Family Picture

From November. All dressed up...better take a picture. But check out the look on Jackson's face. And that was the best of all three of us. Sigh.

Mine

We had our first parent-teacher meeting with Jackson's new teachers last month. It was a pretty encouraging meeting. They said that one of their favorite things about him was that he is always happy, no matter what he is doing. Apparently, some of the kids are only happy with certain activities, but just about anything can make our Jackson happy. The only thing that really gets him upset is sometimes not getting the food choices he wants....like fruit...for every course of every meal.

The teachers also mentioned that they were very impressed with his ability to focus. His primary teacher reported on how she once observed him stacking blocks and singing at the same time. She thought it was rare for a 20-month old to do that and was even more impressed that the hustle and bustle of other toddlers around him didn't distract him from his dual tasks. That description of focus didn't surprise Ian and myself. In the Gallup list of Strengths, I've been assessed with having a high level of Focus. We both thought he was demonstrating his mommy's tendency to be so single-minded that the world tunes out.

But the most interesting part of the meeting was when they expressed one of their concerns. The had observed that in the whole toddler "toy negotiation process" (ie what does a toddler do when another grabs the toy he is holding and proclaims "Mine!"?) Jackson had a tendency to just give up the toy. They wanted him to hang on and say, "I'm using that". Ian and I didn't get how that was a problem. After all, we eventually want him to learn how to be generous and sacrificial. Apparently, the teachers want the other children to learn that it's not okay to grab a toy out of someone else's hands. Plus, they saw that Jackson actually did get upset when he lost something that he was using and they didn't want him to be frustrated without a need to be. We weren't sure what we were supposed to do about that.

But, alas, it seems that just one month of human development has taken care of that particular "problem". Now Jackson has two favorite words (besides cat pee pee). "NO!" and "Mine!". And he is getting quite adept at fighting for what he wants (unless said perpetrators are named Alaina or Harper, then he's putty). Now we're going to have to figure out how and when to teach the concept of sharing. Ugh! I don't know that I've mastered that concept.

Clarice

Halloween Pictures

Okay, they're a few weeks after the fact. Ian and I decided to go ahead and celebrate Halloween. How often do you have an excuse to go knock on neighbors' doors and introduce yourselves without being thought weird. We met lots of neighbors.

Here's our trick-or-treater already grubbing on loot before we even left for our evening's festivities. It was Ian's idea to dress him up as a Jack(son)-O-Lantern.



And a family picture...


Jackson had so much fun knocking on neighbors' doors (which we don't normally allow). But he didn't know what to do with the candy everyone wanted to unload on him (because we normally don't allow that either).

Next year, Ian wants to dress him up as a Jack-alope. Poor kid. Fortunately, he won't be able to get mad at us for dressing him like this until he's at least 8. Six more years of mirth and mayhem.

Clarice

Cat Pee Pee

I don't quite know how it happened, but Jackson's left shoe has been reeking distinctly of the scent of cat urine for the past month or so. It's particularly pungent after his shoes get wet, which happens about once a week, when it's warm enough for him to go diving under the sprinklers at his daycare. So a couple of weeks ago, I had to complain out loud. "Jackson, why do your shoes smell like cat pee pee?" He spent the next 15 minutes or so walking around the house saying, "cat pee pee...cat pee pee...cat pee pee." He's never parroted a phrase repeatedly before. And the few other times I've complained of the recurrent odor out loud, he's picked up the chant quite readily. I have no idea why he likes that phrase so much. And I don't know why it cracks me up so much that he'll walk around the house repeating it over and over. So easily entertained.

Clarice

Afternoon Moon

Have you noticed the moon the past couple of weeks? Not the shape, but the time of its appearance in the eastern sky. It's appeared as early as 4:00 PM, while the sun is shining at least 65% (my guesstimate) of its noontime intensity.

Actually, I should be clear. Jackson was the one who first noticed the moon. He has been learning a lot of words lately. Around a month ago, his favorite pictures to point out were those illustrating the moon, the stars, the sun, and the clouds. It was cute to hear him fumbling about learning the differences between those words. One evening we pointed out the full moon and he called it the sun. No matter how many times we corrected him, he kept calling it the sun. I guess he hadn't really seen the sun directly, only in pictures, and most moons are depicted in illustrations as being half-crescents.

So a couple of weeks ago, as we were driving home from work around 4:30, he shouted out "Moon! A moon! I see moon!" I replied something like "Oh, you see a moon? Are you sure? The moon only wakes up at night-time." I thought he was probably confused again, since he was still learning those words and it was far too bright for the moon to make its appearance. And that was that. A few late afternoons later, he pointed again and said "Moon! Moon!" This time I looked where he was pointing and durned if it weren't the moon shining faintly over the horizon.

I pondered it a bit more the rest of the drive and realized that my little boy had taught me yet another lesson. I was convinced he was wrong about the moon. After all, I know that that moon belongs to the night. What place does it have appearing during the day, when the sun reigns? But Jackson doesn't know all these things. He just knows what he sees. And that hasn't yet been colored by his expectations about what he should see.

"Structure must always submit to Spirit." That's how my church phrases it. Sure, God's character is unchanging, but the times change and cultures change. Thus, the church and God's people must also be willing to change in order to engage the people God longs to bring back into relationship with Himself. I sometimes forget that. I see things the way I'm used to seeing things or the way I expect to see them and forget to look for different ways of seeing God or people or circumstances. Then little things like this happen and I am reminded again that I shouldn't rule things out. I need to remember to look with fresh eyes and see if there's something new and unexpected on the horizon.

Clarice

Bella

Have you heard about this movie? My pastor has mentioned it in church twice after having met with the filmmakers. After viewing the website I've learned that the filmmakers wanted to promote a life-affirming message. The conservative blogosphere is excited also. The townhall.com home page had two columns about it. Click here and here to read. Another one here added on 10/26.

It's opening this weekend with a limited release. Here's to hoping it will gain some traction at the box office. Ian and I are going to try to see it on Saturday. Any babysitters available?

Clarice

With a rebel yell...Revisited

Remember this from August 2006?


Well add a year, a cool new haircut (and some hair to necessitate the haircut), replace the toothbrush with a microphone, and you got Jackson doing a pretty good impression of Billy Idol


Or you can enjoy his impersonation of PeeWee Herman (You don't want to get mixed up with a guy like me. I'm a loner, Dottie, a rebel.)


That's our animated boy!

Clarice

Tenacious Bee

I have so many (potentially) blogworthy thoughts in my head. But the mental rough drafts for each are very long and would require a considerable amount of writing skill to pull off successfully. I keep thinking I ought to just sit down and start one of these long, self-aggrandizing posts. Instead, my mind keeps returning to something I saw this morning.

