My blog friend MaryMother wrote a quick post with this title. I can totally identify with having a zillion things running thru my brain that I'd like to blog about but never get around to. Her solution: serve gruel for family suppers; takes no planning at all! Just might have to try that myself :) Tonight's solution: Brain dump!

Since my pre-election posts, I have wavered between never wanting to write again and feeling a need to share my perspective post-election. I've opted for neither. In short, I'm choosing to trust God's sovereignty in my own life as well as in the life of our country. I am praying for soon-to-be President Obama and his family.

I am reminded of a verse I read this morning in Psalm 119 - "Your decrees are my treasure; they are truly my heart's delight." I am determining to delight in God's Word more than I delight in the financial or political or religious / moral situation in our nation. Hopefully that brings some peace to you as well.

OK. On to other things. Books I've checked out from the library:

• Oil! a novel by Upton Sinclair - There Will be Blood was based on this book. After reading Kite Runner and being turned off by its movie trailer, I have vowed once again to try read the original before / instead of watching a movie substitute. 
• Three Cups of Tea: One Man's mission to Promote Peace...One School at a Time - I read about this book on MaryMother's blog. Looks interesting, but given the vast number of other books that I want/need to read, this one seems pretty low on the list.
• The Case Against Barack Obama: The Unlikely Rise and Unexamined Agenda of the Media's Favorite Candidate - Given my election related posts, this probably comes as no surprise. But like I said with about the previous book, this one seems pretty low on the list.
• First We Have Coffee... and then we talk - I remember reading this book years ago and being very challenged but I don't remember much about it. Sometimes I need to reread something for it to really sink in.

And I have about a dozen or so books that I received either thru PaperBackSwap, or as Christmas gifts, or that I am finally just now thinking about that I want to jump into. Or read again.

• Tender Mercy for a Mother's Soul
• Don't Make me Count to Three!
• Premeditated Parenting
• Bringing Up Boys
• Love that Lasts
• Good News about Injustice
• The New Dare to Discipline
• The First Year of Homeschooling Your Child
• A Long Obedience in the Same Direction
• A Life that Says Welcome
• Jungle Pilot
• Sew Fast, Sew Easy, Sew On
• Vegetable Gardening in Florida

Whew! And these are just the books on my desk!! Just typing all of that makes me tired.

I am seeing (again) the need to have more of a plan, a better / actual schedule for my time in order to even have the time to read, and accomplish the things I want to do. The other day I decided to write down the things I need to do on a regular basis. Just the basic things, but I feel like I'm dropping the ball on so many of these right now. Having them written out is sobering but good. In no particular order...

• Building new relationships at Summit, in our neighborhood, and at CC
• Keeping up with local friends who's paths I don't often cross but who I truly value
• Cleaning
• Exercise
• Playing with the kids, outside daily and inside games and such
• Consistent/sufficient sleep
• Meal planning and grocery shopping
• Daily time in the Word
• Laundry
• Yard work, both maintenance and new projects
• Homeschooling and specifically, planning ahead!!
• Keep in touch with far away friends and family
• Practice my violin and get involved with our worship team
• Date time with Joel
• Talk about kids with Joel
• reading all those books I listed above!!
• Special/ Seasonal projects like preparing for our garage sale, reorganizing the kids closet, or working on Stockdale vacation plans

In some way, writing these things out is good for me. When these list just bump around in my brain, I get more and more overwhelmed. The thing I've identified as Priority Number One is going to bed on time. I'll write about the 309 unread blog posts I have to catch up on some other time.

I think Count Rugen said it best: "Get some rest. If you haven't got your health, then you haven't got anything."

Good night!

"The average man votes below himself; he votes with half a mind or a hundredth part of one.

A man ought to vote with the whole of himself, as he worships or gets married.

A man ought to vote with his head and heart, his soul and stomach, his eye for faces and his ear for music; also (when sufficiently provoked) with his hands and feet.

If he has ever seen a fine sunset, the crimson color of it should creep into his vote. …

The question is not so much whether only a minority of the electorate votes.

The point is that only a minority of the voter votes."

— G.K. Chesterton

Today, lets vote differently: with our whole selves. I'm on my way to the poles. I hope you are too.

