February 28, 2011
A Year Ago...
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| Easter 1986 |
No one ever tells you what it feels like to loose a parent. No one says what loss and death bring into the life of those of us still living. We never stop to think that death touches us all because death is as Universal as birth. And no one ever tells you the grief that follows the end of a relationship. I am not thankful that my relationship with my father has ended, but I am thankful for the lesson that I have learned about this intimacy that exists with humanity and death, no matter how much we try to pretend it doesn't. I will never forget how important time is, how fleeting, how easily we become lax and forgetful. I will never again down play the importance of the gospel, because I have seen it rejected at the end of the path. I will also never forget that "as long as there is life, there is hope." I know my life has not been marked by separations, but this loss was/is still the most devastating to me personally. Loving someone who was unwilling to flee to Him and being helpless can really put life into prespective. I don't enjoy my education into the world of death and loss, but I am thankful to no longer be personally ignorant to the far reaching effects our choices of sin make not just on this life, but into the next as well. My father has taught me much at the close of this relationship which I know has and will have far reaching effects into the future of my life and the lives of those that I go through this life with. I pray that the Lord will continue to redeem this sorrow in my life and even when I cannot be thankful for the eternal loss of this love, I hope that it will bring glory to Him all the same.
D.M.B
1948-2010
February 25, 2011
Party Time!
February 22, 2011
Marketing Or The Gospel?!
Acceptability in the culture and increased church attendance have subtly but steadily usurped holiness and true worship as the primary objectives of our church gatherings. Preaching the Word and boldly confronting sin are seen as archaic, ineffectual means of winning the world. After all, those things actually drive most people away. Why not entice people into the fold by offering what they want, creating a friendly, comfortable environment, and catering to the very desires that drive their strongest urges? As if we might get unconverted worldlings to accept Jesus by somehow making him more likable or making his message less offensive.
That kind of thinking badly skews the mission of the church. The Great Commission is not a marketing manifesto. True evangelism does not require salesmen but prophets. It is the Word of God, not any earthly enticement, that plants the seed for the new birth. (1 Peter 1:23) We gain nothing but God’s displeasure if we seek to remove the offense of the cross. (Galatians 5:11)
John MacArthur
That kind of thinking badly skews the mission of the church. The Great Commission is not a marketing manifesto. True evangelism does not require salesmen but prophets. It is the Word of God, not any earthly enticement, that plants the seed for the new birth. (1 Peter 1:23) We gain nothing but God’s displeasure if we seek to remove the offense of the cross. (Galatians 5:11)
John MacArthur
February 21, 2011
Thought You'd Like to Know.....
I thought you'd like to know.......
...That Kace LOVES to color. He will not just color a page, but the whole book and not just the whole book, but every part of every page.
...We have a little momma in our home. Petra plays with babies more than any other toy, she will feed, diaper, discepline and rock her babies. When I told her we were going to have a baby and asked her if she would like it her response was "We go get baby now?!" It took much to talk her out of going to the hospital right away.
.....Silas has had a hard time in homeschooling since christmas break. He has a very stubborn personality and he simply doesn't want to learn he says he would rather be playing with his brothers or working on art. Obviously the last two months have been interesting.
.....Many days I HATE homeschooling. I want to stop, I don't want to continue. I want to stop having to argue about math and work through my son's "I forget" moments. Some days he "forgets" how to tell time, other days he "forgets" how to do fractions. Some days I am barely hanging onto my own sanity, much less my temper.
....Most days I LOVE homeschooling. We get to spend a lot more time together than most families, school doesn't take us all day (when silas realizes he is only hurting himself) and we are able to play some games or just chill out together.
......Gresham loves legos, he will build anything with his legos. He does a really good job too! The other boys will beg him to make them planes. He is very independant, the only child that doesn't complain about sleeping late in the morning or being less structured about our day.
....Will and I spent out Valentines at home and He fell asleep in the chair with two little crazy munkins. It was a pretty low key event, but everyone seemed to enjoy the fun! ;)
.....This pregnancy had about 2 weeks last month that were good, but this last two weeks have been horrible. I am hoping for some kind of sickness respite, eventually. But wondering why my hormones go so crazy when I am expecting, Doctor says that my blood is testing way younger than I am though. Which can be either good or bad....not sure which opinion I come down on at this time! :D
...That Kace LOVES to color. He will not just color a page, but the whole book and not just the whole book, but every part of every page.
...We have a little momma in our home. Petra plays with babies more than any other toy, she will feed, diaper, discepline and rock her babies. When I told her we were going to have a baby and asked her if she would like it her response was "We go get baby now?!" It took much to talk her out of going to the hospital right away.
