Daybook

Outside my window...

The sun has set and the clouds have rolled in. We had a wonderful weekend in regards to the weather. A beautiful sunny day yesterday and the majority of today was sunny. The rain is expected again tomorrow.

I am thankful...

This may sound crazy, but I am thankful for Joshua's mom. She paid us a visit this past week and said something that has stayed with me. We were talking about raising boys and preparing them to become men. Anybody who knows me, knows that I do an awful lot of complaining about the cleaning skills of my husband. Basically, he sucks at it. Really bad. He has this uncanny ability to not see messy rooms or dishes. Or full trash cans. Or dirty clothes on the floor.

Anyway, Kay and I were talking about her situation raising three children on her own. Without going into the sad details, the men in Kay's life were not role-model material. Growing up Kay had to deal with a lot of negative situations, caused by the primary men in her life. When she had children, and two boys at first, the important thing that she wanted to teach them was honesty, faithfulness, love, and respect. These were the important qualities that she wanted to equip her boys with as they became men.

As she said that, I realized that these qualities were vastly superior to mine. I am thankful that she raised such a faithful and honest son.

I am reading...

I am more than halfway done with "Ahab's Wife." This book is amazing.

"And to the north again. A vast, what is that form? It slides under the water all square in front and tapering. How came that iceberg so rapidly, so close? Not ice. Living flesh. A sperm whale the color of ice!

He turns and swims parallel to us. He is like a ghostly shimmer under the blue-white water. He could be a mass of bubbles, a cloud. Would any eyes but mine ever have discerned his shape? He melts now into something blueish. I know there is a great blue whale, but I have never seen it. This white one is of enormous size, but his shape is clearly sperm. Is? I must say was, for he dissolves."

The entire book is like this. I am really enjoying it and highly recommend it.

In the kitchen...

Last week I experimented with english muffins. They turned out terrific. Right now I have a batch of dough rising. It will become cinnamon-raisin english muffins.

I am still making yummy granola about once a week.

I am listening to...

At this exact moment Journey just came up on my i-tunes. A great tune, "Who's crying now."

One of my favorite things...

Right now Levi and Claire are teaching each other yoga moves on a blanket on the floor. They both have several yoga poses down perfect. Well, perfect for kids!

The rest of the week...

We continue with swimming lessons this week. I have to say, Levi has a changed opinion in regards to the water this time. Levi is a bit of a cautious fellow. And he is definitely not a fan of water. However, this round of swimming lessons he is a changed boy! He actually likes it! He is not complaining or holding on to his teacher with white knuckles! He is putting his head under water and floating on his own! Claire was born doing all those things.

On Tuesday it is also Claire's Name's Day. In the Orthodox church we give children names of a beloved saint. This builds a life-long bond between the Christian child and that saint. We believe that the particular saint that they are named after pray and intercede for the child throughout their lives. Children are named in the Orthodox church around their eighth day and it is with this name that they receive communion. Claire's "Christian" name is Claudia. St. Claudia was the wife of Pontius Pilate and was the one person who defended Christ before his crucifiction.

She is only mentioned in the Bible one time, but her statement to her husband, "Have thou nothing to do with that just man: for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him." Of course, Pontius Pilate did not heed his wife's warning, instead leaving Christ's fate to the angry mob who cried for his crucifiction. Perhaps it was her heart-felt warning to her husband that caused him to "wash his hands" of Jesus' fate. He declared to the Jews that they were killing an innocent man.

Not much is known about St. Claudia, but it is a common belief that she became a Christian after the death of Christ. If you also consider the times, she should be considered a very strong and passionate woman. Not only did she defend Christ to her very powerful husband, but she did this while Pilate was sitting on the judgement seat. Most likely she had only heard about Jesus and had not meet him.

On Tuesday I will read the portion of Matthew where Claudia is mentioned. Her god-parents and god-sisters sent her a package that she will open.

Claire is not a shy child. She is defiant and strong-willed; much as I imagine St. Claudia was.

A picture to share...

St. Claudia