Well, for those who may be wondering, we are home and trying to get back into usual routines. We got home on Sunday night late (really early Monday morning) just in time to thwart some thieves from making off with our neighbor’s car radio. We live in a nice middle class neighborhood, but were hit by two young men who were breaking into cars and stealing purses and radios. Fortunately, my husband heard them and dialed 911, and described events as they unfolded to the operator so that she could direct the police. We didn’t know at the time that they were just targeting cars. We were concerned for our safety and for that of our neighbors too. Unfortunately, the young men got away by jumping into a rainwater gully and running.

We felt so thankful to God when we looked back on all that happened that night….thankful that we came home that night instead of the next. Thankful that we had gotten in so late which meant that my husband was “less asleep” at 3 AM than he would be on a normal night. Thankful that they just were going for cars and not homes or people. Thankful that Joe was awakened by the noise and reacted quickly and calmly. Thankful that the police responded so quickly (not necessarily a given in this city). Thankful for God’s continual mercy and protection of our family.

On a side note, it was especially comical to be thankful for the police that night. I had been pulled over for speeding about 15 minutes before we got home at 1:30 AM. I have never been pulled over before and so I was pretty traumatized, although Joseph thought that the police car behind our Jeep was pretty neat and Joe was more that understanding and kind. I tried to be thankful for police officers and their protection of all of us, but was still feeling a bit unnerved if not annoyed by the whole thing. However, let me tell you, after having 6 able officers respond to a 3 AM 911 emergency, I was thankful once again!!

I’ll write soon about my little sister’s wedding and all of our other travel adventures (and there were some!). For now, we are having Joe’s staff and their spouses over for dinner tonight. That means I have to serve dinner for 16 in two hours. My preparations have gone well though and I am hoping to be able to enjoy being hospitable rather than running around frazzled at the last minute like usual. Hospitality is definitely a learned art and I am slowly learning!

I spent the boys’ dual naptime (the hour or so that their naps overlap) to plan for Thanksgiving. The Flylady has a helpful section on Thanksgiving, and I used her lists as a starting point for getting together a plan. I want to be the type of hostess that is not so busy running around that she is unable to enjoy her family and guests. And I want to be a good cook (cooking yummy things from scratch), clean housekeeper (no clutter or dust bunnies everywhere), and joyful person (with a genuine smile). And on top of that I don’t want it to be formality, but to be born out of a real servant heart towards my family as I rejoice in the work that God has called me to. I am thankful that God is still working on me as I learn more and more in all of these areas. I am FAR from attaining these goals, but “do not {want to] grow weary in doing good”(Galatians 6:9).

One of the things that I learned from Laine was realizing that I am “in process” still and that God is still working on me, not just in daily santification, but also in growing me to be a housewife. I can allow myself to learn, to try new ideas and recipes and methods, and to fail. I can realize that things won’t always be perfect or even good, but that God is concerned with my attitudes. A willing heart, a teachable heart, a satisfied heart, and a joyful heart—these are the things that I want to cultivate as I learn. Laine always wrote with such enthusiasm about her jobs as a wife and mom. I was thinking yesterday that I should work at my jobs here at home with even more vigor than I would at a job outside of home. I can read and learn new skills just as I would if I were trying to advance in a new career area.

Anyway, today I planned everything that I would need to do each day to have a stress-free Thanksgiving. I want to do a little to prepare each day so that it is not overwhelming at the last minute. Today, I polished my silver candlesticks and washed out my big Armetale bowl for decorating the table. I got out all of the serving dishes that I plan to use and stuck a post-it note in each specifying what will go in it. I stuck my turkey in the fridge to thaw, and I wrote out my plan for the rest of the week. I still need to get out my serving utensils and my linen tablecloth. I also need to double-check my recipes to see if there is anything that I need to buy.

