Today we were rushing around making final preparations for Addie and Emma to be dropped off at camp for the week.  It never fails I am always purchasing seasonal items in the middle of a season or near the end when no one else is shopping for these items and the stores are lower in stock.  Today I needed new swimsuits for my girls.  Before hitting Walmart we needed lunch and decided to stop by  Burger King.  Little did I know that as a result I would find myself disgusted with both major national companies!

I ordered four kids meals from Burger King, not my favorite lunch food to provide for my kids but it does happen from time to time.  Each meal came with a toy, as always, and my surprise was the toys for sure!  Burger King gave to my four children, whose ages are 3, 6, 8 and 10, four Eclipse propaganda toys promoting the Twilight Saga!  Did I miss something??  Isn’t that a PG 13 movie?  Am I wrong or isn’t a PG 13 movie recommended for people over 13.  I realize many children under 13 see PG 13 movies, but I thought it was at least the recommendation of the movie industry to wait.  What would make Burger King think that I would want Eclipse toys given to my children, much less why would they think this is a good idea?  Does Burger King not treasure the children enough to support and encourage their childness?  You can keep your “toys” Burger King and your lunch for that matter.

We then headed to WalMart where I found my second frustration of the day.  We were looking for one piece swimsuits for the girls, the ones who are 6, 8, and 10 remember.  At Walmart I found a horrible selection of one piece swimsuits that were missing major sections of the “one piece”, and that is ALL I could find!  Addie even commented “this is basically a two piece suit”.  The suits had huge cut outs on both sides and low cut fronts…These were the only choices!  Maybe there were better options in the beginning of the season but somehow I doubt it.  This was the young girls section of the store where sizes are 7-12 and usually fit girls who are 7-12.  Personally I do not desire for my young daughters to look like anything but a 6, 8 and 10 year old girl!  So WalMart you can keep your “one piece” and I will look elsewhere!

Back off Burger King and Walmart!  You might want to rethink your decisions for the young among us and the parents who make the sales possible.

If you have not figured it out by now I need to tell you I LOVE to READ!!  This year (2010) we made it a goal to each read 20 books.  I have been reading and enjoying it but I need to pick up the pace if I am going to get 20 in before 2011!  Right now I am trying to finish books number six and seven.

My first book of the year was Julie Powell’s Julie & Julia which I found while roaming around WalMart at Christmas time.  I had recently seen the movie based on the book and thought it would be a story I would like to read.  It is possible that it should have stayed on the shelf at WalMart, which I will explain soon.  I just loved the movie, you can see my earlier post about it if you like.  Almost from the first page I discovered maybe the movie is better than the book… “It had been happening for a couple of years now, ever since I’d sold some of my eggs (ovarian eggs) for $7,500 in order to pay off credit card debt.”  I was thinking “what did I just read?   I don’t know that I am comfortable with that!”  And that was only the beginning!

Julie is harsh in her language to say it nicely, OK she cusses throughout the book and I did not enjoy that!  Julie is very different than myself in not only life experiences but values and core convictions.  So after a chapter or two I questioned if I should just stop reading and choose another book.  The movie portrays Julie more in the light of a sweet young girl trying to make something of herself instead of the book which reveals a character who is brash, sarcastic, and able to see sexual innuendos in everything, especially cooking.  Two things compelled me to continue 1. I hate to not finish something and 2. Maybe this would be a good experience in seeing what women’s lives are like who are very different than me. So I continued on, although I will admit I learned to race my eyes over all the curse words and at one point I took a week or two break from reading.

There were a few things I liked about the book.  Reading it gave me a desire to try cooking new things.  I enjoy cooking and this just spurred me on.  I decided to give Julia Child’s Potage Parmentier a try and yes it was simple and delicious, as described.  I enjoyed reading about blogging, which I am  found of doing myself!  I loved the way Julie set a goal and then worked like crazy to accomplish it, never giving up till it was complete.  I loved reading about a young woman wanting more from her life and striving to get it.  I appreciated seeing a glimpse into lives that are lived by convictions very different than my own.  I found it very eye opening!

