. . . a great pair of jeans.
Today I went shopping to pick up a few things for our vacation, and I bought some AWESOME jeans. They are better than awesome; they are the bomb diggity.
I think I just went back to 1996 with that phrase.
But they ARE the bomb diggity. Not only are they a size smaller than my other post-pregnancy jeans (yay!), but they also look great on, and they were on sale for $14.99. Oh yeah, baby. They are Gap's Boot Cut jeans, which I haven't bought since high school, which is probably the last time I said "bomb diggity."
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Ruminations on Father Elijah
This post is going to be a mish mash of a bunch of things I've been wanting to blog about lately that are slightly related but a bit random. Stick with me.
I am reading Father Elijah--again. I love this novel. It is one of my favorites. I highly recommend it, and you should put it on your summer reading list. It is not a hard book to read, and you will fly through its 600 or so pages, but it definitely has some depth to it, especially of the spiritual kind. This go-round, I have been underlining some of the lines and passages that I think are especially insightful or thought-provoking, and I thought I'd share them here:
And all this brings me to my final point. As soon as I wrote my "Journaling" post a few weeks ago (indeed, while I was writing it), I knew that I was full of hooey. At this point in my life, I do not have much of an investment in things that make me think or reflect, which in some ways is a nice respite, but is also somewhat unfortunate. This is mostly due to the fact that this is the first time in my life that I am not in school or in the workplace. In fact, I almost feel like my intelligence has been seeping away, which I know is not true. I've just been out of practice.
So maybe I will start journaling again. Or maybe I'll find something to invest myself in that requires me to stretch my brain. I'm not sure what that looks like yet, but I think I need it. However, I won't say that the period of the last six months or so, in which I didn't do much to intellectually stimulate myself, has been a total waste. I think it was probably physically and emotionally necessary, since it's quite an adjustment to bring a loveable little cry machine into your house that doesn't let you sleep all that much and try to figure out how to be the best stinkin' parent you can be. I think I'm ready, though. You may be in for more reflective posts interspersed between the recipes and pictures of Noah. :)
I am reading Father Elijah--again. I love this novel. It is one of my favorites. I highly recommend it, and you should put it on your summer reading list. It is not a hard book to read, and you will fly through its 600 or so pages, but it definitely has some depth to it, especially of the spiritual kind. This go-round, I have been underlining some of the lines and passages that I think are especially insightful or thought-provoking, and I thought I'd share them here:
- "Obedience is the best form of poverty."
- "Obedience is the great fast."
- "He made goodness credible." [Speaking in reference to the Pope. I hope I am that kind of Christian, who makes others realize that godliness is not a pie-in-the-sky impossibility, but rather something that is real, through the help of the Holy Spirit. This reminds me of Sheldon Vanauken's comment in A Severe Mercy that he was at first impressed by Christians more than Christianity.]
- [On different types of temptation:] "The second temptation is of a more sinister nature. [It is] the temptation to hate yourself because you have not lived up to your ideal. That is pride, and it is very dangerous."
- "You are no ordinary housewife, Signora Benedetti." She looked at him. "Professore Schafer, I am of the opinion that when one gets to know a housewife, any housewife, one finds that she is never ordinary." "That is a noble sentiment." "It's also a fact."
- "I suspect that most human beings aren't really interested in the truth. They think in a chain of impressions."
- "Hold the ground that has been given to you. Do not try to fight on other fronts. If you abandon the very one that has been given to you, no matter how small, the war may be lost."
And all this brings me to my final point. As soon as I wrote my "Journaling" post a few weeks ago (indeed, while I was writing it), I knew that I was full of hooey. At this point in my life, I do not have much of an investment in things that make me think or reflect, which in some ways is a nice respite, but is also somewhat unfortunate. This is mostly due to the fact that this is the first time in my life that I am not in school or in the workplace. In fact, I almost feel like my intelligence has been seeping away, which I know is not true. I've just been out of practice.
