I Love My Family

Posted on 04.Sep.06 by | 6 comments

My parents and siblings came this weekend to visit, to see the beloved babies and our house, to help us finish unpacking and to celebrate my birthday a little early. We were able to finish unpacking and rearrange some things, and my dad installed a much needed outlet in the kitchen. We did do a little bit of sightseeing (drove by the Vulcan) and took them to Jim ‘N Nicks which was really yummy, the cheddar biscuits are to die for and all the usual things rank at least above average in the B’ham BBQ competition. It was so neat to have them visit and I teared up as we stood on the front porch this morning and watched them drive away. They are so fun, generous and interesting, it is always a joy to be around them. And I got some really super terrific birthday gifts like

I also got some cash to get a manicure and pedicure, black crocs, jeans and shirts from the gap and a starbucks gift card. I feel very hip and special! But we all really miss them.

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Posted in family life

New Study on C-Sections

Posted on 02.Sep.06 by | 5 comments

“A Caesarean delivery more than triples a woman’s risk of dying in childbirth compared to a vaginal birth, according to a new study from France… all of the deaths followed births of a single child and were not due to conditions existing prior to delivery. The women had also not been hospitalized during pregnancy.”  MORE HERE 

The rate of elective caesareans never ceases to amaze me.  A c-section is a major surgery.  There are risks to every major surgery.  Of course there are times where the risk of surgery is less than the risk of complications to a natural delivery.  But to elect to have a major surgery that makes your recovery more difficult and puts you at risk of dying of infection or blood clots?

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Posted in in the news

What I’ve Been Up To

Posted on 01.Sep.06 by | 4 comments

unpacking more so that my parents and siblings can visit this weekend
getting really excited about my parents and siblings visiting!
coordinating the refinishing of our clawfoot tub
getting off my butt and parenting ;o)
becoming a NINO leader
eating the yummy foccacia bread Rebekah made us (We all loved it! Thanks!)
being even more frustrated with Sprint
contemplating a quarter century of life

4 Comments

Posted in general

Sprint, I Wish We Didn’t Have to Ditch Thee

Posted on 31.Aug.06 by | 4 comments

We’ve been Sprint customers since the week after we got married and we’ve always loved our cell phone service. Reliable coverage, flexible plans (we added 7p nights and weekends for both phones for $5/mo) and great customer service brought us right back in to renew our contract last August. Then, we moved to Birmingham. It’s been one dropped call after another, no matter where we are (interstate, downtown, at home, etc.) We have 11 months left to go in our contract so we tried everything (free) to make it work. They sent tech support out. They gave us free roaming. Still terrible service.

So, we started looking elsewhere and stopped in the local Verizon store. We were flabbergasted at the price of phones (even with a two year contract.) The Cingular store was closed, so we went home and I checked online. We could save (literally) $250 getting our phones from the Verizon website over in the store. I started price shopping plans and decided Cingular was our best bet. I then started searching around for phone deals and found an authorized retailer who sent us 2 motorola razr v3s (shipping 2nd day UPS) for free for signing up for a two year plan through them. All we have to pay cingular is the activation fee. (~$60 for two phones). Our phones came today as scheduled and now I get a signal in my house.

Lessons learned: (1) No matter how nice your cellular provider is, they will not let you out of your contract. We have to pay sprint $5.95 per phone, per month to not use them. GRRRRR. (2) Talk to people in the retail stores about plans, but buy your phones/plans online.

4 Comments

Posted in general, technology

Orthodoxy Doesn’t Save

Posted on 30.Aug.06 by | 1 comment

The point to glean here is that our doctrinal orthodoxy does not save us. Certainly, Scripture puts great emphasis on right doctrine. As a theologian, in the doctrine business, so to speak, I have no interest in depreciating the importance of right belief. But doctrine, even orthodox doctrine, is not the final test of Christian faith. One might be most rigorous in biblical and creedal orthodoxy but spiritually dead. Theological acumen and doctrinal knowledge are no measure of godliness. And as with Abraham, God’s choosing and saving us does not require us to have first attained complete theological proficiency. (Michael D. Williams, Far As the Curse is Found)

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Posted in books, theology

New and Old

Posted on 28.Aug.06 by | 5 comments

I think we are busier in Alabama already then we ever were in Richmond. It’s a good thing. New friends, new organization, new church… just in time for the season of sharp pencils and shiny new shoes. The start of school reminds me that I am getting older. It’s getting harder to remember what those first few days felt like! And Kate is closer to kindergarten than I am far away from Carolina. The rate at which I am aging is baffling to me!