.....Silas has had a hard time in homeschooling since christmas break. He has a very stubborn personality and he simply doesn't want to learn he says he would rather be playing with his brothers or working on art. Obviously the last two months have been interesting.
.....Many days I HATE homeschooling. I want to stop, I don't want to continue. I want to stop having to argue about math and work through my son's "I forget" moments. Some days he "forgets" how to tell time, other days he "forgets" how to do fractions. Some days I am barely hanging onto my own sanity, much less my temper.
....Most days I LOVE homeschooling. We get to spend a lot more time together than most families, school doesn't take us all day (when silas realizes he is only hurting himself) and we are able to play some games or just chill out together.
......Gresham loves legos, he will build anything with his legos. He does a really good job too! The other boys will beg him to make them planes. He is very independant, the only child that doesn't complain about sleeping late in the morning or being less structured about our day.
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| Valentines Day 2011. |
....Will and I spent out Valentines at home and He fell asleep in the chair with two little crazy munkins. It was a pretty low key event, but everyone seemed to enjoy the fun! ;)
.....This pregnancy had about 2 weeks last month that were good, but this last two weeks have been horrible. I am hoping for some kind of sickness respite, eventually. But wondering why my hormones go so crazy when I am expecting, Doctor says that my blood is testing way younger than I am though. Which can be either good or bad....not sure which opinion I come down on at this time! :D
February 16, 2011
5 Things I Wish I'd Known....
When I first had our eldest son I was pretty sure about stuff. I read all the materials I could get, listened to all the professional advice from my doctor and basically became a slave to the basic ideals held about child birth/rearing/care. Now looking back on that poor and very ignorant woman who thought she had everything so together I wish me now could have told her five things that me then would have really LOVED to have known. Here are my top five things I am so thankful I know now!
1. Relax- Sounds so simple doesn't it? Sounds like such a plain truth, right?! But seriously I was wound so tight with my first child that by number four I was seriously unrecognizable as the same human being. I wish I could relax now more than ever! I mean really is this thing I am freaking about really eternal? Is is really going to last the time? In the grand scheme is it really as big a deal as I think it is? probably not. I hope that I continue to relax, especially in parenting and by relax I don't mean be lax. I mean stop sweating the stupid stuff, go with what works, my baby doesn't have to sleep through the night at 6 weeks, nursing doesn't have to be so strictly regimented. I am not gonna adhere to any new movement with this one, I can't handle the extra energy that it would take, to be perfectly honest! I have a hard enough time trusting my Savior daily and repenting consistently and believing in the blood continually to add anything else to my life right now!
2. Yes time goes by fast, but stop worrying and take time to enjoy it! Take every opportunity! Enjoy being a mom, stop being so set on everything and just snuggle, rest and yes even sniff your baby. Sometimes in the middle of the night when my kids are asleep I will check on them and lay my cheek to their cheeks, just to feel their soft skin against my own. Especially the boys who will one day be as scruffy as my hubs. I love the boys soft and tender faces now and know I will remember their cool drowsy feel against my own. Sounds totally lame, but cut a girl some slack, I am a mom!
3. You can do it! Seriously, we all second guess ourselves, but lets face it, it will take a WHOLE lot for you to personally ruin your child. They are so flexible and even when you majorly screw up, which you will, they still think you are pretty cool and will forgive anything when you ask. So go for it, try hard even if you are gonna tank. Ask lots of questions from real moms and try different things to see what works for you. Don't try and make something work that doesn't and remember every child is different.
4. One child doesn't change your life as much as you would think. I realize that when you have one child you really think it is a totally new dimension, but really life doesn't really begin to change until number 2,3 or 4. I don't know what 5 holds, but I am guessing that now we are pretty much so out of wack that things cannot get any more crazy since adding crazy now will mostly go unnoticed.
5. A baby makes family much more important to you. While in college and early adulthood I took my family for granted and figured I would have lots of time to spend with them, but then you miss them on birthdays and holidays and remember you really LOVE having tons of family around. So don't take your family for granted and try hard to make them a part of your pregnancy and birth.
1. Relax- Sounds so simple doesn't it? Sounds like such a plain truth, right?! But seriously I was wound so tight with my first child that by number four I was seriously unrecognizable as the same human being. I wish I could relax now more than ever! I mean really is this thing I am freaking about really eternal? Is is really going to last the time? In the grand scheme is it really as big a deal as I think it is? probably not. I hope that I continue to relax, especially in parenting and by relax I don't mean be lax. I mean stop sweating the stupid stuff, go with what works, my baby doesn't have to sleep through the night at 6 weeks, nursing doesn't have to be so strictly regimented. I am not gonna adhere to any new movement with this one, I can't handle the extra energy that it would take, to be perfectly honest! I have a hard enough time trusting my Savior daily and repenting consistently and believing in the blood continually to add anything else to my life right now!