As I was getting into my car this morning, I saw a bee on the roof of my car. I don't like bees (because I was stung once) so I blew on him (of course he's a he) to agitate him enough to fly off. He didn't fly off. Instead, he hunkered down a bit more on the fabric of my ragtop and gave a little listless wave of the wings. I figured he was dying and would thus blow off my car once I started driving. So I headed off to work, listening to Jackson point out every single bus and truck on the way to UCLA. I dropped Jackson off at daycare, then stayed for a while to watch him and chat with one of the other mothers. Finally, I figured it was time to get to work, so I completed my journey down to south campus. When I got out of my car, I spied the bee again. He was displaced about a foot from his original location on my car, but was there nonetheless. I was incredibly impressed. It's about 8 miles to UCLA from home. I figure I'm roughly three or four hundred times larger than a bee, so a journey like that's probably similar to a trip from LA to Atlanta...on the roof of an airplane. I blew on him again and he had the same reaction. I tapped on the roof near him to see if he'd move, but he just hunkered down again.

All day long, my thoughts returned to the bee. I don't know why. I just wondered why he hung onto my car for such a long journey. When I returned to my car at the end of the day, I expected to see a dead version of him on the roof. But I didn't. I looked around on the ground and elsewhere on the car to see if I could find his carcass, but nothing. He had flown away at some point in the day.

I think I know why I'm so struck by the image of this bee. When I'm not feeling well, either physically or emotionally, I have a hard time holding on to any type of commitment. I just let go of things. But something in this bee caused him to hunker down and just hang on in the face of adversity. I probably need to learn some of that. Don't give up. Hang in there. Enjoy the ride. And when I'm ready, then I can spread my gravity-defying wings and fly....

Clarice

Jackson's First Statement

Since Jackson was first born, we've been tracking his major milestones. I had been writing them in my journal. For his first 13 months, I scribbled quite regularly about the new things he was learning. First smile, first laugh (funny that my parents caught both of those firsts), first day of eating baby food, first tooth, second tooth, third tooth.... But since he started walking at 13 months, there haven't been quite as many entries. It's interesting. So many activities are finite...measurable. You can clearly determine when a child has learned to crawl or walk or say a specific word. But now his main focus appears to be language development. And that's something that can take a lifetime.

I blogged before about some of his first words. He's certainly expanded his vocabulary in the past month. And his pronunciation has improved. For example, he now calls broccoli "brocciole" instead of "bok" and orange is now "orch" instead of "oof". However, he still says "ow ow" instead of "I love you."

Well, now Jackson's starting to put words together. Most of the time, it's words to express his needs. "More more milk", "more more brocciole", "more more orch". And tonight he charmed our small group at the dinner table by saying very clearly, "more corn peesh." Notice a pattern there? Yep, our boy LOVES his food. And the balance of the time, Jackson's naming the objects he can associate with words. "Oh, look...bus....bus....bus...bye, bye, bus" or "Oh, look...ruck...cruck...truck...bye, bye truck" or "moon...ky...tars...keeyoud". But last week, he made his first declarative statement.

I had been hanging out with some dear girlfriends for a very sad event (more about the ending of an era in another post) and was looking forward to coming home to see my boys. When I came in the door, I found Ian curled up on the sofa with his eyes closed. I figured he'd be trying to take his Sunday nap since he'd been under the weather. And Jackson was sitting on the living room floor "drawing". At least he was handling paper and crayons. He gave me his happy Jackson smile when I came in. When I sat down next to him and asked him how his day went, he pointed to Ian on the sofa and said "Daddy seeping". "What?" I asked. "Seeping," he gestured again, "Daddy seeping. Sssss." Since I still wasn't sure what he said, I told him that I didn't understand. That's when Ian piped up from his semi-conscious position on the sofa, "He said Daddy's sleeping." Ooops!

I've been reliving the episode all week long. It just tickles me that my little boy can identify the action of sleep and felt it was important to tell me that Daddy was sleeping. I wish I knew why he thought it was important to tell me. And I marvel that he knew that I didn't understand what he said. And, of course, it cracks me up that Ian had to emerge from his Sunday nap to translate for me. Overall, it will be a memory that I'll cherish. So my entries in my journal have slowed a bit. I just can't keep up with all of Jackson's new words. But I look forward to more language milestones....like our first real conversation.

Clarice

Medical Missions

My church takes a team to Ensenada, Mexico thrice yearly and the Labor Day Weekend trip is their medical team trip. Clarice used to go every year with the dental team, but then she met me and we had a little one. This year, I wanted to serve the poor in Ensenada and I especially wanted to serve on the dental team so that I could observe my wife in her natural habitat and understand better what she does so passionately.

Man, was I not ready.

First of all, I'm not a clean freak. Or maybe I am. As a special effects technician on movies, I got used to working with dirt and eating with not-so-cleaned hands (sometimes it was hypo-allergenic dirt). I could never work food service because I can't stand the need to always have clean hands for working with food. Besides my hands dry out when I wash them too much. However, one of the requirements of any medical team is sterile instruments and sterilization was the only way this medically ignorant volunteer could be of valued assistance. And I know these poor people need clean instruments because they are about to have their teeth pulled.

It's one thing in the movies to create squirting, bloody wounds with tubes and syringes or have red corn syrup and luncheon meat blasted out of your chest for a simulated gunshot wound. It's another thing altogether to witness a room full of wincing or uncomfortable people, trying to relax in lawnchairs as foreigners scrape plaque or fill cavities. I didn't get an upset stomach, but I was a bit uneasy at first.

So, fortunately for me, by lunchtime I had relaxed. I was able to take the instruments through the disinfectant rinses, dry and package them in sterile envelopes and pressure steam (autoclave) them for ten minutes. I could appreciate the smiles on faces of people who had been relieved of their tooth ache, a pain they had dealt with for up to a year and one that has now been replaced with a "good, temporary pain" as the novocaine wears off. I mourned for the children whose moms approved having their children's teeth pulled because they couldn't afford proper care. I was glad that certain poor farmers' children were given floss for the first time ever. A happy smile is a healthy smile.

I know one thing for sure, I'm going to double my efforts to floss my teeth properly.

Special Guest - God

Hey, here's a funny video about the Trinity made by some friends at my old church, Bel Air Presbyterian.

Expectant

Ever since Jackson was born, people have been asking us about "the next one." You know...nudge, nudge, wink, wink..."So when's the next one?" I think it took my dad all of one week after meeting his first grandchild before he asked for the next one. I don't quite remember how I responded in my sleep-deprived state of delirium. In fact, for the following year, my general thought upon being so questioned was to cover my ears and loudly sing some non-nursery rhyming song. Nothing like a little Deathcab for Cutie or Alanis Morisette to kill the thought of returning to 8-9 feedings and 10-12 poopy diapers a day. Actually, now that I think of it, it probably would have been better to sing some of those mind-numbing nursery rhymes after all.

However, now that Jackson's turning into a little person, we're starting to dream about the next one. And now we're proud to announce that we're expecting in 10-11 months!!

So...did I get you? Well don't feel bad if I tricked you into a false hope (if you're still confused, remember that pregnancy is traditionally considered to be 9 months). We've been saying that to people for the past month or so and quite a few people have been tricked into thinking that we're actually expecting (including an anonymous person I'll only identify as mom).

