It's Not Easy Being "Green"

(I don't have a picture to go with this post, so here is Evelynn with her first Oreo. It was mint)

We do our best to cut down on waste in our house. We don't leave lights on. We reuse plastic bags, put kitchen scraps in the compost, use a water saving shower head, take anything that can be recycled to the nearest recycling bin, donate unwanted things to VOA, and recently I have started making things from old worn out clothes so they don't just go to the landfill. It is not our desire to be "green". Truthfully, we had been doing the majority of these things before it was cool to do so. Being Christians, we have a desire to be good stewards of the home God has given us.

I have a big problem with the "green" movement that is going throughout our nation, and our world. I am not meaning to be dramatic or anything, but I see it as Satan's newest way of diverting our attention. It is the new hip religion in a way. With this movement we basically become mini-saviors to ourselves and the world. But God has made it perfectly clear that one Savior is sufficient. We can not save the Earth. God is in control of it. That is not to say that we should live in a wasteful way, destroying it and its beauty. On the contrary, we have been called to take care of the earth, but we are also called to have dominion over it. God has designed all of creation for us to use to His glory. That means we should be doing all we can to reduce our waste, and keep the earth unpolluted, but we also should be using natural resources God has given us, just not in a way that ravages the earth.

I don't mean to be a killjoy, but I have met other Christians that feel the same way, that something is "just not right" with being "green". The movement can actually give me kind of a creepy feeling sometimes. I am always cautious when claiming that God is telling me something, but I do think this feeling comes because He is reminding me that the movement is man-centered and not meant for His glory.

In these times, I believe Satan does his best to disguise his work. Just as Charles Baudelaire said, "The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he doesn't exist." He tries to make things seem harmless. But anything that takes our focus away from God is not harmless. So I believe getting caught up in the "green" movement can have eternal consequences. Do your best to take care of the earth, but do it to the glory of God. Don't fall into the trap of thinking we can save ourselves.

My Family: Part 1

This is Craig, my husband. I love him. He's handsome. When I met him 7 years ago, he was the nicest person I had ever met. He still is, but he has gotten a little meaner. I don't know if it's life or being married to me that has done it to him. He became a Christian after we met. Disney (anything) is his favorite subject to talk about. Craig is smart and has a good sense of humor (even though sometimes it is pretty corny). He has the gift of gab. But he is truly interested in anyone he talks to. The man loves people. He also loves creation. 9 times out of 10 if I ask him want he wants to do he'll say "Let's go to a park." But he also LOVES technology. He likes finding new beers, reading self-improvement books, listening to podcasts and watching movies (his favorite being Disney, of course). Only recently has he developed strong political feelings...we won't get into that right now.

Craig is a wonderful husband and father. He loves our babies and they love him. Hardly a morning goes by when Calvin doesn't get up looking for Daddy. And Evie loves to smile and flirt with him, she thinks he's handsome too. I have to end this quickly because he just came home from work...Our family is truly blessed to have such a loving provider. I love him (did I mention that?).

Braided Rag Rug

Taking advantage of the stillness in the house to get some work done. I am sewing strips of old clothes together to braid into a rug. Hopefully I will get it done within the year. It would most likely be done sooner, but I have other projects I am working on as well. And some that I should be starting...

Dreams, Goals, Accomplishments...

(Craig took this picture when he went to Europe years ago. So pretty. It has always been a dream of mine to go to Europe.)


Craig and I talk about things we would like to do or accomplish all the time. Most of the time it is just talk. We have a good time dreaming together and then go back to leading our ordinary lives. We need to figure out what it is going to take to get us to actually do the things we talk about and make our dreams reality. Anyone have any experience in this area and would like to offer advice?

For example(s), we both want to be debt free and that is as simple (and hard) as having self-control/discipline. I want to teach homeschoolers Art History. Should I wait until I have my Bachelor's degree? Craig says I should sell audio lessons online...that's as simple as actually doing the research and putting a lesson together. I wish we could be self employed in some way, sell all our belongings, live in an RV and travel the country like the happy Janssen family (that is a little more difficult to pull off). We talk all the time. We are constantly coming up with new things we want to do, but have trouble just getting ordinary things done. Most of the time, the answer is to just do it. Why is it so hard?

Terrible Heartache

Ending the day with terrible heartache. My mom told me some Columbus news of a little boy that was killed by his mother's boyfriend. I don't understand how these things can come about. When I look at my own child my heart just aches even more. How can anyone hurt these precious little ones?

Terrible Twos

So today was a pretty trying day with the two year old, well actually with both babies but the little girl couldn't help it because she is sick. Calvin however was...being two. The peak of the craziness was when I realized Calvin was no longer in the room and heard little foots steps upstairs. I went upstairs to find that he had poured an entire cup (a very large cup) of water on my bed. I brought him back downstairs and then a few minutes later I realized he was covered in juice. I went into the kitchen to find that he had poured almost an entire container of juice on the floor, which had flowed under the stove and leaked through the basement ceiling and down the steps. Sigh. Sop up the puddles, clean the rest up tomorrow.