Wow! Thank you all for participating with me in this process! I am thrilled for those of you who are choosing to engage in this election because of my post! I hope those of you who agree with my concerns about Sen. Obama will continue to humbly seek God in making your final decision. None of us can discern fully what is in the heart of a man or God’s purposes for a particular person. Again, Psalm 75:7.

My dear Becca, I especially thank you for engaging in this conversation! I read your original comment last night right before I went to bed and tossed and turned late into the night. First thing this morning my thoughts turned to this conversation and asking God for discernment and humility. I feel he brought several things to mind to share but when I opened facebook to respond, I found Gayle had already expressed similar thoughts on the roles of the church and government. God created “Government [implements] law and justice. Love comes from the hearts of people that are able to impart love.” (Kudos to anyone who can guess who this quote comes from!!) Those “people”, of course, are God’s people, his presence on earth, the Church. Replacing the role of the church with government involvement becomes socialism. Socialism takes away individual freedom and ownership of private property, and generally doesn’t work because of its faulty view of human nature. (Full disclosure: the language of the last sentence is largely taken from an excellent article by my friend Tom Short. I hope to reproduce the article with Tom’s express permission in a separate post later today.)

A thought. Assuming power at a time of economic stress does not necessarily lead to dictatorship. I sincerely believe Sen. Obama does not intend to become a dictator. But the blind devotion of so many people in a time of trouble sets the stage for the outworking of his demonstratably (isn't that a word??) socialist belief that government knows best. Stronger and stronger governmental control is the result. Dictatorship is the furthest extreme of such a position.

One more thing. I think plans to encourage adoption, promote abstinence in teens and fund pregnancy centers sounds very noble. I don’t buy it for a second. NOTHING in Sen. Obama’s record indicates that he will follow through on any of those promises. If you are interested in getting the whole story, I urge you to read the most recent entry on Randy Alcorn’s blog. (Previous entries will also be helpful). He has done a tremendous job examining the issue thoroughly and humbly. I find Mr. Alcorn’s perspectives to be Biblical and winsome.

In closing, I am reminded of an article I read nearly two years ago by an Asbury Theological Seminary student. I posted his editorial on Sen. Obama on my blog back in the early days of the campaign. I still respect his assessment of the situation.

It can be argued that by not voting for him [Sen. Obama], we would only prove to the other politicians that taking this stance isn't ultimately worth it because it doesn't win the votes. I sometimes wish that we could cast two different votes -- one for the person to supply the ideas and the other for the person to deliver them.

I want to see a change in the way politics is run as much as anyone else, but are his policies and plans worth this kind of vote? So far, he has played things fairly close to the vest. He is much like a new recording artist who gets only one shot at a debut album. Obama and his advisers have decided that his music is ready for the charts, and it looks like it is going to debut high. But we need to hear the other songs before we can decide to buy the whole album, as opposed to simply the single off iTunes.

We must remember in the midst of our political daydreams, that if we cast our vote for the idea of Obama in 2008, we are going to get the real, live Obama as president. I don't know yet whether I think that would be good or bad.

Feel free to examine the entire article here in the February 2007 archive of my (seldom used) blog.

Politics aside :) I want you to know that I still miss you and we talk about you and Michael often. Just last week I was thinking of seeing when you might be in O-town next. I miss having you in our everyday lives. Let us know when you can come for supper! I love you, Becca!!

I've had a heavy heart over this election for some time. And now, a short 3 days before The Big Day, what can I say? If you've been watching or reading anything other than the "mainstream media" you understand the great battle that is taking place for hearts and minds. I can only address the people whose world I personally know: evangelical Christians. Kids who grew up in the church. Mostly GC kids, but others too.

Oh, the turmoil! I understand the appeal of Barack Obama. He's so cool, so winsome on many worthwhile levels. I understand the disillusionment with the Republican Party. It has as many sinful people in it as the Democratic Party. And it's track record isn't exactly God-honoring. I don't feel a lot of attraction to the person or politician that is John McCain. I don't like being labeled a one-issue voter. I fear being disdained for having a narrow minded view of America, as even remotely godly, righteous or good. I understand some of the different perspectives that my many expatriate friends have on American government. But I can't let the election pass without urging my friends to consider very humbly their choice for President. A shocking number of you are planning to vote for Sen. Obama and I plead with you to reconsider.