But I can honestly say that even though are not expecting, we truly are expectant. Not to get into the revealing details...but actually trying to promote the birth of a child is REALLY different from having it just happen to you (And by "you", I don't mean the hypothetical, non-descript "you". I actually mean Ian and myself). So now I've joined the ranks of those who long for a child. I'm a participant in the regular cycles of hope and disappointment. And I'm realizing that it's a hard place to be. But I am also confident in the goodness of God and the wisdom of His timing. For when we didn't think we were ready to welcome a baby, He brought Jackson. And now that we demand that we're ready for another, I rest assured that He has the right outcome in mind.

Clarice

A Little Lenten Period

I saw something a couple of months ago that got me all fired up. See, I have this pet peeve (well, I have lots of them, but this one is blogworthy). It really really bugs me when people throw their cigarette butts out their car windows to the street below. Maybe it's because I grew up in the 70's, when we were hounded by the "Keep America Beautiful" campaign. You know...Keep Litter in Its Place. It came at about the same time as "Only You Can Prevent Forest Fires," but that's another story. Because of that decade of brainwashing, I can NOT bring myself to litter with a clear conscience. If you check the lint trap of our dryer, you'll find plenty of evidence of that fact, as I tuck trash in my pockets if I can't find a trash can (or I tuck it into Ian's pockets so he can deal with either disposal or litter guilt) and then forget that I was going to avoid littering when we load our washer. Again, another story.

So a couple of months ago, I saw the familiar sight of an arm out a car window casually waving a cigarette. I started in with my normal flash of internal annoyance, when I noticed something that really ignited a reaction. See, the arm wasn't hanging out of just any car. No, this was a Toyota Prius. Yes, the Hybrid, the eco-friendly, "green" car. So I stayed on the car's tail, just waiting and waiting for the inevitable casual flip of the cigarette butt down to the street below. What do you think happened? Well, I have to be completely honest here. I took my eyes off the offending piece of refuse (the cigarette butt) for just a moment. When I looked back, the butt was gone, the hand empty. So I can't say with certainty that the Prius owner was also guilty of littering, but if circumstantial evidence holds up....

It just seemed like such an oxymoronic observation. Most Prius owners aren't casual about their car choice. I've found them to be fairly intentional about the choice of that particular car. And most of them choose Prius because of the potential reduction of gas consumption, thus decreasing said owner's carbon footprint. However, last time I checked, neither smoking nor littering were particularly beneficial to the environment (nor the health of the offender and his/her second-hand victims). OK. So maybe this Prius owner wasn't a rabid carbon-footprint reducer and maybe we can say that I shouldn't be so hard on the potential hypocrisy it would demonstrate. Maybe this Prius owner was just trying to be economical. You know, save some money on gas. But even that smells a bit oxymoronic, especially when you consider the fact that the average smoker consumes around 2 packs of cigarettes a day, which is the equivalent of about 2 gallons of gas (in my car, that's 2 days of commuting).

At any rate, I got all fired up thinking about other examples of hypocrisy. And after a while, I realized that many of the examples of things I thought of exemplified one side of the political spectrum. For example, why is it that many people who are passionate animal rights advocates are also strong advocates of the movement to expand abortion rights. Why is saving the whales more important that saving unborn people? OK. I got that one from Erwin McManus. Here's one I thought of on my own. Why is it that advocates who wish to normalize homosexual behavior can use the justification that sexual preference is inborn and can't be changed? Yet when a sex offender is being punished, people defend them with the justification that they can change their sexual preference and should not be subjected to preventive measures to protect children from their advances in the future. Oh no. I had a ton more in my mind that I can't remember right now. At any rate, I started thinking about using this blog to make a case for conservatism. I started a dozen posts in my mind about the drawbacks of modern day liberalism and the positive points of neoconservatism. I spent hours in the evening (and sometimes even at work) reading political blogs trying to put together evidence-based coherent arguments. But then something happened...

It was about a month ago at small group. A friend of mine (Hi Stev!) was praying for us to be passionate about the things that Jesus was passionate about. And suddenly I had this feeling of conviction. I was spending much more time pursuing knowledge of politics than I was knowledge of Jesus. And I had this immediate sense of what I had to do. I tried to push it away, but it kept coming back. So 30 days ago I declared a little lenten period. I was going to avoid all of my favorite political blogs and any other kind of political analysis for 40 days. Instead, any time I had a compulsion for that material, I would try to think about Jesus instead.

So it's been 30 days now. And it hasn't been too bad. It was kind of tough at the beginning, especially when major political moments occurred. But I've enjoyed redeeming the time. And come to think of it, I can't even remember what major political events occurred in the past 30 days which would require my attention.

10 more days to go. Hopefully, I'll be able to return to my political education with a bit more balance. But I'll still allow myself to get a bit annoyed when I see the flip of cigarette butt out the car window.

Clarice

So Affectionate

He Likes Cake

This was taken about a month ago at the birthday party of one of his little school friends. Poor firstborn child of a pediatric dentist. At 17 months of age, he'd only had cake 3 times in his life. He'd only had maybe a dozen cookies (it only took him 24 hours to learn how to say "coo-key, coo-key, coo-key"). Only had one m&m once because Aunt McCall didn't know that pediatric dentists' kids get limited sugar exposure. And has only had water and milk to drink...until this same day, when the birthday boy's mom handed him a juice box, which he polished in short order, followed by the slamming of fists together (sign language for "more") and repeated pleas for "more wah...peesh." How long do you think we can keep him in the dark about the ravages/pleasure of sugar?

Clarice

Look Who's Talking

So now that Jackson's (almost) mastered walking and running, he's moved on to advancing his verbal skills. It's so adorable. We hear him in the morning when he wakes up talking to his stuffed "swamp cat." Just babbling away in his little precious voice. Other times, he'll point at something, look at us expectantly and say something like, "belaka chp num pekatu cho...um...bao bao?" We don't know what he's saying half the time, but he's clearly mastered some words. The words don't always sound like they're supposed to, however. But since we have to listen to him all the time, we've started piecing together what some of his words actually mean. So here's the first edition of the Claweyre translation of the Jackson lexicon of language.

TRANSPORT (he likes wheels and anything attached to wheels):
bus = bus
cah = car (slight Boston accent, since that's where he first came into existence)
ehpane = airplane
ehcop = helicopter

NATURE:
ow-di = outside
moo = moon
tree = tree
kys = sky

ANIMALS:
mao mao = cat
wo wo = dog
ba ba = lamb
bur = bird
cow = cow

FOOD ITEMS:
cheese = cheese
nilk = milk
wah = water
bao bao = Chinese for bread (yes, our boy is developing bilingual tendencies)
ooof = orange
ba = banana
bok = broccoli
appo = apple
appo = grape
appo = cherry
appo = pear

PLEASANTRIES:
bye bye = bye bye
hi = hi
peesh = please
keeku = thank you
nonononononono = I don't want to say sorry

and our personal favorite....
ow Ow = I love you

I'm hoping he grows out of "ow Ow" before he meets his future wife. But for now, it's darn cute.

Clarice

Pain and Suffering

Last Thursday, Jackson contracted a fever and I kept him home from daycare on Friday. The poor little guy was just miserable and uncomfortable, his skin burning hot. He would try to sleep and just toss and turn, whimper and groan. Even play time was short bursts of joy tempered by his body's internal battle. It was really sad to see him suffer.

