partnerships and neighbors

Today I am grateful for a wonderful husband who made a guitar to go with Isaiah's Halloween costume (even if Isaiah wouldn't carry it) and for sweet neighbors to trick-or-treat with. We had so much fun with our first trick-or-treating experience as a family!

Splashy Fun

We went to the park today, and for some reason there was a drainage problem on the new playground. Does that stop my boy from having fun? No way! He just splashed in all the puddles. Maybe there is a little more laundry to do, but I am grateful for simple fun and hand-me-down shoes that can be splashed without guilt!

Rest

After tossing and turning last night and a long day, I am grateful for time to rest here on our couch and for baby brother kicking and tumbling around inside my belly.


30 days of gratitude start today.

It's an obsession

If you didn't know it, D. and I are obsessed with the science of baby naming. It is really a fascinating topic.

How is it that someone would come up with the name "Madison" for their daughter, thinking to themselves that they were being very creative and original, only to discover that Madison is the fifth most popular name in the nation, and the most popular name in the state of Mississippi? What about "Aiden," for a boy? "I don't know anyone named Aiden," is what some might say. Now, what you might discover if you were to do a little research is that Aiden was the 27th most popular name in the United States in 2007. Not too bad, right? But look a little closer, and you'll find out that the Haden, Jaden, Caden, and even Zayden are all rising in popularity. Don't forget alternate spellings--Aden or Jayden... How crazy is that?

A great source for researching name popularity is the Social Security Administration website. Be sure to look closely. You can research popularity by year, name, or even state. What about both state and year? Yes. We've done it.

I always wonder what it is about a certain name that appeals to a person, and why it is that I decided that my son would be named "Christian" when I was twelve. Here's a hint: I was crazy about Christian Slater after he appeared in "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves."

This is not a decision to be taken lightly. Well, yesterday, thanks to Riri, I found the naming website of my dreams. Nameberry boasts countless lists, popularity charts, and name meanings. Go and have fun. You might become obsessed too.

If you do, be sure to let us know, and we will happily introduce you to some of our other obsessions. IKEA, anyone?

Happy Birthday, Dad!

Happy 59th Birthday to my Dad, the best Dad a girl could ever ask for.

My Dad is the best for long, thoughtful conversations in the car, for his always practical advice, and for his great skills at being "Pop" to his 2 grandkids.

Seek Justice

Seek justice,
encourage the oppressed.
Defend the cause of the fatherless,
plead the case of the widow.
Isaiah 1:17

During my senior year of college, some friends and I started having some conversations about poverty. I know--most college students spend their time conversing about more frivolous things. We had plenty of silly conversations too. But we began talking together and thinking together about what God was asking us to do about the needs we were learning about around the world. We read books about poverty and talked about them together. One that I will never forget is Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger. Don't read that book unless you're ready to be shaken up a bit. As I think back, I think those days and those conversations were part of a growth process for me. I started to learn more about poverty around the world and ask myself--what can I do about it?

Incidentally, D. was a part of that group of friends. This is one reason why I fell in love with him.

I've grown and changed quite a bit in these last 7 or so years, but this passion has grown with me. One of the changes in my life during these years is that I've become a mom. I have to say that as I think about my sons and what I want for them, I want more than anything for them to grow up to be compassionate men. I want them to be men who seek justice and speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves. I have asked myself how I can teach them this, even from a very young age. As I've thought and prayed about this, I have come to realize that the most important thing I can do for my sons is to model for them. If I am a person who seeks justice, hopefully they will learn do the same.

What can I do? Sometimes when I ask myself that question, I feel so hopeless. There is injustice all over the world, starting close to my own home. Sara Groves' song, "When the Saints" articulates this: "Lord, it's all that I can't carry and cannot leave behind/ it all can overwhelm me/ but when I think of all who've gone before me and lived a faithful life/ their courage compels me/ ...and when the Saints go marching in/ I want to be one of them." I like her choice of the word "compels." The more I grow in this passion, the less possible it becomes for me to ignore poverty. I cannot do a lot on behalf of the poor around the world, but I can do a little. I can make small moves.

I have begun to lead a small group of college women at the Wesley Foundation as we talk about God's heart for justice together.

I try to slow down and notice the poverty in my own small town. I try to look people in the eye when I might just want to pass by them as quickly as possible.

I try to make small changes in my habits that impact the environment because the first to be impacted by environmental issues are often the poor.

