a life beyond running shoes.

means that i get to finish books at 3 in the morning that i have been working through for a while. i started this book in november when my husband brought it back from a conference he went to. i was a bit insulted thinking that it was a subtle way of telling me that i don't keep a clean house. it is not. in fact, this might be one of the best books i have read in a long time in relation to christian living. i found it to be one of the most encouraging and challenging books i have read for the practicality of making & creating a home.... not just a house but a place of hospitality. "how much more hospitable it would be if our homes were routinely to be places filled with satisfying meals, with shirts warm from the dryer, with smoothly made beds--not because we are trying to win the housekeeping prize but because these are good and pleasant ways to care for one another and ourselves." it is not about "baking for jesus" but about seeing the job i have creatin...

i have been working through it for the past year (as with many of the nonfiction books i read). i have read his new york times magazine articles but they are about twenty pages. this was an undertaking.... but well worth my time and energy. section one was a bit scientific with strands of corn and hybrids and technical language. at some point, after skimming through some of the technical language, he moved on to what it means that there is a food industry that is largely based on my ignorance of how it actually operates. compelling! section two was totally engaging because i found it fascinating to learn about how farms work. to read about farms that raise animals to live like animals and really what it is that god intended when created eco-structures. it was amazing to see how it all worked together. section three was purely enjoyable. it is his journey of foraging for food and i was intrigued by the mushroom/fungi stuff he learned. how cool! here was one thing he said that i was ...

i think his language is super cute!!! translation: i bonked my booty on micah's bed.... swinging. this is the boys room. we came up to get our snowpants on but we missed the snow. it has already changed to rain and is all slushy and melty. plan #2....bake cookies!

we just met this past weekend and discussed joshua ferris's then we came to the end . it was one of those discussions that we could all agree that finishing was a chore. we discuss some interesting this about it, read some of what we thought were the only funny parts, and concluded that we appreciated it more because of our conversation. if i had been left to myself, i would not have finished....nor would i have even made it half way but having missed the last three book club meetings i was compelled to get through most of it. while i'm not glad i did, it was mostly good to discuss together. our basic conclusion was that we did not understand how it was one of the top ten books of 2007 other than it was different, unique, and stylistically original. but i typically like my books to have plot and character development. happy reading!

today marked our first worship service.... in our home. the flatbush church project meet, sang, heard the word, broke bread, and celebrated christ together. it was a frenzied week of lots of hands on deck from buying chairs to setting up chairs to clearing our entire living room to taking care of our sick kids elsewhere. it was pretty amazing to think that a year ago we were still trying to decide whether or not this house was feasible or wise. twelve months later, god has so ordained that we got to sing our praises to him in this very same living room. we were singing: "To see you high and lifted up Shining in the light of your glory Pour out your power and love as we sing Holy, Holy, Holy" and i thought that it is amazing that we were singing his praises in our living room, in this community, with these neighbors. god is really amazing.

we actually got out for dinner last night. it was the first time since july that we planned a date. that is sad. we spent too much, ate too much, but enjoyed ourselves totally. we did the tasting menu..... the conversation went like this: wife: should we do tasting menu - it is six courses? i'm not sure my tummy has room for six husband: no, we don't need to spend that much money wife: true.... but we do need to spend that much time out [the note under the tasting menu said to allow around two hours for dining] husband: true....and since it will be a while till we do this again.... let's try it. wife: why don't you get the wine pairing and i can just take sips. husband: good idea. course 1: crab bisque with butternut squash ravioli and smoke cream fraise course 2: braised octopus salad course 3: homemade pasta with duck confeit and trumpet mushrooms and a sour cherry reduction course 4: pork belly and mushroom with a perfectly seared scallop course 5: salmon with p...

so if i don't think about it and write it down, i'm afraid i won't do it. i posted a while ago a list of books that the average american has read 6. i would like to get through some of that list, but there are other books that i would like to read this year: tale of two cities - dickens omnivore's dilemma (finish it) - pollan the unsettling of america - berry the chronicles of narnia series - lewis little house on the prairie - alcott [i have never read these] revolutionary road - yates dominion - scully unaccustomed earth - lahiri orthodoxy - chesterton of course, none of these are on the list to help me feel smarter or more accomplished. nor could this list be more varied. anyone want to chime in on books they would like to read this year? just curious. and just a plug for how cute my kid is..... here are some pics on sarah's blog .

the book of jane . so the twist is that the main character is a christian woman. it is chick lit's version of the book of job. does it work? for lighthearted reading... perhaps. as for profound theological truths.... not really. but i guess that it not why one would read chick lit now is it? although, the character does ponder how "though he hides it well, god must still be in charge." which is a truth at points in life i have thought but mostly when seeking out the psalms or other passages from the bible. i guess it was just strange to read a total chick novel - with loss and gain of love, city scenes, emails, phone calls, dates, etc. - through the perspective of a christian character which in turn means that there was no sex. none. and the language was clean - refreshing! i've never read one of these before... it made for quick bus reading, i have to admit. also, i just met "anne dayton." if at the beach....i would pass this along to you.

we had fun snow yesterday. of course, it wasn't until the afternoon that it starting sticking and we could actually go out play in it. it was 5:30 and the street lights were on..... but they had fun. they even got pulled along the sidewalk sitting on the snow shovel.... daddy is quite creative! of course, there was another funny incident that occurred that i was not able to capture on film. i came home from teaching on thursday (only one more week to go!!!) and my husband was in the kitchen finishing dinner prep. it was very quiet.... where are the boys? i called out, "hello boys." in unison, "we're upstairs pooping." giggle, giggle. i slowly (i am 32 weeks along) make my way up the stairs and sure enough there are two naked boys sitting on their respective potties. peanut on the normal toilet and little bit on the kiddie potty....they are both pooping. a riot!!! of course, little bit gets up every two second to point and say, "see mommy, poop....

i miss it. it is cold outside and sometimes all i think is that is would be great weather for a run. i had lunch today with my running partner - which is such a lame term since she was my boss first, then a friend, then my running partner..... but as i learned many miles shared can make your running partner one of your nearest and dearest friends. there is a story in this month's runner's world titled " someone to run with ." while it doesn't necessarily apply to stef because it talks about partners that have come and gone, it did make me think of her... i know that one day i will have someone that is my new stef and she will have a new me because our lives won't always intersect.... even while they do intersect she has endured two seasons of gestation.... and yet one day we will get out there again. best quote: "any friendship that is based on running is, in essence, about accrual -- of time, of miles, of intimacy built over a lot of small steps forward....

my friend ( behind the gate ) read this and inspired me to follow suit. so, this was my first read of the new year..... how to make christmas more christmas and not more shopping. as we dialogue with friends about the days following christmas and having the 12 days leading to epiphany to spread out the christmas loot and struggling with breading in our children more selfishness and consumerism... this little book struck me with simplicity and honesty. it is not just about not spending... but the manner in which we spend. these are the questions that it raised for me: is the nature in which i celebrate this time of year one that teaches my children to be generous? am i in fact trying to find ways & places to be generous in my own celebration of advent? am i more concerned with giving the perfect gift for an individual OR spending time on a gift to show someone that they are significant.... (i have struggled with feeling lame about presenting hand-made gifts in the past when in fa...