artful blogging
June 3, 2009
This morning I was searching for inspiration for an upcoming project and stumbled on a new annual magazine called: Artful Blogging. Imagine that! So I went down the trail in search of those who are filling its pages. Here is what I found:
The Daisy Cottage is a sunny little spot to escape to on a rainy day! Check it out. It just makes you want to escape for a visit with tea in hand. What a girl planet…one of those places that sucks you in and suddenly you find yourself making an obligatory purchase so as to capture the moment and take it with you.
and this little gem by Laura Taylor Mark
pinging for peace
May 14, 2009
For the last week or so, our internet connection has been slowing to a hault. Finally, when we couldn’t even connect, we called our techy guy who came out to fix it. Turns out, one of our routers was infected with a virus and we were being “pinged,” a new term for me… someone or something trying to break into our system. Meanwhile, there’s never a dull moment and so much has happened in the last week. Both of our cars in the shop today, I owe Uncle Sam some big dough, our house is still on the market, our Visa bill is about to explode, the company that Paul is working for is downsizing, we’ve had some very rough issues to deal with in our family, our resources are tapped and the cherry on top: I just got a parking ticket!!!!!!!
This morning I found myself searching for peace and thought of that funny little word: pinging. I need an adventure, a good book, a magazine, a trip the zoo, a cup of tea, a vacation…something to ease the stress. As I was “pinging” to get out, I was also putting away laundry. I opened a drawer to my dresser and inside the drawer were these two verses on raggedy little cards:
My God shall supply all your needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Phil 14:19
Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall. Ps 55:22
Three days ago Miika and I were in our living room and we heard a girl singing at the top of lungs as she walked by our window, “Great is thy faithfulness, morning by morning…” her voice trailed away as she walked down the street. I ran out to see who it was—a short little girl with Down syndrome. I wanted to catch her but she’d disappeared around the corner. Yesterday at about the same time, I heard her singing as she passed by, “…down came the rain and washed the spider out. Out came the sun…”
Thomas needed a sign, the Israelites needed wonders and I need messages to let me know that God is really in control. I’m thankful that God caters to my humanity.
finally spring!
May 4, 2009
For passersby, our building just looks like a quaint old Tudor next to a playground and the train station. But if you get up close, it’s more like the UN. Our building houses students from around the globe and our playground is overseen by Eastern European nannies. It’s a safe and wonderful place and though I’m cautious about letting Miika go out without me, I’ve also learned that certain times of day are perfect for her to join the buzz of children because at any given time there are about 3 nannies and 3 moms who we’ve gotten to know. Today, I was in a first floor apartment, setting up furniture, stocking it with dishes, etc.. and looking out at the playground every few minutes to keep an eye on Miika. Nathan was with me snatching tools and scattering screws, but occupied enough for me to work. I looked out and saw Miika and a new friend frantically picking dandelions like there was no tomorrow. It was getting late in the afternoon so I went out to fetch her and met her friend’s nanny who was making little tiaras out of dandelions. This dreaded weed never looked so good! This Polish nanny was expertly weaving flowers together at rapid speed trying to keep up with the demand of little princess-wanna-bes. What a beautiful sight! Here is Miika bearing her prize with Nathan.
Two Sundays ago Miika and I snatched a moment and went for a walk while Paul stayed home with Nathan. We live near the woods and every time I go by, I can see that our woods are bursting with wild flowers. So I was itching to get out there and hike around. Miika, glued to the TV, didn’t want to go at first, but once she got out there and walked on the carpet of flowers, I practically had to drag her home. It was really too muddy to hike, so we just tip-toed around trying not to squash flowers. Generally, I have a NO-PICK policy in the woods, but there was so much bounty, that I let Miika take a few…”Just don’t pull them by the roots,” I warned her. Here they are on our window sill celebrating my favorite season, spring!
full hearts
April 21, 2009
April has been a race that I think we won.
We have 11 students right now and 9 of them joined us for Easter which was a BLAST!
I think they really enjoyed having a taste of tradition.
That’s Miika in the red coat moments before the mad dash for eggs…they call it a “Hunt” but it’s more of a scramble and pounce. Miika only came away with 3 eggs because she’s not used to fighting for her treasures. By the way, that’s our building in the background!! All we had to do was walk out our front door to join the masses.
Somewhere in the flurry of busyness Miika lost her first tooth this month! Yes, the tooth fairy came.