Shocking? Did I just use that word? Don't I respect people's right to chose for themselves? Of course! Surely you know me better than that. I know the arguments on both sides. Believe me; I've been voracious when it comes to election material and commentary. Now it's approaching 2:00 AM and my brain is hurting, but my soul won't let me sleep until I at least take one last opportunity to invite you to consider with me what might be happening in our country right under our noses.

This video of children singing Obama's praises prompted Lori Kalner to recall a portion of her youth in 1930's Germany. She recorded her reflections as Hymn to Hitler and they were published on Brock and Bodie Thoene's blog. Some of you will snicker at those names. Fluff literature perhaps? Perhaps. But in my brief research, Lori Kalner is actually a real person, one of the Thoenes original sources. And what a source she is.

If you follow and read no other link on this post, follow and read Hymn to Hitler. Now.

Are Lori's words a complete disregard for logic? Is she only instilling fear in people? After all our beloved Constitution would never allow such abuse of power by a President!! (Really? See Laura Hollis's very valuable treatment of the subject here.) I found the second comment by BelovedSword to such mockery to be very insightful: 

As for comparing THE ACTIONS of Barack Obama to Hitler’s, why do you turn away from it? Do you fear to see similarities in behaviors and attitudes? No one has come close to saying the Mr. Obama will kill 6 million people, that he is Hitler reincarnated. If Mr. Obama’s behaviors don’t give you pause, then you should simply state so. If you don’t believe his behaviors are similar, simply state so (remember to add the 250,000 citizen watch group he has just added to his list of ideas he wishes to implement). Ms. Kalner has compared similarities in behaviors between the two as well as, and more importantly, the populace that did/does nothing to stand up against it. You may refuse to engage in such a lesson in comparisons on the grounds that it is an “emotional gotcha,” but your refusal is notably void of reason. (I also do apologize, but I could not find your “central thesis” anywhere..this may be because I cannot navigate well or because you have poorly communicated it.) In addition, declaring yourself a “winner” doesn’t make you one, except of course to yourself which only feeds the ego for so long.

Like I said: Turmoil. So, what's a voter to do?

Am I asking you to believe that Obama is the Second Coming of Hitler? Of course not. But I am asking you to look clearly at the policies and potential outcomes of Obama's plans. Putting him in power (and don't be naïve about the checks and balances!) could take us down the road to a both a great loss of freedoms for those who love Truth and more importantly, for the weak and vulnerable that those who love Truth are supposed to defend.

Some of this is vague, I know. But a few of you know exactly what I'm talking about. I'm sure I ticked off a number of good friends tonight. You who truly know me understand that is not my intent at all. I am available for personal dialogue at any time. This is not something I plan to loose friends over. But there can be no doubt that I have urged you to consider humbly, before our God, the potential result of your vote.

Psalm 75:3,6-7 spoke directly to my troubled heart earlier this week.

3) When the earth quakes and its people live in turmoil, I am the one who keeps its foundations firm.... 6) For no one - from east or west, or even from the wilderness - can raise another person up. 7) It is God alone who judges; he decided who will rise and who will fall.

Does this mean that we don't have to do anything? Of course not. God has invited us to be partners in his work. Thank God that it is not up to us to "judge". Amazingly, however, He has allowed us to live in a country where we have the privilege in participating in the system of justice. It's a huge responsibility and I pray you will not take it lightly. I know you won't. Voting for Barack Obama seems completely unwise to me. Now you know a little bit about why.

Whoever you will or have voted for, I truly appreciate you taking the time to hear me out. May you draw near to God through your decision making process, no matter what, or who, that looks like.

God's grace to you.

Just a quick reminder to my Florida readers to remember that the election this November isn't just about the presidency. We have our own state issues to fight for and the Florida Marriage Amendment is at the top of that list. I really appreciated this interview of John Stemberger, president of the Florida Family Policy Council explaining why the amendment is worth fighting for.

