He is Greater.....John 3:30 says He must become greater, I must become less"

Lately I find myself having conversations with people I know well and respect and our topics seem to come to a place of this:   People need to be seen and heard.  People need to be affirmed and validated....they need the space they occupy in the world to......matter.  It doesn't matter if it is a young dancer at a dance camp, or a toddler in a living room, a hurting grandmother at work, a struggling parent.......across the board I see and hear this with the humans I encounter.  I care about respecting the earth we live in.  I care about recycling and planting trees and enjoying sunsets.  I care about animals.....pets in shelters matter.  The baby painted turtle living in my porch matters......by the way, apparently I can't just set it free in a lake at the end of the summer.  Apparently turtles have lots of icky diseases that can cause problems....and I don't really want it to grow to full maturity in my porch.  Send ideas.....please....

Parenting.  No one is really, actually prepared for it.  We try to be.  We read books, we buy stuff, we talk to other parents....we do the childbirth classes and we research breastfeeding tips and tricks....this is my world, its what I do with new families each and every day.  I help them problem-solve through pregnancy, lactation, baby-proofing, potty training, discipline, school readiness......we discuss attachment and trauma-informed care with adoption and other scenarios..... We can only prepare for a fraction of what will actually happen as we parent.  Maybe your kid will throw a fit in public and you will be helpless to fix it.  Maybe someone else will step in and do a better thing than you know how to do...... Maybe your kid will go out and do something independent and wonderful and you can't know if they are being good or bad..... Maybe your kid will be exposed to something horrible that you didn't get a chance to prepare them for.....and t...

There is a travelling exhibit in town this weekend.  We are having one of those small town weekend celebrations where people come out for cruise night, food, dunk tanks and parades in small town America.  It's awesome.  The travelling exhibit is a dedication to the tragedy of 911.....and highlights a fire fighter (among many others) who sacrificed his life that day.  Early today, knowing I was planning to tour the mobile museum, I was remembering 911.  I was on a very hot and sunny walk and I was remembering that day and vividly I could see where I was, what I was doing and who I talked to that day.  I was orienting to my first WIC clinic as a public health nurse.  We were in the basement of the old library in town ( that has since burned down).  I was pregnant with Isaac.  My then sis-in-law was scheduled to babysit Claire for me that day.  She was 2 years old.  The attack started before I left for work that day and my then sis-in...

I was sitting in Josiah's room just now listening to the bedtime music we play at night.  Lauren Daegle's song Love Like This came on.  I had just been thinking about all of the hateful and hurtful and disappointing things going on in my life.  I was thinking about missed opportunities and frustrating circumstances and how disappointing people can be......I was mad because Claire has been home today being an amazing sister to her siblings, and she has been present and loving and attentive and fun.  Tonight the little kids kind of puked all over that because of extenuating circumstances.....but she was left feeling mad and underappreciated.....and she should never ever feel that way.  I sent her a text and reminded her that kids who have issues struggle with gratitude.  She knows this.  But it's good to be reminded.  I spent all day tending to our home and family.  I spent a lot of money today on food to do some meal prep so that when we ha...

In one week the school year will be finished.  The children will all bring home the contents of their school desks and backpacks.  We will switch gears and move into summer mode.  I see lots of social media posts that give lists of chores and tasks for children to complete each day before they can watch tablets, or play with friends or whatever.  While I appreciate those lists, I would put them in a category I call "overachiever parents".  I am not one of them.  I'm sure that if all 5 of my children could wake up, make their bed, do one household chore, read 20 minutes, brush their teeth and exercise every day I would feel like a really good parent.  Who am I kidding.....I can't even get them to do the library reading program long enough to get the little sign to put in the grass for the rest of the summer.  Neither can I get my husband to spray for weeds on demand or fix the deck in the backyard.....I can't make my people do much.  I can ...

I was having a conversation with a friend today and she described how her husband, after working hard all day, will put on his slippers when he is finished for the day.  Donning his slippers is the signal that he is done for the day.  If a friend calls and invites him out, his wife has heard him say "no thank you, I have my slippers on".  One of the Spanish words for slippers is pantuflas.  It's a fun word to say.....pantuflas.  Say it with me.  "No, sorry, I can't take the garbage out or meet you for drinks or pick up the yard....I have my pantuflas on."  What a great concept.  What a great routine.  Some of us have this routine.  We end our day in a certain way that signals our choice to be done for the day.  Some people need to wipe down the counters, mop the floors, tidy up.  Some need to shower, mud mask their face, condition their hair.  Some need to do other rituals, such as walk around the house checking that al...

Today is my birthday.  Because my birthday landed on a Sunday this year, we started the day as we do most Sundays, with church.  Part of our message today was Ephesians 2:10.....For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. I love this verse of scripture.  We are God's handiwork, his masterpiece, his work of art.....and we were created for something.  I talk about this often, being created for a purpose.....for an assignment....for a plan.  My goal for my children is always to help them find the purpose they were created for.  I know mine.  Do you?   I believe the Lord delights in us when we seek Him and seek to know His purpose for our life.  This life is not random.  It is not haphazard.   It is not just for this present day or moment.....it is unto something greater.  Each life.  Every life....is precious.  Important.  Relevant....