In the spirit of Christmas, and remembering why that baby boy came after all...

Jesus Paid it All (lyrics, copyright, etc)

I hear the Savior say,
“Thy strength indeed is small;
Child of weakness, watch and pray,
Find in Me thine all in all.”

Jesus paid it all,
All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow.

For nothing good have I
Whereby Thy grace to claim,
I’ll wash my garments white
In the blood of Calv’ry’s Lamb.

Jesus paid it all,
All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow.

Lord, now indeed I find
Thy power and Thine alone,
Can change the leper’s spots
And melt the heart of stone.

Jesus paid it all,
All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow.

When from my dying bed
My ransomed soul shall rise,
“Jesus died my soul to save,”
Shall rend the vaulted skies.

Jesus paid it all,
All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow.

Just a friendly reminder that true Christmas only makes sense in light of Easter. May God bless the rest of your holiday season and start you off to a Happy New Year!

Christmas Came Early

I didn't appreciate how much of a gift it was to be home full-time until I wasn't. I've really been grateful for the opportunity to work this fall (and into the spring), but it hasn't come without a price. The house is a mess, the laundry's behind, and we've eaten countless meals of food that can best be described as junk. The trade-off has been our ability to buy our little house and get on secure financial footing before Baby comes in May. It's definately been worthwhile, but I've so missed my home.

But Christmas came early this year!

Due to the way my company pays holidays, we each got an extra day off this week. We always get Sunday-plus-one; this week we get Sunday-plus-two! And, I took a double shift for Wednesday, so I actually get Sunday-plus-three this week. I'm beside myself with joy. Today (Tuesday) is my first home-day in literally months. No errands... no classes... no commitments outside my own four walls. The big plan? Wearing a skirt (only my wrap one fits right now, oh pregnancy), wearing an apron, baking cookies, folding laundry, scrubbing the floors and the kitchen, maybe even finding a little time this afternoon to curl up in front of a movie and work on kitting Blueberry's blanket (thank goodness I have until May!). I'm cooking a big, healthy pot of soup and relishing in the gift that is today.

I'm off Thursday, too, when my sister is coming to spend the day with meand receive her early Christmas present: instruction on how to plan a menu and grocery shopping. She moved into an appartment in August and has been trying to figure all that out in addition to being a senior in college. I've planned her a couple menues of Once-A-Week cooking of her favorite meals. I haven't decided yet if we'll test run the cooking Thursday or just talk about it theoretically, but it's sure to be a wonderful day.

It's a gift I couldn't have known I needed: the gift of time. Time to appreciate doing the things I really love to do. Time to work on making my house into a home. Time to renew a special relationship with my sister. Time to just breathe.

I pray that this crazy, busy holiday week, you have an opportunity to think on the best gift we've been given: our Savior Christ, whose coming as a baby is celebrated at Christmas, but even more upon his sacrifice as a man at Calvary. And, I pray that your heart is nourished in the way you most need so that you can enter the new year refreshed and filled with supernatural joy.

God Bless!

Facing the Consequences

It's been a challenging week in Springfield. Tuesday morning, the mayor of our city committed suicide. He's always been a Springfield boy -- several of my coworkers at the bank were personal friends of his. One had even just gone to dinner with him over the weekend. No one knew anything was wrong.

Part of why no one saw this coming is Mayor Davlin's suicide isn't like many others: he wasn't caught in a mire of depression and loneliness. No... I truly feel for those people whose world has grown so dark they see no other way out. I've been there. Mayor Davlin's case is quite different. Over the past few weeks, it has come out that he has been embezzling money from an estate he had power over, as well as evading federal taxes for the past several years. Tuesday morning he was due in court to face the music; when he didn't arrive, police were sent to his house to investigate and found him dead. He killed himself because he didn't want to face the consequences for his actions.

Every action has a consequence. If I go to bed very late, I will wake up tired in the morning. If I overeat at the many Christmas parties we're attending, I will feel uncomfortable and face indigestion. If I embezzle hundreds of thousands of dollars... I should expect to get caught, expect to have to repay the money, and expect to be shamed.

He didn't want to face the consequences.