Take some time to understand the issue, help your friends get informed and be sure to VOTE IN NOVEMBER!!

I've purchased 40 ears of corn in the past 36 hours.

Yes, you read that right.

When you meet that special someone, you discover that their family has some rather special traditions. When I met Joel, that meant learning all about Corn Oysters. Now, I love me some seafood, but oysters aren't on that list. Fortunately, Corn Oysters have nothing to do with oysters at all. They are all about the corn. From what I can tell they are like fritters, except super thin, not at all cakey, and most importantly made with fresh grated corn.

It's coming up on 9 years since we've been married and I still haven't really figured out how to make Corn Oysters. I started asking Mom Stewart for the recipe right away and, like all many great family foods, it doesn't really seem to exist. She said she just watched her mom make them and each time she'd just eyeballs the flour and tastes to see if they need sugar. As Joel says, you cant measure art. Right.

I tried again last night and now have a sore finger where I encountered the box grater at little too closely. But I did learn a few important lessons yesterday.

One - Use the grater side of the grater, not the shredder. Oops.

Two - The oil has got to be HOT for frying. None of this medium-low business.

Three - Be willing to let your husband take over in the kitchen when his family traditions are at stake.

Back to the 40 ears. I grated 10 last night for the dinner. Joel added 2 more once we figured out I had improperly grated the corn and we needed to fix the consistency of the batter. That left 8 for corn on the cob with friends tomorrow. I was about to let that be the end of it, but tonight, the memory of that fresh corn taste bursting out of the crispy, mushy goodness got the best of me and I went back to Publix for 20 more ears. I'm going to try grating them (properly this time) and freezing the pulp to for a summer-fresh treat sometime this winter. Just experimenting but I'm hoping that fantastic taste won't remain confined to just a few short weeks in the summer.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Corn Oysters - A Sort-of Recipe
In honor of Grandma Brehm, who had the magic touch, and Mom Stewart, who keeps the knowledge in her heart

10 (or so) ears of corn, raw
1 egg
1/4 cup white flour
maybe a little sugar to taste
salt & pepper to taste

1. Grate the corn (not shred!) on a box grater into a fine pulp. Run a butter knife along the ear to make sure to get as much of the milky pulp off as possible. (Let the cat gorge himself in the grated ears - a Stewart tradition)
2. Combine corn pulp with egg, flour, salt and pepper. Add a little sugar (maybe a few teaspoons) if it's not real sweet corn. (Steps 1 and 2 can be prepared ahead of time and refrigerated, even a day or so before use. Grating 20 ears or so takes some time. Not something you want to start at 5:45 PM. Believe me - 20 ears will disappear if you have a crowd. Or just one or two aficionados.)
3. Cover bottom of frying pan with oil and heat. I mean, HEAT. I've not done much frying before this, but I have learned that warm oil just seeps in and makes a mushy mess; hot oil sears the outside and does something magical to the center. You want hot, not smoking-point-hot, but close. On our stove, it was around 8 on the dial.
4. Test fry a small amount of batter to make sure you've got things working properly. Spread the batter into a thin puddle. When it starts getting crispy around the edges, turn it with a slotted spatula. This is the tricky part. Be prepared: they will not look pretty. It will probably fall apart and the insides will run out; part of it might seemed burned (unless it really IS burned, then the "seem" part would be inaccurate. Which happens to me a lot.) Fry on the other side until it stays apart enough to get onto a spatula for the trip to a waiting plate. It should be almost paper thin and not at all cake-like (If it's cakey, add a little milk to thin out the batter. But if the batter is impossibly runny, you'll probably need a little more flour instead, a teaspoon or two at a time).
5. Consume as soon as possible with out frying the inside of your mouth. There are varying views on the proper Corn Oyster accompaniment. Joel is firmly in the syrup-or-powdered-sugar camp, and I come down on the with-a-bite-of ham/bacon-and-the-juiciest-homegrown-tomato-you can possibly-find side of fence. Feel free to decide for yourself.

I love you, Joel!

