Our First Kiddie Play

For some reason that I do not know, the company that leases the church a copier has standing tickets to almost anything that takes place at The Olympic Center in Lake Placid. Edwin called me with much excitement to let me know that we had gotten free tickets to see Curious George Live! Last night we headed to Lake Placid to see the show and enjoy a family dinner at the finest of restaurants.

After stuffing our faces with french fries, chicken nuggets, a Big Mac, and a salad for Mommy, we enjoyed a little play time before time for the play.

Then we headed to Lake Placid. After oooing and ahhhhing at the sights of Lake Placid (It is really beautiful, and they have real stuff there, like a Gap Outlet, Bass, and Starbuck's!), we headed into The Olympic Center to sit down and get ready for the show.

We went in way too early. It was 35 minutes between the time that we initially found our seats and the time that the show began. Much too long! So the girls climbed the stairs (which I loathed by the end of it. I really should have worn sensible shoes.) and ran around.

Finally the warm-up lady came out. She encouraged the children to scream loudly for George to come out, which DeLaynie took as a warning.

And the show finally began!

There were a few parts that the less cultured members of our party were confused by,

like the dancing meatball lady,

But all-in-all, the girls were well-behaved, the show wasn't nearly as painful as a kiddie show could have been, and we all had great time. Except for the meatball lady. She shall never forget (what I hope is) her first acting gig.

LOST Finale (my excessively detailed perspective)

I know, you’ve heard about this thing for months. If you’ve never seen an episode, or dropped out after the first or second season, you probably wish everyone would just keep quiet on the subject. But I was a LOSTie for several years, even though I tried very hard to not be insane about it.

I keep thinking through the finale, debating its merits and failures. It’s always been a show that’s more fun to talk about than to just watch, and I just can’t find anyone around who watches it. You, therefore, must take on the burden of being my LOST buddy.

The very best article that I have seen on the finale, or at least the one I most agree with, is here. In it, John Kubiceck offers the theory that if you loved the show purely for the drama of the characters and their relationships, it was perfect (which explains why so many of the women I’ve talked to seemed to enjoy it). If you are a sci-fi lover, and watched it because you actually thought there would be answers to the ridiculous number of mythological questions that the show posed, you were disappointed. Sure, the producers said that they wanted the audience to think through the questions for themselves, but you can’t create a fake universe, give it certain properties that don’t exist in reality, and then expect those of us who dwell in this reality to come up with solutions. (I mean, who guessed that the “heart of the island” was going to be a cave full of light? Did the producers believe that we could come up with that one on our own?) So here I am, completely void of answers to so many of those nagging questions. (What was the water in the temple? What made it brown? Was the browness of the water responsible for the way that Sayid changed after coming back to life? How did that polar bear with the Dharma initiative tag get into the dessert, where Charlotte found it? What happened to her and Daniel, and why did they not go with the others? Why was Ben invited to move on while Michael endures eternal whispering on the island? What happens with Richard? Why was he not invited into the church? Did he ever receive pardon? And I could go on and on...)

Here is how the show actually ended: Jack dies in the same spot where he first woke up on the island, next to the same dog who woke him up. Hugo and Ben protect the island together. Desmond, we assume, makes it home eventually. Kate, Miles, Sawyer, Lapidis, Richard, and Claire fly off the island, but apparently they do very little with their lives because “the most important time of [their] lives was spent with those people [back on the island].” It’s actually pretty uneventful. Sure, it was emotionally satisfying, but I am a person who likes answers and unpredictable solutions. Those I did not receive.

There’s one more thing I really have to mention here. The main issue that I’ve always had with the philosophy of LOST is that it teaches that faith is very important, but the object of that faith is not. This might be one of the emptiest belief systems that I have encountered. Faith means believing in something to the point that you trust it. Without a recipient of that faith, you are trusting, quite literally, in nothing. You can’t have a trust-fall without someone there to catch you. Well, you can, but you’ll just hit the floor. Who wants to hit the floor for all of eternity? Even to the last moment, the characters had no idea what eternity held. If you don’t think that this was the message that the producers/writers meant to send, and believe that it was a mere side-note, re-watch the finale, and look for this scene:

This window was prominently displayed during the explanatory scene of the finale. This was the thesis of the show, that all faiths are valid and good. Only a lack of faith is truly wrong. I don’t blame the show. The writers/producers were espousing their beliefs on the largest forum that they had available. I am doing the same.

There is one God. One way to get to Him. Jesus Christ alone provides the sacrifice required to receive forgiveness from the sins that we commit, sins that God will not ignore. If there was any other way, why would God allow His Son to die in my place? His cross should never find its home in a window full of alternate theories. It’s the symbol of His death, which allows me to know the Object of my faith intimately and meaningfully. And that’s no fiction.

The Undeterred Attaway Girls

Today we went for a picnic. It was my idea, which usually results in drama and disappointment. Today the girls were pretty resilient, and we had a good time.

DeLaynie was most excited by the prospect of feeding the geese. The geese, however, were on the other side of the pond, and were’t hungry enough to grace us with their presence.

Edwin tried coaxing them over by chucking food at them...

The girls joined in, too,

but the bread didn’t make it too far when they threw it.


