After nine years in a private Christian grammar school our son stepped into his freshman year at the local public high school with 600 people he didn’t know. Almost every student in his graduating class of 80 went on to attend the private Christian high school. He didn’t want to be like everyone else. We evaluated both schools prior to making our decision. The primary reason why he determined he would be happier in the public school was diversity. He... Read more
Ms. Baker passed me the bag with the wet shirt at school pick-up. My shirt-sucking 6-year-old ran to me with a big smile and latched onto my leg. Since my husband lost his job last summer, our house had become all hills and valleys—mostly valleys. It was starting to show in the kids. At our kindergarten parent-teacher conference, Ms. Baker told us what we could not see for ourselves: Joshua had been exhibiting some anxiety. “He is fine with the academics. Our... Read more
I have a new article for Christianity Today’s magazine that is now available online: The New School Choice Agenda. In it, I write about a group of friends who moved into a low-income neighborhood in Richmond, Virginia who have decided to send their children to the local public schools. I also had a chance to interview men and women across the nation, all Christians who have made similar choices. The article prompted me to ask the question–are Christians “called” to... Read more
Those of you who read this blog regularly know that the demands of family life are a constant source of tension in our household (see Friday’s post for but the most recent example), which often doesn’t look as cheery as this photo might suggest. You also know that I want to follow God in and know God’s presence in our home in the midst of dirty diapers and to-do lists. I have a new post on Huffington Post Parents (adapted... Read more
My friend Ellen Painter Dollar invited me to join her in her “Best Thing” Blog Hop, in which she features fellow bloggers who have posted the “best thing” they’ve ever written. I’m not sure this is actually the best post I’ve ever written. In fact, I’m pretty sure it’s not. But I couldn’t choose among the dozens of posts I’ve written about faith, family, and disability, my typical topics, so I’m going to give you something else, a post I wrote... Read more
Perhaps it is fitting that today was a day with William screaming in the night, with two overtired parents responding with anger, with a morning filled with tears and yelling. Perhaps it is fitting that after I had locked him in his room for an escalated time-out, as I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths, I remembered to pray. Perhaps it is fitting that today of all days I remember to thank Jesus for his forgiveness and... Read more
Beautiful post by Mama Monk about the perpetual trials of being a parent of small children. She writes, I’m a stressed mom. I’m stressed too often. I worry that August’s most prominent memory of his childhood will be my contorted anxiety face leaning over his carseat, snapping at him and plugging his seatbelt in tight. Sometimes he asks me, “Mama, are you stressed?” Sometimes he tells Chris when he comes home: “Mommy was really stressed today.” Oh, how I hate... Read more
I tend to balk at generalized statements about kids and adults with Down syndrome. There’s a part of me that resists on theoretical grounds–I don’t want to stereotype or treat people with Trisomy 21 as if they are in a separate category of human being. But there is also a part of me that resists on practical grounds. “They’re stubborn,” for example, doesn’t describe Penny at all. Her brother takes the prize for irrationally holding his ground in our household.... Read more
I had a wonderful time in North Carolina last week, and I hope I’ll take the time to write a series of posts based on the questions and conversations I had with people from the Duke Center for Reconciliation, Reality Ministries, the Trinity School, and at the Church of the Apostles. There were questions about how to raise our children with grace instead of perfectionism, how to teach our kids to see people with disabilities as equals and potential friends,... Read more
Peter can always tell when I’m excited about something because I try, unsuccessfully, to hide my smile. Perhaps I’m afraid my excitement will come off as self-important or maybe I’m afraid he won’t think it matters much. It happened again yesterday. I told him about another review of A Good and Perfect Gift and an opportunity to write for a blogger I admire. I could feel myself pressing down the excitement, trying to act as if it’s no big deal.... Read more
Thin Places-Faith, Family and Disability
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