The sad part is that this earth isn't all we have. Our own life isn't the only one we affect. He may have avoided having to explain himself in a human court of law, but now he must stand before the Eternal Judge. He may have avoided personal discomfort, but he leaves behind a family -- including 4 young grandchildren -- who have to navigate not only the legal issues he left behind but also the emotional damage of losing him a week and a half before Christmas. He left behind a city that truly loved him... a stack of half-finished projects. Was it worth it? For money, and the risk of embarrassment?

No matter what, on earth or in heaven, you can't avoid the consequences.

18 weeks, and all I want for dinner...

This baby is strange. For the past several weeks (turning into lots), food just isn't appealing. None of the casseroles I've made for hubby; nothing from any restaurants; just... no food.

All I eat is fruit, snack foods, and popcorn. And tea... mmmm, tea. Of course the child would choose exotic fruits, too. I'm blowing through several pounds of kiwi, pomegranets, and grapefruit every week. And pears, but those aren't exactly exotic.

You'll laugh -- I know I did. Last Friday night, I spent hours cooking a big pot of chicken and dumplings, per special request of Hubby. It smelled excellent... the whole house smelled warm and homey. I lit a couple candles, dished up a couple big bowls, sat down with him at the table, took one bite... and that was it. It smelled awesome but just didn't taste right to my hormonal tounge. Shaune verifies it was as good as ever ; he ate his bowl, mine, and went back for more. I had a kiwi and 1/2 a pomegranet. And a mug of goldfish snack crackers.

I think the best thing about pregnancy so far is it's taught me that things don't make sense, and that's ok. I can't control everything. In fact, I can't control anything! I just have to make peace with whatever God throws my way, roll with the punches, and eat what I can. I have to trust that He's got it all figured out in the end. In the mean time, Baby and I are going to go grab a pear and just sit around -- when I'm still, Baby dances all over my belly. It's a glorious feeling :)

Happy Monday!

Getting Back on Track

Do you know what the hardest part of a routine is? For me, it isn't setting it up in the first place. No. In my house, the hardest thing is when I have a brilliant (or at least functioning) routine down pat and then for whatever reason, I stop. Starting AGAIN is more challenging than anything the first time around.

That being said, this fall has been chaos. Not a single routine I had in place in August is occuring this first week of December.

To be fair, my reasons for dropping routine have been good. We *did* after all move into a new house (which immediately became a construction zone). Our new house is missing the dishwasher I had come to rely on at our apartment. I did start a nearly-full time job and a new ministry position that puts me out of the house, together, nearly 50 hours a week. Oh, and did I mention? On top of all that, I'm pregnant and that 1st trimester is a *real* challenge.

So my Christmas gift to my husband, my child-to-be, and myself -- more special and important than anything material available in any store -- is to get back on track with routines. I'm going to make an honest effort to get at LEAST back to where I was over the summer, and hopefully improve even further in a few key areas I've always struggled with (oh, laundry...).

So Sunday afternoon, I dug through all the boxes of books (which are still waiting for their shelves to be finished) to find my cookbooks. I brewed a pot of tea, grabbed my calendar and a blank notebook, and curled up to plan the menu for the week. This has got to be my favorite routine ever! I wrote up the grocery list, as well as a task list for the week. Tuesday mornings are my only home mornings (until I quit my job in the spring) so I made a jolly mess of the kitchen and cooked 3 days worth of dinner plus one extra for the freezer. It's been soooooo nice this week to have healthy, homecooked, tasty meals ready to be warmed up when I walk in the door exhausted at 6:30pm. I can't believe I went so long (cough... like, almost all 17 weeks of this pregnancy...) without a plan for the kitchen.

One routine down, and it's one of the most important! Now that we're fed, next week I'm going to add on laundry so we stop the morning scramble for work clothes. I've got to start it over the weekend tho, with finally -- FINALLY -- moving in the dressers from storage and unpacking all our clothes from the suitcases and laundry baskets and moving boxes they've called home for the past 2 months.

I'm curious: What's the most important routine in your household? What routine are you still trying to accomplish? And, once I have both cooking and laundry under way, what should I tackle next?

What a busy week!

Guess what I'm doing tonight! I'm moving into my house!