Will, Joseph, and I leave next Monday to go to Virginia for my little sister’s wedding. We’ll be there for about a week and a half before the wedding to visit, and Joe will join us the day before. That means that that Joe will be here by himself for almost 2 weeks! He has already told me that he’ll miss us and I know that he will. The house will be so quiet without us, I’m sure. I am planning on leaving him lots of things already prepared for him to eat, but he’s not a big cook, so I’m not sure what he’ll use.

I’ve just put Will down to bed and Joe is reading Joseph his story before he goes down. It has been a long and good day. It is rainy here and cool but not cold. A gray day that is perfect for napping, an unattainable activity for a mama with two small children. Will was up in the night last night too, which is so rare, and a nap would have been much needed today. We are finally going to see a gastroentomologist this week to get some better medicine for his reflux. The Zantac seemed to be helping for a little while, but he has been miserable this past week and with our upcoming trip to Virginia, he needs to be better since we’ll be away for so long. Last night, he was up from 3-4 AM and I finally got him to sleep by nursing him in bed with us and then snuggling him closely with him on his tummy. I dozed for a bit and then carefully carried him back to his crib around 5:00 AM. He was crying again just now and so I helped him drop off to sleep and then got started on tonight’s work. I’m back now and want to post this before I go to sleep. On Saturday night, we try to get everything clean and ready for the Sabbath so that it will truly be a day of rest. Having an uncluttered house, the table set, and church clothes laid out on the ends of beds really help us get going in the morning. Enjoy your “day of rest and gladness!”

My xanga writing has diminished recently partly because I didn't know what to say and partly because I haven't taken much time to sit at the computer. We brought the TV from out of storage to watch a movie last weekend when my mother in law was here, and I made the mistake of not asking my husband to put it right back away. So, I've wasted some time recently watching TV. I have folded laundry, cleaned the kitchen, made dinner, made bread, cleaned, etc. while watching some days, but some days I just vegged and that is not who I want to be. I've been reading online about women who inspire me to be more and do more and that is where I want to focus.

Philllipians 4:8 says: "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-- think about such things." This verse is so appropriate, because I want my heart and mind to be filled with things excellent, praiseworthy, right, admirable, true, and noble. I don't want to have the things of this world (which already are so omnipresent) seep into every facet of my mind. I want to think about what is noble and excellent, not what is base and superfluous.

I think that is one of the reasons that I don't like watching TV. (Actually, that sentence isn't quite right. I DO like watching TV. However, a better way to say it is that I think that watching TV is not the best for me.) The stories fill my mind with things that are not uplifting, and they don't inspire me to be more than what I already am. When I read a good article or book about someone's struggles towards Christlikeness or patience in affliction or peace in persecution, it spurs me on towards love and good deeds (Hebrews 10:24). After a few hours in front of the "boob tube" (as my mom always called it when I was growing up), I feel drained and tired, as if my life has paled in comparison to the action of what I watch.

But that is just the opposite of the truth. In Christ, we have life abundant. Life to the full! Jesus said, "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10:10. The shallow storylines of the typical drama or sitcom cannot offer any fullness, only glitter and frosting. A life in Christ is deep waters and fruitful vines.

May I fix my eyes on the author and perfecter of my faith (Heb 12:2) and may the world grow dim in His light.

"So then, turn your eyes upon Him, look full in­to His face and you will find that the things of earth will ac­quire a strange new dimness."
from Fo­cused, by Lil­lian Trott

I’m not sure how coherent this will be because it is just stream of consciousness, but here it is:
I am really discouraged. I went to my usual Wednesday morning Moms Bible study at church. Will had already had a fussy morning and I had barely had time to look at this week’s lesson. Joseph always stays home with Joe for “man morning” to account for the late hours that Joe will be working at church tonight. Will needs to nurse about halfway through the study and so he comes with me.

