Excitement....maybe odd!!!

This past Saturday we drove up to Fort Wayne, IN to visit my sister and brother-in-law. They recently moved into their first house. So for the first time they had enough room for us to spend the night. And let me tell you, finding room to put up nine people for the night is not exactly an easy task. But Rachel, being the amazing house keeper that she is, figured out sleeping arrangements marvelously.

But enough about the house and on to the part I really care about. =P Rachel is pregnant and when they were here at Christmas she still wasn't showing really. So I just could not wait to see her. And as I knew she would be, she was SO cute. Okay, maybe this is just one more odd thing about me, but I think pregnant woman that aren't terribly big, but are definitely showing are very very cute. My mom says it's a girl thing, I don't know. But it probably helps with Rachel that she's my sister. She was just cute, that's all I know!

I'm just so excited about getting another nephew/niece. I love babies to death. And Benjamin is growing up so fast. He really isn't a baby anymore. :( He's still the sweetest little kid ever, but I'm totally excited about the new baby. I've said it before and I know I'll say it again, babies are the most precious miracles God ever made.

"Kid's" movies

What defines a kid's movie? Is there some set formula that makes a movie set apart for kids? I was thinking about this last night as I baby sat. The kids I was babysitting had permission from their parents to watch a movie. So we watched 'Home On the Range'. And honestly, I was really annoyed and somewhat disgusted. This movie, made for kids, was really rather awful. The number of sexual references made was the big thing that caught my attention. There I was, sitting watching a movie with an 8 and 11 year old and the movie was seriously not appropriate for them. While the comments, references, and innuendos most likely went over their heads to some extent, I know they didn't completely. And the thing is, if the sexual references are meant and expected to go over the kid's heads, why put them in? It's sick! To pollute their young minds with information they don't need. With 'humor' that isn't humorous, but on the contrary, crude.

Well, we finished watching 'Home on the Range' and we started putting a puzzle together, but then the kids wanted to watch another movie while we did the puzzle. After getting parental permission they decided to watch Atlantis. Another one I'd never seen. I thought the other was bad. This one was plain and simple, appalling. Not only was it full of sexual references and innuendos, but the visual was there as well. When the explorers reach the city of Atlantis they are met by I guess the princess. And umm.... to say the least, she needed some clothes on. But then it got worse, as little as she was wearing, in one scene she and Milo are together alone and she randomly starts taking off some of what she is wearing.(as if she had enough on in the first place to be taken off) I was like "holy cow, what is this?" The excuse? She was going swimming. But it was a bunch of rubbish if you ask me. She didn't have to strip down to nearly nothing in order to go swimming. The over emphasis on her body was totally uneeded. It was a cartoon for crying out loud.

Maybe I'm old fassioned. I don't really know. All I do know is that while I was sitting there watching it, all I could think was that the animators were a bunch of sick creeps that spent to much time fantisizing about womens bodies. And also, I spent the entire time thinking how seeing this was messing up the 8 year old boy. I mean, he is going to have to face all this later, but why push it at him this early? Why not let him be inocent for a few more years? Well, this post probably seems....uhh...quaint. But really, the movies labeled "kids" today, are not at all apropriate for kids to see.(really not for anyone when I really think about it)

We as Christians need to be so careful. We too easily take things for granted, such as, if a movie is rated G it's okay right? But the young mind is so impressionable. We need to be careful about what we allow to impress the minds children. Keeping their minds pure and inocent while they are young will save them many struggles when they grow to later stages of life. Too often we think, "Oh, they are little, it goes over their heads so if they see it it's okay." Well, that's not at all true. I mean, take the indecently dressed women(I actually hesitate to even call them dressed) for example. Letting little boys see that, it's basically just an early introduction to porn. Sure it's cartoon so it's not exactly the same. But it makes them curious. And it's a curiousity they don't need to deal with at that age.

So what am I saying? Simply this, don't plop a kid down in front of a movie just becuase it's labeled "kids" and not check it out first. You never know what they will slip in there. The subtlties that seem harmless, but are NOT. These subtlties will stick with them. They remember and understand much more than you know.

GenJ

Oh wow, how to best describe GenJ. Well, for starters, GenJ is not the official name. It is short for Generation Joshua. GenJ is an organization with the purpose of getting kids(ages 11-19) to understand the politics that run our country and then help them to get involved.

