Happy Day!!

It looks like we are going to be able to go on a vacation in a few weeks. This is suprising news because normally Bill has to do so much school that we are tied to the computer, but now we have been gifted with an unexpected week off! We don't know where we will go yet, but we definitely want to head to the beach!

Also, I was able to order a really cute tankini bathing suit at J.Crew that was on sale for well over half off. I have had my eye on this one for a long time--since it came out in the spring. Of course it was way overpriced back then, but sometimes good things come to those who wait. And now it looks like I will have a fun beach vacation to wear it on.

It has been a while since I posted--how is it the middle of July already? Our lives have been routinely busy if that makes any sense. A lot of ten hour days at work, Bill has to focus on school, I do the house chores, and the weeks slip by.

Our Fourth of July break was a nice change of pace--we enjoyed relaxing at the lake swimming and boating and eating. Spending time with the family was very nice--it can get lonely down here in Virginia sometimes!

Our Bible study group has been learning from Ephesians which has been an encouraging book to study in depth. Every week we are struck by the unfathomable things God has done for us and given to us. When praying for the believers, Paul wanted them to come to a deeper understanding of God's love so that they might experience the fullness He provides. Isn't it interesting that we often focus on very small, limited things when we pray--but what we should be praying that we "may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that we may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." Think big when you pray--God has immeasurably more for His children than we can even imagine.

Night Show

Last night a powerful and dramatic lightning storm passed through our area. I call it a lightning storm because the lightning was the most dominant feature of this storm. There was some thunder, wind, and rain as well, but nothing like the lightning. The master bedroom of our house is on the third floor in the back facing some trees and a field, providing an excellent view of the sky. We went to bed a little before 11pm and were kept awake by the flash, flash, flashing of the lightning. Finally, we got up and opened the curtains and just watched. The whole sky would turn a mauve color as the lightning brightened the sky. It was the kind that you couldn't see the individual bolts of lightning, but would make the whole sky flicker. Then the bolts started. Flicker, flicker, flicker--then FLASH! a bolt or two would slice down all the way to the ground. We watched for about an hour--it must have been a slow moving storm. There was still some bright flashing going on when we finally went to bed after the exciting show.

four sweet years today

i carry your heart with me(i carry it in

my heart)i am never without it(anywhere

i go you go,my dear; and whatever is done

by only me is your doing,my darling)

i fear

no fate(for you are my fate,my sweet)i want

no world(for beautiful you are my world,my true)

and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant

and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows

(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud

and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;which grows

higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)

and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart)

~e.e. cummings

What is it really about?

This week the Senate is debating the Marriage Protection Amendment--one of the more controversial and anger inciting resolutions that has come before the Senate in recent memory. There are so many different things to say about the issue, so what I say here is by no means exhaustive.

What bothers me more than the angry opponents of this bill call it the "anti-gay amendment" and the supporters of this bill "homophobes" and "gay-bashers" is that often the supporters of the bill don't really know exactly what they are supporting or how to defend it. The opponents of the bill make it about sex. They don't want the government in their bedrooms--telling them who they can and cannot "love." They are calling Capitol Hill offices of conservative members harassing the receptionists with explicit questions about the member's sexual activities. The goal of this is to get the person on the phone to say, "That is none of your business" to which they will respond, "it isn't yours either."

But they miss the point. This bill isn't about sex. It isn't about what goes on in their bedrooms. Marriage is a fundamental social institution that creates the best family structure. The Marriage Amendment is not based on taking away a certain group of people's rights, but is about protecting what is the foundational building block of society. The government has the right to take action to protect the country's future citizens.

Redefining marriage changes the institution to the point of making it irrelevant.

Dr. Matthew Spalding said that: " Changing the definition of marriage--or even remaining neutral as to that definition--breaks down the very argument that gives marriage its unique and preferable status in society. If marriage becomes just one form of commitment in a spectrum of sexual relationships rather than a preferred monogamous relationship for the sake of children, the line separating sexual relations within and outside of marriage becomes blurred, and so does the public policy argument against out-of-wedlock births or in favor of abstinence."

Once the foundation is altered the whole society starts to crumble.

It's in my blood

Bill and I are planning to go camping and hiking this upcoming holiday weekend in the northern part of the Washington and Jefferson National Forest. I am very excited because we haven't been camping for about two years now. Camping and hiking have always been in my blood and I definitely feel like something is missing when I don't go for so long. My family always spent a few long weekends a year camping in the White Mountains in New Hampshire (which is where my parents are right now actually). It is always such a satisfying experience being in the outdoors 24/7, getting tons of exercise, catching up on reading, and not having a schedule to keep. I am hoping it doesn't rain this weekend (which would not be a fun camping experience) and that the three day weekend will give us enough time to relax and unwind.

the little things add up

I know I have been lax about posting for the past few weeks. As they say, there hasn't been much of anything to "write home about." It is all the little things that have kept me too busy for any philosophical musings of late.

Here is a quote for the day from Jane Austen: "To sit in the shade on a fine day and look upon verdure is the most perfect refreshment." I could use some of that refreshment.

(a view of the lake from the woods in front of my parents house)

What Mothers Everywhere Already Knew

With Mother's Day just around the corner I thought that a study conducted by Salary.com was more than appropriate to mention.

If a stay at home mom was paid a salary for all the work that she does, she would be paid $134,121 per year. This study was based on taking into account all the jobs a mom does: housekeeper, day-care teacher, cook, computer operator, laundry machine operator, janitor, facilities manager, van driver, chief executive and psychologist and how many hours she works per week: 91.6.

I wonder how much the salary goes up for homeschooling stay at home moms?

And for the moms who want to know specifically what their work is worth click here. You can use the Mom Salary Wizard and enter your location, number of children, hours, and type of work. You can even print yourself a paycheck!