This morning our neighbor awoke to find they had been flamingoe’d. My girls wanted to drive by and investigate and Ivy asked if we could get flamingos for our yard…

Before going over I tried to explain that the youth group was raising funds for camp (or some other project). And that the family would have to pay to have the flamingos removed (someone else paid to have the flamingos set in the yard). But Ivy refused to believe me. This may be a direct result of my sarcasm. Or maybe she could not imagine why anyone would pay to have the flamingos removed – when you keep the whole flock! (Which would go against the fundraising…)

Phoebe’s first dance class invited all the girls to wear princess costumes. So that is how we found ourselves where the trees have price tags… astounding values that take into account energy savings provided by the shade and carbon capture…

It is funny how we assess everything with a price tag. We have been searching for a used swingset on Craigslist, and tonight we bought one. The man we bought it from came and watched our three little girls playing. He also has three girls, now in college and high school. We set a price for the swingset. But the look in his eyes. My girls were bringing back memories. Images from a day past. And I am not sure I was paying a dollar amount so much as a promise that little girls would play and swing and slide…

Too often we get caught up in the buying and selling of goods. Numbers on paper. Numbers to accumulate. We forgot to cherish each moment. We do not recognize the moments passing away. Until they are gone.

Only then do we wish we had left the pink flamingos in the yard…