Now, you're saying, "Wait... didn't they move way back in October?" Yes, we did. WE moved into our house, but none of our stuff did. It got stacked precariously in the garage out back while we did some substantial cosmetic rennovations to the interior. I've been living with a grand total of 4 pieces of furniture... in the ENTIRE house. One bed, one dresser, one comfy chair, and one kitchen table (and two kitchen chairs at it... so 6 total). Everything we need (ie, clothes) has been stacked in various moving boxes and laundry baskets or simply piles on the floor. Utter chaos.

And, as I'm increasingly preggo (17 weeks all the sudden), my tolerance for mess has steadily decreased. I want my little nest to actually have a place to sit :( BUT! Last night, my dearest darling husband finished painting the living room. This morning he got up early to remove the tarps and tapes. I'm ALMOST done cleaning the hardwood floor back to what it looked like in October. And tomorrow! Tomorrow my couch is coming in! And my books (have you ever gone 2 months without any books? Not even cookbooks? I'm glad it's over)! AND MY CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS!

I'm so grateful to Hubby. He's worked hard to get us to this point. There's still a ton to do, but I'm calling it quits until after the first of the year. It's time to relax and enjoy being homeowners!

Pictures soon :) I'm waiting til the "stuff" is in place :)

7 Questions Meme

I'm bored at work on the day after Thanksgiving. Everyone's out shopping, and no one needs the services of the Bank... therefore, much internet time ensues. I stumbled across this over at Mrs. G's blog and thought it would fill some time!

1. Do you prefer Thanksgiving or Christmas? I love, love, LOVE Christmas and Advent leading up to it. Thanksgiving is an insane holiday in my world where we're expected to see EVERYONE all across the state. Christmas day is ours and ours alone -- telephones get turned off before we head out to evening service and aren't turned back on again until AT LEAST afternoon. It's a peaceful, worshipful time for just me and Hubby (and next year, Baby!)

2. If you had to choose between your computer and your television, which one would you get rid of? Easily TV. In fact, we practically already have. When we moved in October the TV got put in the garage (along with nearly everything else) while we redid the house. It's still out there and I haven't missed it at all.

3. Which book heroine do you think is the most like you? Jo March! Especially when I was younger. I have firm opinions and it's taken me a long time to learn how to express them at the right times, to the right people, using the right words. If I'm not careful, I definately speak before my brain can catch up!

4. What is your ancestry? As far as I know, I have a fair bit of Swedish in my blood. That would explain the tall blondeness. However, I do know my dad's been able to trace the Scottish line of our family back to their immigration papers in the early 1800s. My maiden name (Lawhead) is a mispelling from "loch" or lake.

5. What's your favorite flavor of Pringles? Original, for sure! Although the low-fat are prett

6. Are you old-fashioned? Only in certain things. I have great respect for the past, but love elements of now, too.

7. Do you prefer shopping online or in stores? It depends on what I'm shopping for. I buy clothes online because that's where I can find them, but htere's nothing like flipping through books at Barnes & Noble on a rainy Saturday.

I tag everybody! Here's the questions I want YOU to answer! Some are from above, some are new :) Copy them to your blog and answer each. If you answer please let me know so that I can read what you've written!

1. What's your favorite Christmas song or hymn, and why?
2. Which book heroine do you think is most like you?
3. What's for Christmas dinner -- turkey, ham, pasta, or something else entirely?
4. What's one piece of parenting advice you wish you had BEFORE the baby was born? If you're not a parent yet, what part of parenting are you most curious about?
5. What is your guilty-pleasure food?
6. Santa: Yes or No?
7. What is your most favorite part of the holiday season?

Have fun!

I received a fascinating email first thing this morning from the president of my alma matter. Although I am not Catholic, I am a proud graduate of a local Catholic university. I wanted to share this with you because it provided some fascinating food for thought.

Here's the situation:

The director of the Teacher's Education Program is a lesbian. It wasn't a surprise; she was director before Benedictine took over the local college (although the local college was Catholic as well -- Ursuline in fact). The university has a policy similar to the military's don't-ask-don't-tell: she was expected to endorse 1) General teaching best practices and 2) Catholic worldview while at work.