So maybe I will start journaling again. Or maybe I'll find something to invest myself in that requires me to stretch my brain. I'm not sure what that looks like yet, but I think I need it. However, I won't say that the period of the last six months or so, in which I didn't do much to intellectually stimulate myself, has been a total waste. I think it was probably physically and emotionally necessary, since it's quite an adjustment to bring a loveable little cry machine into your house that doesn't let you sleep all that much and try to figure out how to be the best stinkin' parent you can be. I think I'm ready, though. You may be in for more reflective posts interspersed between the recipes and pictures of Noah. :)
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Our Weekend
We've had a nice weekend! It's kind of been the essence of summer and a little like we're tourists in our own city.
On Friday, we went to a big BBQ festival downtown because there were going to be BBQ champions from all over the country there. It included a team from Texas, so we decided that even though we're going to be in Texas later this summer, we really didn't want to pass up an opportunity for some good brisket. So we went, and it was everything we thought it'd be. That was some dang good brisket, sausage, corn bread, and potato salad. The people making it were from a restaurant in Fort Worth, so it was the real deal. We also got to taste some Virginia ribs from this one team that had all these world champion signs up, and that was really good, too, but as native Texans, we prefer our brisket.
Noah, however, was most interested in the cold, wet 7-Up bottle.
Yesterday, we went with some friends into Chinatown to have dim sum. Now, Nathan and I have never had dim sum before, but we've wanted to try it. It's basically Chinese tapas. They come around with these little carts full of small plates of food. You tell them what you want, and they give you one of the little plates. The fun part is that you pretty much have no idea what you're eating, and you have no idea what it costs. You don't know what it costs because they just stamp your ticket with what they gave you, and the stamp is in Chinese. And, okay, you have SOME idea of what you're eating, because they'll tell you "pork dumpling" or something. Although at one point I was asking a lady what the difference between two dishes was, and she kept pointing from one to the other and saying something like, "Moo shoo, moo goo. Moo shoo, moo goo." Like I know the difference. I tried everything except for some really weird looking meat (I think those who tried it decided it was from a neckbone) and a really gross looking rice cake dessert (Nathan said that if I don't like the texture of the fatty bites of brisket, I should skip it). Everything else was really tasty. The whole restaurant (which was huge) was full of Asian people and MIT students.
Our restaurant: China Pearl
Noah was most interested in the plates.
Kendra took some pictures, too, which she posted on her blog.
Anyway, I just woke up exhausted and with a headache. Nathan stayed in bed, but I got up with Noah, put him down for his morning nap, and decided that I'd nap, too. He usually sleeps for 45 minutes, and I knew that when he woke up, Nathan and I would have just enough time to get ready for church. However, that kid slept for two and a half hours! So we all slept till 10:30 and missed church! Craziness. And I'm still tired because it's still humid. Yuck.
Nathan said the best things this weekend were having BBQ and dim sum (if you want to appreciate Nathan's punniness, say it like "BBQ and then some").
On Friday, we went to a big BBQ festival downtown because there were going to be BBQ champions from all over the country there. It included a team from Texas, so we decided that even though we're going to be in Texas later this summer, we really didn't want to pass up an opportunity for some good brisket. So we went, and it was everything we thought it'd be. That was some dang good brisket, sausage, corn bread, and potato salad. The people making it were from a restaurant in Fort Worth, so it was the real deal. We also got to taste some Virginia ribs from this one team that had all these world champion signs up, and that was really good, too, but as native Texans, we prefer our brisket.
Noah, however, was most interested in the cold, wet 7-Up bottle.
Yesterday, we went with some friends into Chinatown to have dim sum. Now, Nathan and I have never had dim sum before, but we've wanted to try it. It's basically Chinese tapas. They come around with these little carts full of small plates of food. You tell them what you want, and they give you one of the little plates. The fun part is that you pretty much have no idea what you're eating, and you have no idea what it costs. You don't know what it costs because they just stamp your ticket with what they gave you, and the stamp is in Chinese. And, okay, you have SOME idea of what you're eating, because they'll tell you "pork dumpling" or something. Although at one point I was asking a lady what the difference between two dishes was, and she kept pointing from one to the other and saying something like, "Moo shoo, moo goo. Moo shoo, moo goo." Like I know the difference. I tried everything except for some really weird looking meat (I think those who tried it decided it was from a neckbone) and a really gross looking rice cake dessert (Nathan said that if I don't like the texture of the fatty bites of brisket, I should skip it). Everything else was really tasty. The whole restaurant (which was huge) was full of Asian people and MIT students.
