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It’s Nathan’s Big Day!

Feb15

Today is my middle  child, Nathan’s, 13th birthday. Here he is a few years ago. And really, this is typical Nathan. Goofy and doesn’t care who knows it. (He put on his sister’s pink swim goggles so his eyes wouldn’t tear up while he was chopping an onion.)

This is Nathan just a couple of months ago. He really does have his serious moments, momentary though they are. Nathan is all boy. He loves to read and whack things with sticks. He loves swords and knives and bows. He’s taking a fencing class, and archery, and excelling at both. He hates math, or so he thinks. He has no idea what he wants to do with his life, since he thinks the only things he’s good at are reading and whacking things with sticks.

At one time he thought he wanted to be a missionary adventurer, traveling to exotic places and telling people about God. He loves learning about animals and buying books about animals, but when it comes to actually doing the dirty work of taking care of the animals? Not so much.

He loves God. He loves going to the youth group meetings at our church. He loves Greek mythology and learning Latin in school and studying ancient civilizations.

He’s smart and funny and cute (don’t tell him I said that). When his little sister was a baby and crying about something, he would try to cheer her up by telling her a joke or making funny faces at her. Now, if he hurts her, which is a frequent occurrence, he tries to get her to laugh about some other goofy thing he’s doing.

He tried to lie to me once. Didn’t make it past 10 minutes before he was confessing his crime.

He loves back scratches and Wii Lego Harry Potter. And food. He’ll eat about anything in many unusual combinations.

He’s lovable, irritating, sweet, goofy, moody, easy-going, a bit careful when it comes to trying new things.

He’s Nathan, and I love him to death. Happy 13th birthday, dude.

Today I’m thankful for:

25. Nathan

26. Another night when I don’t have to cook dinner

27. Middle school volcano experiments

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Feb14

I spent my day taking 10 second graders to Ponce Inlet Lighthouse, about an hour and a half drive from Orlando. I’m not a big Valentine’s Day person, but I did buy them little heart cookies to have with their lunches at the lighthouse.

But for the last 20 years or so, there has been a group of us that has gone to dinner right around Valentine’s Day. This group has seen the birth of 9 children and the marriage of one. We’ve talked by cell phone from the restaurant of choice to one couple who moved to Thailand for two years. I was in labor with our second child one year. Had him the next day. We’ve never missed a year.

Jim and Carol have the oldest kids–the one who got married is theirs. David and I had our first “date” babysitting their kids. Carol convinced me to not give up on David when he was being a bozo.

Joel and Marjorie are like family to us. I’ve know Joel since my college days, and he and David used to live together. He was in our wedding and both of us were in theirs. Our kids call them Aunty Marjorie and Uncle Joel.

Greg and Jill have been our good friends for a long, long time. Greg used to be David’s boss. Now he’s one of our pastors. Jill is one of my best friends. She was Morgan’s teacher in first grade. Greg helped David tile our house. David helped Greg reroof his. Can’t get any more friendly than that!

David and Karen are the newest to our group. They filled the gap when Joel and Marjorie were in Thailand. They are friends we can always count on and enjoy spending time with.

This is our group minus David and Karen--before Joel and Marjorie went to Thailand.

It is a joy to have such good friends. Many people have only a couple of people they can count as close as family. We are blessed with these four couples–and many others who have come along into our lives after we started our dinner tradition.

We don’t have a date yet for this year, because the other David has been traveling overseas. He returns tomorrow. I expect we’ll be able to set a date for next week. The day doesn’t really matter. It’s whom you’re with.

I love these guys!
Happy Valentine’s Day!

More to be thankful for:

22. Take-out Chinese food for dinner

23. Wifi service at the Centra Care clinic

24. Modern medicine

Who Are You Meant To Be?

Feb13
I’ve known I wanted to be a writer since 7th grade. And once I became a follower of Jesus, I knew I wanted my writing to help connect people with God. When I learned in college that Campus Crusade had a magazine, I thought that would be a great opportunity to meld my two desires: write and connect people with God.

And then I had kids. My writing has taken a back seat. I know many people do it, but I have had a hard time finding the time, energy and brain power to put words to paper, so to speak. Several years ago I wrote a purpose statement for my life. My goal in doing so was to have a tool by which I could prioritize my activities and the requests that come to me. If it doesn’t fit in my purpose statement, I feel more freedom to say no. Here it is:
To raise godly children in community with other believers; to enable others to communicate professionally and clearly by using my writing and editing skills; to support my husband in a way that makes him feel empowered and loved; and to glorify God and enjoy Him forever in the process.As I think about the desire I have to connect people with God, I think I need to tweak that just a little. But basically it says what I want it to.Before I was born, God had a plan for me, a destiny. It would be nice to know that my destiny, my purpose in life, has had an influence on others. Everyone wants to matter in this world.

What is your destiny?

Thankful today for:
19. people who know what they’re talking about
20. that my husband is good at math and science
21. my MacBook Pro

Football Season is Over

Feb12

It’s Sunday afternoon and there are no football games on. What ever am I supposed to do with myself? Baseball season doesn’t start yet, and I don’t watch basketball or hockey. I’m in a sports void. It’s only 53 outside: much too chilly for this native Californian. So I’m going to stay inside, maybe watch a movie, finish writing the lesson plan for this week, and maybe even take a nap, although it might be too late for that. Kids are all playing on their ipods (oops, text the youngest to find out if she actually finished that homework that’s due tomorrow–dont’ want to have to yell across the house, you know). I don’t have to make dinner because we had a potluck at church. That’s the policy: church potluck? No making dinner on Sunday evenings. That laundry can wait another day, right? It’s Sunday.

It’s a good day.

16. church potluck lunches

17. warm slippers

18. an unscheduled afternoon

You Care, I Can Tell

Feb11

My kids know whether I really care about something they’re talking about, showing me or doing. If my attention is not completely on them, or if I’m not quite enthusiastic enough with my “I like it!” or “Way to go!” they accuse me of not liking it or not caring about whatever “it” may be.

I have a tendency toward laziness, so if I really don’t have a genuine concern or care for someone, then it’s easy for me not to do something about their need or pain. And I can tend toward grumbling about the things I have to do as a wife and mother to take care of my family: more laundry, another meal, more homework to correct.

But if I genuinely care, then all those things should flow out of that caring.

Our theme at school this year has been “Love in Action.” “And He has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother” (1 John 4:21 NIV84).

Helping a friend reroof his house.

Taking care of a friend’s kids when they are delayed getting to school to pick them up.

Taking another friend’s son back up to his high school campus to pick up his clarinet that he left there, because he has a competition the next day and your friend is at a hair appointment with her three other children.

Paying undivided attention to your child when she’s talking about something you might not really care about, but you care about her.

These aren’t huge things (well, reroofing a house is huge). But they are showing love. And those for whom you do it can tell.

13. Warm winters

14. Working with good friends so that an all-day Saturday work day isn’t torturous

15. Dinner cooking in the crockpot