We got there late and small group time was just so typical. One of the women dominated the conversation with stories about God’s faithfulness to her in her job. I really have a hard time with this woman (although I like talking to her and have enjoyed her personally) because of her working and the way she talks about it. One of the first meetings she talked about how her two kids, ages 2 and 4, are in 5 day a week preschool (euphemism for day care). And “Hallelujah, thank you, God for that!” she said. I thought, “How awful!” The worst part about it is that everyone laughed and said, “Wonderful!” How could she think so little of her role as a mother to rejoice (and praise God none the less) that she was not raising her own children? This morning, she was relating a story about how God was faithful because He worked details out so that some sales counted for last month and she met a big sales goal. As she went on and on about her stress and busyness and how she always feels weird asking our prayer for her job but men don’t and so she realizes that she shouldn’t either….all I could think of was—this is wrong! We shouldn’t encourage her to not be a mother, which is what we are tacitly doing by smiling and nodding as she relates these stories. (And before you think that perhaps she “needs” to work, she carries a Louis Vuitton purse.) Is there a place for someone to say in love that perhaps she should be a mother and wife and not focus on her career?

While all of this was happening, Will was started to fuss and so I nursed him discreetly. As I burped him between sides, he spit up and some women in the group were so uncomfortable. Both of my boys have been spit-up babies and so I am used to carrying burp clothes and wearing a lot of easy to wash clothes when we are at home. What added to my issue today was how several women in the group acted. They made such a big deal about it. I just would have loved it if they had quietly smiled and nodded as they happily reminisced about nursing their kids (which most of them didn’t) and the little inconveniences that sometimes come with being a mom. Kids here are looked at as being a burden and a hassle and spit up on the floor (though carefully cleaned up by me) during a women’s Bible study small group is just one more example of the intrusion that kids cause.

After small group was over, Will and I headed into the main room for the large group meeting. I chatted with a few of the moms from Joseph’s play group and then sat down. I sit away from the main group next to the back wall so that I can walk with Will or slip out if he cries. Out of the group of 160 moms in the study, there are three of us that bring our infants. The rest are stacked away in the nursery on the other end of the church. When the group quieted down and the speaker began, Will made a few happy cooing noises and I got a few smiles from some moms. He got a bit noisier (though still a happy noise) and one of the moms in the back row turned around and gave me a look that said, “Who are you? And why is your baby here?” Now, the whole reason that I sit by the back wall is so that Will and I will be as little as a distraction as possible. I want everyone to be able to focus on the speaker and I understand that noise is distracting.

I decided not to stay and so Will and I headed for the door. By the time that I got to the car, I was stewing and I mulled it all over as we dropped a prescription off at the pharmacy on the way home. Nothing that happened this morning was earth shattering, but by the time I walked in the door to our house, I felt completely defeated. What am I here for? What is the purpose of my role as a mom and wife? Does it have any value? My pessimism was going full force and I doubted every aspect of who I am and what my life is. I tried to explain it to my husband, but hadn’t had enough time to really think through what was bugging me. He reassured me of my value as a wife and mother and prayed for me before he left for work.

The boys are both tucked in for their afternoon naps and so I have had this time to write. I don’t think that it was until I got this all down that I really felt the energy to combat the hopelessness and meaninglessness that was creeping into my heart. God is reassuring me in answer to my husband’s prayer even as I write this.

The people that I am in contact with here do not value the role of a woman as a wife and mother. Children are seen as dolls to dress up and baby-sit rather than as eternal souls that need to be pointed towards the truth of the Gospel and disciplined to grow Godly character. There is little thought of the ideas that my husband and I have towards children.

--The idea of finding joy in the plethora of delays and trials that come with having children and seeing those things as part of God’s plan for our good, blessing and sanctification.
--The weight of the stewardship of raising covenant children and the responsibility of having a goal of them being holy rather than happy and disciplining them towards that end.
--The simple joys of a family at home—warm fellowship built around shared times of eating, praying, singing, working, and playing.

Do I always think my children are easy? No. But are they always a joy? Yes. And especially if I am seeing them and my circumstances through eyes of faith that see as God sees and do not value the things of this world.