Lastly, we hosted 8 agents from Saudi Arabia, China, and Kuwait this past weekend. There’s no real way to express the mixture of exhaustion, exhilaration, and energy that went into this event. Let’s just say I’ve been taking naps for the past 2 days, trying to catch up on lost sleep. It was a thrill to meet these people who were generous in spirit and bearing gifts. Paul and I had the time of our lives!
These April days have started at around 4:30am and ended at midnight. It’s been a whirlwind! A good one though.
missing moments
April 2, 2009
I’ve been so focussed on all the work to do that the magnificent developments that Nathan is making are heard in the background. He catches me off guard when little words and even sentences pop out of his mouth.
“Mama, heee.” Translation: “Mama see.”
“No Kaka.” Translation: “NO Miika!” Which means she’s picking on him and he’s standing his ground.
What a thrill when out of the blue he said, ” ‘A’ apple, ‘D’ Dada, ‘M’ Kaka (Miika), ‘T’ Tony.”
There have been many more talking moments, but they’ve slipped from my memory because I didn’t write them down right away. It’s so hard to balance time in our current chaos, so this my attempt to trap a few of the magic moments in this blog so they don’t slip away.
a very, very, very fine house
March 31, 2009
Well, our house is officially on the market. Click HERE for a visual tour. Now that it’s all put together, it’s time to go….
On another note, we are very excited about all the new students coming this weekend. We have 6 coming and possibly another 2 transferring. This is the goal that we have worked so hard toward—building an international community. I finally feel like we’re on the verge of why we are here…to be continued. We have a ton of work to do. Yesterday we had a shipment of 5 couches and 4 chairs coming in the back. Meanwhile the front door was buzzing with 200 pounds of linens. Then we went and rented a big van to shuttle students and later a truck arrived with 22 pieces of bedroom furniture: beds, desks, and chairs. In 2 weeks we will host 14 more international agents, so we’ll have a completely full house for a few days. I love it!
In our kitchen is a map of the world. Miika gets a daily geography lesson as we tell her where everyone is from. She’s also learning a lot of responsibility as my little helper, watching Nathan while I dash out to do this or that. I thank God for my mom who comes 3 days a week to entertain the kids and keep them from turning into complete couch potatoes while Paul and I buzz around on this wild adventure.
displaced
March 23, 2009
All the anticipation of moving…the packing, the cleaning, the sorting, the fixing, and then the actual transporting of objects…has transformed into just trying to make a new place feel like home. All I can say is the dynamics of a move are SOOOOO emotional and complex. Maybe it’s because our kids entered the universe by way of Natchez Street, or the friendships that were formed there…whatever the reasons, it’s hard to let go. Every time we go back to grab a few things, or primp the house, there is melancholy. On Saturday, we all went over to see how the new basement carpet looked…and all of our close neighbors converged. We were admiring and mourning. The house is picture perfect. It smells clean and fresh. There is no clutter. It has a new echo because so many things are gone. It’s so hard to explain the feelings…like it will always be mine, but it won’t. Like we belong there, but we don’t.
When we bought our house in 2001, it was mouse infested, there were no light fixtures, it had ugly gray carpet everywhere, there was puke in the bathroom toilets, the kitchen cabinets were sagging and full of mouse poop, the windows were boarded up, the front door was smashed in and the backyard was full of branches. It looked like a giant nest for a prehistoric flying creature. We had no doorknobs, no appliances, and it took 4 weeks of cleaning before we could even move in. We commuted 25 miles each way every day from West Chicago to Chicago after work, slaving away. The former owner had 9 guys living with him and they were dealing drugs. One day the Feds came and bashed in the front door and hauled them away. We bought the house from the Federal Marshall for a really good price.
We put our heart and soul into it for the past 8 years.
As much as I want the simple life, saying “good bye” to our Chicago home is hard. And letting just anyone buy it is even harder. So I pray every day for the next home owner. Our house is sacred to me. It’s a place that I prayed for and prayed from every day that we lived there. Over the past 8 years, we witnessed a transformation that only God could’ve done. There are no longer drug dealers on our street. There is a strong and connected community. Before our kids were born, I was a COMMUNITY ORGANIZER, passing out fliers for this and that, getting the block party together, forming a book club, etc. After Nathan was born, another neighbor took over, then another and another and I have stepped back. Now everyone has a role and it’s all working. Our house became the hub and I pray that the next people will be the joiner-types. I’ll never forget that all the neighbors knew us before even moved in. Each one had taken the time to come by and introduce themselves. Prior to moving to the city, we had lived in a quiet condo community in the western burbs where everyone stayed to themselves. Natchez Street is like Sesame Street. In the summertime, the kids are out, and the grownups can be seen drinking coffee or lemonade on the front steps together…our front steps!
our living room before… (3000 staples were pulled out of these wood floors one at a time!!!)
and after
our sagging kitchen cabinets made of water logged particle board
and after… quarter-sawn, Amish made, solid wood cabinets, NO LAMINATE!!!
