A decision has been made! If you know me well you know that I can be pretty indecisive, so the fact that I have made a decision is along the lines of witnessing a miracle. And if I don't change my mind a million times (which I am a woman so I am entitled to), that is even more miraculous.
I think Matt and I will be expanding our family in the near future. A couple of weeks ago, I thought I was pregnant (although that would have been an accident). I can sympathize with what it feels like to be pregnant when you don't want to be. That's what happened with Josh, but not in the scared, unmarried teenage girl kind of way. But I think any unplanned pregnancy can be scary. Matt and I had been married 3 months when we found out we were pregnant. And I know what it feels like to think you could be pregnant and then are relieved to find out you are not. Matt and I had an instance like that when Josh was about 8 months old. But this time it was not like that. I cried when I found out I wasn't, and it wasn't the happy kind of tears. That kind of let me know that it might be time for us.
And then last week, Josh started walking for good. He has been walking since early December, but last week he decided that walking is the best mode of transportation. He barely crawls anymore. Prior to now it was like he was pretty unsteady walking so crawling was more efficient, but now the opposite is true. I wanted Josh to be walking before we had another. I also would like him to be potty-trained. When I did the math, if I got pregnant in April, if I carried full term this time, Josh would be around 27 months old when the new addition arrives. He could be potty-trained!
I am still seeking God's advice, but I know if it happens then it is time and we are ready! I don't feel near as scared as I have been in the past. I know it is in God's hands. I trust God to deliver us a healthy baby full term, regardless of the odds. And if the new baby comes early, I trust God to take care of Josh's sibling just like He took care of Josh! Please pray for us as we decide about adding to our family.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Monday, March 21, 2011
My Wonderful Children
Children? Hmm...children? Did you just misspeak? No, that I did not do. And no, I am not pregnant. I teach a group of sixth grade girls on Wednesday mornings (they probably wouldn't like to be called children). Here in the town where I live the elementary school takes part in a program called Release Time Christian Education. Elementary students in 4th, 5th, and 6th grades are released from class for 50 minutes once a week to get Bible instruction. Now before anyone has a cow: parents have to sign the children up for the program, and it is taught at a local church so the children are not taught religion at school and it is not done without parental knowledge and approval.
As I mentioned, I teach a group of sixth grade girls. Boys and girls are taught separately. 4th graders learn the first half of the Old Testament, 5th graders learn the second half, and 6th graders focus on the New Testament. The town where I live in South Carolina was the first in the state to do this program! It has been going on for a long time! We have 22 weeks with these kids. Not a lot of time when you think about it. And we have missed several days due to weather. And several of my girls missed instruction time due to sickness.
This week will be our last week for the school year. It is bittersweet. I have enjoyed teaching these girls. They will graduate from this program Wednesday after spending three years learning the Old Testament and New Testament. I wish some of them new what an accomplishment this was! And I bet at some point some of these students will have wished they paid better attention. What an advantage these kids have! This instruction is an asset!
I have taken this job seriously and have enjoyed it. I hope I have been a good teacher for these girls. And I hope I have taught them as much as they have taught me. Isn't it funny how it works like that? It seems to me in ministry or teaching situations, that I always learn a lot from those I am supposed to be teaching!
Before I close, I want to share something from the girls a couple weeks ago. We were talking about the book of James. There is so much rich material in that book. I was sharing with the girls about listening and speaking. A good section of James addresses this. It speaks about being quick to listen but slow to speak and slow to become angry. The author of this book also tells us that the tongue can do damage like a forest fire, and that "with the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness." On that same class day we were talking about 1st Peter. 1st Peter tells us such things as be respectful to everyone, don't retaliate, don't repay evil with evil, and don't insult people because they insult you. So I was sharing these things with the girls. I think this is an important area for teenagers. They definitely need to think about how they treat others and about the words they use.