So I guess after it all I am lonely. Lonely for some likeminded women who rejoice in motherhood. Who see their children as blessings. Who see value in nurturing them and just raising them. I know my husband is right in saying this morning that we are “missionaries to a foreign culture” more than we realize. Our mission field just happens to be in a church in Mississippi. May God be glorified here and may He grant me eyes of faith to see as He sees.

1. What time do you get up?
6:30 –7:00 whenever Will needs nursing or hubby needs to get in the room to shower

2. If you could eat lunch with one person, who would it be?
probably the President--why not?

3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema?
My husband is a huge Lord of the Rings fan. The last movie we saw in the theater was The Return of the King.

4. What did you have for breakfast?
Instant cheese grits

5. Who would you hate to be stuck in a room with?
the Clintons

6. Beach, City or Country?
Country

7. Favorite ice cream?
Anything chocolate really….if I had to narrow it down—Rocky Road

8. Butter, plain or salted popcorn?
Butter and salted

9. What kind of car do you drive?
a dark green Toyota Corolla

10. Favorite sandwich?
a bagel sandwich from Bodo’s in Charlottesville, Va with roast beef, cheddar cheese, sprouts, mayo, and tomatoes.

11. Are you a morning person or a night owl?
Just ask my husband…I am NOT a morning person

12. What is your shoe size?
Size 8

13. Do you have any pets?
a 9 month old chocolate lab named Nollie who is a handful

14. What characteristic do you despise?
Deceit

15. Favorite flower?
Well, I just planted 50 daffodil bulbs in my front beds, so I guess I really like daffodils

16. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go?
back to the cottage where we honeymooned on St. Bart’s

17. Favorite brand of clothing?
Anything that fits, looks good, and is on sale

18. Where would you retire to?
Joe wants to retire to a sailboat; I’d like to be close to our boys and their families…we’ll see!

19. Favorite day of the week?
Saturday—family play day!!!

20. What did you do for your last birthday?
I don’t remember!!

21. Where were you born?
Radford, VA

22. Favorite sport to watch?
college football or kids league soccer

23. What fabric detergent do you use?
Arm and Hammer

24. Coke or Pepsi?
Dr Pepper, actually…but since I’m nursing…water

25. Gold or silver?
Platinum!

My MIL is here to visit for the weekend. She is spending tonight in a hotel because she is here on business and has an early client meeting tomorrow that she wants to focus on. After work tomorrow she is coming here and will be with us until Sunday midday.

Joseph has really been looking forward to seeing "Meemaw" and was in rare form tonight showing off all of his new skills: doing a forward roll, jumping, identifying the letters of the alphabet, singing, and talking up a storm. She loved it, as any grandmother would, and we laughed at his antics. Both boys were up late waiting for her arrival, but both went down without a hitch. I am so thankful to have boys that sleep well. All of that time put into getting them established in their routines when they were little has really made it easier now.

Well, I'm off for now. I haven't really recuperated from staying up for the election and so it will be an early night to bed tonight.

Just a quick entry tonight...we have kids from church here and they are all in the other room watching election coverage. I made a double batch of chocolate chip cookies, but we have tons left over. Hopefully, they'll eat more before they go so that we're not stuck with so many leftover cookies, chips and dip, and candy corns to tempt me.

We're all rooting hard for Bush. We'll see. I bet that Kerry will say he has won no matter what and will challenge it all in court. I am so glad to know that I can rest in God's sovereignty even in this--He has a plan for us.

Do you ever have those days where you get so much done around the house that you are so proud of yourself? And then, you turn around and realize how much more there is to do? As I am learning more about myself, I realize what a classic perfectionist I am. I can’t be happy with what is because I am thinking of what should be. This perfectionism is one thing when it shows up in how I feel about housework, but another thing altogether when it turns into discontent in God’s provision for me. I need to practice contentment as I learn to rest in who God is and not in myself or in my efforts.