Twice, when Jackson was unable to sleep at a nap time, I let him run around and play. Both times, he would eventually come to me and hold my leg, not saying the usual enthusiastic "up?" I held him while working one-handed on my computer and he would watch quietly, maybe scratching a finger on the edge of the computer, but none of his usual contorting to click every button within reach. Both times, he fell asleep in my arms, very quietly and peacefully.

Now, here's the awesome part. Both times, the little guy just wanted to be held by his daddy so he could fall asleep. And I discovered that this resulted in me being even more filled with love for him. It was more than being chosen by him and my being able to comfort him. My heart just went out to him in his pain and suffering and limited means of communication. And being allowed this privilege caused far greater feelings for him than I have when he's healthy, running around and not needing or wanting the same closeness or quality time. And I experience a lot of joy from his healthy moments.

I think I connected with God in those moments. He loves us unconditionally and longs for us to desire him. When we need him most, He is there the most. When we suffer the most, he loves us the most. I need my Daddy God. Thank you Lord! I love you, too.

Now my wife has what Jackson had - hot skin, achy body, restless sleep. It's my privilege to love her through the moment.

Ian

The ABC Song

I was really really hoping that Jackson would be musical. And happily, he's showing evidence that he might not have inherited his PapaJohn's...uh...lack of pitch sensitivity. To PapaJohn's credit, there's a wonderful resonance to his voice. But my compliments will have to stop with his speaking abilities.

The first evidence of Jackson's musical sensibilities came as a surprise a few months ago. He was in the charge of his Auntie M while Ian and I had dinner out. When we came back, M said that he had hummed the tune to "Skip to my Lou" along with her. I hadn't heard him do that yet. Hence, the surprise. Sure enough, the next morning when I sang it to him to test him out, he echoed the notes of the chorus right back to me.

Then a few weeks later, I put him down to nap. Sometimes, we put a book in his crib so he can entertain himself before falling asleep. This time I put a little songbook with a micro-keyboard in with him. I heard him tapping on some keys. Then I heard a single note followed by an off key "aaa". Another note followed by a slightly flat "aaa". Then a third time with the same key on the piano. And darned if he didn't hit that note pitch perfect..."AAA"! The kiddo was learning to sing on key!!

Then last month we were in Atlanta for the Independence Day holiday. We noticed that Jackson had this little phrase he kept repeating. A O A O A O A. We weren't sure what he was singing until we realized that the notes of his A O A O A O A perfectly matched those when we sing A B C D E F G. Of course that entertained us for a while (especially cousin Aidan, who really knows his ABCs).

Now the ABC song is heard daily in the Eyre household. And Jackson's shown significant improvement. Now he's up to A B E B E B E, Etch Uh Uh Uh Uh Uh X. Then he quits. He's getting better every day. And he loves to perform. In fact, next time you see him, ask him to sing the ABC song. He will gladly oblige. He might not have all the lyrics down yet, but as his mama, I am proud to announce that he's hitting all the right notes pretty close to proper pitch.

Clarice

Pat Pat Pat

What is it about us as adults that when we pick up babies we like to pat them on their backs? Both Ian and I have been doing that since Jackson was a newborn. He's even learned from my mother that the comforting rhythmic pressure of an adult hand on his back is called "pat pat pat." We used to pat him to burp him or to soothe him when he was distressed. Now it's usually after he's fallen or unhappy.

A few months ago, Jackson started patting us. It's cute as all get out. He'd be crying about something (usually being denied the pleasure of throwing his milk cup across the room or losing sight of us as we passed into the bathroom). We'd pick him up in his distressed state and he would calm down as he patted either of us on the back.

So yesterday as I dropped him off at daycare, I disappeared for a nanosecond into the kitchen and he became upset. I came out and picked him up, holding him close for a hug. He calmed and started patting me on the back (because I was distressed? I don't know). Then he stopped and looked at me and reached around to pat his own back. I was trying to figure out what he was doing when he patted me again, then looked at me and patted his own back. Then I got it. He wanted me to pat his back. So I did...and he relaxed with the pleasure of it. Funny how far a little pat pat pat can go.

Clarice

Single Mom

Ian left today. He's scheduled to be gone for one month working on a movie officially called Untitled Genre Project. Poor sod is stuck in Hawaii while I get to luxuriate in the summer heat of Los Angeles in our ramshackle, non-air-conditioned duplex with a toddler in the throes of early onset terrible twos.

It's actually Ian's second out-of-town assignment for this same project. Last time was 11 days in New Mexico. And Jackson and I survived (with a little help from my mom). Ian asked me how I felt about his absence this time around. I told him that the net effect was zero. I'm more anxious about the longer period of time (and sad about not seeing my sweetie for a whole month), but feel more confident that I can do it, having done it for 11 days already.

But it helps to know that in a month, he'll be back again. I just don't know how single moms do it for years on end. I just can't imagine not being able to share the load AND the joys of parenthood with another. One of the other moms at Jackson's daycare once joked that whenever her husband was out of town, leaving her alone with the kids, she always greeted him on his return with the declaration that her resolve never to divorce him strengthened with each experience with single parenthood. I definitely prefer parenting with a partner.

So hurry home, my dear. There's so much to share. It's only been one day so far (out of the thirty-something to come), but you've already missed out on Jackson releasing a squirt of diarrhea on his bedroom floor AND the cute anecdote about how he greeted his little friends Chris and Anusha today.

Clarice

Family Time

Ian and I made a commitment to make sure that Jackson had an opportunity to see his paternal grandparents at least twice a year. This has turned into an annual Eyre clan gathering over the 4th of July holiday (if you do it twice, is it officially an annual event?). So last week, the clan gathered together for some family time. Here we are at the foot of Stone Mountain in Georgia.

It has been wonderful to spend time with these folks. I'm really blessed with my new extended family. PapaJohn is a jolly bloke, with an infectious laugh and an incredible knowledge of Scripture and church history. MumIvy is a tenderheart who loves to serve her family in any way she can (and particularly through baked goods). My brother-in-law Roy and his wife Becky are an inspiration in the way they have chosen to be involved in the advancement of the kingdom of God through their work with Wycliffe Bible Translators. And I love the way they have chosen to raise their three kids, who are wonderful cousins to Jackson. And Elisabeth is my kindred spirit sister, who likes to read the same kind of things I like to read and think about the things that I like to think about. So blessed.

Sad to be gone from the madness of the Eyre family gathering. Looking forward to the next.

Clarice

Does he know?

Since Jackson was about 3 months old, we've had a nightly routine with him. First he gets a bath and gets dressed in his pajamas (kids pajamas are so darn cute!!). Then we read him a story. And after his story, we pray with him on his behalf. We just wanted to get him in the habit of thanking God for the blessings of the day. At first, he didn't like it much. We would try to fold his hands together, which he resisted as an infant. However, at about 9 months of age, he started getting used to the idea. He would independently fold his hands together, sometimes bow his head, and stay silent until we finished praying with him. Then maybe two months ago, he started saying "Amen" after hearing us say "In Jesus' name." I think he is accustomed to the idea of praying together with us.

