My Testimony

October 2, 2012 By Leave a Comment
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The Spirituality Channel here at Patheos invited bloggers from across the site to share "stepping stones" from their spiritual journeys. I wrote something about how I experienced God in the years after Scott and Sarah died. For someone who regularly blogs, I was surprised by how exposed the whole thing made me feel. As someone who tries to be a faithful witness, I gave it a go in spite of my discomfort.  Scott, my husband of five years, died while I was seven months pregnant with our first … [Read more...]

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What He Said (advice for new dads)

June 14, 2012 By 1 Comment
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Jeff was asked to send along some advice for our friend Peter, who is about to become a new dad.  His note was so great that I thought I should pass it along.  Whether you are a new dad, an old-pro dad, or somebody's favorite uncle, read and enjoy.  And have a great Father's Day! Dear Peter, Wow. Beth has given us a tall order.  Advice for a new dad.  My ADHD brain starts to fire on all cylinders.  After sifting through a bunch of practical stuff, I've got two slightly less practical … [Read more...]

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Boys will be boys. What about mothers?

June 8, 2012 By 3 Comments
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Zach and Ezra ran in the house, panting, waving their water guns high in the air, and announcing triumphantly, "We got him! We got him!" When I could get them to calm down enough to tell me what they were talking about, they explained that they had taken their new guns to the end of our block to lie in wait for joggers.  After chasing and missing a few, they finally found one slow enough to soak with water.  Wasn't that just great, they wanted to know. It didn't seem so great to me, … [Read more...]

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Bad Losers, Brother Brawls, and Perspective Taking

May 25, 2012 By Leave a Comment
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On our first visit to the Museum of Fine Arts last year, our tour guide Jake asked the boys, "Do you know the three rules of an art museum?" Ezra responded quickly and exuberantly.  "No violence!" "Okay - four rules," Jake replied while laughing. I don't know what kind of kids Jake normally gets at the museum, but for my boys No Violence has to be at the top of the rule list.  They just can't keep their hands off of each other.  They sleep in a tangle of legs and arms many nights. … [Read more...]

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A Rule of Life,The Charles River, and Me

May 18, 2012 By 5 Comments
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I came home from my walk along the Charles River last Saturday nearly euphoric.  Maybe you can't imagine a river doing that for you.  Not long ago, I couldn't have imagined it myself, but two things have changed since that time. First, I moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, a city that gives the phrase mind over matter a whole new meaning.  Here, ideas, and the brains that came up with those ideas, are what matter.  I lived with a guy in grad school who was getting his doctorate studying … [Read more...]

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Do It Anyway

April 27, 2012 By 4 Comments
Bible Study at Cafe Brit, in Costa Rica

Over the years, we've struggled to make family devotions a regular part of our life.  So many things got in our way.  First and foremost was the fact that our family has children in it. Children who drove me crazy whenever we sat down to read the Bible or pray.  They would burp their answers to questions about Moses, or interrupt someone's contrite prayer to suggest a more heinous offense that should be confessed, or generally wiggle, whine, and complain about how much they wanted to go … [Read more...]

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What White Parents Can Tell Their Children About The Trayvon Martin Case

April 12, 2012 By 18 Comments
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On Monday, I told you about how our kids responded to Trayvon Martin's death, choosing to take a picture in their hoodies.  Today, I'll share seven points we made with our kids as we talked about the case.  As a head's up, this is a long piece.  But as I tell my kids when we are talking about something important, "Sorry, guys, but Mommy's got a lot to say on this topic." 1.  We all have negative prejudices based on things that aren't true. We may think that girls cannot be good at math. … [Read more...]

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Trayvon Martin Could Not Be My Son

April 9, 2012 By 34 Comments
Trayvon was our brother.

My friend Cameron has been unrelenting in Facebook posts about Trayvon Martin. He's really mad.  Incensed, actually.  Bereft, I think, but he doesn't say so. Sometimes, after reading a particularly indignant post, I worry about his emotional state. Then, a little while later, I worry about my own because I feel so little of what he feels. Don't get me wrong, I was outraged when I learned how Trayvon died and that the shooter was not charged.  I feel sick for his parents.  Ocassionally, … [Read more...]

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Just Say No

March 18, 2012 By 3 Comments
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To all of my friends who are not Jesus people, this post is not for you.  You've got your own issues when it comes to talking about sex and contraception. Maybe we can get coffee and talk about it someday. To my fellow Jesus peeps, however, we need to take a time-out and think about how we really want to talk about contraception.  Things have gotten weird recently.  And ugly.  And it's not okay.  I had decided not write about this, but I can't stop thinking about it.  So here … [Read more...]

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Friends With Benefits

March 16, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Do you want me to follow you to the left or pour you a cup of tea?

There are pros and cons to hopping off the tourist trek and trying to immerse yourself in local culture. For example: Pro - Your can make local friends who will invite you to birthday parties, celebrations of holidays you've never heard of, and sporting events that aren't in any of the guidebooks. Con - Your friends aren't always around, and you occasionally find yourself pantomiming in front of a pharmacist and praying that the pill she gave you will reduce swelling in your ankle and will … [Read more...]

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