Fun new baby gear: I bought a Johnny-Jump-Up at Target, because they were 20-40 bucks cheaper than the doorway jumpers I had seen online. Samson loves the thing. The only worry is that you are not supposed to leave them in it for more than 30 minutes a day, because over-use will delay the child's development. They use a different set of muscles to stay upright in a jumper or walker etc. than they use to stay upright when walking. I would recommend this product for your baby to have fun and get up off the floor, but not to pacify him/her.
Also, I had a dream last night that Samson up and crawled! I have also had dreams that Samson could speak in clear, correctly conjugated sentences. Maybe I will have to wait a couple more minutes for that to happen.
I just want to randomly throw in here that I went to high school with Jeff Clement from the Mariners.
Wednesday, August 05, 2009
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Running the Household Fairly
Here is a good article about getting the Hubby to help out once in a while. (Personally, I especially liked the bottom of page 2.) Check it out!
Ivan and Marcia’s 3 Keys to a Great Marriage
Ivan and Marcia’s 3 Keys to a Great Marriage
While each marriage is unique and comes with its own trouble spots and highlights, the following are 3 simple principles we agreed to focus on to keep our marriage strong:
1. Communicate.
Become a really good listener carefully listening before you react.
Be sure to communicate as clearly as you can to your spouse about your feelings. Speak the truth lovingly.
Remember communication should be vertical as well as horizontal (something like and equilateral triangle!D); by this we mean that you should spend time in prayer together. You will be surprised at the connection you will make with your spouse’s heart.
2. Prioritize.
Prioritize how you spend your time and resources. Weigh the urgency and importance of everything on your to-do list (and make sure to leave room for things not on your to-do list).
Study your spouse: find out what aspects of life are most important to your spouse, and put those at the top of your list.
3. Date your spouse.
Show your spouse the respect and courtesy you would show to an acquaintance or stranger. Focus on what you like about them, what you have in common -- listening patiently, being slow to anger and quick to forgive & forget.
Be spontaneous. Lavish your love on your spouse.
“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds” (Hebrews 10:24). Be the one to get the pendulum swinging.
Consciously decide to show selflessness, physical affection and verbal appreciation in at least one way each day. (The more ways the better.)
“Love must be sincere. Hate what it is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves” (Romans 12:9-10).
While each marriage is unique and comes with its own trouble spots and highlights, the following are 3 simple principles we agreed to focus on to keep our marriage strong:
1. Communicate.
Become a really good listener carefully listening before you react.
Be sure to communicate as clearly as you can to your spouse about your feelings. Speak the truth lovingly.
Remember communication should be vertical as well as horizontal (something like and equilateral triangle!D); by this we mean that you should spend time in prayer together. You will be surprised at the connection you will make with your spouse’s heart.
2. Prioritize.
Prioritize how you spend your time and resources. Weigh the urgency and importance of everything on your to-do list (and make sure to leave room for things not on your to-do list).
Study your spouse: find out what aspects of life are most important to your spouse, and put those at the top of your list.
3. Date your spouse.
Show your spouse the respect and courtesy you would show to an acquaintance or stranger. Focus on what you like about them, what you have in common -- listening patiently, being slow to anger and quick to forgive & forget.
Be spontaneous. Lavish your love on your spouse.
“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds” (Hebrews 10:24). Be the one to get the pendulum swinging.
Consciously decide to show selflessness, physical affection and verbal appreciation in at least one way each day. (The more ways the better.)
“Love must be sincere. Hate what it is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves” (Romans 12:9-10).
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Artist
Check out "The Art of Asbestos." I like this artist a lot. While his/her stuff is very typical of modern art and graffiti art, I still had a lot of fun flipping through this site. Check out the Wheat-pasting, Graffiti, Ice sculptures and even some "Found-object-returned" art.
Thoughts on My Marriage: Part 3
At the risk of sounding pompous, I believe my relationship with Ivan is special.
There is something about the dynamic between us--our attitude towards our marriage--that I feel is lacking in most marriages today. It is something I cannot quite wrap my words around.
It transcends sex
and financial security
and family
and playing house
and being best friends
and love
and having babies
and societal obligations
and moral obligations
and all the good stuff
(and the messy stuff) we associate with marriage.
There is something about our covenant between Me and Ivan and God that transcends all that stuff and I don't quite know how to describe it. I know that some of you out there will know exactly what I mean. Can anyone help me out on this?
It is not to say that other people take marriage too lightly; most people don't. There is just something extra there that I am not quite convinced I have seen in a lot of the relationships around me. And it makes that relationship the most important thing I have on this earth.