Ian and I have our own morning routine, which we've had since a few weeks into marriage. When the first of us to leave prepares to depart, we have a short time of prayer just to get our minds and hearts in the right place for the day. It's been our time, but since Jackson started daycare at 5 months, we've been including him in our time by just holding him with us as we pray. We never really explained to him what was happening. It was just part of our routine. Well last month, a few words into our prayer time, we heard the "pat" sound of little hands clasping together and a little voice saying "Amen" over and over again. Somehow he knew that what was happening in the morning was the same thing that we did with him at night. I thought it was really quite amazing that he made the connection. Maybe it was the "In Jesus' name..." that tipped him off. At any rate, he has now become an active participant in our morning prayer time.

Last week, something else amazing happened. On our commute home, I decided to abstain from my usual auditory diet of talk radio or children's music and instead tuned in to a Christian music radio station. They were playing a worship song that I wasn't familiar with. All of a sudden I heard the little voice in the carseat behind me pipe up with his chorus of "Amens." I pondered it in my heart for a week until it happened again yesterday. How is it that he knows that worship music and prayer time have something in common? I've often heard it said that children are more spiritually attuned than adults are. I'm starting to think so. Otherwise, what else could explain how he seems to recognize activity intended to usher in the presence of God. Can't wait to see how he grows in his spiritual awareness.

Clarice

Flashback

Our back lawn is dying. It's brown and yellow and the dirt below is rock hard. In the winter, it's a luscious green, but in the summer it requires significant watering to stay alive. Ian and I made an executive decision a few weeks ago to just leave it alone. I had been reading that this year may be a record-breaker in terms of lack of rain. I had been hearing that we are possibly in for a drought year rivaling the drought conditions of the 70's. I was explaining that to my mom the other day when she saw the desert behind our home. And something she said took me back to my childhood.

I remembered the drought conditions we had in the late 70's. Everyone was urged to conserve water. We had a swimming pool that we didn't maintain, leaving it half-filled to avoid wasting water. We took brief showers, turning off the water to shampoo and lather up, turning the water back on only to rinse. The gross conservationist strategy was that we only flushed the toilet if we did #2. Otherwise, we let volumes of #1 collect until the deposit of a #2 justified the 2-3 gallons of water used per flush. I hope it doesn't get like that again.

I also remembered the gas crisis in the 70's. I remember waiting in lines for hours to get gas. I think Carter had decided to impose some restrictions on fuel, resulting in a severe shortage. But that was back when gas cost 10% of what it now costs. I definitely hope we don't revisit the long waits in addition to the increased cost.

And I remembered hearing in school that scientists had been studying the weather patterns and were warning that we should prepare for an ice age. I remember hearing my teacher talk about the possibility that we, like the dinosaurs, might end up going extinct. I wonder what happened to that data when they started postulating the possibility that we're now supposed to be entering a global warming disaster. I really hope we don't revisit the ice age idea. I much prefer warm weather to cold.

Clarice

Jackson Kisses

Jackson recently learned how to give kisses. At first it was blowing a kiss. Well, he'd put his hand to his mouth, say "mmmm", then throw his hand out somewhere. Then about a month ago, he learned how to kiss us on the faces. We always had to demonstrate first by kissing each other. Then he would offer each of us a slobbery kiss on the cheeks (after attempting to kiss on the mouth first).

Jackson has LOTS of stuffed animals. Plushes of all types - lions, caterpillars, monkeys, Bruin bears. None of them have been purchased by us. Half have been gifts from generous friends. The other half appear in our home on an occasional basis, usually after my mom has been over for a visit. She knows he has a ton of stuffed animals, but she said she wanted to make sure he had lots of animals to love.

So lately, Jackson has been expressing his love to his stuffed animals. He'll spend the entire evening with his little blue lamb in hand, occasionally kissing it on the mouth and babbling to it. We'll find him in his crib in the morning looking his "Swamp Cat" happily in the eyes and kissing her/him on the nose. And his naptime doggy lovey gets an affectionate bite on the nose before being smothered by a slobbery kiss. It's darn cute.

Part of me marvels that he can be so affectionate with objects that can't return his affections. To me, it means that he feels enough love to share without expectation of return. At least, that's what I assume. At any rate, it's very heartwarming. Now to get him to kiss his grandparents on command....

Clarice

I'm Okay

Jackson was sick last month. Well, he's been sick quite a few times since entering into the daycare viral cesspool, but it was a tough one last month. He was a little wheezy, which worried me a bit, since one of his previous colds resulted in coughing and wheezing that was serious enough for him to be put on the nebulizer. Ian has mild asthma, and I also had a mild form of asthma as a child that I eventually grew out of. So I was worried that Jackson might show more signs of asthma during last month's illness. Every night I would listen to him after he fell asleep to make sure that his breathing wasn't labored. And he was usually fine. However, one night he had a particularly difficult time falling asleep. Then around 4 AM I heard him coughing and crying a bit. So I got up to make sure he was breathing okay. I sat on the floor next to his crib for a few minutes just listening to the rattle and buzz of his little airway. I could tell he was having a hard time. He was on his stomach and kept rubbing his face against the sheet, coughing, and crying out in little mewling protests of discomfort. All of a sudden, he pushed himself up and turned his face in my direction. He was alert and still, peering at me in the dark. Then he took his little hand and reached out to touch my face. He smiled, figuring out that the form next to his bed was real and not just a dream. Then he put his head down on the bed, maintained eye contact with me for a few seconds, then drifted into a more peaceful sleep. It was almost as if he knew that I was there and decided "mom's here so I'm okay." I had to sit there for a few more minutes in the darkness just processing the fact that my presence set him at ease.

A few nights later we were at our small group. Jackson was playing with a little three and a half year old girl (I'll call her "A") whose parents also come to our group. He was still getting the hang of walking at the time and took a little tumble under her watch. I looked over to see her helping him on his feet again and asking "Are you okay?" I thought it was cute that she was checking on him (especially since we're not sure how much he understands). Then about a half hour later, she took a tumble of her own off the sofa. I heard the unmistakable sound of little hands and feet hitting hardwood, an exclamation of "ow!", then the announcement to the adults of "I'm okay!" I found it to be rather endearing that she would immediately think that the adults would need to be assured of her status. Then I remembered that I'd heard that before while at the home of other friends. The child left alone to play in her room...crashing sounds...and the shout of "I'm okay." And I realized that these children knew they were loved. They knew that their parents would be concerned about how they felt after their little bumps and bruises. And our three and a half year old little friend, A, had learned to transfer that concern to another.

All of this made me think of that passage in Mark, where Jesus was talking about how we should "receive the kingdom of God like a little child". I was never sure what that meant. But I think I'm getting a better idea. I am so unlike a little child in my faith at times. I'm not like Jackson, where I am comforted by the knowledge that my parent is near. Even when I see evidence of my Heavenly Father's presence and His concern for me, my heart often remains troubled because I don't trust His presence and concern. I think I need to learn that from Jackson - to rest well knowing that my Father is watching me. And I'm not like Jackson's little friend, A, where I am so confident of my parents' concern. I am not so convinced that my Heavenly Father cares and I don't offer Him regular thanks nor even requests for things I need. I know it intellectually, but I think I need to learn from "A" the confidence that He really wants me to let Him know how I am. I need to learn from these little ones that I'm okay and to announce it regularly.