Making new friends reminds me of how awkward that is for me. I’m a pessimist when it comes to making friends and I always think people must find me annoying, obnoxious, strange… wasn’t I supposed to outgrow that in middle school? I saw an old friend this weekend who reminded me of another old friend I haven’t spoken to in many years and I am tempted to try to get back in touch. I will Blingo her and see if I can track her down (Blingo still doesn’t have that ‘google’ ring.)

5 Comments

Posted in general

Remote Control: Good for TVs, Bad for Parenting

Posted on 27.Aug.06 by | 9 comments

Having two small children and a household to run is hard work, but one thing I’ve consistently observed is how much difference my approach to my children makes in how frustrated I am and how well our days go. The busy (and sometimes lazy) part of me wants to parent by remote control. I want to say something and *zap* have a small child on the other end automatically hear and comply without a wimper. In reality, between not hearing me, lack of impulse control and general childishness, the remote control parenting strategy rarely works. But I’m busy doing something else and it would be convenient if it did. Most of the time, I try the old “get off your butt” approach to parenting, and this works wonders. I strive to say things once and to follow up with being *right there*, physically assisting the girls in compliance. Is it inconvenient to get off my butt (turn away from the stove or washer or momentarily stop taking care of the other child)? Absolutely. Does it accomplish what I need with mimimal frustration to me and exasperation to my girls? Definitely. The laundry pile will always be there, but the chance to get down on the floor and help my children learn and grow is fleeting. Even though I know this, the temptation to parent by remote control reappears week after week. It’s not easy, this mothering thing.

9 Comments

Posted in parental ponderings

New Cold War?

Posted on 25.Aug.06 by | Leave a comment

For the past two weeks my drive home usually coincides with NPR news, which has been dominated with coverage from the Middle East. What has struck me is that the growing threat of radical Islam in the Middle East is not going to go away easily. Dealing with Iran is going to be like dealing with USSR, and I think they see themselves in that light. Continue reading →

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Posted in culture, theology

Parenting in the Pew by Robbie Castleman

Posted on 22.Aug.06 by | 11 comments

Parenting in the Pew is part memoir and part practical theology as a pastor’s wife grapples with issues regarding children and the public worship service. For individuals and churches who are questioning participating in children’s ministry programs through elementary school, Parenting in the Pew will provide food for thought and conviction that it is good, right and worthwhile for children to worship with their parents.

For those who already worship as a family or have minimal children’s programming, Parenting in the Pew provides encouragement and helpful reminders that the point of having children in worship is to worship, and not to have them sit perfectly still so everyone knows you are the best parent in the room. That can be very important to hear.

Castleman believes that children can be expected to sit through the whole worship service at about age four and everything but the sermon by about two and a half. She does not advocate having children color or look at other books during the worship service. So, if you are looking for practical advice on how to keep your toddler quiet and busy, this book will not meet that need!

I’m glad this book was written and I think it’s helpful for the church as a whole. It may or may not be a must-read for your family. I enjoyed her personal style, but she delved into personal beliefs I don’t share at a few points, so I would not commend all of her theology. I don’t think it was a waste of my time, but I admit, I was looking for toddler tips! (7, acquired from paperbackswap and already passed on)

11 Comments

Posted in books, reviews

Busy

Posted on 20.Aug.06 by | 5 comments

The week was crazy and the weekend followed suit. We didn’t work today, but worship and fellowship all day wasn’t really… restful.  I struggle with my theology of sabbath rest and my actual Sundays.  In my ideal world, we’d sleep in on Sunday, make breakfast together, have family time reading and hanging out, go to worship after naps and have a large sabbath breaking feast after dinner.  Can you tell I am not a morning person?

5 Comments

Posted in family life, theology

Kitchen Pics

Posted on 18.Aug.06 by | 8 comments

If you go to this link, you’ll see the family Flickr photos tagged kitchen, for a before and after effect.

8 Comments

Posted in family life, home sweet home

Fine Art Friday

Posted on 18.Aug.06 by | 1 comment
Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting
The Little Children Being Brought to Jesus by Rembrandt (larger)
I committed to doing FAF for a month, and I’ve done it for much longer than that and have enjoyed sharing fine art with you, but I think this week will be my last regular installment.

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Posted in culture