Little Soldier
Little soldier, little child
You’re still too young to know,
The impact of the battlefield
Or how its memory lingers so.Playing war is now a game,
Its truth you can’t conceive
Should you defend, until its end
Our freedom to believe.In God, in man, in liberty
With rights for one and all,
Little soldier, little child,
That day you’ll stand as tall.Written by Maureen Kuehne
Copyright 2003
“We mean to show that a man cannot apply himself seriously to repentance without knowing himself to belong to God. But no one is truly persuaded that he belongs to God unless he has first recognized God’s grace…No one will ever reverence God but him who trusts that God is propitious to him. No one will gird himself willingly to observe the law but him who will be persuaded that God is pleased by his obedience. This tenderness in overlooking and tolerating vices is a sign of God’s fatherly favor” (Calvin, Institutes, 3.3.2).
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Beautifully said. Two goodies arrived in the mail this week — “Calvin and the Duchess” and a bio of Calvin. Grad school classes also started this week. I may need to defer Calvin until after I start understanding more about forecasting revenue and such.
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The boys and I joined the YCSers to meet Marco Rubio. Don’t know who Rubio is? Read this great interview with NRO — especially if you live in Florida, I recommend you take the time to read it.
Get ready to party like it’s 1509!
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One of my projects this year has been dubbed the Calvin Quincentenary Project. I’ve been listening to the podcasts from PTS, but haven’t kept up to date with their the listening/reading through the Institutes. And I’ve finally ordered a biography of Calvin, having been disappointed in my searches at the local used bookstores.
Right now I’m in the midst of the chapter on Calvin in The Child in Christian Thought
My Mother’s Day was filled with lots of -extra- spontaneous hugs from my boys. I get a lot of them already, but especially C8 came up and gave me extra hugs. It was sweet.
The boys’ Sunday School teacher did a project with the them that had lots of sweet, mushy reasons the boys love me. I’m going to treasure it.
I got a coolio Sbux cup. . . Okay, so it was an impulse buy. But I told the boys it was their Mother’s Day gift to me, so that’s okay, right?
Hubby made yummy swiss-mushroom burgers and corn-on-the-cob. I’m not a big hamburger fan, but these were fab and really hit the spot.
The boys somehow invited a frog into the house. T11 insisted it was a “bullfrog” but I’m pretty sure it was your average, Florida tree frog. They chased it around the house and caught it. However, as Hubby carried it out of the house, the frog urinated on him. Then commenced Hubby chasing the boys around with “frog fingers!” Much squealing and giggling. Well, except for J12 and T11 whose voices are changing and don’t really squeal anymore.
Yesterday Hubby woke up with the mother of all migraines, which lasted well into today. He’s feeling more “normal” now — headachy, but functional. But yesterday’s debilitation led to me taking the boys to paintball — and earning fabulous good-mommy points. Gotta love that! Then we went to a family birthday party for Hubby’s brother (who makes Florida’s best bbq), a niece and a nephew. We found the coolest car-rug at Ikea a few weeks ago for our newly 1-year-old nephew. Totally fun.
I got to have a nice long conversation with my Mom. That was good. Much needed.
Overall, a great Mother’s Day and weekend.
I saw this over at Clever Nesting, a daydream site for the wannabe crafter in me. I like the idea of the 3/50 Project — I like supporting local businesses.
I do slightly disagree with the idea of “spend it online, and nothing comes home.” Sure, it might not come directly into my community, but most of what I spend online is from mompreneurs or small businesses that are local to their own communities. That wouldn’t be the case buying from the big online retailers, but the small, handmade or home-based businesses? Online sales can help keep them going when they are still building a sustainable, local customer base.
Some of my favorite local businesses:
Funtoysia
Lifestyle Hearing
Cinnamental Bakers
Bangkok Restaurant
Bella Coffee House
Rudolph Clay Studios
Lambrix-Bush Warehousing
Haley Lamourt Chiropractic
Fruitville Grove Market
Dr. Jaworski and Dr. Moricz
Orthodontists of Lakewood Ranch
Some of my favorite independent, non-local businesses:
Old Bisbee Roasters
High Desert Market and Cafe
Kristen Stewart Photography
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What are some of your favorite local businesses? How can you direct some of your normal, budgeted spending to support them?
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Update: After I posted this, I saw another local blogger, Somber and Dull, had just written about one of his favorite local stores — Funtoysia! (Doesn’t that just beg for some ironic comment?)
A good midwife is a gem in the community, a woman to be treasured. I’m thankful for the women who have come alongside me, in the role of midwife, encourager, friend.
In support of the International Day of the Midwife on May 5th, I’d like to extend my personal appreciation to the following midwives and midwives-to-be. Several of them attended at the births of my children, others at my sister’s and mother’s births. A few were not physically present at those births, but nurtured me nonetheless.
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Much gratitude to Alisa Voss, Martha Breeden, Veronica Wagner, Carol Wolfson, Cheryl Hollifield, Tavish Brinton, Anne Sokol, Gurujan KhalKhasa, Stephanie, Kathy Nesper and others who have been with us, with woman. . .
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Updated: Links to more of the local artists and musicians who will be part of this weekend’s art show!
This Friday and Saturday
May 1st and May 2nd
7pm – 10pm
4455 30th St. E
Bradenton FL 34203
Facebook info
Bradenton Herald-Tribune Info
Featuring:
Bill Kimrey
Matt Crotts
Joan Senkowicz
Meagan Chaney
Jim O’Donnell
Bob Salyers
Janine Hoffman
Nigel and Cheyenne Rudolph
Haitz
Scone Train
James Hawkins
Justin Layman
Stephen Gillum
Brandon Crane
. . . and more.