There is something about the dynamic between us--our attitude towards our marriage--that I feel is lacking in most marriages today. It is something I cannot quite wrap my words around.
It transcends sex
and financial security
and family
and playing house
and being best friends
and love
and having babies
and societal obligations
and moral obligations
and all the good stuff
(and the messy stuff) we associate with marriage.
There is something about our covenant between Me and Ivan and God that transcends all that stuff and I don't quite know how to describe it. I know that some of you out there will know exactly what I mean. Can anyone help me out on this?
It is not to say that other people take marriage too lightly; most people don't. There is just something extra there that I am not quite convinced I have seen in a lot of the relationships around me. And it makes that relationship the most important thing I have on this earth.
Sunday, July 05, 2009
Shoes
I really like these Andrew Gellar shoes from DSW for about $50. They are very comfortable and have just the right heel height. Go with anything!
A few weeks back Ivan took me to the scout store. I discovered that they have a lot of cool craft kits. I bought the moccasin kit. They are precut to fit your shoe size and come with everything you need! These were fun to make, but the instructions weren't very clear.
Monday, June 29, 2009
Baby's First Year Doesn't Cost as Much as You Think!
While babycenter.com's cost calculator estimated that it should cost us around $9,000 to raise our child for the first year, I think that is a gross over-estimate for us.
For my husband and me, the only real costs so far are that he hasn't been working part time (which honestly didn't earn a ton of moolah anyhow), the fact that I chose to take 3 months off, diapers & wipes, and the occasional babysitter (which is sometimes free). Samson's birth was covered by my insurance. My husband does daycare, my breastpump was a gently-used hand-me-down (which means Samson's food has been free thus far), and everything else was a gift.
It is amazing how the Lord has provided. Family, friends and even a bunch of people I had never met came to fill our needs with baskets-full of clothes, baby gear, blankets, and everything we have needed. I even had to give some away, because there wasn't room to store it. I wrote right around One hundred thank-you notes to all the people who gave gifts for my baby. This has really allowed me to spend some money on more of the "want" items rather than more of the "need" items.
If I hadn't taken those extra weeks off work, and if I hadn't bought those "want" baby items, I think we would easily get away with spending under $1,000 on Samson's first six months.
P.S. If you are reading this and wondering where your thank-you is, I promise its on the way!
For my husband and me, the only real costs so far are that he hasn't been working part time (which honestly didn't earn a ton of moolah anyhow), the fact that I chose to take 3 months off, diapers & wipes, and the occasional babysitter (which is sometimes free). Samson's birth was covered by my insurance. My husband does daycare, my breastpump was a gently-used hand-me-down (which means Samson's food has been free thus far), and everything else was a gift.
It is amazing how the Lord has provided. Family, friends and even a bunch of people I had never met came to fill our needs with baskets-full of clothes, baby gear, blankets, and everything we have needed. I even had to give some away, because there wasn't room to store it. I wrote right around One hundred thank-you notes to all the people who gave gifts for my baby. This has really allowed me to spend some money on more of the "want" items rather than more of the "need" items.
If I hadn't taken those extra weeks off work, and if I hadn't bought those "want" baby items, I think we would easily get away with spending under $1,000 on Samson's first six months.
P.S. If you are reading this and wondering where your thank-you is, I promise its on the way!
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Thoughts on My Marriage: Part 2; The Mystery of Love
Have you ever been in a bad romantic relationship or had a "failed relationship"?
I am little obsessed with the idea lately.
If you have been following my posts and links on Facebook or my blog, you probably get the message by now that I have been feeling extremely depressed about the state of relationships and marriage in our society. The reasons are many and multi-faceted (and maybe its a little bit because my own relationship is admittedly imperfect). My heart has been heavy-laden with the weight of thinking about sexual sin and the impact of parents' relationships with each other on their children.
I am no expert--I have only been married 4 years! But I think if there is one thing that has kept our marriage strong it is that I always have this sense of commitment and this sense of hope...hope that if we are going through a rough time, we will get through it. Most of the time marriage is a great thing, but you wake up some mornings and you don't feel like loving the person next to you. You decide to do it anyway. You go through seasons that are not filled with passion...occasionally you even go through seasons that are filled with flat-out disdain. But you stick to your commitment, because you made a promise.
The mystery of love is the great mystery of life. I believe to love someone is a choice. You choose to make sacrifices for a person no matter how much they bug you or how messy it gets. And you know what? It pays off. The feelings follow the actions. And the actions are reciprocated. This is not to say that you should love out of expectation for reciprocity, rather you should love knowing that you will reap blessings one way or another. That's part of the mystery.
