What Thirty is Like

Well, I am now 30 years old. What is different? Well, not much.

I had a nice birthday. I got some cards in the mail and a Lowes gift card from my parents... I am sure that Lydia suggested it. She has been asking for me to repaint the bedroom for a number of months. Now it will get done. Heidi got me some coffee and a new Starbucks cup. I love it. Irma and Lawrence sent some cash. That is always appreciated.

Bill and Paige Kamp (who are expecting in May) volunteered to watch our 3 little ones on Tuesday so that we could go out for a birthday dinner. We took them up on the offer and went out to Olives in East's Gas Light Village. It was a great time. We had Martinis and Mushroom Crostini as an appetizer. For dinner I had Tenderloin Napoleon and Lydia had Garlic-herb marinated steak. It was wonderful! The conversation was adult and the company was splendid! It was a good way to bring in my third decade.

From there we walked to Starbucks for some hot chocolate. We talked some more and really did not want the evening to end. Of course, with small children you cannot be away for long! We picked up the kids and headed home.

On my proper birthday (Wednesday) we did not really do anything. I had class in the AM and prepared for Bible study that I was teaching in the evening. We took a short break for a Mangiamo pizza for dinner, and then it was time for me to go to Bible study. Lydia made a delicious blueberry cake and a chocolate cake to send with me.

At Bible study Ray and Linda sang happy birthday in Dutch and Ray and James sang it in German. We also sang the 30th Psalm in commemoration of my birthday. It was a good night there.

Today (Thursday) was class and writing as usual. I got the mail at 5:20 and to my surprise there was a package addressed to Lydia. I opened it and found a splendid birthday gift! She got me a book that I have been looking for for about a year. I have NOT been able to locate a copy and was hoping to not have to pay $100 for it! She got it for me! The book is Sketches of the Covenanter Ministers, 1888-1930 by Owen F. Thompson. She found a minister in Kansas (Rev. Ken McFarland) that had two copies and was willing to sell one to her.

This is the follow up book to Glasgow's History of the Reformed Presbyterian Church that Ray and I wrote the introduction for upon its reprinting. What a great gift! It takes a very special wife to search long and hard for a bibliophile's gift. What I could not do in one year, she did in one quiet month of searching and emailing. It is good to start my 30th year of life with a woman who knows and loves me so much. She loves books and fine food too, of course.

The Chapbook Cafe Beginning the Chilly Months

Winter is coming and that means hours of lounging in book stores sipping lattes. It also means reading magazines for free and parousing children's books that we will not purchase at the bookstore, but order off of ebay. So is the ways of a free economy. Owen enjoyed a mocha-steamer, also known as hot chocolate.
Anna also enjoyed some hot chocolate, she only drank about half of hers though. She is a tiny thing and is not able to drink 12 ounces of yummy delicious hot chocolate. (Owen, of course, was able to drink all of his!)
Here Owen is reading Parson Avery's tales of Thomas on the Island of Sodor. At one time, Rev. Avery wrote the Thomas stories as a way to promote Christian virtues.
Anna and Owen also played at the Thomas Table. It is the first time that we have been to Schuler in a couple of months. The Thomas display had 3 8x11 signs warning of all the recalls because of lead based paint. I thought that they should stop doing recalls and just set up the Thomas section under the headings of 'regular' and 'leaded'.
We enjoyed a good cookie with our drinks as well. Chapbook has GREAT chocolate chip cookies, but the cakes are never too great. The atmosphere is very nice there though- big pained windows, stone fireplace, chess players, good art on the walls. It is one of our favorite hybrid bookstores/cafe's in town (not that there are too many to choose from!)
Lydia always looks through a pile of books. She usually leaves with a list of ISBNs that she will look on Amazon and Ebay for over the next couple of days. A week from now we will begin receiving packages from the letter carrier. The residual effects of a nice mocha have lasting implications!
In the winter I get a double mocha. In the summer I usually get a mocha smoothie. Today was the usual. It was quite tasty and gives enough energy to write into the night!
Watson was quite the darling. He slept the whole time. I am sure that if he was awake, he would have been offered a mocha too!
In time son, in time.

Dangerous Book For Boys

Every once in a while there comes along a book that is a must have. I think that this year's must have book is The Dangerous Book For Boys. This book is filled with great tips for boys on everything from tying knots to making batteries. It is also a book that deals with a lot of people, places, and things that boys should know. It discusses the presidents, wonders of the ancient world, and even gives a nice explanation of the 10 commandments. There are also some indoor rainy day things that boys can do, including some cool art projects.

