Two good political articles

In case you haven't noticed by now, Mindy and I have been tracking Mike Huckabee's Presidential campaign. Mindy and I met Mike a month or two ago in Plano and have been following him since. I have some definite views on the relationship between politics and Christianity (which is a very complicated relationship, with a long history, fraught with danger). And perhaps it is a bit incautious of me to blog about a presidential candidate since I am a minister of the gospel, and therefore not a partisan. But what the heck. Presidential politics has always been in my blood. Here are two good articles about Huckabee. Whether you are interested in him or another candidate, enjoy...

"Huckabee Hits a Chord", Washington Post, here
"Huckabee Charming, Funny in Sit-down Chat", Des Moines Register, here.

Hannah "talking"

Possible Remains of 2nd Temple Found

This could be huge. The only known remaining part of the 2nd Temple in Jerusalem is the Western wall (aka Wailing Wall). Today's news report said that in the process of digging pipes, the government may have found a rather large section of the 2nd Temple. If this is so, it could be rather exciting (and, I'm afraid, the source of more conflict). Article here.

The 3rd child needs some new stuff, too.

Ever since I became a parent I've heard jokes about how parents go from being completely paranoid with the first child (i.e. sterilizing everything, restricting refined sugars and TV until age 2, etc.) to being a little too lax with the third child (i.e. picking the pacifier up off the floor at the restaurant and wiping it on your jeans before popping it back into baby's mouth). I must say that I still fret over each of my kid's nutrition, hygiene and TV time, but I have definitely become MUCH more relaxed about toys and clothes for each subsequent child. ALL of Christopher's clothes were new, he wore only Pampers, and all of his toys, swings, exersaucers, bouncy chairs, etc. were brand new. Practically all of Sarah's clothes were hand-me-downs from people within our church...much to the chagrin of two grandmothers, who were just itching to buy little girl things! All that to say, my baby shower for Hannah was mainly a diapers and wipes shower (generic brands were perfectly acceptable!) and Hannah has been going through well-worn clothes, crib sheets, burp rags, and seat covers that have been washed so many times that the original color is questionable. I'm pretty frugal and incredibly practical, so as long as they're in good condition, my kids are going to wear them/use them/play with them.

However, I noticed that each of Hannah's crib sheets were either stained, torn, sewn-up, or faded, so I decided that I would get her some fresh pink sheets. While at Babies R Us, I also decided to get her a "Bumbo" seat, which helps babies who cannot sit upright on their own to do so with lots of support and freedom of motion. Some friends of ours posted pictures of their 2nd baby in a Bumbo seat and really sold us on it - here. The frugal person in me did NOT like the price tag, but the practical part of me loves how portable this seat is and how it gives Hannah a new vantage point with her siblings as well as with her toys. Plus, she just looks so darn cute sitting in it.
Ok, enough description...here are some pictures.

Hey, I can reach my toes sitting here!


Sarah always makes me laugh and smile!


This sure beats laying on my back! This chair is definitely a keeper.


Wow - these sheets are so clean, fresh and PINK!

Sunday mornings...

John is usually up and out the door before any of us even wake up most Sundays, so I know that the Lord has designed Sunday mornings (from the time my oldest two climb into my bed declaring that they are hungry for breakfast to the time we are all loaded up into the car and pulling out of the garage) specifically for my sanctification! Whenever I think that we are doing 'great on time', it is yet more proof to John's observation that I am a bad estimator of time. This morning's events were no exception. Every week I am determined to be on time for Sunday School, and every week we are at least 10-20 minutes late. It's easy to get discouraged with myself when I see families with 5 small children arriving to SS on time or even before SS begins. But then I remember that they have both parents at home getting breakfast ready, buttoning up dresses, brushing hair, packing bags, finding shoes, and loading everyone up into the car (and in my case, all three of my children are still in 5-point harness car seats) - no small feat! This reminder helps me to be less stressed-out, more patient with the kids, and ultimately in a better frame of mind and heart to prepare myself and my kids for worship. Yes, I would love to have this joyful spirit AND be on time each week, but obviously it is more important that going to worship be a joyful anticipation and not a stressful drudgery.
Now my kids will be the first to tell you that I am still a work in progress in this department! But I am thankful that today as I was madly getting myself together in front of the mirror in my bathroom, I was able to pause and enjoy one of my kids as she was digging through my closet. Sarah came strutting out of the master closet with a fanny pack over her shoulder, telling me in a very serious tone, "My going to take Pooh to da doctor. " It tickled me so much that I just had to stop and take a picture (I know, I'm so Chinese...)