The dilemma arose when she and her partner went to Iowa over the summer and get married. Then, they came home and put a wedding announcement in several of the local papers. In the announcement, she stated her place of employment -- this Catholic university -- by name. As a result, this woman lost her job at the university, not for her sexual orientation but for defaming the university's religious reputation and not withholding her employment contract. She is currently procuring a lawyer to sue on discrimination charges.

All I know about the situation is from the newspapers and the President's letter. It appears that both parties did some things incorrectly; I don't want to discuss that. I also don't want to discuss whether homosexuality is right or wrong. What I do want to present to you is a few quotes from the President's letter about the concept of discrimination.

The following quotes are from the President's letter (link to the whole):

When an individual steps outside this teaching (about traditional marriage) and publicly announces that he/she is living a lifestyle in total opposition to what the Catholic Church and one of its universities hold dear, that decision represents a lifestyle choice that he/she is free to make. But if the person holds a position that represents the Catholic Church, there is conflict… For instance, if you wanted to be an officer of an environmental group that premised its mission on the reality of global warming, you would expect that your fellow members would hold you to advocating that doctrine and not give speeches claiming that the phenomenon is a chimera. If you came to believe differently, the responsible thing would be to leave the organization.

[When interviewing] I make a simple statement to the candidate, something to the effect: “XYZ is a Catholic and Benedictine university with a set of beliefs and traditions. No matter your religious background or affiliation, you are expected to respect and honor this tradition and set of beliefs. Can you accept that?”

If a person does not ascribe to the belief system held by the Church, a Catholic institution may not the be appropriate place for that individual to work. The blessing of America provides a patchwork of many kinds of institutions of higher learning. Where one’s belief system may put them outside the orbit of one institution, there is surely another to find a better fit.

So, what do you think? Did she face discrimination when she was fired? Or is it something else? Is the fault with her, either by misunderstanding or willfully breaking the assumptions of her employment? What are the rights of private -- especially private and religious -- institutions when it comes to social causes? What should they be?

PS: This is a complex situation -- just a loving reminder to choose your words carefully and politely! However, I would LOVE to hear views on all sides of this dilemma (Erika, this means you!)

A "Good Old Days" Kind of Day

I got to live the "good old days" today. And well, it wasn't great, but we made it!

Our computers were down at work today. You would have thought the Tribulation was already upon us by the chaos that ensued. For those of you that don't know, I'm working as a bank teller. And as you can probably assume, the ENTIRE banking industry is run via the internet nowadays (what isn't?).

I arrived to one of my coworkers (who tends to be a little high-strung anyway) in full fledge panic: "You'll never guess what is wrong today! The computers are down! We have to do everything the old fashioned way!"

Now, I'm pretty comfortable with a calculator and a piece of paper, so I mildly replied, "Really?"

"REALLY! I don't think we'll make it!"

Her panic was unnecessary. And to be honest, although it was certainly not easy, I think our work turned out at least as well if not better than usual because we did have to be so much more careful. It took us longer to process things (since we were doing them by hand), but it was far from a catastrophy. Meticulous care while scribbling notes on literally 4-5 different pieces of paper leads to a balanced drawer at the end of the day. Not so much as an extra penny left our door; nor did we short anyone. And, we got to practice those rusty math skills!

I have a lot of respect for those bankers who came before me, with their dirty fingers and ledger books. And I'm encouraged to realize I DO still know how to do a whole lot more than hit buttons on a calculator (yay mental math). However, I think I'm going to leave the "good old days" behind -- at least at work. Hopefully the computers will be back up tomorrow!

14 Weeks

I've been withholding from you. I hope you'll forgive me :)

I'm 14 weeks along! Second trimester, whoohoo! I woke up about a week and a half ago, and realized I wasn't already halfway to the bathroom to lose the rest of dinner. Then, I realized I could think again. THEN I went a whole day without taking a nap! (Tho, I did go to bed ridiculously early). It's kind of amazing.

It may not look like much, but that little bump is giving me a world of headache when it comes to getting dressed in the mornings. And I'm pretty sure I still look more like I hit up the Golden Corral buffet than pregnancy. But that's ok :) Soon it'll be undeniable. And since my mom hooked me up with a spare sewing machine (my regular one is looking like it will need some time consuming repairs) I should be able to start solving the clothing issues sooner rather than later.

I love this part of pregnancy. It almost (ALMOST) makes morning sickness worthwhile :)