These 'boys books' were quite popular in the 1920s-1950s but they have gone out of fashion. It seems that the popular things for boys to do no longer include adventure and intelligence. Boys are trained to watch TV, play video games, and when they are allowed to ride bikes and do fun things, they are required, by law, to be padded from head to toe 'for their own safety'. I hope that this book challenges parents to turn off the TV and PS3 (or whatever it is called) and to do something.

We have noticed that the book is found wherever books are sold. We have seen it at Barnes and Noble for 30% off, but the cheapest that we have found it is at Costco for $13.00. That is a good price for a great book full of colorful graphics. It even has a gold leafed cloth cover and marbleized book boards... in classic early 1900s fashion.

Get it.

Night

Lydia and I have been fans of Holocaust studies since we were at Calvin. While we studies there, Elie Wiesel spoke at the Faith and Writing Conference. Although Wiesel does not claim to be a Christian, and remains reluctant to speak about his spiritual life in public, he brings a lot of insight, through common grace, into human nature.

Many of his books are worth reading, Night remains his magnum opus despite being around 100 pages. I have also enjoyed reading many of the essays in his 2 volume shorter writings.

Today Mr. Wiesel was assaulted by a well known 'Holocaust denier'. This is quite tragic and shows that antisemitism remains strong in the world. We should pray for Mr. Wiesel as well as his Jewish brothers, knowing that the promise in Scripture is that one day the ancient people of God would be reconciled to His Son, Jesus Christ.

Maggie's Mac and Cheesey Fiestaware Luncheon

Today Maggie "Scott" Porter came over to make lunch for us. She made home-made macaroni and cheese. It was really good. She stayed for family worship which is always a nice thing. I love when company is in our home to worship with us.

She stayed for coffee and dessert that Lydia made. It was a fudge brownie oatmeal bar that was so rich that I had three teeth fall out while eating it. It was washed down with two hot cups of Starbucks' French Roast coffee (Owen ground the beans for me).

We talked about blogging for a while. She made fun of me for having a category entitled, Fiestaware, which reminded me that I found a great Fiesta Persimmon vase while I was in Pennsylvania. I was in a dusty unorganized bookshop looking for Glasgow's History of the RPCNA from 1888. Of course the book was not there, but the vase was a nice way to soothe the pain of another failed attempt at locating the book. The vase is a nice addition to my Fiesta vase collection. I think I am over a dozen now. (Notice vase is a subcategory of the Fiesta collection.) I need to blog more about the Fiesta collection.

I had to go to work, so I sent her home with 12 lectures on prayer by Dr. Michael Haykin to listen to on the ride home to Southfield. Ask her if she listened to them. A test is sure to follow!

Book Nerds!

I just purchased most of my books for this semester. (95%). My total cost was $659.70. This price is high, but it is not as outrageous as undergraduate book prices. Each book that I purchased today will be added to my pastoral library which will prove to be one of my greatest resources after ordination.

When I was doing my undergraduate studies I had a math class that I dropped within the first 2 weeks of class. When I took the $90 book back to the bookstore they informed me that they would not be using this text next year and they refused to buy it back. I left it on the counter with the attendant and left. There is no time in my life ever that I would need this book. The price that one pays for undergraduate books is out of control!

Lydia had a Human Anatomy book that she used in one of her undergraduate courses. She sold it on eBay for about $70 to recover some of the cost. We did not insure this item and it got lost. Not only did we lose the book, we had to pay that girl her $70 back. Double whammy.

I still at am ease about the cost of my books today. Building a good theological library is quite important to me. It is a catalyst for the reading of sound theological literature. $670...Wow.

Book Review: My Little Golden Book About God

Most of my book reviews go on PRESBYTERIAN THOUGHTS but I thought that this one would be well suited for Life on Union Avenue:

We recently bought a book at the local Christian book shop called, My Little Golden Book About God. We flipped through the pages and noticed all of the classic 1950s pictures that make so many Golden Books irresistable; we also noticed that a lot of the words were quite good.

We grabbed the book along with our armful of theological tomes, and checked out. When we arrived at home we read the book to Anna and Owen. To our dismay, the book is actually quite deistic with a touch of Eastern thought. This book has three pages that are distinctly not Christian.

I know that I am a critic, but hey, that is the purpose of a book review right? Here are the three phrases that I find to be most problematic and why:

"Think of the snow-capped mountain peaks. Those peaks were crumbling away with age before the first men lived on earth."