The geese were pretty far away, so even Daddy’s throws didn’t come close. (Yep, the geese are over there, on the other side of the pond.)

I was afraid that this would result in wailing and gnashing of teeth, but Ella turned her attention to more friendly wildlife. (Yes, that is a beaver, and no, I don’t know why there is a ride-on beaver at the pond.)

Both girls eventually decided to watch the geese from afar, armed with positive attitudes.

This is completely random, but Edwin took a picture of me and DeLaynie, and I wanted you to see me rocking the new shades. It’s taken a lot of self-coaching for me to get comfortable in the popular style of sunglasses, but I’ve finally done it! Stand in awe.

Both of our little drama queens were well-behaved and happy for the entirety of the picnic. This is the exception these days. Somehow they have discovered that they are, in fact, female, and are generally required to have some sort of melt-down during every family event. Maybe they’ve grown out of it?

When we got back home, we refilled the swimming pool. Excuse me, DeLaynie refilled the swimming the pool while I watched. Neither of them wanted to take the time to go inside and get changed into bathing suits, which was fine by me.

They also learned about the joys of the slip-n-slide. But they didn’t quite get the concept, I’m afraid.

DeLaynie carefully traversed the length of this outdoor amusement,

but to no avail. It inevitably resulted in a slip. (I tried explaining that this was the point, but she didn’t care for my pessimistic attitude.)

Still, she got right back up and went back to playing, though the absurdity of intentionally slipping lingered.

Ella enjoyed running between the Diego-themed slip-n-slide and the well-contained puddle we laughingly refer to as a pool. She didn’t always make it into the pool with grace.

“Hey! Grace is DeLaynie’s middle name. Not mine!”


It was a fun beginning to the weekend. May the rest of it follow suit!

Happy weekend, everyone!

The Teenage Pastor’s Wife

There is an alarming rumor going around our village. The new pastor is either married to a teenager, or he has somehow managed to have a teenage daughter, even though he is only 30.

Yep. That would be me, the teenage pastor’s wife. Except for one little detail. I am 25. Still young, but certainly not a teenager. I think that it may have to do with the ponytail, my semi-permanent ’do. All of the sweet ladies in my Zumba class were utterly shocked to discover that I haven’t just graduated from high school, but I am married with two children, both born in the joyful confines of marital bliss.

I’m sure that I will appreciate this later, but I really don’t want people to assume that I’m 14 years old, and I already have a four year-old daughter. That doesn’t really send the message that I’m going for.

Oh well! I guess that there are worse things than looking ten years younger than you are.

Freedom!

The weight-loss contest is over! Our final weigh-in was last Monday. We didn’t win, but we came in a respectable fourth place (out of 20), and I hit my goal. I was quite pleased with myself.

Of course, the minute that the final weigh-in was over, I went off the deep end into a pool of all things fattening. I needed it, or so I would like to say. Now that my rampage is over, I’m trying to learn something new: moderation. I can eat next to nothing and be okay for a short while, but living in the real world and staying smart with my food choices is a completely different subject. I don’t think that I am capable of “just being smart”. I think I need a system.

I’m trying out Plan A. I make sure that I get in enough vegetables and water everyday, and I try to stick to an eating schedule. I get three “exceptions” every week for meals out or a special dessert. I am really hoping that this plan works... Plan B is to return to calorie counting. (Ugh!)

Happy Mother’s Day!

I find it very easy to forget how little I see my mom, or dad or brother, for that matter. We talk all the time, and we are just as good of friends now as we have ever been. I haven’t seen my friend since Christmastime, and now I miss her. It isn’t overwhelming, but it nags at me every once in a while. She is a great mom, and I wish that I could be obedient to God and be near to her and my family. But I can’t, and God has blessed us in every way because we are where we are supposed to be. I wouldn’t change the path we tread for anything. Still, I miss her.

My mom hates all pictures of herself. I, however, do not think it acceptable to forget her face or the sweet ways that she interacts with her children and grandchildren. Therefore, in what I will refer to as a respectful act of rebellion, I am going to post a few pictures of my mom, knowing that none of them can capture the beauty of motherhood or grandmotherhood. (I’m sorta sorry, Mom.)

The above photo was taken last Father’s Day. I find it hard to believe that it’s almost been a year.

Happy Mother’s Day to all moms, but especially to my own. Thanks for raising me to follow where God leads. It is worth it all!

Play Time!

We wanted to meet with a couple about a camp pastor gig Edwin excitedly took on for this summer. They have four girls in tow (ages 4-12), so with the addition of our two girls, there are a lot of girls when our families get together. We decided to meet at the local playground, which would have been brilliant, except that there is no bathroom. With seven potty trained females, that should have caused me to re-think this plan, but I didn’t. I know. I’m a real genius.

We had a great time anyway though (granted, my girls had no need for a bathroom while we were there.) You’ll notice that DeLaynie has a bundle of dandelions in almost every picture. She absolutely loves these smelly little buggers, so she spends a large portion of her time weeding the universe.

Ella, being an Attaway child, loves the swing these days.

They both love climbing through the labyrinth of a playground.

And here, of course, is the obligatory photo of me with a child. I promise that I was not strangling her, no matter how it looks.