But back to my housework….Today is my major cleaning day. With the way my weekly schedule is, I have found it works best if I devote one day to staying home and doing major house cleaning. Monday is that day and this is what I did today:
Washed towels and bathmats from master bathroom
Vacuumed master bedroom, front entry, living room, and den
Cleaned shower, sink, floor, and toilet in master bathroom
Washed clothes
Made whole wheat bread
Straightened downstairs
Swept back entrance stairs and garage
Swept front porch and sidewalk
Fed and entertained my two boys
The key to my Monday morning marathon cleaning is the fact that Joseph plays outside during Will’s morning nap. As soon as Will goes down, I spray Joseph down with bug spray (the mosquitoes are awful here) and out he goes. He runs around the backyard, and I think that Mondays are probably his favorite morning. He plays with the dog, plays on the swingset/slide/fort, runs around, pushes his lawnmower, and just generally behaves like a little boy outside. Thanks to the many windows in our house, he never goes for a minute or two out of my sight even while I am working. Usually about the time that Will wakes up from his nap, Joseph is ready to come in and I put him straight in the tub because he is always so dirty. I think that is half the reason he loves it so much—I just let him play and get dirty.

Both boys are now down for their afternoon naps and these are my minutes of alone time. I am definitely an introvert—I need my time by myself—time to be quiet and to think. My husband is the extrovert who gets his energy from being around people, but I get re-energized by being alone, not an easy thing for a mom of two wee ones. So, these afternoon times are precious to me.

This afternoon, I hope to finish Joseph’s new Sunday outfit finally. All I have to do is put on the buttons and he’ll be ready to go. The whole thing cost less than $5 and so I’m so proud of myself for stretching our clothing budget and ending up with a cute outfit at the same time.

Well, Will has just drifted off even as I wrote that paragraph and so I’m going to go. The quiet has begun!!!

Xanga is down tonight…or at least my computer is having trouble loading it. So, I’ll have to write this offline and post it later.

I haven’t written for a while now, but have enjoyed getting daily updates from the blogs that I am subscribed to in my inbox each morning. Although I didn’t feel up to writing, it was comforting to read about others’ lives and happenings. If nothing else, by attempting to blog myself, I have found the sites of Godly women and have enjoyed their anonymous camaraderie. Anonymous camaraderie…an oxymoron, I know. Still, it is what popped into my head to describe the phenomenon of reading about other women’s lives through their blogs. Naturally, after time, one feels a kinship, a bond, and even a friendship with the writer that he has never met or perhaps even communicated with online. And so it is with the women whose blogs I read. May God grant us all encouragement in Him through these shared lives, though the ties between us are but tenuous computer cables and blinking monitors.

We are still struggling with the conflict at our church. My husband is suffering for the sake of the Gospel and we are encouraged by God’s promises. I told one friend today of the trouble and she prayed for me before we got off the phone. Even just being able to express all that has gone on to someone helped and she committed to bringing it before the Lord in prayer too, which was a comfort to my heart as well. My mom and sis (since they are states away, I felt okay with sharing with them what we are dealing with) have been encouraging too…. particularly my mom as she has reminded me of God’s sovereignty even in this, though I can’t see it now. Praise be to God for His faithful servants who come alongside us during difficult times.

That's all for now. I want to get the house more settled before Joe comes home from another late meeting. And perhaps I’ll get more sewing done on Joseph’s new Sunday outfit.