On the website there is a forum where the members discuss/debate not only politics, but also biblical issues. There is also a chat room that is used for formal chats discussing current events in our country, book chats, etc. The chat can also be used for fun-chatting as as long as a formal chat is not happening.
When election time comes around every year, GenJ holds what they call 'Student Action Teams'(SATs). The SATs are an opportunity to go and campaign for candidates with pro-family platforms. You do everything from phone banking, to literature drops, to sign waving.
There is also a yearly camp were you get to put your political knowledge into action with the mock-election that is held. The week of camp is spent 'campaigning', listening to great speakers, and if you're brave enough, possibly getting yourself elected president. =D
The thing that is the biggest attraction right now,(besides the forum) is the Benjamin Rush Awards Program.

Ok, something tells me that was kinda confusing. So go here for a little more info that is not so confusing. Sorry about that. Me and describing things is not always the best mix. =P

Ben Rush

Ok, so I signed up for the Benjamin Rush Award Program on GenJ. And now I'm freaking out about it. Like, all the requirements are crazy. I don't know how in the world I'm going to get it all done. Especially getting 20 people to sign up. I mean, the majority of my friends, I met on GenJ. So how am I supposed to get 20 OTHER people to sign up. I don't even know that many non GenJers. Yeah, I know it's sad that my friends mostly consist of people that I've never even met in real life. But somehow I have to get 20 people to sign up.

On a lighter note, I get to do some really cool stuff as requirements for the program. Like writing 3 letters to legislator. 3 letters to the editor. Registering 75 people to vote. Doing 75 hours of voluteer work. Go on 3 lobbying trips. Take 3 online civics courses. And then two electives(I don't like most the elective choices but probably I'll do six current even blog posts and make a video).
So yeah, all that stuff looks fun. It will be totally hard work, but fun none the less.

But as if the reward of the experience I'll be getting from all that isn't enough, if I can complete it all, I get an award for it. =D If I do all the above mentioned stuff and it is satisfactory, and I have top five number of points in the end, I will get a $1000 scholarship to a school of my choice plus and i-pod. If I don't do as well, I technically have five levels I can do. With different prizes based on the requirements. But I am aiming for the top. I mean, it can't hurt to try. =D

Bad days/Jerky moments/Happy endings planned by God.

Ok, this is just a random post. But it's about me and this is what this blog is for I suppose so I guess it's fine. I can be such a jerk sometimes. And I don't mean to. It just happens. I say things and they come out way different than I mean them to. And if I'm not careful, I'm going to end up losing all my friends by doing so. I mean, last night, I was talking to a friend, and I was trying to say something but I didn't know how to say it, and it ended up coming out all harsh and, well, for lack of a better word, just plain evil. It was so bad that the friend thought I didn't like them. And wow it was a mess. I mean, the conversation was on chat, so after my friend got offline I realized how terrible I'd been and I went back and read the chat. And wow, I coulda plunged a dagger in their heart and it would have most likely hurt less.

So basically then of course I felt miserable for it. And at church my pastor preached mostly from Nehemiah about how as Christians we need to rebuild the walls around our lives that keep out unmoral things. And I got to thinking, I had let gaps appear in my 'wall'. I had allowed little things that bothered me to add up. And instead of dealing with them while they were small, I let them pile up until they were huge. And then I overreacted about the stupidest thing, taking things way out of proportion.

But all I can say now is, thank God for the power of forgiveness. I mean, my friend didn't have to forgive me. I wouldn't have blamed them if they didn't. I really didn't deserve to be forgiven. I deserved to be yelled at, and hated, and then just ignored. But no! This amazing friend forgave me even after all the rotten things I said to them.

And then I wanted to cry, because of course it reminded me of God. I mean, I totally deserve Hell's fire for all the awful things I do. But God, out of his love and mercy, forgave me. Totally undeserved, totally not mandatory. He just did it. And I find it awesome how He takes the worst of situations, like my jerkiness, and turns them into a spiritual reminder.

God is so good!

True Blessings In My Life

January 16, 2002 a beautiful miracle occurred. Not long after midnight, a baby was born. Often we lose sight of what a miracle this is. After all, babies are born every day right? True, they are. But does that make it any less a miracle?

Psalm 71:6b - you brought me forth from my mother's womb.
I will ever praise you.

Psalms 139:13 - For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.

How can we call it not a miracle? God forms each child with His own hands. With His own 'set of knitting needles'. He is the one that brings each baby forth from the womb. I for one, see that as one of the most beautiful miracles ever.

But that's not the end of the miracle that happened 7 years ago. This child wasn't "normal". Though I'm not entirely sure I know what the word normal means. But if there is a 'normal', his little boy wasn't it. You see, this child, formed by God, had Downs Syndrome.As and 8 your old, I really didn't understand what this meant. My parents explained that John would need more help in learning what most would call, "simple things". But more than the help, he would need an immense amount of love. This love mostly coming in the form of patience.

