Category Archives: Family

A Compelling Question

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The chica over at A Year in Skirts posed the following question in her 9/11 post:

If Muslim families can send their children to public school and STILL have these children grow up to be obedient to their religion and raise daughters who wear a hijab AND these kids are fully fasting during Ramadan even while at school (no food or water during the day), then how is it that this task of raising Christian children in the public school system is too hard?

She mentioned that a lot of these families send their kids to private school for a year or so in elementary school so they can learn Arabic but the rest of the time, they’re in public schools. My experience was that some of the girls were sent to Catholic all-girl high schools but we did have a handful of girls at my public high school who wore hijabs. I think all of them went K-12 in the public school system and learned Arabic (or their native language) at home or at their mosque.

I think it’s a matter of the parents. I know of several evangelical families who sent their kids all the way through the public school system in San Jose (where I grew up). Everywhere else I’ve lived where Jon has served, homeschooling has been pretty rare and all the kids, Christian or otherwise, go to the public schools. (There hasn’t been the option of Catholic schools in those places.) The parents are hugely involved with their kids and they know exactly what is being taught or done at a given time. They talked to their kids about anything they felt was contrary to family values and they took their kids to church on Wednesday nights and Sundays. The kids know what their parents believe and what their families believe.

This is one of the reasons why I’m against homeschooling Daniel unless there becomes a compelling reason. I see no issue in letting him go to the local elementary school and talking with him about what he is learning. If something he is learning conflicts with what we believe as a family, we’ll deal with that when it comes.

The Simple Woman’s Daybook: September 12, 2011

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Simple Woman's Daybook

FOR TODAY September 12, 2011

Outside my window… temperate. Maybe low 80’s.

I am thinking… that I hope I avoid Daniel’s bug.

I am thankful… that I was able to swerve and avoid the elderly woman who decided to cut in front of me and stop to re-apply her lipstick on I-680 on Saturday. (I kid you not. It scared the living daylights out of me. I was just lucky that I had an empty lane next to me.) Also thankful that Daniel never has to see his pediatric hematologist again EVER!

In the kitchen… probably ramen for me tonight. Jon has Men’s Night Out and Daniel has his stomach bug and fever.

I am wearing… grey shirt and navy running shorts.

I am creating… characters/plot/setting for my NaNoWriMo piece.

I am going… nowhere tomorrow morning — I cancelled Daniel’s therapies until his fever breaks and his stomach bug passes.

I am reading… The Year of Living Biblically: One Man’s Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible by A.J. Jacobs as I’ve already finished all the Lumby books and I have nothing else ready for me at the library. And seriously… what is up with Amazon.Com‘s new design?!?!?!?!?

I am hoping… laundry is done soon.

I am looking forward to… my massage on Friday.

I am hearing… Daniel babbling and “Winnie the Pooh” playing on the DVD player.

Around the house… clean thanks to Jon this weekend.

One of my favorite things… ranch chicken sandwiches from McDonalds (with the chicken GRILLED).

A few plans for the rest of the week… possibly OT on Thursday if Daniel is better and my massage on Friday.

Here is picture for thought I am sharing…Daniel while playing pattycake with my mom.

Daniel while playing pattycake with my mom.

Hosted by The Simple Woman’s Daybook

The Simple Woman’s Daybook: September 5, 2011

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Simple Woman's Daybook

FOR TODAY September 5, 2011

Outside my window… warm and in the upper 80’s.

I am thinking…that this quiet is really nice. (Daniel is asleep on the floor by the couch.)

I am thankful… that I got to sleep in this morning.

In the kitchen… no idea for food for dinner tonight though Jon is BBQing up a storm for himself.

I am wearing… blue maternity shirt (so comfy) and khaki shorts

I am going… Sacramento tomorrow for speech therapy and Daniel’s neuro appointment and San Jose on Thursday.

I am reading… the Lumby books by Gail Fraser.

I am hoping… Daniel naps a little longer.

I am looking forward to… being with my parents this weekend. Also looking forward to Ladies’ Night Out.

I am hearing… Jon typing in the kitchen.

Around the house… clean thanks to us deep-cleaning it before we left last week.

One of my favorite things… being home after a week away.

A few plans for the rest of the week… Daniel’s therapies this week, his neuro appointment tomorrow, Ladies’ Night Out on Wednesday, and being with my family in San Jose from Thursday to Saturday.