If you are a follower of Christ, he calls you to love your neighbor, strangers, even your enemies. Love the people that may never show you mercy.
I would venture to say it can be the most difficult thing in a person's life when the person you are trying to love won't love you back. What do you do? (No really, I am asking. What do you do? I would like to know.)
When I am struggling with loving my neighbor, it helps to consider Christ's great love for me. I have rebelled against him, cursed him to his face, hated his followers, and broken my promises to him. I am an adulterer in his eyes.
Yet, he loves me.
The mystery of my relationship with my husband
is that it is more than your average American marriage. Stay tuned for Part 3!
(For those of you reading this on blogger, here is excerpt from 'Thoughts on My Marriage: Part1'
"Ivan and I balance each other in a lot of ways. Its never a perfect balance, but its a balance that blesses us and challenges us. If Ivan didn't have me, he would walk around in the same pants for two weeks and he would be late for everything. If I didn't have Ivan I wouldn't have as much confidence. If Ivan didn't have me he would play an unhealthy amount of video games. If I didn't have Ivan, I would be incredibly bored and my life would be a waste")
I am little obsessed with the idea lately.
If you have been following my posts and links on Facebook or my blog, you probably get the message by now that I have been feeling extremely depressed about the state of relationships and marriage in our society. The reasons are many and multi-faceted (and maybe its a little bit because my own relationship is admittedly imperfect). My heart has been heavy-laden with the weight of thinking about sexual sin and the impact of parents' relationships with each other on their children.
I am no expert--I have only been married 4 years! But I think if there is one thing that has kept our marriage strong it is that I always have this sense of commitment and this sense of hope...hope that if we are going through a rough time, we will get through it. Most of the time marriage is a great thing, but you wake up some mornings and you don't feel like loving the person next to you. You decide to do it anyway. You go through seasons that are not filled with passion...occasionally you even go through seasons that are filled with flat-out disdain. But you stick to your commitment, because you made a promise.
The mystery of love is the great mystery of life. I believe to love someone is a choice. You choose to make sacrifices for a person no matter how much they bug you or how messy it gets. And you know what? It pays off. The feelings follow the actions. And the actions are reciprocated. This is not to say that you should love out of expectation for reciprocity, rather you should love knowing that you will reap blessings one way or another. That's part of the mystery.
If you are a follower of Christ, he calls you to love your neighbor, strangers, even your enemies. Love the people that may never show you mercy.
I would venture to say it can be the most difficult thing in a person's life when the person you are trying to love won't love you back. What do you do? (No really, I am asking. What do you do? I would like to know.)
When I am struggling with loving my neighbor, it helps to consider Christ's great love for me. I have rebelled against him, cursed him to his face, hated his followers, and broken my promises to him. I am an adulterer in his eyes.
Yet, he loves me.
The mystery of my relationship with my husband
is that it is more than your average American marriage. Stay tuned for Part 3!
(For those of you reading this on blogger, here is excerpt from 'Thoughts on My Marriage: Part1'
"Ivan and I balance each other in a lot of ways. Its never a perfect balance, but its a balance that blesses us and challenges us. If Ivan didn't have me, he would walk around in the same pants for two weeks and he would be late for everything. If I didn't have Ivan I wouldn't have as much confidence. If Ivan didn't have me he would play an unhealthy amount of video games. If I didn't have Ivan, I would be incredibly bored and my life would be a waste")
Marriage and the Public Good: Ten Principles
Read the article.
This is sort of a scholarly treatise on marriage and how advantageous it is to both society as a whole and to the individual.
I think marriage is incredibly important; the lack of commitment I see in all types of relationships around me is heartbreaking.
What do you think about divorce? Cohabitation? The abundance and acceptance of premarital sexual relations? Please comment.
This is sort of a scholarly treatise on marriage and how advantageous it is to both society as a whole and to the individual.
I think marriage is incredibly important; the lack of commitment I see in all types of relationships around me is heartbreaking.
What do you think about divorce? Cohabitation? The abundance and acceptance of premarital sexual relations? Please comment.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Beautiful Piece of Prose on Purity
http://www.relevantmagazine.com/features-reviews/life/17168-the-purity-puzzle
I loved reading this. This whole idea of marriage and sexual purity has really been on my mind lately. God is impressing something new upon my heart: what can I do to improve the state of relationships and families in our nation?
I loved reading this. This whole idea of marriage and sexual purity has really been on my mind lately. God is impressing something new upon my heart: what can I do to improve the state of relationships and families in our nation?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)