I honestly don't remember when he was brought home. But being only 8, it seemed like an eternity. It was so hard to wait. I have always adored babies so I just wanted to sit and cuddle my new baby brother. But I couldn't. He was many miles away at Riley hospital in Indianapolis. He was rushed there almost immediately after his birth. The facilities here were inadequate to check for common problems with kids with downs such as heart problems. So, my parents were in Indy, and my grandma came from Illinois to stay with us. She was one brave grandma. To come from her quiet peaceful home and suddenly be taking care of 6 kids between the ages of almost 2 and 11.Yowza! I love you grandma. And you've definitely got guts.

When they did FINALLY come home, John had undergone some surgeries. And he was on a heart monitor. So we had to keep theses wires, which were attached to this black box thingy, stuck to him at all times. How annoying that thing became. If he moved the tiniest bit, the 'sticky' (or not so sticky)things that help the wires onto him would disconnect. And the thing would beep at us. It musta false alarmed 50 times a day. (8 year old's perspective)

As John began to grow, he underwent the learning of the same task as any child. But for him they were different. The normal things like rolling over, sitting up, crawling, walking, and talking were anything but normal for him. It felt like there was always a therapist of some kind here. When speech or physical. During these therapy sessions he was not the only one learning. We were all learning how to teach him. How to work with him in a way that would be most beneficial. And with each accomplishment, we praised him greatly. Though for most, walking comes somewhat naturally, for him, it took a lot of time. Each step he would take was a painful agony to behold(mostly on the ears because he would scream his head of if you made him walk)

Ok, so after all that I've told you, I'm sure you thinking, 'why on earth did she call him a miracle in the beginning of this post'. Well, to list all the reasons would be impossible. So I will settle for simply sharing some of the biggest ways John has been a blessing to my life.

If it weren't for him, I wouldn't be bilingual. See, the thing about John is, he still doesn't speak terribly clearly. Basically nobody outside our family can understand him. He speaks a language we call Johnish. So, I consider myself bilingual because I understand both English and Johnish. Well, I'm not sure what qualifies bilingual. I cannot speak Johnish. I haven't quite figured out the pronunciations well enough to do them myself. But, I could easily get hired as a full time translator. ;)

John took away a fear of the unknown that lurks within us all. There are very few people that, on seeing someone with either a mental or physical handicap, act and think normal. People just don't know how to respond. So they tend to shy away from interaction with anyone that doesn't fit their notion of normal. This really is a fear, though most would not recognize it as such. And having a brother who by most would be deemed 'retarded', I have lost this fear of the unknown, because it is now known.

He is a source of laughter in my life. You don't know how funny this little kid can be. He is such a comedian.

Unless you really know someone with Downs, you really have no clue what I'm talking about, but no one on earth is as loving as them. John is always ready to give out hugs. If I'm having a bad day, John often cheers me up. And along with being loving, he's totally lovable. You can't not love him.

He keeps me from growing old too fast. He always wants me to read children's books to him. Or do puzzles with him. Or just whatever. Just play.

Who else am I going to find to dance with me. =P Nobody else calls to me as I'm walking through the room "Melody, daaancccee" It sounds silly, but we blare some music, and dance around the kitchen. The first few times were kinda weird because I was self conscious of how silly I looked. But I decided that, it doesn't matter. Nobody else is seeing me anyway. And dancing around to crazy music, spinning him in circles until I think I'll die of dizziness, those are the kinds of memories that will stick with both of us. And I don't want to leave home leaving him with memories of how big sister Melody wouldn't dance, she wouldn't be crazy just even a moment because she cared more about what others might think than she did about me. I what him to know that I love him enough to be crazy with him.

But you know what the biggest blessing of all is? Just having him here. With all his quirks, with all the difficulties, I love him to death. I don't care if he never learns to read. Or even if he always gets his colors right, he is my little brother and I love him more than words can express.

I LOVE YA BUDDY!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

Poem

Ok, sorry I don't have time for a real post right now. So I'm just going to post a random poem. I wrote this about a year ago and came across it the other day. And I'll warn you, my poetry is not wonderful. Far from it. I never can get any rhythm so sometimes it doesn't flow too well. But anyway, here it is.

Mercy

I was studying mercy the other day,
Looked to see what the bible had to say.
Each verse I read seamed to make it quite clear,
Mercy's undeserved, that's why it's so dear.

If it weren't for mercy, we'd all be dead.
I'm sure you remember what to Titus Paul said,
Not through righteous things that we have done,
We were saved by God's mercy in sending His son.

Peter calls us all God's elect.
Says when we're saved there's an immediate effect.
Taken out of darkness and placed in the light,
Our completely blind eyes at once received sight.

This is the mercy of God above.
This is the true definition of love.
Now I would like to reflect this each day,
Showing mercy to others in some special way.