Hosted by The Simple Woman’s Daybook

7 Quick Takes — On the Road Again

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7 Quick Takes

–1–

This is our first serious “travel” time since my sister-in-law’s wedding in April. We had a church thing in Lebec and my father-in-law’s 60th birthday celebration is this Saturday. This means… ROAD TRIP!

–2–

We had an uneventful drive down to Lebec. It’s south of Bakersfield on I-5 and about 5 hours from where we live in northern California. I got two books read: All the Pretty Little Hearses by Mary Daheim and Stealing Lumby by Gail Fraser. I find that having reading material (if I’m not driving) makes the trip go faster (a good thing because I hate road trips).

–3–

Our hotel room in Lebec was awesome. We were staying at the Holiday Inn Express and had a beautiful and spacious room with a decently-sized bathroom. Considering that Daniel and I spent most of our time in there, this was definitely a good thing. Daniel loved all the drawers and having a mini-fridge to play with. He also had long corridors where he could crawl or practice walking.

–4–

Three hours of NCIS on Tuesday night = a happy Jen. Finding a marathon of NCIS on USA yesterday = ecstasy. It’s probably good that we don’t have cable at home — I think I’d be permanently attached to the recliner.

–5–

Daniel will soon have an REI wishlist for climbing things. We found out that he could climb out of his crib twice last night — once onto the desk where he was trying to have a conversation with the front desk (or ordering room service on the phone) and then onto the TV table where he was blocking the TV. His crib got moved in such a way that there was no surfaces for 5 feet in any direction.

–6–

We had an easy time driving down to Claremont. It’s strange coming back down here after living down here for a year and then moving. it’s surreal. Thankfully, we avoided rush hour getting there. I made it through most of a book and am wondering how it ends.

–7–

I’m hoping for a good party on Sunday. I’ve offered my services to my mother-in-law to take her to Trader Joe’s. My father-in-law was doing OK when we got there today and got to hang with Daniel. It should be a great gathering on Saturday though it’s going to be a long drive back that night. I need to invest in a flashlight or something so I can read on the way back.

For more Quick Takes, visit Jen at ConversionDiary.Com.

The Simple Woman’s Daybook: August 29, 2011

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Simple Woman's Daybook

FOR TODAY August 29, 2011

Outside my window… dark — it’s almost 2200. It’s nice and cool outside — it would be nice if that was the daytime temperature.

I am thinking… that there is going to be a cat-shaped dent in the wall if Mr. Fluffybutt goes after my M&M’s.

I am thankful… to have laundry done even this late.

In the kitchen… packing up food for tomorrow’s drive.

I am wearing… light grey shirt and blue running shorts.

I am creating… possibly an entry for Project 2996.

I am going… to be gone for 5 days.

I am wondering… how quickly I can pack the car tomorrow.

I am reading… All the Pretty Little Hearses by Mary Daheim.

I am hoping… the motel in Lebec has laundry facilities.

I am looking forward to… seeing family down south.

I am hearing… the A/C and the 10:00 news.

Around the house… cleaning binge tomorrow morning…

One of my favorite things… kalmata olives and feta cheese.

A few plans for the rest of the week… church conference in Frazier Park, time with in-laws, and my father-in-law’s 60th birthday party.

Hosted by The Simple Woman’s Daybook

The Reality of Being A “Priest’s Wife”

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My favorite preoteasa posted her thoughts on being a priest’s wife and had some fisking to do of a comment to this article. The comment read:

I once went to a talk given by a married priest who was refreshingly honest. He said that he doesn’t work on weekends or after 8PM. If you call his house after that time you better be almost dead because his wife will be mad.

Uh… no. The “refreshingly honest” married priest was either lying or the commenter was. I can’t think of any pastor’s wives (or pastor’s husbands or priest’s wives) who would be mad if someone called after 8 p.m. That’s considered fair-game! If someone calls at 3 a.m. and it’s not an emergency, that’s a different story. If someone calls on Jon’s day off (the existence of which is mandated by the denomination AND the congregation) and it’s not an emergency, I’ll generally tell them that he’s unavailable and will call them back later. (We had someone who did this weekly in Montana. We just screened calls on that day.) In both of those cases, I will move heaven and earth to get in touch with Jon if it’s an emergency.

Another comment with which I took umbrage was:

I think the priest is just acknowledging the obvious: if a priest has a wife and children, he cannot give priority to his priestly ministry; it must, naturally, come behind his duty as a husband and father. It is self-evident.