A view of Chinatown
Our restaurant: China Pearl
Noah was most interested in the plates.
Our table, covered with dim sum.
I like this picture because of our faces--I look like I just tasted something I wasn't too crazy about, and Carey (the guy to my left), looks like he's got something un-wonderful in his mouth.
Kendra took some pictures, too, which she posted on her blog.Today, we were just exhausted. I don't know why, except for the humidity. Have I mentioned that I hate humidity? Because I do. I pretty much despise it. It fatigues me. Here is my theory as to why, which I came up with this afternoon, as I was walking through the Target parking lot and feeling like my legs were lead: the water content in the air, like water in a pool, creates more resistance, so you are working harder to do any dang thing. In other words, when it's humid out, even breathing is more work. Amen? I hate it. And your hair looks bad.
Anyway, I just woke up exhausted and with a headache. Nathan stayed in bed, but I got up with Noah, put him down for his morning nap, and decided that I'd nap, too. He usually sleeps for 45 minutes, and I knew that when he woke up, Nathan and I would have just enough time to get ready for church. However, that kid slept for two and a half hours! So we all slept till 10:30 and missed church! Craziness. And I'm still tired because it's still humid. Yuck.
Nathan said the best things this weekend were having BBQ and dim sum (if you want to appreciate Nathan's punniness, say it like "BBQ and then some").
Friday, June 20, 2008
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Lauren and Nate Plus . . . Not Eight
I am a little obsessed with the show "John and Kate Plus Eight," about that family with a set of twins and a set of sextuplets. Right this minute, I'm in the middle of watching a marathon on TLC, and I'm telling you, these people are amazing. Even though they can sometimes be a little rough around the edges (how could you not with eight kids?), overall, they do an amazing job of parenting.
I think I have the reaction that most parents have when watching the show: If they can do it with eight, I can do it with one.
But there is another element of the show that makes me like it. It's that I can relate. Granted, I deal with things on a smaller scale, but a lot of the issues are the same. For example, my life now revolves around my little family, and that's it. I don't spend a lot of time or energy worrying or thinking about things outside our household. My life is scheduled around meals and naps. My husband leaves for a large chunk of the day. John is really laid back, like Nathan (which causes those of us who are organized and do things right away some frustration). And I can relate to the post-pregnancy belly--although my skin didn't stretch six babies' worth, I got the same type of stretch marks.
Nathan is so funny, because he likes to watch it with me. I think the thing we enjoy the most is the dynamic between John and Kate. They are just so honest, and their brutal honesty is so funny, because a lot of the things they bring up are things we deal with or have thought about, too.
I think that before I had a baby I would have watched this show out of horrified curious fascination, but now, things are different. Funny how having a baby changes everything.
I think I have the reaction that most parents have when watching the show: If they can do it with eight, I can do it with one.
But there is another element of the show that makes me like it. It's that I can relate. Granted, I deal with things on a smaller scale, but a lot of the issues are the same. For example, my life now revolves around my little family, and that's it. I don't spend a lot of time or energy worrying or thinking about things outside our household. My life is scheduled around meals and naps. My husband leaves for a large chunk of the day. John is really laid back, like Nathan (which causes those of us who are organized and do things right away some frustration). And I can relate to the post-pregnancy belly--although my skin didn't stretch six babies' worth, I got the same type of stretch marks.
Nathan is so funny, because he likes to watch it with me. I think the thing we enjoy the most is the dynamic between John and Kate. They are just so honest, and their brutal honesty is so funny, because a lot of the things they bring up are things we deal with or have thought about, too.
I think that before I had a baby I would have watched this show out of horrified curious fascination, but now, things are different. Funny how having a baby changes everything.
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