Yoga Baby

I mentioned that our family has started to practice yoga. Craig and I love it, and Calvin thinks it is fun too, as you can see. Here are two pictures of Calvin showing off his favorite yoga poses! He does them so effortlessly.

Evidence of Spring

Just a little proof that Spring is on its way found right in our own back yard. Thank goodness! The crocus was just inches away from the dog's beaten path.

We're Gonna Take A Walk Outside Today, Gonna See What We Can Find Today...

Yesterday I took my babies and the dog for a walk. The air was wonderful, not too cold not to warm. It is funny though in the fall how 50 degree temperatures would be chilly, but right now it feels wonderful.

Calvin and Couper (the dog), enjoyed walking around in a larger space. Calvin would stop every now and then right in front of the stroller and I was so busy looking around I ran into him twice. He's a tough little man though, it didn't distract him from what he wanted to show me. "Mommy!" he would say, and I would say "Yes, that's a squirrel. Keep going." The picture below is all three of them watching a squirrel across the street.

"Mommy! Dog!", he would say when he saw a strange dog in someone's yard. "Yes, I know", the dog had been barking at us for the last three minutes, ever since the last dog we passed told it we were coming. And we would stand there watching it bark at us (my neighbors probably hate me), and occasionally Calvin (not the dog) would bark back. We enjoyed the walk so much we took another one later on when Craig came home. Hopefully, we weather will permit us to take one again today!

Proverbs 31

Proverbs 31:10a- Who can find a virtuous wife?

Not Craig. Do you have one he can borrow? It has been pointed out to me that I am the opposite of the virtuous wife found in Proverbs. And trust me Satan isn't playing my accuser. He got to sit back and enjoy the show this time. Craig had to watch too, but he was a lot less comfortable being on the corner of the housetop (Prov. 25:24). Then finally, at the end the Lord came in with one of those big hooks and yanked me off stage. I only wish He would've done it much sooner, about the time I turned the spotlight on myself would've been about right. I am sorry Craig.

The President Won't Be Coming Over Any Time Soon

(This picture has nothing to do with my post, it is just cute.)

So I was thinking today while I was picking up the house. Housework get pretty overwhelming sometimes. I can not stand my house being messy. I am my mother's daughter. This doesn't mean my house is always clean. It just means I am in a bad mood when the house is not clean, as Craig will surely testify. Having to decide whether to clean the house or do something I enjoy is frustrating mostly because I almost always choose cleaning. But as I picked up today (in a bad mood) I realized that unless I sit my kids in front of the tv all day, the house will most likely not stay clean for more than half an hour at a time.
Then I realized I could apply my desire to simplify our life to my cleaning as well. The more I though about it all I want is a clean house. Having toys all over the floor isn't as bad as having three days of crumbs laying underneath them. So today I cleaned the house for a change, instead of picking up. The toys are still on the floor, but the crumbs are gone. And just in case you are wondering, yes, you can vacuum the floor without picking up the toys, as Calvin learned today to his everlasting horror. He was about to have a heart attack watching me push his toys around with the vacuum!

( Me, Evie (9 mos), Calvin (2), Craig)

Our family is trying to make changes in order to be happier, healthier, and more reliable(choo-choo). The natural state of our family is chaos. Craig and I both decided we needed to change. We need big changes. We are on the path to those big changes, but we are starting small and building up. They are just small changes but they have made a big difference in the way our family operates. I have made changes to our diet with the help of Dr. Weil's books (gasp! there he is again!). We both have bought new walking/running shoes (and have been using them). I, sometimes Craig (and even Calvin!), have been practicing yoga on a regular basis. We have been simplifying our house (here is the blog of a woman I admire, she explains simplifying well). And I have been getting up in the morning to read my Bible and have downloaded Dr. R. C. Sproul's podcasts to my iPod. The next step will be to fully adopt Dave Ramsey's plan
for finances. Although I am very proud of the fact that we had the discipline to set aside the money for our emergency fund out of our tax rebate, in the past we would have just spent it all.

As I have said these are just small changes, but we are well on our way to becoming more organized, and able to do a lot more in the day.

Like most little ones, my babies love to help...with everything. They also serve as my biggest distraction, and rightly so. Why this post for example, took me 1/2 an hour just to start. Calvin wanted some cereal. Evie wanted to help import pictures to iPhoto. Then Evie needed her yogurt and Calvin wanted to send a quick email to hgebgdiuhgufh (whoever that is). I imported all the pictures, and then had to convince Calvin that he was very cranky because he needed a drink not marshmellows. Then I ran off to rescue Blogging for Bliss from Evie, who was trying to absorb the information by eating the book. Finally with both babies content playing for now, I get to write my post just in order to ask any readers to be patient with the appearance of the blog as I experiment and learn. I have Tara Frey's book Blogging for Bliss (a bit wet, but still in good shape) to hopefully help the process move along a little quicker. Now all I need is some good chunks of time to look through it. But it isn't going to happen yet as Evie is now crying and is pretty fragrant.(re-post from previous newly started blog)