Yesterday, my husband and I realized that we have had a theme in our lives together—lizards! That’s right, creepy-crawly lizards! It seems that wherever we have lived over the past 4 years that we’ve been married, lizards have also lived side by side with us.
For our honeymoon, my honey whisked me away to a small Caribbean island called St. Barthelemy (or St. Bart’s as it is known to the swanky set that frequently visits there). It was beautiful and unlike anything that this relatively sheltered Southern girl had ever seen. We stayed in a cottage on the beach, with the ocean at our doorstep and enjoyed the saltwater breeze that blew in over the water. We jaunted around the island in a rented Jeep and spent lazy afternoons together on the beach. We were not, however, the only residents on our little plot of land. One could not step outside without running into one of the many long green iguanas that made their homes in the bushes around our cottage. They ranged in size from about 1 foot (the babies) to 3 or 4-foot adults, measured head to tail. We have a classic picture of my new hubby chasing one around the yard.
When we were in NC, we had a family of blue-tailed skinks that lived under our front porch. We would come home, disturbing their afternoon lounge in the sun, and watch as they scurried away to safety. (One spring, we also had a pair of sparrows that made a nest on our front porch. But that does not fit with my lizard theme, so I’ll save that for another day.)
Now that we are in MS, we have a new type of “lizard” keeping us company. I don’t really know what these are called—my mom says they are anoles, but I have never even heard that word before. They actually look like miniature versions of the iguanas that we saw on St. Bart’s (see, I can sound trendy and in the know too!). They are usually 4-6 inches long and either green or brown. Occasionally, I see one extending a red pouch under his chin in what I imagine is an attempt to look appealing to the lady lizards. They are remarkably fast and scurry around happily on our deck or through the trees in our yard. Today when we got home from the library, one leaped off of our garage door to the safety of the ground when it was startled to discover the door opening.
So, what is the deeper meaning of the lizards? Is God preparing me for bigger scarier creepy crawlies in some exotic missionary locale where He will call my husband? Or is it all simpler than that? Perhaps they are just lizards and just one more part of God’s creation for me to enjoy. Only He knows. In the meantime, I will enjoy my latest lizard buddies and hope that my next reptile neighbors won’t be these guys.

It is a tricky thing to be a wife. I want to honor my husband and give him the freedom to lead our family, but I don’t know how to do that in the day to day things of life. This week, Joe has had a lot of difficult things happen with the youth group—kids in trouble and parents upset. On the one hand, I want him to feel only support and encouragement from me so that he has a safe home to rely on. On the other hand, I disagree with some of the ways he handles things and want to tell him so. How can I balance those? I know it is possible with care, but too often my emotions overwhelm my good intentions. He also has been working so much that we have had too little time together and so I am not as tender towards him as I should be.

I just got interrupted while writing this by a phone call. My friend called at just the right time and I think it was an answer to prayer. I think that I need to take a step back and just be his wife. I need to be a bit removed from all of the controversy and just be on his side. I do love him and want him to know such support from home. I know that is the right thing now…why do I always have to get my opinion in there?

And as for one good lesson to come from all of this:

Note to self: When my boys are teenagers, realize that they are NOT perfect. If an adult says they did something wrong, deal with it with my sons. Don’t accuse the adult of not handling the situation right or of embarrassing my sons by pointing out they were wrong.

A few months back, we bought a double stroller, the Cosco Summit High Back Booster Car Seat w/LATCH, to help me be more portable with 2 boys (very convenient, btw). With Will out of the baby carrier car seat, it is even more tricky to go with 2 because he can't just drift off to sleep in his carrier and be seamlessly transferred from car to stroller.

Our adventure today involved a trip to the mall. After happily cocooning at home for so long, it was a harsh jolt to realize how long it had been since I had been shopping. I avoid it anyway because I am just not a shopper, but with trying to trim our budget recently and with Will's moodiness, I have just stayed home. I didn't realize it either until I tried to get out. Several shopping errands have descended on me all of the sudden. I need some new running shoes. I need a birthday present for my little sis. And I need a birthday present for Joseph's best friend Samuel's 2nd birthday party this weekend. We left the mall with none of those things and three tired and cranky people.

It is finally cooler here and so I guess that means I need to add one more thing(!) to my shopping list: warm clothes for the boys!

Speaking of one more thing, I just had to mention The Flylady. More to come about her, but I've been using some of her routines and plans now for about 2 months and it is a pretty good system. Her philosophies are a bit too self-centered for me, but her ideas are helpful.