After talking to them, before I allowed them to ask questions, it was weighing heavy on me that we are all guilty of that. We all need to be reminded of those very things. Then the girls started asking questions. They were concerned and puzzled. One of the first questions I got was "But what if someone does those things to you?" I had to explain to them that God wants us to treat each other the way we want to be treated or the way he taught us to treat each other, his children. I sounded like my mom when I explained to them that if you consistently are nice to someone who has been mean to you they will eventually be nice to you, or they will at least stop being mean to you because you are no fun to pick on anymore. In a perfect world that is how it would work. The girls became really concerned after that. They didn't want to be doormats. They didn't want people to take advantage of them because of their niceness. I understand completely. We all do. We have all been there. I could speak from experience to them.
The point is, it just feels good to treat people nicely. And it is wonderful to see all people for what they are, children of God. As James said, with the same tongue we praise God, we curse those he created. My prayer for all of us is that we would think about what we say. With our words we can start a fire. And we can't take them back once we have said them. And as Peter encouraged, we should be respectful to each other, don't repay evil with evil, and don't insult people. Thank you girls for helping me realize how important this is. I will miss seeing you on Wednesday mornings!
As I mentioned, I teach a group of sixth grade girls. Boys and girls are taught separately. 4th graders learn the first half of the Old Testament, 5th graders learn the second half, and 6th graders focus on the New Testament. The town where I live in South Carolina was the first in the state to do this program! It has been going on for a long time! We have 22 weeks with these kids. Not a lot of time when you think about it. And we have missed several days due to weather. And several of my girls missed instruction time due to sickness.
This week will be our last week for the school year. It is bittersweet. I have enjoyed teaching these girls. They will graduate from this program Wednesday after spending three years learning the Old Testament and New Testament. I wish some of them new what an accomplishment this was! And I bet at some point some of these students will have wished they paid better attention. What an advantage these kids have! This instruction is an asset!
I have taken this job seriously and have enjoyed it. I hope I have been a good teacher for these girls. And I hope I have taught them as much as they have taught me. Isn't it funny how it works like that? It seems to me in ministry or teaching situations, that I always learn a lot from those I am supposed to be teaching!
Before I close, I want to share something from the girls a couple weeks ago. We were talking about the book of James. There is so much rich material in that book. I was sharing with the girls about listening and speaking. A good section of James addresses this. It speaks about being quick to listen but slow to speak and slow to become angry. The author of this book also tells us that the tongue can do damage like a forest fire, and that "with the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness." On that same class day we were talking about 1st Peter. 1st Peter tells us such things as be respectful to everyone, don't retaliate, don't repay evil with evil, and don't insult people because they insult you. So I was sharing these things with the girls. I think this is an important area for teenagers. They definitely need to think about how they treat others and about the words they use.
After talking to them, before I allowed them to ask questions, it was weighing heavy on me that we are all guilty of that. We all need to be reminded of those very things. Then the girls started asking questions. They were concerned and puzzled. One of the first questions I got was "But what if someone does those things to you?" I had to explain to them that God wants us to treat each other the way we want to be treated or the way he taught us to treat each other, his children. I sounded like my mom when I explained to them that if you consistently are nice to someone who has been mean to you they will eventually be nice to you, or they will at least stop being mean to you because you are no fun to pick on anymore. In a perfect world that is how it would work. The girls became really concerned after that. They didn't want to be doormats. They didn't want people to take advantage of them because of their niceness. I understand completely. We all do. We have all been there. I could speak from experience to them.
The point is, it just feels good to treat people nicely. And it is wonderful to see all people for what they are, children of God. As James said, with the same tongue we praise God, we curse those he created. My prayer for all of us is that we would think about what we say. With our words we can start a fire. And we can't take them back once we have said them. And as Peter encouraged, we should be respectful to each other, don't repay evil with evil, and don't insult people. Thank you girls for helping me realize how important this is. I will miss seeing you on Wednesday mornings!
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Update
So, it has been awhile. Too long, in fact. I went all of February without updating. Horrible me! I promise to get better. But with as many goals as I made for the new year, I am not surprised I have slipped up on a couple! I will strive to write more in March.
