An Island of Progress

With somewhere between one and three weeks to go (assuming we're not "early" but could be "late"), we are making progress. At the end of this weekend, we should have the hall area and powder room painted, and perhaps even the baby's room. Then it's on to carpet, refinishing wood floors, and installing fixtures. Today, we acquired 2 dressers for Baby. They are both unfinished wood, so we can stain/paint them when we decide what we want. Sorry, no pictures of them yet. . .but here are some others of our work.

Aunt Rebecca found us an island for the kitchen (she also found the dressers). Also pictured, the 2nd baby sling, 2 wet bags (waterproof bags for holding dirty cloth diapers pristinely while we're out and about), a diaper stacker, a crib caddy, and 1 39-week-pregnant me.


Close-up of the nursery pieces


Baby's finished quilt top. . .now to put the layers together and quilt!

Of Babies and Such

No, there isn't a baby yet. Yes, everything is fine. My aunt Rebecca is here visiting, so we are staying busy sewing and shopping. Here are some interim pictures; more to follow as we complete more projects!

One of the quilt blocks for Baby's quilt:


Some cheap fabric to make a few cloth wipes, in case we need them before my mom gets here with her stash:


The baby sling--furry bear in place--finished today:

Taxes

Doug Wilson has an interesting post about the U.S. system of income taxes. It's food for thought.

Where Could I Go?

It may not sound well-reasoned or carefully considered, but some days are like that. Not all days, mind you--and, in case you're worried, not today, at least in my world--but some days you hang on just because you don't know anything better to grab.
Today at WorldMagBlog, I liked this quote:

Jesus was aware that every step of the way His followers would be tempted to be disillusioned with Him and bail out. So one day, when people were abandoning Him in droves, He turned and asked twelve men still standing after the crowd had thinned, “Do you want to go away as well?” Peter spoke up for the rest of them: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:67,68). I don’t know the tone of voice when he said it. Was he feeling triumphant? Was he just hanging on by his fingernails?

I stick with God because in spite of this painful life, His Words are the most perfect I have found. Sometimes I say that with a smile, and sometimes with a sigh.

Quilting

I finally finished a couple baby quilts for newborns we know, so here are the pictures. The second one is only slightly different from the first baby quilt I ever made. . .I wound up with twice as much fabric as needed for that one when I abruptly amended plans in the middle of the piecing and have been saving the extra blocks for the right baby. :-)

Oi!

Here's the intro:

Possibly as an act of vengeance, a history professor--compiling, verbatim, several decades' worth of freshman papers--offers some of his students’ more striking insights into European history from the Middle Ages to the present.

Here's the article.

Here's a quote to get you started:

History, a record of things left behind by past generations, started in 1815.

Read it and weep.
Or laugh.
Or both.

HT: HSK at WorldMagBlog

Across the Pond

Nobody--and I mean, nobody--does satire like our allies across the pond. From Jonathan Swift onward, the legacy remains.

Belated Pictures

A couple weeks ago, I froze a 20-pound box of blueberries, washed and bagged in 3-cup increments. Ever wonder what 20 pounds of blueberries looks like? It netted 18 3-cup bags.



Me, at 35 weeks, plus a couple days



Our new sink and faucet fixtures! They're not actually installed as of now--Kevin put them up to make sure the rough-in valve and support studs were appropriately placed, then took them down so the drywall can be finished. Nevertheless, here's a glimpse.

Give Me Wood

For those of you concerned (not to mention any who may be obsessive, and I know you're out there) about the retention of bacteria on cutting boards, this article may be of interest.

It claims, through scientific testing, that wooden cutting boards are actually more sanitary than plastic or rubber surfaces, even for cutting meat, and especially when both are cleaned by hand.

I typically use plastic boards, as it seems they are generally considered safer. I am happy for a reason to invest in more hardwood cutting boards, however, and may just try to replace my plastics.

On Discipline

I've been slowly reading My Life for Yours: A Walk Through the Christian Home, by Douglas Wilson. A couple things in the chapter on discipline are noteworthy.

