Diaper Free by Ingrid Bauer

I recently finished reading this book (thank you for the recommendation, Colleen), and was surprisingly encouraged and challenged by it. The author is not a Christian, so there were lots of fundamentals we disagreed on. Yet, she exposed me to some new ideas about child care, and not just in the diaper department.

As I've progressed through this intensive parenting course God has me on, I've started to learn some of the fundamental things Mrs. Bauer speaks of regarding respecting my children. No, not the same way I show respect to another adult, but constantly remembering their God-derived personhood and showing deference whenever possible to their unique desires and preferences. Titus and I will not be trapped by the lie that everything they desire is inherently good or best, but I tend to be a somewhat authoritarian, toe-the-line kind of parent, so keeping this in mind helps balance me out and cultivates an environment for a warm relationship with my kids.

Now if I can just figure out how to get Eva to prefer to use the potty when it's convenient for me and to give clear signals when she'd like to exercise that preference . . .

One Night with the King

This was our selection for last night's Family Movie. (Thanks, Ruthanne!) We thought it was beautifully done, and though plenty of artistic license was taken, there did seem to be a fundamental respect for the Scriptural text. It will be fun to read the biblical account as a family now and more carefully judge the movie's accuracy.

Straight from the Tea Box

"Charms strike the sight, but merit wins the soul."

Alexander Pope

Being a Friend

This is Lewis, our charming three-year-old. Notice the sporty cell phone in his back pocket? Let me back up a bit. My dear friend Jami asked if I would help her out by journaling some about her family, too, since she doesn't have time for such things. Being the good friend that I am, I can't turn her down.

The cell phone Lewis is modeling is the one Jami sent through her washing machine several weeks back. We happened to sit next to Jami's family at the homeschool play yesterday, and one of her children gave this nonfunctional carcass to Lewis. He is very proud.

Let it Snow?

Must document the two March snows. Lewis (3) and Ian (7) are shown enjoying the second event, which actually stuck around long enough for Ian and Daddy to have a snowball fight the next day!

Introduction

Well, this is all just too easy! That last post about Jocelyn's birthday was primarily in order to see if I could figure out how to upload a picture. Thanks to my husband's capable help, that went off like a breeze, and now I feel I should give some sort of purpose statement for this blog.

Primarily, I want to have an organized way of recording some of the
little-- and big--moments in our family's life. Sort of like an electronic scrapbook and journal rolled into one. I hope this will be something our family can enjoy looking back on in years to come.

But this will also be an easy way for us to share a portion of our lives with others (whether family, friends, or strangers), and maybe we'll provide a little encouragement to each other along the way.

Happy Birthday, Jocelyn!

Here's our sweet two-year-old with some of her loot from her family birthday party. Those bags are full of pieces to a Little Tikes track. We were a little unsure of the wisdom of this purchase when we saw all those pieces, but they snap together easily to form a flexible track that bends any which way. The track and battery operated cars were a hit with everyone from Daddy and 15-year-old Aunt Brittany down to the two-year-old owner. Grammy made the cake (as usual), and we enjoyed having Nana, Grandpa, and Grandad here, too, to help make the event special.