I received an email today about a unique consignment concept that Orlando moms have the chance to participate in. Boutique for a Week is similar to traditional consignment except that it's a temporary shop with a somewhat higher return. From the BfoW website:

At Boutique for a Week:

• You earn 2/3 of the selling price of every item you consign.
• Hundreds of shoppers look at your items in a week’s time.
• Boutique for a Week takes care of the all the advertising – TV, Newsprint, Radio, Community Updates, Children’s Publications, etc.
• You set the price of your items.
• Shoppers enjoy a climate controlled environment.
• At the end of the week, when the sale is done, you pick up your check

I am hoping to participate in the Boutique scheduled for the end of October. It would be great to do it with some friends. Take some time now to get familiar with the concept and the process. Some of it seems a little complicated on paper, but I think the application of it will work great. Let me know what you think!!

Thanks to Virginia Knowles for the tip!!

Of course The Olympic Games pretty much steal the spotlight right now. Randy Alcorn has a terrific post about the conflict between supporting the Olympics generally and disdaining China's human rights record. I always find his perspectives to be balances and Biblical.

In our own Olympic news, the kids are loving The Games. Jason was running sprints in the back yard today. And they have been pretty impressed with gymnasts so we figured it wouldn't be too early to start them training for the 2020 Olympic team.

They actually might be more likely to go out for cycling. Family bike rides are turning into The Big Thing around here. Here are 3/4 of us getting ready to for an evening ride.

Don't you love the pink??

Is is a problem if I open Google Reader and have +200 unread articles?

I get a daily email from The Generous Wife. It contains "ideas geared to bless your husband (a mix of practical, romantic/sexual and spiritual). [The author suggests you] use the ideas that will work for you and use the rest to spark your imagination in looking for ways to bless your husband."  This morning's suggestion was very timely. Some excerpts:

"I see a disturbing lack of compassion in marriages, and it seems to be getting worse over time.  A total lack of compassion will kill a marriage very quickly, but even a minor lack of compassion will cause significant damage over time.  In fact, having compassion but not enough, or only having it some of the time, is destructive.

Some folks are just lacking in compassion, but much of the time a lack of compassion is a side effect of some other issue.  When we are stressed, tired, worried, hurried or otherwise not at our best it is far more difficult to care, to show compassion.... Figure out the the reason, and then deal with that reason. 

...It's hard to care about others when you are tired and overworked... The solution starts with healthy self care, then moves through to some very hard thinking about priorities and ends in some very hard choices about time use.  We can not do it all.  We must simplify our lives so that we have the time and energy to care about those around us and do the things in life that are really the most important to us.

If you want to be compassionate and caring toward your husband (and others), you have to shape your life so that you have the personal/emotional energy and the time to do so.  It's likely to mean some very tough choices. 

Do not think that love, in order to be genuine, has to be extraordinary.  What we need is to love without getting tired.  Mother Teresa"

Wow. Like I said, Timely. This morning I am wiped out. Yesterday I got up super early (for me) to celebrate a friends birthday over pancakes at Bob Evans and then spent the morning on the garage sale circuit. The whole day was packed (with good things) and ended LATE after a movie-in-the-park with some girlfriends and the kids. Since Joel was gone for the evening at a birthday party, I put the kids in bed, caught up on some emails and then at 12:00 sat down with a fascinating book. Sometime after 1:00 AM I finally pulled myself off the couch and stumbled back to bed. And the result this morning: A groggy momma who can't manage, let alone love or train, her children very effectively. That makes for a grumpy momma who doesn't end up being a very good wife later in the day.

Hmm... "When we are stressed, tired, worried, hurried or otherwise not at our best it is far more difficult to care, to show compassion... The solution starts with healthy self care, then moves through to some very hard thinking about priorities and ends in some very hard choices about time use.  We can not do it all."

For me, this mostly means going to bed EARLIER. Which means giving up some reading or browsing or TV. Those are hard to give up. I suppose those things can be worked in at other times, but
1) if being the wife my husband needs is my first priority after my relationship with God, and
2) that depends on me having the energy to properly manage and train our children (and keep our house in reasonable shape - not my strong point) then
3) I need to prioritize sleep appropriately.

"It's likely to mean some very tough choices." 

Timely.