Within the span of six days God created the heavens and the earth and all of the creatures that would inhabit it. The mountains would not begin to crumble within the span of a couple of days. This thought is taken from Darwinian philosophy, not Christian theology.

"He gives us a small still voice in our hearts to help us tell right from wrong."

This statement is true to a certain extent. If it is a Christian thought it belongs to the Quakers, who have always been seen as a fringe group and not as Biblical Christianity. God does give us a conscience, but he speaks through his Word and through his Son. This is how we can know what our consciences tell us is right or wrong.

"God is the love of our mother's kiss, the warm, strong hug of our daddy's arms."

This is plain Eastern though. God is NOT the love of a kiss or the warmth of a hug. God is love and our love can reflect his love, but our love IS not God. That is like saying that God is strong like a rock, so God is this rock.

We need to be careful when picking children's books for the purposes of teaching truth. As kids, we all had the books that teach that God created man because he was lonely. This is untrue. Or the older ones that teach that Cain was black and that was a part of his rejection. Untrue.

There are many good Christian books that can teach your young children about God. We need to use discernment in these areas. I would recommend these or these as great places to start. You can also teach the Bible in family worship...but that may be better for another blog.

Homeschool book sale

Today we went to the Homeschool Building's annual booksale. There were over 200 vendors who were selling resources for homeschooling at great prices. Most of the things were gently used. Here are some of the things that we got:

Muzzy French. We paid $2.50 for the whole package. It retails at $169.00! We already have the German ones (of course!).

Before Five in A Row for $5.00. It retails around $25.

Five in a Row for $5.00 which also retails at $25. These two books are literature based activities that you can do with your children. They are always hot on ebay.

We also got a couple of Ravensburger puzzles. Lydia loves them because they remind her of her childhood days in Germany playing with them.

We had a great time. We also got to see about 500 women with denim jumpers and tennis shoes. Don't worry folks- we will not look like the average homeschool family!

Chasing Vermeer

Today I started my summer reading. I began with Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliett. I also finished it.

LOVED IT!

Book Nerding It

This morning we went to Pooh's Corner to look for a couple of children's books that we want to get. One that I want is called The Wright 3 by Blue Balliet. It is on my summer reading list once my semester is finished. It is about three teens who crack the mystery in the windows of the Robie House, one of Frank Lloyd Wright's greatest houses. The book is fiction, but I love the idea of introducing teens to art history.

When we were there Lydia and I discussed why Lydia never went into elementary education as a career. There was a case-in-point before our eyes. Every morning one of the owners, a skinny butchy looking lady, has a story hour for the children in the store. This woman spoke with a squeal that was so high pitched and her facial expressions were amazingly huge! Anna stood and stared in astonishment that people actually act that way. Owen did not care because he was too busy blocking the progression of a whiner at the Thomas the Train set.

We didn't buy anything, but it was fun to watch what a difference the milieu is at a children's bookstore versus one like Border's or B&N.

Read For Life

I would much rather have book-nerd kids than "cool kids". Anna says, "Papa, read Anna and Owen book?"
(The book is The Little Puppy by Judy Dunn. There is also The Little Kitten, The Little Duck and some others. These are really great first books.)

At the feet of Giants!

Owen is always scooting around, crawling, pulling himself onto things, falling and starting again. Yesterday he was cruising around and decided to stop for a short respite. When I looked to see where he was he was at the bookshelf that houses the Works of John Owen- Owen is his namesake. I was glad to see that my Owen is already interested in the theologian of theologians, the blessed Dr. John Owen.
Ahh...Mastering Owen will take a lifetime. Owen- you've got that on your side!

Qualities of genuine friendship

Tonight we had our friends, the Vedra family over. We had a really nice time discussing babies, Thomas the Train versus Brio, Puritan theology, and other areas of interest. Adam coveted some of our Thomas the train set while Emily put a nice track together.

While we talked, the children played with a variety of toys. Owen and Seth crawled around and grunted their needs towards their respective mothers, while Noah and Anna played rough...as they usually do. Noah bounced his face off of a pillar in the family room and they were each knocked down on more than one occasion. For some reason they think that playing like this is more enjoyable than nice play.

It is rare to see them sharing and working towards a common play goal unless it is "see who can want every toy first". Despite this style of play you can really see that they enjoy one another a lot as friends. Tonight we had about 45 minutes of really nice play out of them as a team. For some time they played with this German wooden toy that is really fun; they also read to each other for awhile. That was really cute.

