YONDER BREAKS

I've written often that men should listen to the women in their lives. Even as a proponent of this message, sometimes I find myself reluctant to at times. A big example of this in our household is in the arena of kitchen appliances. One of the first contentions in our marriage was over how many kitchen appliances we have had in our life together. Each of us has attached ourselves to one such appliance or the other -- a rice cooker, griddle, juicer , coffee grinder, blender -- and sometimes the other spouse just wants to get rid of it! Lately, I have been on the side of minimalism , because let's face it: these things take up too much valuable counter space! We live in the biggest place we ever have, and have trimmed down our appliance arsenal, but somehow we still don't have enough space! And then, in an undisclosed bout of frivolous spending, my wife ordered a rice cooker! After we left our last one in California for lack of use. What nerve! I questioned her motiv...

Take a look at these verses from Matthew 16:21-27: From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem  and suffer many things  at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law,  and that he must be killed  and on the third day  be raised to life. Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!” Jesus turned and said to Peter,  “Get behind me, Satan!  You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.” This is a pretty common verse, but I never caught what exactly Jesus might be saying here. The word "stumbling block" hit me differently this time (as a block of wood might do). Often I read this as if a stumbling block is a thing commonly lying around that you trip over occasionally, a regular part of the household in a regular routine. But think about this: why would anyone wil...

Christmas is over. Obviously. This year we had a bit of an extended season though, as we had a few Christmas celebrations with my family, before going up north to visit my wife's family, and then came home to an awesome and unexpected  snow storm that gave my wife an extra week off of work. The whole thing was really amazing and a great way to end one year and start another. However, as we took down Christmas decorations, Ellie had a little trouble saying goodbye to the holidays. I totally understand, as I have vivid memories of the day after Christmas ( Boxing Day to our northern neighbors) being solemn and feeling a bit empty. Sure, I probably just came off of an awesome Christmas and had tons of new toys and video games to play with, but the whole expectation of the big day is really what makes the season magical. The older I get, the easier it becomes to let go and move on , looking forward to new adventures in the new year; but I can certainly sympathize with my three ye...

Isn't snow beautiful? Having never lived above 34-degrees latitude, I typically only get to see it on snowboard trips or when visiting my in-laws. This holiday season, however, I have gotten two solid snow storms in only a week's time, and in two locations. The gift has been such a blessing, and as I have gazed at the large fluffy flakes falling in droves, or scanned smooth blue rolling hills, covered in four inches and lit by a full moon, I think snow teaches us some things about God and life. First: I struggle sometimes with the idea that God could love so many people at once. Often times I find myself in a congested space, or a downtown area, and I look around or at the apartments and town homes near me, and think, Even if God just loved all the people in this area, that would be an incredible thing . But to think that God loves a whole world's worth of people, and has been doing so for centuries upon centuries...well, that is certainly something beyond my comprehensio...

Recently I was invited to speak on a podcast about being a stay-at-home dad . It was super fun and I encourage you to check it out at that link, or below! In the conversation, the concept of introversion/extroversion came up, and how that relates to being a stay-at-home dad. I said it was good, because in my 2+ years of doing it, I have spent a lot  of time by myself or with only Ellie, much of it being when she could not speak in sentences. I remember telling Katie that I could really spend about two full days at home without leaving (save a walk to 7-11 for coffee or a trip to the park) and still be content. By the end of that second day though, I needed to get out. Katie, on the other hand, being an extrovert, could barely make it a day before needing some interpersonal interaction. As I have frequented parks and playgrounds, I have noticed that women tend to be alike in this (with exceptions, of course), often congregating at parks, making play-dates, etc. But without that i...