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Archive for the ‘Faith’ Category

Cultivating Peace: #4 Honor Thy Spouse

Posted in Childhood development, Faith, Peace at home on July 12, 2013| 2 Comments »

THE ICE CREAM MAN IS COMING!

THE ICE CREAM MAN IS COMING!

Is this familiar? Your husband does something annoying or forgets to do something important. The doing or the forgetting isn’t what really infuriates you, however. His  act or non-act is representative. It stands for a serious character flaw that must be addressed. A lecture is the only way to go about it, so you rehearse a fantastic speech in the shower or car, of course.

Later that evening, when you deliver your lecture, your husband feels very sorry for you and gives you roses after he takes out the trash, unloads the dishwasher, cleans the diaper genie, scrubs the kitchen, paints the house, cleans the car, and organizes the basement.

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Cultivating Peace #3: Move at the Pace of Discovery

Posted in Childhood development, Faith, Peace at home on July 2, 2013| 1 Comment »

Childhood

Childhood

Before motherhood, arriving at  my front door was predictable. Park the car, out the door, and up the steps while planning my to-do’s: dinner, laundry, a work project. Grab my keys, unlock the door, plop down my tote, and on with the evening.

With a toddler in hand, however, I embark on an adventurous excursion as soon as my field guide is out of his car seat. First, we kneel and study ants trailing along the sidewalk. Then, we see how the dandelions are doing. A handful is taken for close analysis. The wind scatters their little white furries, and we observe how each one skips across the grass.

A loud whoosh captures the little scientist’s attention. An airplane? He looks up . . . waits . . . waits . . . waits . . . and there! Yes, his hypothesis is correct. Airplane! “Ooooooh!” he remarks.

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Cultivating Peace: #1 Grow in Faith

Posted in Faith, Peace at home on May 22, 2013| 1 Comment »

The serious gardener

The serious gardener

True peace is found in faith. Christianity is my foundation for building patience, joy, humor, trust, respect, and other virtues. Faith makes joyful moments more meaningful and the difficult ones bearable.

Jack can entertain himself for almost an hour playing with dirt, feeling its gritty bits sift through his soft fingers and analyzing its properties with scientific concentration. I watch in awe of his God-given curiosity in nature’s beauty. This moment is bigger than Jack or I. There is divine goodness and love at work. I thank God for this time.

And, I ask Him for help, so very, very much help when I’m fiercely taking a hair dryer to Jack’s shoes so we can get to church on time after he has just dropped them in the dog’s water bowl, and this after I’ve said ten times excuse me, we do not put things in Cowboy’s bowl because that’s disrespectful to our loving dog who graciously tolerates you and now, sir, you might have to wear stinky, soppy shoes to church because the Lord isn’t going to be put on hold for stinky, soppy. God help us!”

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Cultivating Peace

Posted in Faith, New parent worries, Peace at home on May 22, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Starburst honeysuckle

Starburst honeysuckle

Expecting our second child is exciting. I look forward to witnessing our little one learning and growing, cooing and laughing over the simplest things like pink honeysuckle, dog sneezes, and belly kisses. On the other hand, I’m anxious about double the tantrums, double the poopy diapers, and quadruple the Cheerios crunching underfoot.

But that’s reality. It must be accepted and appreciated. Eighteen months into motherhood, I’ve learned that for every hectic moment, in which I think seriously, is this my life?, a wonderful moment follows, in which I thank God for this is my life!

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The Baby is Here

Posted in Faith, Pregnancy and childbirth on May 13, 2013| 1 Comment »

Baby Phillips, 12 weeks

Baby Phillips, 12 weeks

My husband and I are excited to announce that we are expecting Baby #2, due early November! I am happy for all of us, but most of all for Jack. He is a big brother!

Jack accompanied us to our last ultrasound and was mesmerized the picture of the baby’s tiny life. At just 12 weeks in utero, Baby Phillips is already set for “Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes,” including a big brother to sing the tune.

