I heart Sarah Palin

These pictures say it all:





You go, babywearing mama!

But seriously, what's not to love about this woman? She's a prolifer that walks the walk (she refused to abort her Down Syndrome child when he was diagnosed in utero). She is well known for fighting corruption in her state. And she's a breastfeeding, babywearing mom of five! Go McCain - Palin!

It's not called babysitting!

Can I share a frustration with you? I'm often asked who babysits the kids when I'm at work. I reply that my husband and I alternate our schedules so that either he or I can take care of the children. "Oh, that's so nice that your husband is willing to babysit." What??? Back up the train! It is not called babysitting when your husband watches his own children. It is called being a dad! Seriously!

I will preface this by saying that I am blessed with one of the best husbands ever. He is an active participant in every part of parenting. He changes diapers, gives baths, makes meals, cleans house and kisses boo boos. Last weekend he even took all five kids to Chuck E Cheese all by himself (with the baby in a sling!). And nearly achieved sainthood in the eyes of my mommy friends for doing so.

I am appalled at how low the bar is set for fathers in this culture. Because so many fathers are little more than sperm donors, any father that sticks around and does anything for his kids is considered a good dad. And good Christian fathers like my husband Philip are anointed as superheros.

Shouldn't involvement and care be the norm for Christian dads? How is a man supposed to be priest of his home and disciple his children if he is not with them? Our culture has sold us a lie in the form of "quality time". That whole idea is baloney. Kids spell love "TIME". Deuteronomy 6:4-8 says, "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD; and you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. And these words which I command you this day shall be upon your heart; and you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise." How is a man supposed to do this if he is not involved in his kids' lives? Is he supposed to share Biblical truths during the commercials on ESPN while he watches his game? Or is he supposed to be active with his kids, teaching them day in and day out? Teachable moments come up often when you spend time with your kids, just doing life together. Trips to the park, chores around the house, handiwork in the garage and meals at the table all serve as springboards for discussions of the depths of God's Word.

Philip says that men who don't spend time with their kids are missing out. I agree, and I'm glad to have a husband who doesn't want to miss out.

Fear and relativism

With the dawn of the internet age it has become increasingly easy to surround yourself with friends who share exactly the same interests. For example, I have few friends in real life who wear their babies in slings or use cloth diapers. But I can pop over to www.thebabywearer.com or www.diaperswappers.com and voila! - instant peer group. While this can be fun and encouraging, it can also be dangerous. It seems like every web community has a standard group of core values. (Admit that you occassionally use disposable diapers and the girls over at diaper swappers might be shocked.) This becomes a problem when the core values of a group extend beyond outward things like babywearing or cloth diapering.

Many of the boards I visit are attachment parenting oriented. While there are some aspects of this philosophy that I love, there are other aspects that I find disturbing. I do not look at my child as a peer. They are precious charges given to me by God to raise. He has given them to me because I am older and wiser and I am to teach and train them. There is a relativism amongst many AP moms that I cannot embrace. I believe that there are absolute rights and wrongs and that I need to teach my children this. As Pope John Paul said, we do not get to choose right and wrong, we get to choose between right and wrong. There seems to be a movement among parents today to embrace allowing your children to choose their own definition of good and evil. This is foolishness. God has already decided what is Truth. He has delineated what is right and what is wrong. It is up to us to choose which side we will stand on.

While I sometimes have the courage to stand up for the Truth, I am often nervous about doing so. I am afraid that if I do not tow the party line of tolerance and respect/endorsement of all choices I will be ostracized or ridiculed. For some reason I seem to care what these e-friends think of me.

But I forget my real Audience. I should be more fearful of what God thinks of me. His opinion is the only one that matters. This week I am meditating on the fear of God (which the Bible says is the beginning of all wisdom). It is popular nowdays to replace the word "fear" in the Bible with "respect", but I think this is faulty. Most of us fear what others think about us. We say, "Oh, I can't do that because I'm afraid of what she'd think of me" or some other nonsense. But we don't stop to think "I can't do this because I'm afraid of what He would think," or "I'm afraid if I choose this path I will hurt His heart." We have no fear of God.

Luke 12:4-9"I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him. Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. I tell you, whoever acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man will also acknowledge him before the angels of God. But he who disowns me before men will be disowned before the angels of God. "

Coming soon to a computer near you!

Dh and I have always wanted to adopt a child (or a few!). Frankly, there is nothing that so closely mirrors the heart of God to me than adoption. We, ourselves, are adopted into His family. In Romans 8: 15 it says, "For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by Him we cry, "Abba, Father." Isn't that awesome? We are adopted into the family of God. He gives us the right to call Him "Daddy". And in the Hebrew culture, a father could disown his biological son, but could not disown an adopted son. So we belong to Him, forever!

So what does this have to do with your computer? You will soon have the opportunity to buy things that will contribute to our adoption fund! I have a shop set up at www.shalombaby.etsy.com and will soon be stocking it with hairbows, baby slings, baby leggings, scrapbooking items and more. And all proceeds will go towards our goal of bringing home a new child to our pfamily.