First, Wilson lists the basic principles of fair discipline, or as he says, of "biblical jurisprudence." They are:

1. "Two or three witnesses give us the requirement of independent confirmation. (2 Cor. 13:1)"
2. "If a child tattles to get a brother or sister in trouble, and the report turns out to be false, you shall do to him as he thought to do to his sibling. (Deut. 19:19)"
3. "Parents must take trouble to sort out conflicting stories, (Deut 19:18) however great the temptation to spank them all and let God sort it out (Prov. 18:13)."
4. "A full opportunity must always be given for the defense even if the defense promises to be pretty thin. (Prove 18:17)"
5. "And discipline, when meted out, should be sharp, painful and over. (Heb. 12:11)"

Also, on spanking:

"The liturgy of spanking often teaches as much as the spanking itself does. A child when grown will no doubt have forgotten all the various offenses he "caught it" for. But he will remember, and fairly clearly, how the process usually went. Even if he doesn't remember that process consciously, all he needs to do is wait until he begins disciplining his own children, and it will all come flooding back. Here is a suggested liturgy: First, the child has the offense explained to him. It's very important that this be calm and judicial and not done in anger. Then, the spanking is administered, with the swats varying according to the offense. Next, the child is held until he stops crying, the child is assured that everything is completely forgiven, and the world is a new place. Finally, parent and child pray together, thanking God for the forgiveness."

On Autism. . .or not

Thomas Sowell has a provocative article at National Review about the growing frequency of autism diagnoses for children who do not fit the average development patterns. He seems to imply that recently touted successful therapies for children diagnoses very early in life may be the simple result of wrong diagnoses: "If a child is not autistic to begin with, almost anything will “cure” him with the passage of time."

Autism is one of the scarier (in my opinion) developmental disability diagnoses out there, because we don't understand it. We don't know what causes autism, how exactly to screen for it, or how to overcome it. Compared to something like Down's Syndrome, it's the unknown. Still, over-eagerness to diagnose could clearly cause unnecessary emotional trauma for families.

Our society is so anxious to label anyone who doesn't fit the mold with some sort of condition or disease. When a little boy in 1st grade can't sit still through the 15 minute reading lesson, we helpfully label him ADD or ADHD, give him Ritalin, and merrily continue on our way--when all the while, the only problem may just be that he's a little boy (which, incidentally, is not a problem at all).

I'm not suggesting that there are no developmental disabilities or challenges. I'm not even suggesting that we avoid looking at them as possible reasons for behavior. I'm just saying that we should tread carefully. . .we already have the highest rates of medicated developmentally challenged children in the industrialized world. The solution, if there is one, has to involve individual doctors and parents who are willing to give their children space to be different. Hopefully, that can be done without compromising the possibility of successful early intervention.

Remodeling In Progress

In the remodeling realm, progress has been made. The baby's room has a complete floor--no more holes into the basement, not even a trap door--and complete walls. The "hall" and bathroom have walls, with the exception of the area in the bathroom where the plumbing has yet to be completed. We've purchased a ceiling light for the bathroom, a wall sconce for the hall, a ceiling fan and light for the baby's room, and 2 wall sconces for our still-unlit living room. Sink, faucet, towel ring, etc. are on order for the bathroom, and the plumbing will be completed to exact specifications upon their arrival.

What's next? The walls need one more coat of mud, then they can be sanded, primed, and painted. Then the bathroom and hall wood floors need to be sanded and finished and the bedroom floor will get carpet. Lights, fixtures, and doors need to be installed, though the doors still need to be stripped of their lead paint.

I'll try to take pictures soon--though it's not nearly so impressive looking if you haven't witnessed the progression from utter destruction onward.

Tip of the Day

Per the wash instructions on a package of newborn socks. . .

Do not iron.

. . .and I was so looking forward to carefully steam pressing every little bootie.

Now Open: Mosquito Buffet

I am sincerely hoping that my newfound appeal to the mosquitoes of the world is based solely upon the increase in blood volume and hormones in my body. . .and not upon the particular affinities of the local tribe of bloodsuckers. In the past 45 minutes, I've gotten no less than 11 bites. . .and I've been inside the entire time. It's become the norm. Who wants to wear bug spray every day? Is that even healthy???

The Second Video

Aha! Success! Now you get another one. . .

If you've never seen sheep (try to) run across a field, it's about the funniest thing you can imagine. Unfortunately, they wouldn't demonstrate for the camera. But they did baaaa obligingly.

The First Video

Kevin tested the new camcorder this weekend. . .so here is something I'm sure you all want to see.