When asked “where’s the baby,” Jack points to my belly—and sometimes to his own. It’s amazing that 17-month-old Jack understands that another person is with us even though we can’t see him or her in the same way that Jack and I see, touch, and hear each other.

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What Our Aging Pope Teaches Our Growing Boy

Posted in Childhood development, Faith on February 17, 2013| Leave a Comment »

photo

I admire Pope Benedict XVI for his courage and discernment. Resigning from one of the most influential positions in the world reveals the depth of his humility and obedience. Having such inner quiet and stillness formed by the Holy Spirit is something that I aspire to perfect in myself and to nurture in our 15-month-old son.

I say nurture because I don’t have to teach Jack to find meaning in quiet space. He does this every morning when the sun shoots bold rays through our den windows.  Jack rises to his knees and tries to catch the farthest beam.  He moves his face in and out of the sun to learn the difference between warm and not warm. He waves his hands and is delighted by the dancing shadows.

Jack studies the sunlight like he studies his books, blocks, and stuffed animals. Everything in the toy bin, sunlight included, offers the opportunity to discover and define.

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If the Genes Fit

Posted in Faith, Pregnancy and childbirth on January 30, 2013| 2 Comments »

Gratitude alone doesn’t solve all problems or answer all questions, but with sharp nails it pierces all the perceived wrong shades of color and mistakes in design.

When I felt the urge to start a blog, I annoyed myself. Seriously, does the world really need another blog going on and on about mom jeans and minivans?

Well . . . yeah . . .kind of. It is nice to know that you can share in others’ experiences. Parenthood brings all sorts of changes that are difficult to face on one’s own, and changing cars and jeans size only brushes the surface of an entire paradigm (or maybe paranormal) shift. Ordinary frustrations may feel like just that―something ordinary. Not so. Frustrations can make us look at our lives head on and choose to gain clarity and wisdom from them.

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Why I Love Babies

Posted in Faith on January 25, 2013| 1 Comment »

The busier Jack gets, the less time there is to write. However, yesterday on the feast day of Saint Francis de Sales, patron saint of communicators, Pope Benedict XVI released his message for the 47th World Communications Day. He encourages others to share their Christian views through social media, so it’s time for me to hush about no time and get on with it. I am hopeful that little by little I can present a picture of parenthood rooted in Christian teaching.

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I Will Make Your Burden Light and Bring Peace to Your Home, but I Won’t Clean It

Posted in Faith, Peace at home on October 19, 2012| 4 Comments »

Choo choo!

Thanksgiving will be another special one this year. My family will be in town to celebrate our little turkey, who was born on Turkey Day last year. True to form, I began planning weeks ago. Finding inspiration in home design magazines, I have been determined to transform our living room into a spread right out of Traditional Home. I want inviting little pumpkins on side tables and vases bursting with mums on the mantel, and of course gourds everywhere.

But before I can get to the decorating, I must start with a clean slate. This means dusting along base boards, behind books, and in between all the places that may not have been cleaned since last November.

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They’re Young Only Once

Posted in Childhood development, Faith, New parent worries on October 15, 2012| 2 Comments »

Since Jack learned to crawl nearly three months ago, our lives have been very different. Before he became mobile, I could build blocks and read Pat the Bunny with him. Then, I could sit back and read a novel, or at least a paragraph in a novel, and write, or at least a few sentences in a journal.

Now that he requires more careful watching, more is demanded of us, especially of me as a stay-at-home mom. The advantage is that as Jack develops into the wonderful little guy God has created him to be, he interacts with me more, and I witness his personality come into being. When my husband comes home at the end of the day, he is excited to hear the daily play-by-play.

The disadvantage is the personal sacrifice. Me time is relegated to Jack’s nap time and an hour or so in the evening―not much time to finish a novel, take a ballet class, do an at-home facial, watch Modern Family, organize closets, and do whatever it was I did before baby.

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