a life beyond running shoes.

forgive the blatant adoration of my child.... my, my he is just too cute. i felt the need to show off his ever increasing vocabulary of animal sounds. first word: ball...without the "ll." and just too irresistible not to add another video. he is all personality...and all cheeks. he can also climb onto any surface now.... including the dinner table.

yesterday....two inches. playing on the sidewalk.

everyone has their limits.... i have mine. 20 degrees. that is it....i have limits. i won't run if it is below 20 degrees. it was 12 yesterday and 18 today. nope....no runs for me. this is real winter... yet i am shocked that my running regime has been interrupted by snow flurries and freezing temperatures. of course, my running partner had a kick ass race on sunday and i was SO motivated to hit the pavement......argh! the lord is keeping me in check! we have often talked about how running is a sport in which your biggest competition is oneself. i was encouraging her about her race to go and do HER best and blah, blah, blah. all this and when i ran my 4 miles on saturday - by myself - i just about killed myself to pass this woman that looked older than my mother and was running faster than me!!! so much for self-competition. i am full of hot air... but not hot enough to go and run in these temperatures, that is for sure! just over 10 weeks to race day. it will be here before i k...

he has discovered ketchup. and this one is j ust funny and growing.

over starbucks.....black & white cookies.... salted almonds....and apple juice. i got to spend the afternoon with my first born. we took the train to target and spent half an hour in guitar center. he was playing the electric drums. he has taken a liking to most things musical. we have made friends with peter, the guy that works there.... who we seem to not annoy.... mostly because the electric drums also have headphones that make them silent... brilliant. it was a true treat to have one-on-one time with one of my kids. we talked about his morning, the part at our house last night, church the day before, and how much fun the drum store is. it was a treat.

but not sealed. we are in contract. needless to say... january has been a CRAZY month. god has been kind, gracious, patient, and gentle with me as we have walked down the road to become home owners. when we saw this house less than a month ago, i had no desire to move... again....to this..... i was just feeling settled, comfortable, and at home. it is diagonally about a mile from where we live now..... where we just moved six months ago. i have had to answer hard questions.... and at the end realize that our greatest job is to serve the king... with our time, our home, and our family. i thought this january we were praying about something totally different....and yet it has really been, at the heart, the same thing..... how can we shape our family to better serve the church we want to start, the neighborhood we want live, and the city we love. god answered us with this house. it was not how i wanted him to answer it, but he has given me a bigger view of himself, his love for me, ...

sometimes i read to pass the time..... sometimes i read to survive..... sometimes i read for pleasure..... sometimes i read to escape.... last week i escaped. in the midst of planning for my class, i needed moments outside of my day to day. while not the most imaginative book.....it served its purpose. i found peace in the warfare of dragons, elves, dwarves, and magic. it was a bit predictable and contrived, yet it was a book i was content to be captivated by..... easy suspension of disbelief. i am even looking forward to the third installment of this epic tale.... sort of. not as much as i looked forward to harry potter.... but anticipating none-the-less.

i am now a professor. i real one. like with a faculty id card and everything. i had my first two class meetings this week. for six hours a week (including travel time), i am not diaper-changer extrodinaire. i am teaching freshman composition at city tech, cuny in brooklyn heights. BUT, it is for high schoolers to help them prepare for college... and get college credit. i have sixteen students, 12 seniors....one homeschooler...... it is free for them as part of a city-wide program to help new york pubic school kids prepare for college as their high schools seem to not be doing such a great job. so far..... fun. i freaked out last weekend as i was prepping my syllabus. had a break though and am excited about some of the things we will be reading... and helping them to engage with the texts, me, each other, and their writing. very cool!