I really appreciated my friend Sarah's thoughts on Doing without. So I'm thinking more about using what I have instead of just running to the store all the time.

I have been using The Grocery Game off and on for well over a year. There has been some reduction in our overall grocery budget, but I'm not sure how much comes from the TGG savings (on stuff that I *might* not normally buy) or from the fact that TGG provides a list for me to shop from (and you tend to spend less when you have a list). Overall I am trying to be more intentional with our groceries.

The Sentinel has had a good series on cutting your food budget and I have been trying to apply some of their suggestions along with practicing Sarah's challenge to just use what I have in the pantry (always cheaper to use what you have instead of buying something new). Also in an effort to better understand and pay attention to the cost of groceries, I started writing the unit price with a magic marker on a number of groceries (especially the jumbo size things of PB or cheese that I buy at Costco). I want to see if that helps me grasp our food budget better.

I am REALLY looking forward to the opening of our very own local Aldi grocery this fall. Can't wait to see what sort of saving that brings. Might totally reorient my grocery plan!

On a somewhat related note, I read last night that US households contain, on average, 52 unused or unnecessary items worth an average of $3100. That's about $60 per item (not $600 with which my faulty initial read of $31000 equated!) which is no shabby number. I could do a lot with an extra $3100 and would love the extra space that comes with clearing out stuff. Even before I read that statistic, I started posting some of our miscellaneous stuff on our local Craigslist and I'm loving the results!! Since Friday, we've sold a mattress set, 2 bed frames, a trolling motor and a kids train/play table through Craigslist. Love the new space! Love the extra cash!

Of course there are many more thrifty ideas to discuss but I only intended this to be a brain dump of some of the particular ideas bumping around in my brain today. I've been reading a few other sites that have some thrifty tips which you may find helpful:

http://motherhood-moment.blogspot.com/
http://www.debtproofliving.com/
http://www.moneyrulesdebtstinks.com/
http://bargainshopperlady.com/
http://www.thriftymommy.com/

Have fun saving!

In the vein of being faithful with little things... (that actually aren't very little)...

Nothing boosts my faith like seeing (or reading) about others who's faith is tested and they continue to trust the Author and Perfector of our faith. My friend Emily is one such example as her family faces many difficult circumstances through her son Grant's illness. I don't even know how to explain his situation. All I can say is, RUN, DON'T WALK  - metaphorically :) - to their site!!!

I've been thinking a lot about Chinese Believers, especially in light of the upcoming Olympic Games.  Our connect group spent a little time this week learning more about their situation and praying for the Church in China. "The Voice of the Martyrs, in partnership with China Aid Associates, has accepted that call and has produced the Olympic Prayer Band. We would like to invite you to request one to wear during the Olympics. Similar prayer bands will also be distributed to house church Christians in China and they will be praying for you as well." I will be placing an order for these probably with in the week. If you live in the Orlando area and want to wear a band during the Olympics, let me know ASAP so I can order one for you too. This is a very important topic that I would like to write more about soon. In the mean time, here are a few helpful links for more information:

http://www.persecution.com
http://operationworld.org
http://www.hrw.org
http://www.christianpersecution.info
http://www.amnesty.org

Finally, our pastor started a new series last week titled "Bread" about finding our nourishment in the Word. This weeks study guide has focused on John 6:1-15, 25-58 and boy, has it been good. Among other things, Isaac encouraged us to read the passage in several different versions and The Message version really spoke to me. Perhaps I'll write more on it later, but I just wanted to encourage you to check that out.

Well, I'm off to Closing Ceremonies for VBS. My kids have been loving the fun activities and songs that help them learn the truth about Jesus more and more. And the break for me has been wonderful too.

Cora comes around the corner with a somewhat guilty look on her face and a pair of scissors in her hand. My mind instantly recalls the begging from yesterday (and every time "the boys" get their hair cut) that led to me cut her bangs.

Do I even need to go any further with this???

"Mommy, I wasn't cutting my hair, I was...", she trails off.

Hmm, what would be a good alibi??

She did receive discipline for lying to Mommy. But I had a hard time keeping a straight face. She actually did a pretty good job. I know some pretty trendy teens with a similar cut. Not that I'm ready for my baby to be trendy, but it's better than it could have been...