The living history farm had an early model automatic ice cream maker. It was quite the setup, as you'll witness.

Enjoying Food

Although there has been a marked increase of late, we have always spent more of our budget than is strictly necessary on food, whether it's buying a slightly better brand from the grocery store shelf, getting as much produce as possible at the Farmer's Market, or enjoying a $4 12-ounce gourmet latte. Lately, between rising food costs and the new justification of "I'm pregnant; good food is important," our expenditures, especially related to produce, have risen.

I don't feel guilty about this.

When there is extra money, people spend it on what is important to them. It might be entertainment, expensive restaurants, vacations, or fashion. Eating well is important to me--not just eating healthily, but eating well. Enjoying the bounty we are provided with on a daily, on-going basis.

Could we survive with "lesser" purchases? Sure. Drinking store brand tea instead of Lipton would not be a hardship. But Kevin prefers Lipton. Buying regular skim milk (let alone store brand) instead of the most expensive organic brand would not kill me. But I am really grateful for the expensive organic brand that I can drink without forcing myself. I could prepare less expensive meals, even if they might be slightly less interesting or less colorful. But I enjoy cooking an aesthetically pleasing and tempting repast for our table.

Could we spend that extra money elsewhere? Sure. We could always increase our monthly principal deduction on the house payment. Or the car payment. We could put more in savings. We could go out to eat more often or plan weekend get-aways as often as we like.

It's a matter of priority. Recently, Douglas Wilson has been blogging about a redeemed approach to food, from gratefully receiving what you have to refraining from pharisaical rules about what should and should not be eaten. Below is a quote regarding spending on foodstuffs that I appreciated, along with the link to that particular post, followed by the link to the series of posts on the topic

Fourth, recognize that striving to improve in this way cannot be separated from the economic realities. Money is one of the factors in the trade-offs. If you choose to buy the best produce, for example, you are going to pay more for it. If you are paying top dollar for such things, then don't pretend you are doing something else. Recognize that you are comparatively rich, and that you are using your disposable income on luxuries. One of saddest features (or funniest, depending) of contemporary food snobbery is the notion that rich people are getting in touch with the rythyms of the earth when they shop at the Whole Foods market. Paying three times as much for a really good apple is a fine thing to do, so long as you know that you are doing it. But if you think that you are a humble creature of the soil because you are whooping it up on luxuries is one of the oddest things that I have ever seen in my life. I understand, to return to an earlier example, why people would come to the point where they would be willing to drop five bucks on a cup of coffee. Okay, I think. It's a free country and you obviously have a lot of money. And if you don't have a lot of money, or you haven't bought into the aesthetic coffee imperative, I understand staying with the older drop coffee. Great. Still a free country. But what I don't get is the idea of someone spending five dollars on a cup of coffee as a way of expressing solidarity with peasants the world over. Look, you're rich. Come to terms with it.

from Infinite at the Top post, part of the Creation and Food topical archives

Valley Forge

On our way home Sunday, we stopped at Valley Forge.

A replica hut--simulating what the soldiers built in which to pass the winter.




Apparently, the whole valley was wooded before Washington's troops settled there. The 4,000 men, their livestock, etc., caused a large area to be cleared. It is still surrounded by woodlands, though.



The memorial arch



The original house rented by Washington for the use of himself, his wife, and his closest aides.

The Delaware

On Saturday, we visited the spot of Washington's crossing of the Delaware and a living history farm nearby.

The Crossing



The Farm

Philly

We spent the 4th of July in the place where it all started--Philadelphia. We saw the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, and quite a whole district of historic architecture.

Independence Hall





The best part? A fundraiser for a leukemia foundation. . .$5 to enter and eat all the ice cream you want. Mmmmmm. A bit of Heaven on Earth for the pregnant woman.

On Wifely Submission

I realize not everyone who reads this blog shares the same perspective on the roles and duties of husbands and wives. But for those who are of the more conservative bent--that is, for those wives among you who strive to serve and follow your husband in accordance with a traditional understanding of God's intent for the marriage relationship--here is a blog post worth reading. Even if you don't categorize your marriage as the type she specifically identifies as her intended audience, there are good reminders for all of us.