2. Yes time goes by fast, but stop worrying and take time to enjoy it! Take every opportunity! Enjoy being a mom, stop being so set on everything and just snuggle, rest and yes even sniff your baby. Sometimes in the middle of the night when my kids are asleep I will check on them and lay my cheek to their cheeks, just to feel their soft skin against my own. Especially the boys who will one day be as scruffy as my hubs. I love the boys soft and tender faces now and know I will remember their cool drowsy feel against my own. Sounds totally lame, but cut a girl some slack, I am a mom!
3. You can do it! Seriously, we all second guess ourselves, but lets face it, it will take a WHOLE lot for you to personally ruin your child. They are so flexible and even when you majorly screw up, which you will, they still think you are pretty cool and will forgive anything when you ask. So go for it, try hard even if you are gonna tank. Ask lots of questions from real moms and try different things to see what works for you. Don't try and make something work that doesn't and remember every child is different.
4. One child doesn't change your life as much as you would think. I realize that when you have one child you really think it is a totally new dimension, but really life doesn't really begin to change until number 2,3 or 4. I don't know what 5 holds, but I am guessing that now we are pretty much so out of wack that things cannot get any more crazy since adding crazy now will mostly go unnoticed.
5. A baby makes family much more important to you. While in college and early adulthood I took my family for granted and figured I would have lots of time to spend with them, but then you miss them on birthdays and holidays and remember you really LOVE having tons of family around. So don't take your family for granted and try hard to make them a part of your pregnancy and birth.
February 14, 2011
There is a Cost
This is really Will's Post as this is a quote he found from the theologian. But I was thinking about it tonight so I am giving him props for finding a great note of wisdom. You're so awesome, babe!!!
“Whenever God is at work, there is a cost. Whenever we are called to follow Jesus there will be a cross."
- N.T. Wright
“Whenever God is at work, there is a cost. Whenever we are called to follow Jesus there will be a cross."
- N.T. Wright
February 12, 2011
Scissors are the ENEMY!
Today is a dark day. Silas thought it would be nice to cut some of his sister's hair with the blunt kids scissors that we use for crafts. Less than five minutes after he left my sight and was "building with legos" my baby comes to me with a mostly bald right side of her head. I could have cried to see the mass of curls Kace brought to me a moment later. I spent the next hour trimming and clipping using tools I only use for my boys hair cuts, just to make the mess a little bit presentable. And no, Mom, I don't think I got what I deserve for cutting that girls hair in Kindergarten, but yes I do know better how a mom feels when her daughters curls are gone....and it don't feel good! I hate to admit I am that kind of woman! Alas, it is clear I am still a work in progress. And no I didn't discipline him right away, I was too upset!
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| crackers make everything better. |
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| The agony of lost curls! :( |
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| The bald side. |
February 10, 2011
February 09, 2011
Update
Recovering: Petra contracted Step somehow and now we have two people with ear infection (Gresham and Will), two with Eye Infections (Gresham and Petra) and one with toncillitis (Kace). So far we have been cooped up for a week on wednesday! We ARE SOO ready to be over this!
Reading: I recently finished Adventures of Sherlock Holmes which I enjoyed immensly! And am now onto The Red Badge Of Courage which has so far been pretty good, but then again I am only half-way through. And the best part is they were both FREE on kindle! I just Love my kindle!
Linking: One site I use all the time is Wikipedia and it is so totally cool! I also have been haunting some baby naming sites which have helped me to narrow our search by quite a bit. I also have been using a lot of sites for extra worksheets to use with my eldest, we have hit a rough patch in homeschooling and so I am trying a lot of new ideas to make things easier for us without an argument.
Watching: Since we have had a sick day today we watched Jumanji, Batman, and My Little Pony.
Listening To: Lots of coughing.
Crazy-Five-O: For those of you interested in our progress, no we do not know what we are having yet. Here are some recent pics of our progress. Will thinks it is a boy, my mom and I are hoping it is a girl!
February 07, 2011
February 04, 2011
Burden of Proof....
--Dietrich Bonhoeffer
February 02, 2011
February 01, 2011
Looking For Something Cool To Read?
Now I am not a fan of biographies that tend to glorify the subject, but even though this one flirts with the line where hero worship and general historical record coincide it is still PACKED full of great information about not only Bonhoeffer, but also the lengths to which Christians and non-Christians will go to for the cause of Christ or the adversity of Him. The American church can learn alot from this theologian! I would recommend just about everything by him, even though I haven't read everything. He is the real deal, no matter how you try to hero-fy him you still cannot stop seeing the Cross of Christ! So buy it and read it!
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