Has it REALLY been 5 months since I posted anything here??? Wow. I am SUCH a slacker. No, I really am. Almost everyday, things happen that I think about writing about here. And do I do it? No.

So, now what? Should I even continue with this page?

Facebook is a problem. Most of my Internet communication happens there for several reasons. Most of my friends are there. And it offers a great platform for keeping up with the pictures, articles and events that your friends post. It's easy to comment on each other's items. Which provides instant affirmation and connection with your "readers". Not something I often get with items posted here. It seems like everybody has Facebook. But fewer people seem to have the log-in necessary to post comments on this site. So I end up missing out on the comments and interaction if I only post something here. It seems redundant to post pictures in both places. But if I don't post something here, my (few) non-facebook friends miss out. Also, even though fb has a feature for importing blog content (say from here to there so I don't have to double post) the formatting always gets messed up and I don't like the way it looks. Who knows maybe that's been fixed since the last time I posted something, oh 5 months ago. Guess we'll see in a minute, won't we?

Other factors. Joel is working mostly from home now. Which is great most of the time. But if I come into our office where he is working, to try to do something on the computer, the kids inevitably follow me in and end up disrupting his work time. Can't have that happen, so I rarely have extended time at the computer. Not that I was writing tons of posts before he was working at home this much, but the change in my available computer time has had an affect on the number of blog posts that I put out.

Another thing. In preparation for homeschooling, I got the idea to try to keep a record page/ blog of what we've been doing, just for my own personal accountability. Not for public consumption. So far that hasn't been going so hot. But it's something that's going to take away from blogging here. Hmm.

Let's see. There are probably more reasons I rarely post here. But I can't think of them now. It seems like the conflict with facebook is a major factor at this point. I'd love to hear some feedback from you on this!! Should I continue this? Are there people who read this who don't use facebook? Is there a reason you're not on facebook (other than being a nonconformist)? Just kidding.

Not sure what to do.

An interesting adaptation of 1 Corinthians 13 for Christmas. Enjoy.

If I speak in the tongues of Christmas materialism and greed but have not love, I am only a tinny Christmas song or an out-of-tune choir.

If I have the gift of knowing what Aunt Agatha will give me this year and can even understand last year's present, and if I have the faith that I won't get yet more socks and ties this year but have not love, I am nothing.

If I clear out the house and give everything to charity and my credit cards are snapped in half but have not love, what can I possibly gain?

Love is patient when the fourth store you've tried doesn't have a bottle garden.

Love is kind and lets the couple with only a few items go in front of you and your bulging shopping cart.

Love does not envy your friend who gets mega-presents from everybody.

Love does not boast about the expensive bike, the PlayStation 3, the TV, VCR, and computer your dad gave you.

Love does not attempt to out-buy, out-wrap, and out-give the rest of the family just to impress.

Love doesn't cut Aunt Flo off your Christmas card list because she forgot you last year.

Love is not self-seeking and leaves a copy of your Christmas list in every room of the house.

Love is not easily angered when the young girl at the checkout takes forever because she is just temporary staff.

Love doesn't keep remembering how many times your mom forgets you don't like Brussels sprouts.

Love does not delight in the commercial bandwagon but rejoices with the truth of a baby born in the stable.

Love always protects the family from Christmas hype.

Love always trusts that the hiding places for presents will remain secret for another year.

Love always hopes that this year more neighbors will drop in to your open house coffee morning.

Love always perseveres until the cards are written, the presents all bought, the shopping done, and the Christmas cake iced.

Toys may break, socks wear thin, but love never fails.

Where there is the feeling of the presents to guess their contents, and Mom going on about being good so Father Christmas will come, and searching through the cupboards to find your hidden presents, they will all stop.

For we think we know what we are getting, and we hope we know what we are getting, but when Christmas Day arrives, all will be revealed.

When I was a child, I talked with big wide-open eyes about Christmas, I thought that Christmas was all about me, I reasoned that Jesus should have been born more often. When I became an adult, I forgot the joy, wonder, and excitement of this special time.