I try to spend less and give more. This one feels really hard sometimes.

We volunteer as a family to deliver meals in a low-income area in our community.

None of these actions is going to be earth-shattering, but I do know that I have been changed by the small actions of others who I admire. Maybe someone out there will be changed by my small moves as well. I hope with all my heart that my sons are the first to be changed.

By the way, it is no accident that our son's name is the same as the author of such an amazing call to action. If you are trying to guess the name of our second child, you might think of other prophets, priests, or teachers who spoke about God's heart for the poor.

Pumpkin Patch

Rockin'

As I was sweeping the floor, I thought it was strange that Isaiah hadn't come over and spread my dirt pile back out, or tried to take the broom and sweep the floor himself...

I stepped into the next room to find this! He found the ipod, turned it on, and put it into his ears by himself. He was rockin' it to some Enter the Worship Circle.

He is pretty smart, that boy of mine.

All I Want For Christmas...

In our house, we really believe in gender equality, but we do go with "areas of expertise" not based on gender so much, but on giftedness. This is why I am always the one to clean the toilet, while D. always washes the dishes. D. almost always sweeps, swiffers, and mops the floor, and I ALWAYS choose our menu for the week, make the grocery list and decide when we need to go shopping. Most of the time I enjoy this task, but sometimes, like right now when it is midterm, I have 46 papers to grade and I am pregnant and tired, this task can seem daunting.

Well, I saw this site on a blog today.
Wow, somebody came up with a great idea.
Each Thursday, they send an email with a list of meals. You choose five meals and how many people you would like to serve, and they email you a grocery list (appropriately grouped and itemized), a list of recipes, and a list of ingredients you probably already have. Wow. The meals are also healthy and creative, but include some choices for picky eaters. We have one of those in our house. Not me. Not Isaiah.

The sad thing is that this service is only free for a week. If you enter "freetrial" in the redeem a voucher box, you can try it for a week. BUT if you would like to do this for longer, it costs a little bit. That is why a subscription is all I want for Christmas. Unless it came with someone to go to the store, do the cooking, and wash all the dishes. That would be even better.

Reading For Fun

Lots of other people write about books they're reading on their blogs, including my wonderful husband and his charming sister. I read a lot, but I never blog about the books I'm reading. Here's why:
Gendered Agents: Women and Institutional Knowledge
"Edna Pontellier, Adele Ratignolle, and the Unnamed Nurse: a Triptych of Maternity in The Awakening"
Unruly Tongue: Identity and Voice in American Women’s Writing 1850-1930

These are three books that I am currently working on. Who wants to hear about that?
I don't normally talk about what I read or study because, with a few notable exceptions, the listener's eyes almost immediately glaze over as the listener drifts off into la-la land... until he or she can change the subject.

Now, if I am not reading the above books, I am often reading from the following titles:
Zoom, Zoom, Zoom... I'm Off to the Moon!
Go, Go Trucks
Rudolph's Christmas Party
Eco Babies Wear Green

These are just a few current favorites around our house.
If I am not reading these, then I am often reading from the following list:
The Vaccine Book
The BabyCenter Guide to Pregnancy and Childbirth
Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child

You can see that my life is limited. All that to say, I have two books on my list that I am planning to read FOR FUN in the next weeks and months.

Gilead by Marilynne Robinson--I have heard about this for a while and I'm excited about diving into a novel!
The Voice New Testament--This is a re-telling of the New Testament in story form by various authors, including Brian McLaren who is one of my favorites. I am excited about this one too, but I'll be reading it a little more slowly.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Swinging at the park

We had a beautiful fall day yesterday, and today is even better. We went to the park yesterday afternoon, and I thought you would like to see what a big boy Isaiah is. He can swing on the big kid swings all by himself! He can even jump off. He has not learned not to walk behind when others are swinging... we hope he doesn't have to learn that the hard way.

He also slid down the big slides, but D.'s new phone is not fast enough to get a picture of that.

He gets it from me...

Everyone is always asking me where Isaiah gets his light hair. He gets it from me. Also, Uncle Miles. In fact, I have been thinking that Isaiah looks a lot like his Uncle Miles lately.

So fast...

Here is a picture of Isaiah from last week:

And here is a picture from one year ago:


He is quickly changing from a baby to a little boy. He has a mind of his own and he likes to be in charge. He is D.'s and my son, so how could we expect anything different?