Clarice

Photo Shoot

Our friends Joe and Jenny came over a few weeks ago to take pictures of Jackson. They have a side business doing video and stills of weddings (and babies). Just go to www.pictage.com and search for Jackson Eyre. He was a little serious that day, it being his first photo shoot and all. But Jenny was able to capture some of his livelier moments. Enjoy!!

Clarice

Anecdotal Notes

One of the hard things about working parenthood is that we miss so many precious moments. Fortunately, the child care center includes notes when the kids do special things. It's not the same as being there, but at least we know. Here are some of our favorite notes:

"During a diaper change, a caregiver was sending kisses J's way. J started to make kissing sounds back."

"Jackson was really interacting with Rowan today. He would make eye contact, and when R would laugh, he would laugh too. Later, R would throw a ball and look at J. J would look at R, then go after the ball. He would let R have it & R would toss it again & repeat. J did this 4 times. J also would make eye contact with Lena and laugh, making L laugh. Then he would shake his body (wiggle), causing more laughs."

"While holding a lid to a container, Jackson walked all the way across the room to Anusha. He gave her the lid, then came down on his knees, hugged her, and crawled away."

"Ate a very hearty lunch!!! 2 huge BMs" - one written HUGE!!, the other written HUGE :)

That's our boy!

Clarice

Broken

Somebody gave me a pair of sand dollars many years ago. I don't remember who...maybe Callista or Christina, from journeys overseas. I've saved them all these years, keeping them safe and protected. But then last week when I was cleaning our office, I saw them on the floor, broken. They weren't shattered or anything. Just chipped around the edges. Nonetheless, I promptly went to the kitchen, retrieved our dustpan and swept them right up. Once I got them into the dustpan, I stopped for a moment. I usually don't discard sentimental items so quickly - especially items I've kept so long. But who needs imperfect sand dollars, right? Something was niggling at the back of my mind so I paused another moment to consider what was holding me when it came to me.

Earlier that day we took a trip to the zoo (where Jackson and Harper had their first date). We had been waiting at the entrance for Harper to arrive, when we saw a large group also waiting to go in. They were remarkable for three reasons. First, they were all wearing the same bright turquoise t-shirts. 1980's turquoise. Second, they were all adults. Since when do you gather a group of adults for a field trip to the zoo? Third, they weren't just any group of adults. On closer inspection, I saw that they were adults with special needs. Many of them looked quite unaffected, but then one would flap his arms in the air and snort, another would hit his head with his fist, another would begin slowly rolling up the end of her turquoise t-shirt to reveal bare midriff, until stopped by an adult without a turquoise t-shirt. Other adults were clearly affected with Down syndrome or physical deformities. Oh, but you should have seen the pack of them when they saw Jackson and Harper. There was a group of 6-8 who kept waving to the babies and saying "Hi, baby!" They wanted to know how old the babies were and if they were going to the zoo and if they could say hi back. They made Jackson and Harper smile...and warmed my heart.

I thought of them as I stared at my broken sand dollars. I thought of how I hold on to things as long as they serve whatever function I have designated for them. But when that purpose is fulfilled, I consider discarding...unless I think I might need it at some point. I only like to keep things I think are useful. And I thought of how we as Americans think. We are becoming a society that has no value for things or people that are "broken." So often, the imperfect are discarded because they cannot fulfill an expected purpose. Then I decided that I should blog about my thoughts....and didn't.

But today I started reflecting again about the value of a human life when I was telling Ian about the most significant part of my day. I saw a child in my dental practice who got me thinking. He was almost 13 years old and had a diagnosis of autism. He could understand instructions somewhat, but didn't talk much. He required constant supervision and was in special education. But most significantly, he was the recipient of a heart transplant. I was a bit surprised by that. I think heart donations are hard to come by. I was surprised that someone who may not become a "productive" member of society was given a healthy heart to replace his defective one. Somebody thought his life was worth saving.

So today I thought of my acquaintances at the zoo again. I thought about how delightful many of them were. And I thought of my sand dollars. I didn't want them any more because I considered them to be broken. But I've heard that if a sand dollar breaks, seven doves will be revealed. So perhaps things that are broken shouldn't be considered useless. Perhaps they are meant to be broken to serve another purpose than what we assume is intended.

Clarice

First Date

Jackson and Harper had their first date on Saturday. I mean...they've hung out in a group before, but this was the first time it was just the two of them (and their parents). We all went to the Los Angeles Zoo. It was the first time we'd been there on a Saturday. Let me tell you...it was a zoo in there. I guess that's what happens when there's a special holiday (can we say Easter?)...involving bunnies...which are animals....which belong in the zoo....which has special animal-related programs for kids on special holidays like Easter. Anyway, they seemed to have a good time. I don't know if Harper's going to consider it a real date though. After all, Jackson didn't offer to pay for her.

Clarice

Madness

In the past 3 weeks I've traveled 6000 miles and witnessed a miracle.

I went to New Orleans for a meeting and left my boys home alone for 4 days. They were unscathed when I returned. 3800 miles.

Came home. Unpacked. Rested a day or two. Repacked.

Then the whole Ian Eyre family went up to Seattle together. Four days on the train, three days on the ground. We were all unscathed when we returned. 2200 miles.

But the event that started off the the crazy 3 week period was the miracle. Christina got married. I don't mean that it's a miracle that Christina finally found someone to marry her. Or that it's a miracle that Christina found a man worthy of the amazing woman she is. I don't mean either of the two extremes people think of when you say that it's a miracle that an individual got married. The whole institution of marriage is somewhat of a miracle. In this day and age, what is it that compels us to think we can stand before family, friends, and God and pledge lifelong commitment? That promise is a miracle.

Now I just wish I could stop for a moment and enjoy the richness of the mad life I've lived these past three weeks.

Clarice

The Baby in the Mirror

Jackson loves the baby in the mirror. When he was just a few months old, he would stare at the baby in the mirror. When he learned how to smile, he would smile when we held him up the mirror. And then he learned to pat, and then to shout out to the baby in the mirror.

It’s been fascinating watching him learn about the mirror. The first time he seemed to demonstrate an understanding of what the mirror did was at Christmas, when he was 10 months old. We were in Atlanta visiting my in-laws. I was holding Jackson up to the mirror and his Grandmum was looking on. He saw her image in the mirror waving to him, then he turned around to look at her. I wondered then if he knew that was her reflection or if he thought there were two of her.

Jackson’s been growing more verbal lately. His vocabulary is mainly one-syllable words that get repeated. He knows I’m “mama” and Ian is “dada” and he knows if he wants milk he shouts out “nai nai” (the Cantonese version of milk, which is so much easier for an infant to say than "milk"). But two weeks ago, we heard him practicing some two-syllable words. He would crawl around the house saying something that sounded like "Dak-hhhhhn." The "hhhhhn" part was rather entertaining because it was basically blown through his nose. Then a few days later, it morphed into "Dak-tah." We weren't sure what he was trying to say, but we knew it was significant because it was his only two-syllable word and he kept repeating it. Then one night when I held him up to look at the baby in the mirror, he laughed and declared, "Dak-snnnnn" and I realized that he was saying the two-syllable word he hears the most often - "Jackson."