What's new in the Baird household, you ask? Plenty is going on. Josh is doing wonderful! I promised to update after his doctor's appointment. Well, that was like on February 7, so I am plenty late. Josh had a great report at his doctor's appointment, and no shots! On February 7 (at 15 months), he was 33 inches long (that is almost 3 feet!) and weighed 26 pounds. That is amazing for my little preemie! The doctor is pleased with everything! Still no signs of being a preemie linger; the doctor thinks any delay with Josh is just due to his being a preemie and his being a boy. Josh is 16 months old today, but he should be 14 1/2 months old. And a month and a half makes a difference! Josh isn't talking as much as I hoped or would like, but the doctor says it is normal for a boy. He still says new words, practically weekly. And I can tell by how he responds to us that he understands even more words. Josh loves to play, and I love it when he learns new things. And Josh can walk, but it is just faster and easier to crawl.
Matt and I are doing well. Just busy, as always. I have started some new programs at church. It is great! I love my job so much. It is such a pleasure to serve the Lord in the capacity that I do. We are getting ready to head into the season of Lent. We will be doing a Bible Study for the 7 weeks of Lent. I am so excited! This is what I have been waiting for. Matt is busy with his job as well. They have inventory the first weekend in May, so he will probably be working every Saturday between now and then, and likely a lot of Sundays. But oh well, it's overtime. And that will come in handy when we go on vacation in May.
We are still working on trying to lose weight. I have not made as much progress as I would like, but I have made some. I have lost like 7 pounds since the new year. But all of that was not me. I had the flu and a stomach virus both in February, which helped me to lose 2-3 pounds of that. Matt and I celebrated our anniversary in January and Valentine's Day in February. We have also had some meals at church, so I have eaten more than I should have. My exercise has not been as consistent as I would like it to be. It was hard to get back into exercising after having the flu. I was so tired! And I have had a few busy days this last month or so. But March is a new month and I am going to hit it hard this month. Some progress is better than none, and it is something to be proud of. I will keep you all updated as we go along on this journey. And I will update again soon.
What's new in the Baird household, you ask? Plenty is going on. Josh is doing wonderful! I promised to update after his doctor's appointment. Well, that was like on February 7, so I am plenty late. Josh had a great report at his doctor's appointment, and no shots! On February 7 (at 15 months), he was 33 inches long (that is almost 3 feet!) and weighed 26 pounds. That is amazing for my little preemie! The doctor is pleased with everything! Still no signs of being a preemie linger; the doctor thinks any delay with Josh is just due to his being a preemie and his being a boy. Josh is 16 months old today, but he should be 14 1/2 months old. And a month and a half makes a difference! Josh isn't talking as much as I hoped or would like, but the doctor says it is normal for a boy. He still says new words, practically weekly. And I can tell by how he responds to us that he understands even more words. Josh loves to play, and I love it when he learns new things. And Josh can walk, but it is just faster and easier to crawl.
Matt and I are doing well. Just busy, as always. I have started some new programs at church. It is great! I love my job so much. It is such a pleasure to serve the Lord in the capacity that I do. We are getting ready to head into the season of Lent. We will be doing a Bible Study for the 7 weeks of Lent. I am so excited! This is what I have been waiting for. Matt is busy with his job as well. They have inventory the first weekend in May, so he will probably be working every Saturday between now and then, and likely a lot of Sundays. But oh well, it's overtime. And that will come in handy when we go on vacation in May.
We are still working on trying to lose weight. I have not made as much progress as I would like, but I have made some. I have lost like 7 pounds since the new year. But all of that was not me. I had the flu and a stomach virus both in February, which helped me to lose 2-3 pounds of that. Matt and I celebrated our anniversary in January and Valentine's Day in February. We have also had some meals at church, so I have eaten more than I should have. My exercise has not been as consistent as I would like it to be. It was hard to get back into exercising after having the flu. I was so tired! And I have had a few busy days this last month or so. But March is a new month and I am going to hit it hard this month. Some progress is better than none, and it is something to be proud of. I will keep you all updated as we go along on this journey. And I will update again soon.
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