Meine Klein Welt

For the Love

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{This post is part of Jen Hatmaker’s “For the Love” Blog Tour, which I am honored to be a part of. Read more from other team members here.}

Book Cover For the woman who

Way back in March, I saw a blog post by Jen Hatmaker. It was an invitation to join the launch team for her new book, For the Love. I had no idea what a launch team was, but I have a great deal of respect for Jen and thought it might be fun to help her share her new book. Some amazing things have happened with this launch team. Somehow a group of 500 people reading a book about loving one another well in the name of Christ turned into a miraculous community of grace. I am excited to share this book with others because I am hopeful that it can launch other communities of grace. I am hopeful that if we decide that loving each other well is of paramount importance, the people in our lives will be able to see Jesus. They’ll know his grace. Then. THEN. We might just live in that grace. And that will change everything.

Love is Excellent

One of the main reasons that I enjoy reading Jen Hatmaker’s words is that she is a truth teller. This book is full of truth. For me, the most important truth that she shares is this:

theology

We have to stop creating our own theology based on what makes us comfortable. We have to start understanding and living out Christ’s theology. His theology is true for everyone everywhere.

On a practical level, this book is a really enjoyable read. It’s a series of short essays. As a mom of a toddler, I don’t have a lot of spare reading time. Short essays are perfect. Mixed in with large theological truths are essays about aging, parenting, and the trials of autocorrect. This book is a great balance of challenging and hilarious. As a bonus, my name is in the thank you section. That makes this a must buy. Right?

autocorrect

 

 

Grief is Sneaky…So is Healing

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My sweet friend Margie encouraged me to join an amazing photography challenge sponsored by My Four Hens Photography. The challenge is to take one photo each week for an entire year. Each week has a theme, and last week’s theme was “Part of Me.” I toyed around with a few ideas before I landed on this picture:

004 {Part of Me}

 

I love this picture for a lot of reasons.

It has Matt in it. He is my whole heart, and he is more amazing to me every day.

It has Miss M. in it. She is my whole heart, and she is more amazing to me every day.

It has Madeleine it. She is my whole heart, and she is missed every day.

 

You see, we chose to have Madeleine’s ashes buried at sea. It gave us both comfort to think that no matter where the Lord may lead us, we will always be able to find our way to water. For those days when grief rises up and we need to sit awhile, to remember her, we will always be able to find water. Taking photos of my family at the ocean gives me a feeling of a complete picture. They are all there.

Here’s the crazy thing. This has been one of those weeks. One of the times when the grief sneaks in and clenches my throat and springs tears at the most inopportune times. AND THEN, God. My sweet Lord who sees my heart and hears my cries, gave me this: In Solemn Ceremony, Duo Carries Out Sacred Burials at Sea for Those Too Easily Forgotten. My dear and precious friend, Lara, wrote this article about the people who scatter the ashes. The people who held our little girl for the last time. One of the things that has tugged at my heart is the wonder. I have wondered if the ones who had this honor, if they knew how sacred it was, if they handled her tenderly. Now I know. Now I have this gift, this answer, this healing piece.

The tears are flowing pretty freely now, but in such a good way. Healing tears. Not the last, I’m sure, but, oh the burden they are lifting.

Adventures in Baby Feeding

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Baby Feeding

Miss M. has been teaching us a lot of things. Here are some of the lessons she has taught us about food.

  • Vegetables are better than fruits.
  • Someone needs to invent Mommy/Daddy and me matching bibs/hazmat suits.
  • Foods that begin with “P” are the best foods. Specifically peas, prunes, and pumpkin.
  • If a baby doesn’t spit up one single time during their first three months of life, they can make up for it later.
  • Babies have lightening quick reflexes. Much faster than parent reflexes. Keep all bowls and spoons at a safe distance.
  • Ice is awesome.
  • If you feed a baby mashed potatoes from El Pollo Loco, said baby will proceed to fill their diaper with something that is the exact color and consistency of wet cement. It is frightening.
  • Bananas are poison. They should be spit out immediately.
  • You should always, ALWAYS, check to make sure the baby is not hungry before putting them to bed at night. If you do not, the perfect storm of hungry and tired will be your punishment. Your very, very loud punishment.
  • Sometimes prunes are your best friend.

I Need the World to Know

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I need you all to know (and give me cheers and accolades) that I used the snot sucker today. What? You don’t know about the snot sucker? It is a rather ingenious invention by the Swedes. You can read all about it here: http://www.fridababy.com/shop/nosefrida Go Sweden!

Some of you reading this right now are already cheering me on. Some of you are crazy, crazy shocked that this happened. Some of you don’t understand what the big deal is.

Here’s the big deal. I don’t do snot. I can’t even stand to blow my own nose. Without exaggeration, this is my reaction to snot, every time.

goonies-hurl-o

 

I’m not kidding. Every time. Matt will confirm. So will almost every student I’ve ever taught. I used to make them blow their noses in the hallway.

The good news is that it turns out my love for Miss M. is mighty strong. She was all kinds of stuffy this morning. Daddy was not here. Total parenting and spousal fail on his part, by the way. So, I gagged, she cried, we got it done. Horrible for everyone.

Let the congratulations start rolling in.

P.S. – I may have been so distraught when I started that I blew into her nose instead of sucking. Please pray that there won’t be any permanent brain damage as a result of that little disaster.