intentions

There are things I want to accomplish, some today, some soon. And with the choir trip done and out of the way, it's time to buckle down on them. Today will be some errands, clearing my mental slate for the rest.
- income tax return (yes, I am sheepish on that front). They haven't missed us as they will be owing us money, but it would be nice to get that done for the same reason
- registering my songs with CCLI, a copyright administration group
- registering myself/songs with SOCAN, the society of Canadian musicians, so that if my recordings do become usable for radio or soundtrack, they administer royalties
- planning the recording of said songs, so some can be entered in the songwriting competition. Who knows?
- catching the henhouse raider (quiet night last night, but then I didn't get around to setting a trap)

My incentive in this is twofold: to get it done, it's well overdue, and I have also decided to take the hunter's safety course. That will allow me to legally use a gun, so that should the need arise I know what I'm doing. That and I'll feel like I can officially wear camo. But, as incentive (also a good "in-" title for today) I won't take it until the rest is done. So, at my current rate, that should be in 2016 sometime.

Today though, more importantly, is another milestone in our family: A is 9 today. She's been up for an hour now, patiently waiting for her sisters to wake up so that she can open her gifts. When I think that it's been 9 years since I first held our smallest baby (6 1/2 pounds), 7 years since the two-year-old stage when I wondered if she'd think her name was "No" - and here we have this little girl who loves sports, excels in math, who struggles with self-control sometimes and yet has a determination that I know will serve her well one day, I remember how richly God has blessed us and am thankful for the time we have had with her.

Happy birthday, A.