From time to time Julie starts to reveal her own spiritual views “I have never looked to religion for comfort-belief is just not in my genes.  But reading Mastering the Art of French Cooking-childishly simple and dauntingly complex, incantatory and comforting- I thought this was what prayer must feel like.  Sustenance bound up with anticipation and want.  Reading MtAoFC was like reading pornographic Bible verses.” (pg 15) Interesting!  I wonder if she has ever read Song of Solomon, it might be shocking to her!  Song of Solomon is not pornographic but it is not PG either.  Julie refers to a woman at work who wears a What Would Jesus Do bracelet as a “loon”, directly implied because she wears the bracelet.  I have never worn one of the bracelets, but I have read the book which this was inspired by and at times live by the principle; and I must say it is rather helpful and convicting at the same time.  I don’t think that makes me a loon.  Near the end of the book she compares Buffy the Vampire slayer to the Bible.  After a description of the Buffy story line (teen vampire slayer and only one who can save the world) she writes, “In all this is not so unlike the Bible, except with stunt doubles and better jokes.  Those of you who are offended by this can take some comfort in knowing that I am far from the first person to have made this observation.  Also like the Bible, Buffy got a little bloated and Revelations-y toward the end…you don’t skip out of Revelations, no matter how kind of weird and lame it is.  Or maybe you do.  But not the last episode of Buffy.” (pg 248-9)  I don’t find this offensive, the Bible is an amazing true narrative and many story-lines have mirrored it’s genius!  The Lord is the perfect story weaver and amazingly His is reality!

Overall, I am glad I read through Julie & Julia, but I would not go so far as to recommend it.  If you read it and I know that you know that I read it…well I just might blush and try to deny it all.

The time has come!  Today marks the end of over ten years that a precious piece of furniture has lived in my house.

I can remember back to 1999 when Brian and I were dedicatedly choosing this item, ordering it, putting it together and anxiously awaiting the moment it would be filled.  I remember bringing Addie home from the hospital and her first night with us when we got NO sleep as she lay in a cradle in our room.  Brian’s mom said to us the next morning “I think she needs to be in her own room”, and so this precious furniture was filled for the first time.  My heart skipped a beat the day we moved Addie to a big girl bed @ 18 months because Emma was coming to join us soon, I even cried.  Then it came time to move Emma, Isabelle was on her way.  Isabelle got to stay a little longer than the first two, but she as well had to move out…Owen was coming!  Three years after Owen’s arrival and ten years after 2000 the day has come, the crib is coming down.

I am not going to hide the fact that I stood in the hallway in tears bidding farewell to this dear furniture that represents for us a huge milestone and time of change.  My babies are grown and a new era is on the move!  I am thankful for my friend Kelly, whose words on FB this morning brought great encouragement and direction “there are wonderful days ahead”.  How true this is!!

I say farewell to our wonderful crib and the years of having a baby in our home.  I am not positive what the Lord has in store for us, but for now the chapter is closing and a new page is turning.  A new page filled with bunk beds, soccer games, summer camp, pool memberships, late night talks, personalized ipod mixes, and much more is now living in my home.  WELCOME!  May I soak it in and enjoy every moment before I walk our children to their dorm room and once again find myself crying in the hallway!

I came across this blog post from Tony Morgan and I was simply amazed at what I was seeing and how this could impact the teaching and spreading of the gospel.  But it also raised a thought of concern of how we think about the spread of the gospel

It is hard to consider the value of technology for spreading the gospel and discipleship verses the potential loss of what the gospel is intended to accomplish.  What I mean by this is that the good news is that because of Jesus, we are invited into participate in the love and holiness of the triune God, through grace…and this is meant to establish God’s eternal kingdom of people beginning here and now.  Jesus’ model prayer was “…your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”  I can’t get away from the hands-on, person to person aspect of the truth of God being lived out in a local group of people with shared experiences.  Sometimes we in the church get caught up in the idea that we are all about just getting the message out to as many people as possible.  But this is just spreading the INFORMATION of the gospel, not spreading the TRANSFORMATION of the gospel.  I believe that technology can sometimes isolate us rather than congregate us.  It can give us a false sense of community if we are not continually pursing those right next to us.

All this said, I do think that community can occur using holograms, and in the future, truly life transformational ministry will involve this type of technology.  What thoughts do you have about technology, theology, and the kingdom of God? How will this and other technology further change the face of global mission?