Other Doings of the Week

Also this past week. . .
our yard got some trimming, weeding, clearing, and general TLC
the rose bush made its way onto a trellis
the garden received much-needed mulch
the baby's room, including closet, and the linen closet got walls
a free upright freezer arrived in our basement
I got a maternity swimsuit and a few sleeveless tops to wear for the next 8 weeks
a tiny camcorder made its way into our possession
some new power tools augmented Kevin's growing collection
I had coffee--twice (mmmm. . .it's so good that Caffe Pronto is 20 minutes away!)
the midwife reports that Baby is still head-down and will probably stay there, which bodes well for the future
we saw a white ferret walking alongside our street late in the evening

It's been busy. I'll work on getting some pictures of the yard and house progress. Right now, laundry calls.

Berry Cherry

Kevin's parents have been here visiting this past week. On Friday, while the guys went fly fishing (unfortunately, pictures of that are on their camera--somewhere in the sky between here and Oklahoma now), we girls went to a "pick your own" farm and harvested blueberries and cherries. Don't ask how many we came home with. . .it was easy to get carried away. I will say, though, that we paid less than a third of what the lovely fruits would have cost had we bought them from the grocery store--and they were tree and bush-ripened, to boot.

A Small Cake

Earlier this month,I made this cake as a centerpiece for the dessert table--filled with mousse--for the wedding of some friends from church.

A Gentle Reminder

A thought for the day from another blog.

Keeping the main thing, the main thing is so hard sometimes. You can try to impress Mom with your loving spirit and knock out your little sister while doing it. For my children, the problem is immaturity. For me, losing sight is from exhaustion. We all lose focus. No matter. I know I’m not the only one who is tired and forgetting about important things–people and my relationship with them. In the middle of it, you don’t have the perspective about what’s important that hindsight brings. You make decisions you wouldn’t have if you weren’t so tired. The heat of the moment—which can be a lot of moments strung together sometimes, a fog that won’t lift –is a testing ground, so choose well. Make the choice you would’ve wish you’d chosen if you were looking back. I’m talking about speaking kindly, being slow to anger, and preferring others above yourself.

Chill

This article by Jonah Goldberg, at NRO, is chilling. Cold-shiver, hole-in-my-stomach chilling. And it's not something I haven't heard mentioned or implied before, but the names and quotes and details are sickening.

In the article, Goldberg talks about the connection between birth control, abortion, and ridding society of the "undesirable" segment of the population--the poor, the minorities, the criminally-inclined--eugenics, in other words, but the very use of the word "eugenics" seems to provide some sterilization from the horror of the ideas involved.

Go read it. It is good to be informed of such things. Be an informed citizen, though it sicken you.

Why I Wouldn't Buy a GPS

At Slate, Joel Achenbach explains--with a good dose of humor--precisely why I have no affinity for GPS. My favorite quotes, the number and length of which surely violate copyright laws, are below--and if they don't inspire you to go read the whole thing, you probably have or want to have a talking map in your car. . .which is fine. For you. Not for me.

But I'm a good navigator. My brain is crammed with little magnets that tell me the direction of true north. By studying the landscape, finding the sun in the sky, examining the moss on trees, and judging the rabbit pellets and bear spoor by temperature and mouthfeel, I can reliably find the nearest Starbucks.
. . .
With GPS there is no terra incognita. It's all been cognita-ed to the last square millimeter.
. . .
Computers can't cruise. Meandering is a foreign concept to them. The computer assumes that all behavior is in pursuit of an ultimate goal. Whenever a motorist changes his or her mind and veers off course, the GPS lady issues that snippy announcement: "Recalculating!"

But again, I can tolerate the computer; the bigger problem is that the GPS device robs the traveler of a human skill that has emerged from Deep Time. We are generally quite good at reading landscapes. We are members of a hunting and gathering species, and we've learned, over the millenniums, to find prey, forage, and shelter; to anticipate changes in weather; to interpret hostility or amicability among others of our kind; to sniff out sexual opportunities. Surely we can find our hotel downtown.
. . .
I won't go along anymore. Better to be lost than zombified.

It's like using a calculator to tally your checkbook balance--not to align your tally with your bank statement balance, but to do the basic addition and subtraction of deposits and debits. I like my basic math skills. I want to keep them. At least until our children have time to learn them.

Kudos to HSK at World Mag Blog for the heads-up.

