Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Points to Ponder

I want to start a little quiet time, devotional, and memorization part of this blog. I'll admit, I'm stealing the idea from a friend's blog, but I think it is a great idea to steal.

Memory:
Hebrews 12:1-2

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God."

Quiet Time:
Job 40-42

Points to Ponder:
Job 42:7-13

How is your marriage relationship with God? Are you willing to be as honest with your feelings towards God as Job was with his feelings? Peter Kreeft writes, "[Job] is in a true relationship to God, as the three friends are not: a relationship of heart and soul, life-or-death passion.... God is infinite love, and the opposite of love is not hate but indifference. Job's love for God is infected with hate, but the three friends' love for God is infected with indifference. Job stays married to God and throws dishes at him; the three friends have a polite nonmarriage, with separate bedrooms and separate vacations. The family that fights together stays together."

Ponder the thought that God can handle you, all of you, even your negative emotions.

-thoughts from The Message//Remix:Solo - Day 72

Beauty in the Midst of Storm

This weekend was a fantastic weekend. We were able to host some very good friends of ours here in NYC. Daniel and Carla Howell and their daughter Madeleine. They arrived on Saturday evening and stayed until Tuesday morning. We had a blast with them. We were able to venture down into Manhattan on Sunday for church and lunch. We ate at Five Napkins, which is a great burger restaurant on West 84th street (for anyone in the area).

We then decided to drive home because it started "raining." Little did we know that while we were eating, one of the worst
storms on the east coast was happening about 5 minutes from our house in Riverdale Bronx. There were wind gusts up to 60 mph and major damage was done. Multiple trees were uprooted and lying in the roads. Many power lines were down and many cars got hit with trees. The Henry Hudson Pkwy flooded just a couple miles from our house. It was crazy!! Overall, I'm glad we decided to head indoors instead of walk around Manhattan, which also got hit pretty hard.

After the bulk of the storm, the sun came out and the horrifically hot humidity that had landed over NYC for the first time in years was pushed away!! It turned out to be a beautiful Sunday evening, with the sun shining and 70 degree weather. We decided to drive up to Hastings on the Hudson (a small town about 10 min from our apt) and walk around a bit. This is what we found...




...we found a blue door. That is all. Everything had closed for the evening. Fun..huh!!!

Oh well, we had a great time with our friends and hope to be able to do it again soon.

For all you runners out there, check out www.thebarefootbook.com. This is Dr. Howell's newest publication (his reason for coming to NYC).

Monday, July 19, 2010

A Beautiful Sunday

This has been one crazy week. We have finally got our stuff moved in and unpacked. Now all we need to do is set out a few more decorations and we will be done!!!
I have spent the entire week dealing with different insurance companies concerning my maternity coverage. That has been a new experience and a challenging one at that.
I have dealt with some of the hottest most humid weather that I have felt in years, and I get to experience it while being pregnant.

All that to say that we had a wonderful day yesterday experiencing our new city.

We started off our day by going to Journey Church in the Upper West Side. We had a great service worshiping and praising God. Then we had a great message given by a couple of the pastors at the church concerning our plans and dreams for our own lives, and how they intersect with God's purpose for us. It was a great time. I also managed to parallel park our car on the left side of the road in potentially the smallest parking spot that I have ever seen.

After church, we headed to 5th Ave in Manhattan for an amazing lunch at Fig and Olive. It is Restaurant Week here in NYC and that means great food for half the price. I had one of the best Mediterranean meals that I have ever eaten. We spent a while at the restaurant. Again, another parallel parking spot on the left side of the road, this one alot larger though. I did, however, have to reverse past 3 parked cars on the left and long line of taxis on the right to obtain this spot. I'm pretty sure that Don just closed his eyes and prayed as this occurred.

After lunch, we walked around 5th Ave, and eventually ended up at FAO Schwartz to look at baby stuff (AKA - play with toys). After that, we went to Trump Tower to look off one of the roofs from the public gardens at the views of 5th Ave and Broadway.

We then drove ourselves over the Manhattan Bridge into Brooklyn through the village to visit Don's cousins. We spent the evening in Brooklyn, eating at another great restaurant!

After a great day in Manhattan, we made our way back home via the Henry Hudson Pkwy along the Hudson River and Manhattan skyline. This is a beautiful view at night.

Another successful tale from our journeys in NY.

Friday, July 9, 2010

Nursing in Public

I have had a few days to think about this. I was reading on facebook a few days ago about someone who saw a lady breastfeeding in Target. I read all she had to say about it and all the responses that were made. People responded from it's a little weird to "it's gross". I was appalled at the way we as Christian women responded to a mother nursing and nurturing her child.

Most of you probably think I'm crazy because I haven't even started nursing yet. I do have feelings about how I will nurse my own child starting in September and my feelings on when and where to nurse. I was going to come on here and state how I feel and give my own thoughts...but...this week happens to be Carnival of Nursing in Public for 2010. The week long "carnival" is presented by Nursing Freedom.

Many people have posted their stories of NIP (nursing in public) on their website this week. One lady posted a fantastic blog about NIP and Christianity. I want to share the link to this blog on my blog and facebook. I have to give credit where credit is due because I did not write any of it. I feel the same about it and share the same feelings, but I did not write a single period or common on this blog. I will however endorse her blog and the website of Nursing Freedom.

I will give a few of my own comments concerning the specific "Target incident" and the things that were said. I think that we as a culture and society are way behind Africa (a continent specifically listed in the comment section after the incident). Dr. Robert Sears and many other well accomplished pediatricians with the World Health Organization have travelled the country to monitor how infants are reared in other countries. America (along with a few other "developed" countries) is the only place that parents nurse out of convenience for the mom, straps the baby to a stroller out of convenience, and moves the baby out of our bedrooms out of convenience for us. There is detailed research that states infants fair better and develop better when attached to the mother for many months after birth (9 total months out of the womb is what the research says.)

Everyone has to do what is appropriate for their lifestyles and their comfort. I am not here to tell everyone to go out and nurse in public today unless it is something you strongly agree with. I am here to ask that you not say things to knock a God-given function that I for one think is best for my child - no matter where I choose to do it. The level at which I choose my modest is a matter between, me, my husband and God...not for everyone else to judge and decide.

Here is a very helpful and insightful article written by a mother:
http://sortacrunchy.typepad.com/sortacrunchy/2010/07/paradigm-shift-breastfeeding-as-worship.html