So, we are gradually letting go. After all, we can’t take it with us when we leave the planet, right?
Just one last thing…to the next owner out there, whoever you might be, please don’t paint my cabinets white!!!!
snippets of our new life
March 15, 2009
Every scene of home is different now, yet familiar.
The little house is back by popular demand…our tiny time capsule, when entered could be our Chicago home or our River Forest Home. I think it’s helped both kids feel comfortable in our new home.
Miika in her new bunk bed…sleeps under HOT steam pipes…so we open the window even on frigid days.
Since moving here, Miika has watched WAAAYYYY TOO MUCH TV. So this week I finally got rid of it. She’s fallen in love with the Chronicles of Narnia. Paul’s been reading them to her at night. And I play them on CD in the afternoons after school. This way she can do he homework, draw or sculpt while she listens. When I was a kid, my mom got rid of the TV when I was 7. I learned how to listen and work with my hands. We might just keep it put away indefinitely. It’s just a time waster anyway.
I didn’t clean up for any of these pictures because it’s just about life and the new things we see every day.
Miika sits here for every meal and when new students arrive, we show her where they came from. She’s getting a grip on geography.
For now, my office is the corner behind the couch.
Nathan’s new eating spot too.
This is what we see when we look out our living room window. We can see when Grandma’s train arrives at the station. This is also the Park District office and the hub of a host of family activities. I pinch myself every day, happy that we’re here. To the left of this picture is our playground and soccer field where we’ve been meeting our neighbors and Miika’s classmates’ families. Basically, it’s a kid magnet.
All of us are very happy about this new chapter.
keepers
March 5, 2009
“Miika, look…there’s your very own playground, your own sledding hill, your soccer field, and best of all, look at your castle! And Mommy & Daddy are the castle-keepers.”
“Yea, and we can walk to school!” Miika replied.
Castle-keepers, and this is the view from our castle…long leaded windows where I can see the feet of passersby because we’re in the “garden apartment.” The pipes over our heads thunk as steam and water clash, the train rumbles by, there’s a swoosh of cars zooming past. And we have embarked on an urban adventure.
Yesterday we went to our house to meet some folks who were interested in buying it…we’ll see about that. But, as I stood there waiting for them to arrive, each room staged and spotless, it was the strangest feeling. I could almost hear the voices echoing from all the gatherings, the memories, the discoveries. Both our children were given life in that house, they learned to walk, talk, sign, ABCs, colors, counting, animals…friendships were born there that will live on. It’s a strange thing letting go of a place to move on to the next. We’re on a raft with no oars, floating down the river called Life waiting to see where it takes us. We’ve moved through a door without walking because the ground under our feet has moved us. Happy, sad, nervous, excited, terrified. If our house sells before we even put it on the market, we’ll know we’re on the right road. Afterall, I am an Israelite at heart, wandering in the wilderness looking for the next sign, even though there’s a pillar of fire by night and a pillar of cloud by day. I need bigger signs and wonders to let me know that I’m headed in the right direction. Every day I ask God to let me know if we’re doing the right thing. I am a Doubting Thomas who needs to see.
2 beautiful stories
March 3, 2009
Moving is not fun, in fact, it’s horrible…but I’ll write about that later.
Today I received 2 emails with simply beautiful links. The first one is Conny Wenk, a German photographer who weaves the lives of kids with Down syndrome into happy, jumpy photos that reach deep. She has put together a new book about 3 beautiful little girls, one who just happens to have Down syndrome.
The second story is about one of our pastors, Chris Castaldo who has a son with hemophila. He and his wife Angela manage their son’s condition, but they have reached out to a young African named Elton by taking him into their home while he receives medical care at Rush. Chris’ blog dances with words that make you smile!
The lesson is that disabilities provide opportunities to stretch outside the comfortable little boxes that we think we’d rather live in…only to find a beautiful universe that never would have been discovered had we not been thrust into it.