I just watched 50 First Dates on the airplane today and was inspired! I know it came out awhile ago (2004), but I’m not always the most current on new movies, and I sure did appreciate the airplane edited version.
If you haven’t seen it, the basic concept is that this girl Lucy (played by Drew Barrymore) was in a car accident and lost her ability to turn short term memory into long term, so each day was a completely new day, but she only remembered her life before the accident. So this guy Henry (Adam Sandler) wins the affections of Lucy everyday over and over again. There are a few fun plot twists and a great ending, but what struck me is how much we can take each other for granted. We often think of family as people who will always be there, but that is not necessarily true. Each day, each experience we have with those we love should be cherished like it was the first time or the last time. It stands to reason that if I love my wife in this way, we will never drift apart; if I relate to my children like this, they would always be confident that their dad wants to know their heart and help guide them through life.
These thoughts all come together as today we join with family to be together and grieve over the loss of and celebrate the life lived by my Granny Early. We don’t ever know when our last time to see and experience life with our loved ones will be. There are no guarantees, and the only surety that we have is right now and our eternity after this life in the body. Paul said, “For me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” each moment for us on this earth is not only a moment to invest in those around us, but also a moment to live life IN CHRIST to the fullest. So Wednesday, our family suffered a great loss, but my Granny Early experienced the greatest gain anyone could hope to experience…that through faith she entered into the eternal presence of her Creator and Savior Jesus Christ.
So live today as it is your first and last day with those around you, cherishing great relationships and family history, but taking nothing for granted.

(ps. remember that this is not a movie endorsement, and I watched an edited for airplane version, so I don’t know what I “missed”.)

Today I find myself running around doing all those last minute things so that I can go out of town.
My to do list included:
1. Early morning run to keep the half marathon training going.
2. Finish the laundry.
3. Put chocolate and M&M on Isabelle’s heart cookies for her class.
4. Go get my fingerprints taken (so I can go on a field trip with the public school). Should have been done weeks ago and really can not wait till I get back!
5. Run by the grocery store to stock the house with food so they will survive while I am gone and Brian does not have to take them to the store.
6. Drop off criminal background check at the distract office (again so I can go on the field trip).
7. Pack
8. Make another two dozen heart shaped cookies, then put on the chocolate and M&Ms for Addie and Emma’s classes.
9. Arrange childcare needs for Brian.
10. Get in the car and pull away super excited!!

I have not accomplished #8 yet, and it might not happen. I bought three bags of Valentine’s candy as a back up

I was completely blessed by a stranger today in the grocery store! She was an older woman in the check out line before me, her name is Mrs. Stoner. Owen was in a bad mood at that point and I was trying to distract him by showing him all this cool Thomas the Tank Engine stuff by the checkout line. When I turned back to the line Mrs. Stoner had put almost all of my groceries on the belt for me! Then to top it off she bought Owen a Thomas book!! What a blessing for sure!!

As a Mom it takes a lot to get ready to leave your precious family, but time away is always worth it. I am headed to Sandy Cove’s Pastor’s Wives and Women in Ministry Connection, a retreat I have done yearly for 4-5 years. I am always blessed to be there. Spending time being taught from God’s Word and rubbing shoulders with other women in ministry is always great! I look forward to returning home refreshed and renewed and ready for my crazy to do list filled with baking needs, food gathering, high tech finger print analysis, and who knows what else!

“You must know… surely, you must know it was all for you. You are too generous to trifle with me. I believe you spoke with my aunt last night, and it has taught me to hope as I’d scarcely allowed myself before. If your feelings are still what they were last April, tell me so at once. My affections and wishes have not changed, but one word from you will silence me forever. If, however, your feelings have changed, I will have to tell you: you have bewitched me, body and soul, and I love, I love, I love you. I never wish to be parted from you from this day on.” Mr. Darcy Pride and Prejudice
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“The heart of a mother is a deep abyss at the bottom of which you will always find forgiveness.” Honore’de Balzac
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“For God so loved the World that He gave His one and only son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16

“I can listen no longer in silence. I must speak to you by such means as are within my reach. You pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope. Tell me not that I am too late, that such precious feelings are gone for ever. I offer myself to you again with a heart even more your own than when you almost broke it, eight years and a half ago. Dare not say that man forgets sooner than woman, that his love has an earlier death. I have loved none but you. Unjust I may have been, weak and resentful I have been, but never inconstant. You alone have brought me to Bath. For you alone, I think and plan.” Captain Wentworth to Anne Elliot Persuasion
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“Youth fades, love droops, the leaves of friendship fall; a mother’s secret hope outlives them all.” Oliver Wendell Holmes

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“But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.” Psalm 13:5