It amazes me that he can recognize that the baby that he sees in the mirror is him. And it amazes me that he knows his name. And even more that he is so motivated to say his name. We humans are truly fascinating creatures.

Clarice

Not a morning person

Like his mom and dad, Jackson sometimes isn't the happiest camper when he wakes up in the morning.

Happy Birthday, Baby!!

Last Saturday was Jackson's first birthday. He had his first taste of cake.

It's hard to believe it's been one year already. And it's been such an adventure. Quite early on, we regularly prayed that Jackson's life would eventually be used to draw people to God. He's such a happy baby, we're thinking that God may be on His way to answering that prayer. Now we have to continue to pray that he would grow to follow Jesus.

So much to express about this first year, but it's late, so I'll just leave you with these fun pictures.



Yeah, good times.

Clarice

Performing on American Idol

No, not me. But somebody I've performed with...Sabrina Sloan!

We performed together at Mosaic in the worship band last year (when I was pregnant). And we were in the same small group together for a while (we left because of Jackson and she left to go on the road with the "Hairspray" touring group). She's a great gal and sings beautifully. So if you're an American Idol fan, tune in and vote often.

Clarice

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy belated Valentine's Day all!

We spent this Valentine's Day at home with Jackson. Ian sent me off to work in the morning with the announcement that he got me a card. I was so moved by the sweet sentiment of his card. Then I took a closer look at the front.
Yeah, that's my Valentine card. Fortunately, I love my Valentine!

Clarice

Morning Rituals

Every morning when I drop Jackson off at day care I follow a little ritual. When I first pull up in the parking lot, I look back at him and announce, "We're at school." Then I ask him, "Are you ready?" He never answers me in words, but quite often smiles. Then I walk myself around to his side of the the car to get him out. But before I open the door, I always tap on his window to catch his attention and wave. It's been one of my favorite moments of each morning to watch him turn his head to see me and smile his happy Jackson smile. I think my ritual has caught on with him now. Yesterday morning before I got to the point where I tap on the window to catch his attention, he was already looking my way with his silly crunched-nose grin. Now it's our ritual.

Clarice

Day Care Anecdotal Notes

On Wednesday, Ian found this picture attached to Jackson's daily care clipboard along with the following anecdotal note:

Today Jackson went on a wagon ride to see the Bruin Bear. J and his two friends had a great time. He was crawling all over the place and pulling up. Although he did refuse to crawl on the grass area, J had big smiles for all the students walking by.

I remember walking around Ackerman Union as a student and seeing little ones in their wagons or the buggy. Boy, I sure wish I could have been there to see how the students reacted to Jackson making his silly faces.

Clarice

The Faithfulness Award

We have a new plaque on the mantle of our fireplace. It says:

The Faithfulness Award
Ian Eyre
For your faithful service and unseen ministry to the Body of Christ

Ian got this plaque a few weeks ago at our twice-yearly leadership development time at Mosaic, our church home. Our pastors and paid staff like to recognize people who are contributing in a positive way to encourage them to continue pursuing the character of Christ. So out of the three thousand some people who attend Mosaic and the five or six hundred people who are considered to be a part of our leadership core, Ian was one of around ten to be recognized as those who exemplify faithfulness.

I wasn't surprised when Ian's name was called. That's my man. Faithfulness is such a great descriptor for him. In fact, I think it was one of the qualities about him that showed me that he was a man of substance (no, not the beautiful piercing blue eyes and the superb height which initially drew my eye). Thus, not surprised, but very, very proud to call him my husband.

Right after my swell of pride that what I saw in Ian had been recognized by others, I felt this little pang. I had this feeling that I had passed my prime. My time of ministry to the body of Christ was over. When I was a single girl, I could pour myself out in service to people in my community, at work, etc. But I'm not a single girl anymore. I have a husband and a son who I believe must take precedence over others.

In the middle of my self-absorbed musings, a passage creeped into my mind. I had been studying Proverbs 31 in an attempt to seek a model for what it means to be a godly wife and mother. See, in this passage, the writer lists all these things that this "wife of noble character" does. And smack in the middle of this very, very long list of amazing things that one woman surely couldn't do on her own, it says "Her husband is respected at the city gate, where he takes his seat among the elders of the land." And I realized that this is what I must do to move into my new prime, my new time. I may not be able to serve with abandon at Mosaic any more (pre-emptive aside: I do expect to continue serving, just not in such an all-consuming way). But I can pursue becoming a woman of noble character and serve my family so that my husband can continue to increase in his impact on the kingdom of God.

So all this is going on in my head while others were being recognized for their specific contributions to the body of Christ at Mosaic. Then they got to the last award - the Leadership Award. Pastor Erwin always mentions that people who are recognized with this award are at such a high level of commitment to service that they usually end up going overseas for full-time Christian work or joining the team of pastors or are called to be Elders. And he named Marvin and Jean. Again, no surprise. This couple has served people so fervently and been such a model of loving sacrifice. Lives have changed through their influence. And I had a new pang. I wanted that award. Now don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that in a "I wanna be a superstar" kind of way. I just saw a new model to emulate. See, it was so clear to many of us that they are an amazing team, that they have impacted people, and that they do it out of passionate love for Jesus. In other words, they deserved that kind of recognition. Yet they went up to receive their award in a state of shock and truly deep emotion. What Jean said was so striking. It was something like, "I can't believe you're honoring us for just loving people, when it's so easy to love people." So maybe I don't really mean that I want the Leadership Award. Instead, I think I mean that I want to be like Marvin and Jean. I want to be devoted to teaming with my husband so that I bring out his best and he brings out my best. I want to invest in my son (and other future children) so that he (they) journey with us in sharing the love of Jesus with others.

So maybe I shouldn't think about being past my prime. Maybe I don't consider my time as being gone. Because this isn't about me. Instead, it may be about our prime being yet to come, our time just beginning.

Clarice

Say 'hi' or something.

Jackson often seems so serious in public. When he meets a stranger, he takes a minute to study their face, then he relaxes and interacts, often with a smile.

Today Clarice and I wheeled Jackson into a crowded elevator. Jackson began to stare down a man who caught his eye and Clarice piped up; "don't just stare, say 'hi' or something." As if Jackson could say 'hi' already.

After a lull, the man said 'hi.'

Now I know Clarice was talking to Jackson, but it dawned on me that the comment could have also applied to all the people in the elevator who were checking out the cute baby. I chuckled aside to Clarice; "did you mean that to Jackson or to everybody?"

Suddenly, a lady blurted out an awkward 'hi' as if she was caught staring and felt instantly self-conscious. It was as if Clarice had accused everybody of a social faux pas. Very funny. In fact, I couldn't stop laughing at the thought of Clarice scolding a bunch of strangers for staring at our kid and not saying 'hi.'

Ian

Quoted....Misquoted?

I was quoted in a story in yesterday's LA Times (click here to read). Just one nanosecond toward my 15 minutes of fame.