No Comments, please

Without issuing--or inviting--any commentary on Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, Al Qaeda, the "War on Terror" or any other such controversial topic, this is a somewhat amusing bumper sticker:

It’s up to God to judge terrorists; It's up to us to arrange the meeting! USMC

Or is the fact that I find that mildly amusing commentary in itself?

A Funny Shirt

I doubt I would actually wear this, but I saw a shirt advertised that said:

I make milk.
What's your superpower?

I found it funny. . .but my sense of humor is a bit over-developed these days.

Quote of the Day

taken from Doug Wilson, here.

"Nonsense does not improve by being bellowed" (Charles Spurgeon, An All-Round Ministry, p. 42).

Wilson adds, in his post title, "Or by being run through a world-class sound system."

So many applications, so little time. . . .

30 Weeks, plus some

It's not the most spectacular picture ever, but here's the 30-week view, and a couple other shots we took this weekend.



During our little rainstorm, the Goldfinch obligingly sat perfectly still, allowing for a much better picture than is in my previous post.


I started to take a drink of my water Saturday when this little guy startled me away. How often does a praying mantis visit you while you're sitting inside on the couch?

Coffee Experiment

Nearly 7 months later, I've finally captured our new vacuum-action chemistry--err, coffee process on camera.

The apparatus, pre-assembly:


Assembled, coffee and water in place:


As the water heats, vacuum action sucks it up the tube into the globe, where the coffee awaits:


When the water in bottom begins to boil, the steam pressure agitates the coffee, eliciting the perfect brew:


With a centimeter or two of water remaining in the bottom, the entire assemblage is gently removed from the heat, releasing the suction in seconds as it cools:


The now-brewed coffee drains back into the bottom, leaving the grounds on top:


Detach and enjoy!

Quote of the Day

. . .for the simile, the alliteration, and the general humor:

"Intellectuals spray polysyllables like squid ink, to evade the democratic decencies of conversation."

-credit to Rick Hills, linked from this post on anti-intellecutalism at World Mag Blog, posted by Harrison Scott Key.

Cats

First, let me state clearly that I don't hate cats. To the discredit of accepted either/or wisdom, I like them as much as I like dogs. I'm not keen on owning either, primarily because I really, really dislike pet hair all over the house. But there's no dislike for the animals themselves.

There's this commercial. It makes us laugh every time we see it, which is fairly regularly. It starts out showing sad pictures of various lonely cats with the voice over question, "Could you kill this cat?" If cats made puppy-dog faces, these cats would. Then it quotes some statistic about the number of stray cats killed in some given amount of time. Then it says--and I quote, "Killing doesn't reduce the population. Spaying or neutering does." And it ends with some information about getting your cat "fixed."

Now, don't get me wrong. If you can't deal with kittens or don't want to, the responsible thing to do is to spay or neuter your pet. But seriously--killing doesn't reduce the population??? Even if there are 25,000 stray cats and only one is killed, hasn't the population been reduced to 24,999? Or is that an increase in cat math? I'm fairly certain that killing anything reduces the population of that species by at least one--and while spaying or neutering may very well reduce the future population of said species, it does not reduce the current population one whit.

It's just a great advertisement. The announcer is so serious and sad and so obviously working hard to create a massive guilt trip for the unsuspecting viewer--but it all falls to pieces with "killing doesn't reduce the population."


Please excuse my off-beat sense of humor.

Shenandoah National Park

We accomplished a two-night backpacking trip this weekend, celebrating our upcoming fourth anniversary and my impending lack of mobility (at least as far as trekking through mountains carrying a backpack is concerned). It was a great trip, mostly great weather, and gorgeous country. It was a bit warm in the middle of the day, but the trees were tall and created a cooling canopy, the rivers and streams we walked alongside abounded in cool breezes, and it was--in my opinion--totally worth it. Kevin obligingly carried more than his share of our supplies and muddled through 3 days of awful allergies on top of that. Here are some of our pictures:





Our campsite the second night was on a small mountain (large hill? raised area?) between the fork of two river branches. Literally, you stood at our tent and saw a river below you on either side. It was totally secluded and we slept to the burbling of the water. . .and the buzzing of the numerous bees that, fortunately, stayed outside the tent. This is the view upstream on one side.





Our first evening's hike was along a trail fringed with this small flowering tree, mountain laurel. The cup-like buds were really unique.





Kevin took this great shot from one of the waterfall overlooks.