He said his first sentence yesterday: "I want it." At least he's assertive. That will be a good quality later in life.

Happy Birthday, pardner!

Today is my mom's birthday! I love my mom, and if there's one thing I know I got from her besides my stubbornness, it's my sense of humor.

At least I hope so.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday, D.!

We are so glad you were born 28 years ago. You bring so much richness, beauty, and FUN to our lives. You are a gift.

Mama's helper

Here is a picture of my little helper and I making a pizza. Isaiah likes knowing what's going on in the kitchen, and helping us makes him feel so proud. You may be able to get a view of my belly in this picture. It has really gotten bigger in these last few weeks.

So I thought I had missed out on the stomach virus, but I was wrong. I got it yesterday, and it was really not cool. In the past 48 hours, I have eaten 2 saltines, a piece of toast and half a container of applesauce. I am feeling better, though. Once I get some more food in my stomach, maybe I'll be able to function again!

Since I've been laying down a lot and being still, I have felt little brother move around quite a bit while I've been sick. That's been a fun thing. Also, don't worry about me being pregnant and being sick. He gets all the nutrients he needs because they're stored up down there. :)

Sickness and Happiness

On Friday, Isaiah got a stomach virus. Yuck. But it was really not so bad. He was still pretty happy and playful for most of the day. On Monday, D. got the stomach virus. It was much worse. The poor guy was in bed all day and today he is still not himself. I have not yet gotten sick, and I hope it stays that way. But you can still feel bad for me if you want to because I had to take care of two people. D. is the worst one by far, but I still love him.

In other news, I cannot even begin to keep you up to date on Isaiah's vocabulary. He says so many new things every day. He has started saying "Corrie" all the time now. He talks to me on the phone, or he talks about me. It is really cute. A few new words from the last week or so include "yogurt," "mail," and "cantelope." I'm not lying.

D. and I have been working to follow the suggestion by our doctor and by the American Association of Pediatrics to not allow Isaiah to watch ANY TV until the age of 2. We did this for many reasons, including the fact that habits start early and we want our kids to be in the habit of exploring and learning actively. Watching TV is a very passive activity. We have done a pretty good job of it, if I do say so myself. :) All that to say, we decided recently that maybe he was ready to watch a little here and there with our permission. Today we watched about 10 minutes of a show I've never seen before--Word World. It is a really neat show and Isaiah liked it a lot. Each character is computer animated, and their body is the word that spells what they are--the dog's body is actually the word DOG. Anyway, Isaiah liked it a lot and even did a little dance. It's weird to see how grown up he is, and it's exciting to see him processing so many new things.

Finally, baby brother is moving around like crazy and doing lots of little dances for us! The doctor said he thinks he'll be another big baby since he was measuring big already, but he also said I can probably have an 11 pound baby with no problem considering Isaiah's size. I hope that is true.

Reflections

So everyone has been asking me if I'm disappointed that we're not having a girl. Here is the truth: no. I really did think it was a girl and I don't know why, but I always told D. I had about a 50% chance of being right. :)

I grew up in a house with 2 kids, one brother and me. We had a lot of fun and there was a lot of craziness going on, and we have always been and still are very close friends. I love my big brother. But I have always thought the bonds between brothers must be very different. Whenever I've seen two brothers who are close in age, I've always thought it must be a unique bond. So I am excited to see that happen between our two boys.

Our one issue is that we have 3 absolutely perfect and fabulous GIRL names picked out, and boy names are a little harder for us. This is not a plea for suggestions, but just a comment. We are sure that we'll find the perfect and fabulous name for our second boy that fits him just as well as Isaiah's fits. We have twenty more weeks to choose, and that is a long time. Yes, we still like to keep our names secret because surprises are good for everyone and because we don't need any negative comments.

We would love to have a girl one day, and we are not planning on stopping with two kids, so we may have the opportunity to use one of those girl names in the future. Besides, how fun would it be to have 2 big brothers? I loved just having one (most of the time).

It's a BOY!

Here are a few pictures of our new baby. We are so excited for Isaiah to have a baby brother! The first picture is the baby's profile, and the second picture is for the skeptics out there.

I Voted! Did you?

I'm pretty sure there are more than 18 people who read our blog.

Just a reminder for all you blog readers that there are only 2 days left to express your opinion about whether you think our baby will be a boy or a girl. Like many votes that are cast, this one won't change the outcome at all, but it will give bragging  rights to those who guess correctly.