By the way, that's a clothes hamper behind Sarah...not a toilet.


I don't know what the appeal is with the closet...maybe because it's big, dark and messy (i.e. fun place to hide and fun 'treasures' to find). The kids inevitably end up in there at some point while I'm getting myself ready.




These are just some too-cute close-ups of Hannah (who will be 5 months old tomorrow) that I took after church today.

Hannah's new discoveries

Our baby Hannah is nearly 5 mos old and has been discovering new motor skills. She actually has not rolled over since her first attempt on 7/31, but she has been lifting her legs into the air and grabbing on to her feet. She has also discovered that she can maneuver herself around the floor and the crib on her back. She is trying so hard to sit-up while in the bouncy chair or the swing, which evokes cheers and laughter from her older siblings because she ends up falling forward into the tray or the toy attachments. All you have to do to make Hannah smile is make eye contact with her and her whole face lights up, but she makes you work for giggles! With her smiles, she has discovered that it's fun to stick out her tongue and hold it there (pictured above).

Michael Medved on Mike Huckabee

Michael Medved (known for his critique of Hollywood) thinks Huckabee could be the real thing. The link is here.

Bossy Sarah

We've mentioned before that our Sarah has been quite the little "mother hen", especially since Hannah's arrival. Along with that, she is also rather bossy. Every now and then, I'll hear her saying things like, "Teh-fer (her abbreviation for Christopher), dwink your mewk (milk)!" or "Teh-fer, wash your hands!" or "Say tank-you...say tank-you, Teh-fer!" At the dinner table when Christopher is resisting his vegetables, Sarah will automatically chime in with, "Mmmm, it's so good...it's so good, Teh-fer, twy it! You wike it!" No doubt, she has heard me (Mindy) say all of these things. What she HASN'T heard me say (I promise!) is what popped out of her mouth at the restaurant last night...
Yesterday was John's day off, so after a swim at the pool and a good nap, we all went to California Pizza Kitchen for dinner. The server came (a young guy) to take our drink order and Christopher immediately started telling him, "I would like pizza...Sarah and I would like cheese pizza." I told him I'd have a water, John a diet coke, and the kids would just have water. He then asked if we would like any appetizers, which we didn't. During that moment, Sarah leaned over the table, looked at the server and yelled, "GO GET MY WATER!" Looking back, we probably shouldn't have laughed so hysterically, but we were all so taken aback by her boldness toward this complete stranger that we just cracked up. Needless to say, it will be quite a challenge to raise her up to have a quiet and gentle spirit...

A lengthy worship service

Despite what some may think, when the Bible says "those who endure to the end shall be saved", it's not referring to the length of our worship services at Trinity! Our worship service ran a little longer today than normal, about 1 hour 40 minutes. (We usually run from 10:30 till noon.) We heard an exhilarating report from our Romania missions trip team. We started Acts 1 in a new sermon series. And we celebrated the Lord's Table for the second Sunday in a row. Really, it was a great Sunday morning and I sensed the Spirit move in many people's heart today. But I still felt a little badly that the service went so long until I just read that this morning's worship service at First Baptist Church Dallas went for two hours!

This is what the Dallas Morning News says, " Members of the historic First Baptist Church of Dallas elected Robert Jeffress as their new pastor at the conclusion of a rousing two-hour Sunday morning worship service, attended by 3,200." That put things in a little better perspective for me. I wish FBC Dallas all the best with the new pastor. May they bear much fruit for the Kingdom!

A great win for the other man from Hope - Mike Huckabee!

Gov. Mike Huckabee, vastly outspent by Romney and Brownback, emerged victorious in Iowa tonight with a suprising second place finish. Go Mike! (See our ealier picture with Mike Huckabee here.)

p.s. - Mindy says I brag too much about Christopher. I plead guilty as charged, but I also plead guilty to bragging just as much about Sarah and Hannah too. They are so much fun to be around!

Christopher and the Minneapolis bridge

Today Christopher & Sarah were over at my parent's house while Mindy was running errands. Christopher saw the Minneapolis bridge disaster on CNN. Nana (my mom) told him that the bridge collapsed. He asked why. She told him that we don't know yet. After a few minutes he asked why again. Same answer. Then he went off to another room for a few minutes and came back to my mom. "I know why the bridge collapsed" he announced. "Why?" she asked. "Because it was too thin underneath." Wow. We were all pretty impressed with what he came up with today out of the blue.