Neither one of them know how to read yet but they both pointed and pretended as though they knew what was going on in the book. A make believe story line appeared as they both threw out words from their lexicons.
The book is Our Loving God written by a Scottish Presbyterian named Cairen MacKenzie. She writes really good children's books that are faithful to the text as well as theologically Reformed. (I think that the children are discussing the various aspects of the atonement here....maybe.)
They really do like each other a lot. Anna often will pretend play that Noah is here. She will walk around calling his name and say other funny things as though he were really present. Once last week she awoke and said "Noah?" She spent the next 20 minutes looking for him. She must have had a dream.
If you look closely at this picture you can see the various marks and bangs on their faces. Anna has a little mark on the nose and on the forehead. Noah has a scratch on the left cheek. (I encourage them to read more to one another and spend less time throwing dolls down the stairs....)

At the end of the evening they gave each other a hug before they left and Anna even kissed the scratch he got on his thumb. It is nice to have friends that you can read with as well as wrestle with. I think that more adult friendships should have these qualities.

Reading For Life

Parents should always take the time to read to their children. Reading to your children is the cornerstone of a life time of learning. Even if it is just for five minutes talking about the pictures on the page, this time spent can be a seeding of a passion for learning.
Support your local book dealer.

To hear one's own thoughts

Not all moments in our home are this quiet:

The dogs slept curled in separate corners, denying one-another's existence.

Owen nursed slowly in the arms of his loving mother.

Anna read while snuggled in under the window.

The hum of the furnace, the tapping of the keyboard.

All is good on Union Avenue.

Peter Rabbit and Public Education

I have been studying in the basement for a lecture that I have to give on the literacy of Ancient Israel. I have learned that the ancients by the fifth century BC were almost unanimously literate. All children could read and write in Israel...500 years before Christ was born!
When we think of the ancients we think that, for the most part, they were unlearned and mostly tradesmen. We rarely ever think of them as being educated. More like cavemen. We are so arrogant in our assessments.

Lydia, at the same time, was reading with the children. She has been reading some of the "Original and Authorized Editions" of Beatrix Potter's works.
She read The Tale of the Flopsy's Bunnies as well as The Tale of Benjamin Bunny.
These books were first published in the early part of the 20th century. (1904). They were written for toddlers and early school aged children. Besides the great things such as tobacco use, skinning of other bunnies, and the marrying of cousins; these books put the American Public school system to shame.

Below you will find a list of the words that Anna and Owen came across while having these books narrated to them:
Soporific
Improvident
Profusely
Doleful

Here is where us Public school kids can be helped with the terms: (Or is it "we public school kids"?)
www.onelook.com

Cruddy Study

In between being scheduled full time at work, being a full time Master's candidate, and my many familial duties there are "fun" things that must occur in order to get our basement finished and the guest room (someday Owen's) finished. We are looking forward to having the order back in our home that we normally have....But for now we live in bedlam!

Here are some of today's pics of our study being de-shelved and packed up. (Of course it is in alphabetical order and all are being cataloged before they go into their respective boxes.

Here is where we are. We have de-shelved A thru L with the exception of the one's that slip through our compulsive eyes. It is amazing how many books have been done...At least 1000 thus far, I would imagine, and probably 20-25 boxes.
Here is a look at the mess at Lydia's desk. We will each have our own study areas and we are looking forward to that. Sharing space is awful when two OCD people live in the same house and have differing methods of organization! (So, we are little crazy?)
Here is Anna playing amongst the books. She thought that climbing them was a fun expedition. We had to put an end to it when she climbed to the six feet mark. (A little safety is a wise thing.)
Lydia worked while I cataloged and boxed...It seems that she has given up on a clean desk for now. (The book by her right hand is on "no cry" sleep solutions for toddlers. She borrowed it from the La Leche League library.)
The pile of boxes grows as shelves begin to be cleared. I am amazed at how many books are on the shelves that have not been referenced for years. Even with the amount of papers and research that goes on in the study many are not touched once they are read.
Anna thought that since we were both busy she would be at liberty to use a blue-green Sharpie on the folding chair as well as paint her nails with it. I thought that it was so funny but maintained a straight face when telling her that she has to let mama or papa paint her nails. (She has great fine motor skills for her age, if you ask me.)
Here is a cry for help! I think that she would like to do something more Anna focused right now. I guess that a bath and getting ready for bed is a good thing. She has to go play with Noah tomorrow at La Leche League! (She loves Noah!)

More to come as our remodel continues.