One of the joys (and I do mean that literally) about being a mama of two small boys is that there is little time during the day to do superfluous things. Thus, though I was upset enough while watching last week’s presidential debate to yell at my TV, I haven’t had time to write about it until today. During that debate, I acted as a zealous football fan might act while watching his favorite team in the Super Bowl--the type of fan that shouts advice on how to play and berates the opposition for doing well. As if by his own sheer urgings, his team will win.

And so I was as I watched Kerry and Bush square off over domestic issues and trade barbs about voting records, energy plans, tax increases, and whose math is “fuzzy.” It had been a particularly busy day and so we only caught the last part. Still, it was enough to make me understand why those rabid football fans yell at their TV’s. With enough free time, I could write pages about my disagreements with Kerry and his woeful inadequacies as a senator, a leader, a president, and a person. But the main point that stood out to me was on the issue of abortion.

A young woman stood up and asked what each candidate would say to someone who was morally opposed to abortion and wanted assurance that her money would not go to support this practice which she found morally reprehensible. Kerry’s answer was so slippery, but the gist of it was so wrong. Underneath the niceties and vague attempts to not offend anyone, he basically said, “Tough luck. In a socialistic society, your money will support what you consider to be murder.” (Oh, but first he argued that one shouldn’t impose one’s morality on another! That is the most philosophically ridiculous statement! What about the laws punishing murder, theft, battery, etc.? How dare those laws impose morality on me!! He was just saying that only HIS morality—or lack thereof—is valid. The logical inconsistencies which he espouses so sincerely are truly shocking.)

I held my breath to hear how Bush would respond. Would he stand up against this evil or glaze over the issue in the hope that by not taking a stand he would not alienate people? His mediocre debating skills aside (I wanted him to point out Kerry’s lack of logic) he made his stand. In plain language, he said that we needed a culture of life in America, not abortion. I beamed with pride as my President (isn’t it nice to be able to be proud of our top leader?) was willing to stand alone for morality in a culture that praises relativism. He is not perfect by a long shot, but at that moment, I was proud of him.

It's rainy and gray here today. The kind of day perfect for lounging in bed all afternoon and doing nothing. I tried to do just that, and was greeted loudly about 5 minutes later by the hungry cries of Will. So much for a lazy snooze.
Tonight is the second presidential debate, but I think that I might skip it. Although I am dying to see GWB do his best, I need some hubby time with Joe too. We might have a debate "date" though, so we'll see.

I do hope that W will be able to clearly articulate his message. He has the right ideas, and I know that the people will support him if they get to see his passion for protecting America. Although, Kerry really tried to lambast Bush for the Iraq conflict because of the current situation there, it is easy to criticize after the fact. Having the intelligence information given him from the FBI and CIA, the support of valid allies (despite Kerry's dismissal of them as not being a "real" coalition), the fresh memories of 9/11, Gulf War I, etc. I don't see how anyone would've made a different decision than the difficult one that Bush made at the time. We were all shocked by the power and venom of the anti-American fervor of Al-Queda and needed to address the global threat of terrorism where ever it existed. Thankfully, we now know that Saddam was less of a threat than our intelligence originally thought. But anyone who questions the President's decision now is just as misguided as any Monday morning quarterback.

So this is my first entry...obviously. The concept of a blog has intrigued me for a long time, but I have only lurked around other sites until today. I am reticent about having one of my own for several reasons--the main one being that I'm not sure I have that much to say. Actually, that is not true. I have tons to say, I'm just not sure how it will all come out. I want to be articulate and interesting and I'm not sure I'm up to the task. I've recently read two blogs: http://www.alittlepregnant.com/alittlepregnant/2004/10/placenta_previa.html and http://www.thiswomanswork.com/ which I found because I read an article by Dawn who writes thiswomanswork and she linked Julie's. Both are incredicle writers, with wit, insight, bare confessions of deep thoughts, and plenty of time to write (or so it seems). I also disagree with 90% of what both write, but the way that they write is what is so daunting. I have neither Julie's acerbic drollness nor Dawn's polished philosophies. But, "ours is but to do and die" so here goes....