No, it isn’t self-evident. He can give priority to his priestly ministry while also honoring his commitments to his family. I can’t think of anyone who married a priest or pastor who didn’t know that their spouse would have evening meetings or have to be at church an hour before worship on Sunday. I can’t think of any of my clergy spouse colleagues who bats an eyelash when their spouse gets a phone call, tosses on clericals, and runs out the door. Does it impact our lives? Yeah, but it’s not like it’s a surprise. I also can’t think of any parish who doesn’t give their priest/pastor a day off. Jon’s is Friday and we do family stuff that day and also on Saturday if there isn’t something that comes up. If it’s important enough, you make it work.

The issue behind all of this is priests being married in the Latin rite of the Catholic church. I know for my preoteasa friend, this is an issue that is frustrating because she, like, has a husband who is a priest (Eastern rite) and they make it work. I think that it’s one of those things that will be allowed to happen in the West on a case-by-case basis and isn’t going to be a sweeping change that happens all at once. I can’t imagine that priests currently serving would be amenable (well… some might be) to marrying and parishes would have to get used to “sharing” their priest with someone else. (We clergy spouses are nice about sharing though… most of the time.)

7 Quick Takes — House Panther Edition

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7 Quick Takes

I’m actually getting on my Quick Takes early this week — it’s only 9:45. 🙂 I also have a house panther at my feet. (She is a love.)

–1–

I am so happy that Brendon went home on Big Brother. I only wish it had been Rachel. I’m sure both of them are lovely in real life but Rachel comes off as a she-witch on the show and Brendon comes off as incredibly arrogant. Rachel was just nasty during the HOH competition and I’m hoping Kalia (who won the HOH competition) puts her up on the chopping block next week.

–2–

I was in the ugliest doctor’s office on the planet today. Daniel had a weird result on one of his thyroid hormones so his neurologist sent us to a pediatric endocrinologist. A lot of pediatric offices have themes and this one was basically a flower garden… except with pastel pink 70’s IKEA chairs, horrendous fluorescent lighting, three ugly flowers with over-sized stalks on one wall, and hot pink formica cabinets in the receptionists’ area. I should have taken pictures because words just cannot communicate how ugly this was. The exam room was somewhat better and the nurse told Daniel to go wild. I almost hugged her. The doctor was lovely and agrees that the result was probably a fluke. He did, however, order the tests drawn again because it had been 3 months. If the tests come back OK, we’ll just assume it was a fluke. If they come back weird again, we’ll go from there.

–3–

I apparently live in a cartoon world. I heard on the news last night that a cake with a shank was found in a Sacramento jail. Seriously… a cake with a file? I knew my life was Looney Tunes but something like this takes the cake! (No pun intended.)

–4–

I’m still trying to get the podcast going. I don’t have a lot of spare time except for the time after Daniel goes to sleep. I need to come up with some show notes and plans for at least 10 episodes.

–5–

I have a massage scheduled tomorrow afternoon. I’m seriously looking forward to this. It’s helping with the fibromyalgia and also lowering my stress level a bit. My masseuse is a former church member (before my time) and she’s an amazing believer.

–6–

I love my Trader Joe’s because they love up Daniel. Trader Joe’s is a great store to begin with and a company that I could totally work for (and have applied in the past to do so). The Trader Joe’s in Elk Grove, however, is just special. I’m in the store at least once or twice a week so staff knows us and they will go out of their way to talk to Daniel and interact with him. The guy helping us out to the car today was making car noises as he pushed Daniel in the shopping cart. it was so cute. Other ones will stop on their way to the back room and have conversations with Daniel. It doesn’t matter that he doesn’t respond back — they do it anyway. It warms my heart that they treat him like a person of worth because not everybody does.

–7–

Ladies’ Night Out was awesome this week. Metanoia Lutheran Church does Men’s Night Out and Ladies’ Night Out during the first week of the month and it’s been an amazing gathering. The women usually have twice the number of participants that the men do and we all go out to a restaurant in the community. Last night, we went to a pizzeria and had great food and great conversation. One person “hosts” by picking out the place and doing the devotion. The host for this month asked me to do the devotion so I did this one. It’s an opportunity to have bonding time with my ladies and it’s an evening where I’m not responsible for Daniel. (It means that Jon gets some bonding time with him.) I’m not a WELCA/Ladies’ Aid kind of girl so this lets me be involved in things without a lot of pressure. Our conversations can be educational — I’ve taught them some things and they’ve been great about helping me problem-solve things with Daniel.

For more Quick Takes, head on over to ConversionDiary.Com.