It's kind of interesting though. I talked to the reporter for about 10 minutes about my thoughts on a research study she was trying to summarize. Although she quoted me very accurately, it was just one sentence and didn't really capture the whole of what I was thinking about and trying to communicate. I was a bit frustrated because anyone who doesn't really know what I value might get the wrong impression about what I believe based on the way my quote was presented.

Then I had a spiritual insight, which I sometimes get at unusual moments. I started wondering if God sometimes feels like this. We humans often over-focus on specific things He says that we don't capture all of what He intends. And that one little thing that we communicate to others sometimes fails to represent Him as He should be known.

One of my colleagues who appears more frequently in print than I do, mentioned that he saw the quote. He understood immediately that I was quoted slightly out of context. Apparently he's experienced this before. He told me that every time he speaks in public, he is mindful of the possibility that his words could potentially be twisted. He said that I would just need a bit of practice learning how to monitor what I am saying to filter out the possibility of being taken out of context and to speak in small soundbites that represent complete thoughts. And again I think of the fact that if I have to be careful of what I say to represent UCLA well, so should I be careful in my speech and actions to represent Jesus well.

Clarice

America by train

It's been a month since our cross-country train adventure and I still think it's worth the time to write about it. I'll admit it. I've got train fever. I'm already planning our next train adventure up to Seattle at the end of March. I've taken the train before, from LA to San Diego and San Francisco and from DC to Boston. And I've driven cross-country twice. But there is something special about traveling cross-country this way. I'm glad it took a perforated eardrum to turn an interest in train travel into reality.

I don't know if you know this, but train travel is usually more expensive than flying. I didn't know it. Doesn't quite make sense, since it takes something like tenfold longer to reach your destination. So when we boarded our train, I made it a point to find out why others made this particular travel choice. Many of the people I talked to were semi-regulars. They took the train because they absolutely hated flying. To them, time and expense was worth it to avoid getting on a plane. Others were newbies like us. But their reasoning was that they made last-minute travel plans and couldn't get affordable plane fares. A significant group of people were doing it because they thought it would be a neat way to see the country. Then there were the regulars. They may not have been regulars on any specific route, but they were Amtrak regulars. They just loved making their way across the country by train. These are known as "train people."

I think I may be joining the ranks of the "train people." It was rather relaxing. The seats are incredibly roomy. Like the seats we always pass by in the first class section of the airplane. There was plenty of room to stretch out and Jackson didn't have to be strapped into a carseat. Instead he could exercise his freedom crawling up and down the aisle (and yes, mom, we washed his hands with soap and water right after letting him crawl). But the fun thing was being able to read, think, nap, and watch an occasional movie while making progress toward our final destination. And at any time, we could stop and gaze out the window and watch the country go by. Sure there were moments of boredom and cabin fever, but there were plenty of people to talk to and so much to see.

All aboard for Seattle!


Clarice

Jackson has a tail

Last night we were at small group. I took Jackson into what the Lorenzes call "the yellow room," which is where Jackson and his little 3 year old friend sometimes play while we adults engage in our small group activities. It was time for his diaper change. I wasn't sure if I should wait until the little girl left before changing his diaper, since they are of opposite genders. Then I figured it probably didn't matter, since kids are generally rather asexual. So she hung around while I did the dirty deed. As soon as I uncovered his...uh...diaper area, she laughed and pointed. "Look!" she exclaimed, "Jackson has a tail!" I figured I wouldn't correct her. Better to let her live in innocence just a little while longer.

Clarice

Mosaic Hard Core Values

Hey, just thought I'd let you guys know of a cool video I got to direct for my church. Mosaic has five core values that have been adopted by over fifty churches worldwide and I had a chance to take a crew back to my old special effects shop and represent each core value "Jackass" style. Hope you like it.

Ian

P.S. The video may only be available for another week or so. I'm sure they will put up the next video soon for the Soul Cravings series. When that happens, I'll post another link here so you can catch the 2 minute spot.

Camera Play

This is the new toy Ian bought me for Christmas. I had been thinking about getting into photography for a while. I come from a family of photographers. My paternal grandfather was a great photographer. He shot on a camera that was completely manual (of course, this was in the early part of the last century). My dad inherited his eye and started shooting digital shots a few years ago. You can see his images here. One of my distant cousins, Ted, also picked up some kind of photographic gene. And it even extends to those who marry into the family, my cousin Melanie's husband, Bob. So it's time for me to pick up the family tradition.

One of the most enjoyable things about our train ride from Atlanta to Los Angeles, was having abundant time to experiment with the camera. Click here to see some of our favorites. I think most of these shots are Ian's. But I have some pretty good ones in there too.

Happy viewing!
Clarice

Say Cheese!

Look at our little guy mugging for the camera. How does an infant know to make faces when a camera's on?

Welcoming 2007

It's been a whirlwind transition from 2006 to 2007. So many things to think about. So many changes with Jackson. But those posts will come later...

I've had a hard time letting go of 2006 until now. I have this practice of setting a theme for each year. I don't much like resolutions, because I can't seem to keep them. I do pick a set of goals that I want to achieve by the end of the year (leaves a little more wiggle room than resolutions). So every year, the goals are to go to bed early, be on time, start exercising... OK, so I don't make my goals. But at least I can claim that I don't break resolutions.

Anyway, my theme is what I focus more on. I spend some time at the end of each year assessing the experiences of the year and trying to figure out what I want to seek God about the coming year. So a year ago, I was a noticeably pregnant newlywed, still learning how NOT to be single. And the idea that kept coming to me was "brand new thing." It was based on a passage from Isaiah 43 where God is telling Israel to stop dwelling on the old ways He did things because He was going to do things differently. I knew that 2006 was going to be a year of change, having a baby and entering the second year of marriage. Getting married in my late thirties, I had grown accustomed to single life. After almost 2 decades of following Jesus as a single gal, I had a pretty good idea of what I needed to do in order to be obedient (notice I didn't claim that I actually did it). But the Bible outlines different expectations for someone who is a wife and mother than for someone who is single. So I wanted to focus on this theme of "brand new thing" to pursue what new way I should pursue in my roles as Ian's wife and Jackson's mother. And by the end of the year, I had no more revelation than I did in the beginning of the year. So I didn't want to let go of 2006. But earlier this week, I had remembered that something Pastor Erwin said in a message in December had hinted at a possible theme for 2007. So I pulled out my trusty iPod to check out what I thought was the podcast from that week. Well, a few minutes into the podcast, entitled "New under the sun," (look for the podcast here) I realized that wasn't the message I was looking for. Instead, it was THE message I was looking for. Erwin said...well, he said a lot of things. But he talked about this same passage. And the thing that really stood out to me was that the one thing that the world can really consider to be a "new thing" is what love does. Love can push us to do things that are new and different in the world. See, I had thought I was going to spend 2006 hearing from God what new things I should do as a wife and mother. But what I missed was that God simply wants me to love Him, love Ian, love Jackson, and love the people around me. And THAT is most likely what will compel the "brand new thing" I am hoping to see happen. I know it sounds rather simple. I probably can't explain it in writing very well. Maybe I'm too abstract for my own words. But I want to pursue this "brand new thing" of love this year. And I pray that I learn a new thing about God and myself in the process.

Happy New Year all! 2007, here I come!

Clarice