his 76th) and because of the still-driving rain, I drove him to the post office to pick up his mail, a trip he usually walks every day but obviously couldn't today. The kids came running out to the car through the rain, backpacks swinging and dripping, jumping into their seats and ready to drive home on rainy freeways, listening to Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows on tape.

After driving home through serious rain all the way up the mountain, we dashed out of the car, snatched our stuff out of the trunk of the car, grabbed the dog from his pen, and made for the front porch where we were protected from the driving rain. Being cosy in the house, reading aloud to the boys from our Bible, poetry anthology, and literature book as the rain filled the meadow road and what little is left of our lawn. And the rain is forecast to last all night and into tomorrow morning. The weather will be PERFECT for putting up the Christmas decorations, with holiday music playing as we put up our nativity set, our Advent calendar and wreath, and of course, our tree.

Aaah, rain ... welcome rain. A true blessing, especially in Southern California.