Now we just hear about the angels, shepherds, and wise men; then we shall see them all the time. Now I know as much as the Bible says about the first Christmas; then I shall know just how many wise men there were and where they came from.

Now three things remain to be done:

- To have faith that the baby born in a stable is the Son of God.

- To hope that the true message of Christmas will not get discarded with the wrapping paper and unwanted gifts.

- And the most important, to have a love for others like the one that God has for us.

Copyright 2001 Claire Jordan (caleb@eurobell.co.uk).

Permission is granted to send this to others, but not for commercial purposes.

(Minor edits by GCFL.net)

 
Listening to tonight: Anchored in Love: A Tribute to June Carter Cash

ToDo tonight:

• finish supper dishes
• keep sorting toys on the patio
• catch up on Advent posts at our family site.
• go to bed early and try to kick this sore throat
• figure out what to put in the Advent box to illustrate icing cookies and drinking eggnog

ToDo soon:

• write our end of the year letter
• finish my list of 8 prayer requests for 2008
• Call/write a few dear friends
• get to the bottom of the pile on my desk

Recently acquired books that I have no idea when I'll read:

• In Search of the Source
• The Third Culture Kid Experience
• Right Wing, Wrong Bird
• Teaching Montessori in the Home: The Pre-School Years
• When Life and Beliefs Collide
• Raising Wordly-Wise but Innocent Kids: Wisdom from the Book of Proverbs for Modern Families

Books I am actually reading right now:

• While They Were Sleeping: 12 Character Traits for Moms to Pray
• The Hiding Place

Just a quick note to let you know that I have resumed blogging at www.rannebarger.net and wanted to invite you to follow along on our Advent Adventure. Experience tells me not to promise a daily post, but since I do have an easy (and daily) subject, that is my goal for the month of December. I also have a bunch of pics to post from our 2007 Stockdale Thanksgiving gathering in MO. You can look forward to those too.

And I look forward to your comments on anything on our site. Who doesn’t love feedback on their stuff?!?!

After so many months of nothing here, I just have to put up Something.

This is probably not the best evening for me to resume blogging. I feel tired (up late last night stalking Tupperware on eBay), ineffective (relatively trashed house), frustrated with the kids (what's with the YEAR of potty training?), overwhelmed by the Christmastime to-dos (The kids just don't get this - Is it Christmas yet or isn't it???) and rather worthless. Just so you know.

Since the minute I posted my last blog entry I have been composing new entries in my head.  Some really challenging, heart warming, insightful stuff. But you haven't seen any of it. What a slacker I am. Yes, I know I have two kids and all that. But is many ways, it all boils down to me just being a slacker.

Ooooohh. Galatians 6 comes to mind. Yes, Dad, I know the New Living Translation is the unauthorized version, but the Lord keeps using it in my life. Like right now.

4) Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won’t need to compare yourself to anyone else. 5) For we are each responsible for our own conduct.

Ya. Need to meditate on this some more.

And I need to go to bed. Tomorrow will be no different if I don't get the rest I need. See you soon.

I hope.

I just have to highlight two women who's blogs are well worth reading.

MotherMary is a pastor's wife in Minnesota who recently endured the year-long treatment for Hep-C. Her blog is a great mix of random personal stuff and really-basic-but-profound truth that God is teaching her. The style can be a little jittery but I am continually challenged by her humble heart. Recent fantastic posts include thoughts on Psalm 142:5 and a tribute to Ruth Bell Graham.

You know when the title of her blog is "And I shall yet praise Him" that there is a depth of faith in Carol Feistel's soul. She and her husband Malcom were missionaries for some time in Taiwan. I stumbled across their blog just as Malcom was entering his last days on earth before passing into the presence of his Lord Jesus Christ June 22, 2006. Her writing since that time has been a tremendous example of fidelity of faith ("faith toughened by testing"). I am at a loss to express how much her faith has challenged my heart. Recent fantastic posts include Submission and Words of song to fill my heart.

It's so easy to get sucked into the zillion interesting (and gazillion worthless) blogs out there. It has been good for me to pare down the material I read. These two heroes of the faith are going to be staying on my permanent blogroll.

May I follow in their faithful footsteps.