Yearly Archives: 2012

My favorite sister, Posie
Events, Family

A Pocket Full of Posie

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After Christmas, we had the delightful opportunity of celebrating my parents’ 50th anniversary. My brother and sister and their families came out to Washington, and we all spent the week after Christmas getting ready for the big day. Now, six weeks later, I miss having them around.

My favorite sister, Posie

My parents were married twice and never divorced, and so they have two anniversary dates, the 12th of December and the 13th of January (or possibly the other way around). Because of college schedules, etc., we put the 50th anniversary celebration on the 29th of December, which is nearly the midpoint between the two dates.

There was a good crowd; I estimate that between eighty and ninety people were in attendance. But the best part was having my brother and sister and their families around for a good, long visit.

My sister's family and a few extras

Since my sister lives in Georgia, we don’t see her very often. I don’t know her children as well as I would like — it was great to have a chance to be with them and watch them in action.

To host such a big party, there were a lot of details, and lots of work to do. It was very fun to share that work around, between six grown-ups and eleven kids (with Grandma and Grandpa pitching in as necessary). We played games, watched movies, told stories, cooked, ate, and prepared for the party. I can’t think of a better way to spend a Christmas vacation.

In retrospect, we should probably have paced ourselves, using up only one of the 50th anniversaries, instead of recklessly spending them both. I wonder what excuse we can use next year, to get everyone to assemble again?

Tim

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"Help! I'm being loved to death!"
Musings

Sarah and the Cat (not the fat one)

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It is still very strange to think that we have two cats. We call them ‘the fat one’ and ‘the other one’, and we hope they can’t understand us.

Of course, as Rachel pointed out, if they can understand us, they have some explaining to do: why they don’t obey us, come when we call, etc.

"Help! I'm being loved to death!"

The ‘fat one’ label is courtesy of the vet, who called our cats ‘fat and happy’. Rachel took it to heart, and has tried to avoid over-feeding them since, but the little black kitten still seems a little, well, portly.

Anyway, the other kitten (aka Miri) is mellow and enjoys being petted and held, considerably more than the ‘fat one’ does. We love ‘em both, though.

Tim

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Shoes off and pants rolled up - time to walk along the beach
Parenting

Parents Are a Work in Progress

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We are spoiled, here in Washington, to live surrounded by such beauty - an abundance of local lakes and rivers as well as the Puget Sound only a few miles away.

I’ve been convicted quite a bit lately about my parenting; how to be a better mother, how to love my children unconditionally yet still raise them with godly values, how to praise more than I criticize, how to keep my eye on the essentials and not get lost in the mire of life’s busyness and daily chores.

Mostly I just come up empty and floundering.

Daniel - my beloved middle child - is growing faster than I can keep up.

I fear that I am a work in progress, as a wife, mother, disciple of Jesus. Normally this would bring me comfort, and yet these years are racing by; I am running out of time, or so it feels, to be transformed and molded and shaped into a wise and godly parent. As Joshua nears graduation this spring there is a constant whispered hint of his departure for college in the fall.

Is it possible that this role of mother I have inhabited for so long is actually a fleeting one? No, wait, I’m not done, I’ve barely started the training portion of the job.

In my reading I stumbled across this verse in Hebrews:

May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. Hebrews 13:20-21

Ah, I see. God will equip me with everything I need to do His will. He will move in and through me to bring Him glory. He does not leave me in the place of struggling and dismay as a mother. He has blessed me with these precious children and called me to this work. As I seek Him and strive to be transformed in His likeness, He will give me the strength and wisdom to parent.

Perfectly? No.
Humbly? Hopefully.
Graciously? Sometimes.
Flawed? Always.

I long, most of all, to be teachable in my role as mother. I want to hear from the Lord and obey as He leads and guides me.

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Ephesian 2:10

I'm pretty sure being a good mom means knowing when to fix hot cocoa!

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Cara and Kathy were roomates, back in Cabell 303 days ...
Musings

An Early Taste of Spring

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Today we had the privilege of a visit from some old friends from our college days. Tod and Cara moved back to the area a while ago, but we haven’t had a chance to see them since they returned. It was very kind of them to graciously drive down from North Seattle to spend the day with us.

Cara and Kathy were roomates, back in Cabell 303 days ...

We had a lovely vist with Cara and Tod, talking about churches and photography and showing off our children. With the weather so Spring-like, we took them down to Sunnyside Beach in Steilacoom, which was a big hit with the kids (especially since Nancy and her kids were there).

Frozen yogurt at Black Bear and a delicious meal of stew and fresh Mesa Manna rounded out the day magnificently.

Rachel also had a lovely visit with her friends, Sarah and Jenny

Sunshine and temperatures in the upper 50s — it hardly seems possible that just two weeks ago we had eight inches of snow on the ground. Then again, this is Washington.

There's nothing quite like the feeling of cold sand on bare feet in February.

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Use your phone to read the Bible
Musings

and He Will Have an Abundance

As I do most years, I started 2012 with some recycled goals, and a few new ones. It is sometimes helpful to have a fresh start on old goals — like Bible reading, for example.

Last year my goal was pretty modest — to read at least one chapter a day. The focus was on sustainable daily reading — I usually read two chapters, but didn’t remember to read every day.

Use your phone to read the Bible

YouVersion is a great Phone App for reading your Bible!

This year, I decided to try something a little more ambitious — Professor Grant Horner’s Reading Plan. Kathy was using this plan, and she often thinks it would be more fun to have me join her in such things, so I agreed.

Professor Horner

Grant Horner, the designer of the "10 Lists" reading plan

Horner’s plan operates on a principle of ten lists — you end up reading ten chapters a day, repeating some (like Acts and Proverbs) much more often than others. It takes me about 35 minutes a day to read through the day’s selection — if you’re very familiar with your Bible, you may be able to read it in less time.

On day 13, I came across this passage in Matthew 13:12:

Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.

I’ve never really liked that verse; it seems patently unfair to me. But as I began to think about it, in context, I understood that it is referring to those who seek knowledge of God with an eager heart. Such people (who already have an understanding of God) will be given even more, to the point of abundance. Others, who don’t value their knowledge of God, will lose even what little they have. Jesus is explaining a spiritual law every bit as critical to our understanding as the law of gravity.

Another plug for my favorite phone app

As I’ve been working on this reading plan, I keep expecting to reach a point where I begin to dread the work of the reading — or where I begin to begrudge the time spent. After all, last year I read my Bible nearly every day, and I spent far less time at it.

Instead, I am discovering that my love and eagerness to read the Bible is increasing, the more I read.

Today, I was reading Matthew 25 (I started the plan late, and I’ve missed a few days, here and there) and I came across almost the exact same words I found in chapter 13 — this time, in 25:39:

For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.

This seems to me to be a profound truth — God rewards those who diligently seek Him, as is promised in Hebrews 11:6.

I read the plan on my phone, where the YouVersion people have it waiting for me each morning. If you haven’t started a reading plan this year, it isn’t too late to jump in on this one!

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