Jul 1, 2009

Welcome to my blog (again)

So you're reading this now because you've been invited to view my blog. It's not that I'm excluding anyone, it's just that it has come to be that it needed to be this way. I took my last post down for about the same reason. It maybe won't be this way forever, but for now my circle of trust is pretty limited. Thanks for being in my circle. I appreciate you.

Here's the latest: things are ok, considering. I am waiting to hear back about another part time job that I hope would start sometime in the middle of this month. Hannah is doing well. She's sitting on her own, and she is rolling to the point that we can't leave her alone on the bed anymore. She's so much fun! It has been so much fun to watch Jeff and Hannah together the last couple of weeks. It really is a beautiful thing!

This weekend I'm going to St. Louis for my sister's bachelorette party. I'm a little ashamed (and maybe, in a weird way, proud) to say that this is my first bachelorette party. So I'm going to look up online if there are things that a matron of honor is "supposed" to do. Sad, isn't it? *Sigh* Oh well. I'm looking forward to some away time, though it will be my first night away from Hannah. Wish us luck!

May 7, 2009

I'm Just Sayin'

Lately, many of my clergy friends have embarked on many plans to raise up other young clergy within The United Methodist Church, and I applaud them for it.  However, I get frustrated when it seems that clergy leaders are the only ones who "matter" when looking at the future of the denomination.  I know clergy are supremely important to the continuation of our denomination in the future.  Afterall, I am married to a pastor and daily see the ways in which he and his colleagues care for and lead their congregations.  However, they won't have a denomination, or congregations, for that matter, to lead if we don't also focus on raising up "lay" (non-clergy) leaders.  

I'm struggling here and in my interactions with the topic to not seem like I'm whining.  ("Look at me, I matter, too!!")  I also struggle because I am one of "those" people who would like to see change but don't know how to help/start and don't really have the desire to be the one to forge the path.  In all honesty, that's why I dropped out of the ordination process to become a deacon--too many questions to answer and challenges to overcome.  And I saw a way that I could be in ministry without having to jump through the hoops.  Do I regret it?  Not really.  The whole issue of defining who deacons are and how their ordination is distinct and different from elders and now local pastors is a mess that seems to only be getting worse, and I don't want to go into that right now.

I think my biggest concern is that by focusing so much on raising up "young clergy," I see a potential devaluing of the ministry of the laity, who are equally as called and equally as necessary (if not more so) to the work of the Church.  If we are truly to see change in the way our denomination is heading, then we need leadership, yes.  But that doesn't mean that the clergy have to or even can do it by themselves.  We are called to work together.  

There is another caution for those who are now classified as "young" clergy (however that might be determined), whether by age or time in "the system."  The caution is this: if you don't quickly look behind you at those who are coming behind you, then you risk putting yourself in the same situation as those with whom you seem to be frustrated now.  The danger is that you might be fighting for change that you yourself will not benefit from.

So, that's just my two cents.  But then again, what do I know?  No one's laid hands on me to set me apart, I'm just one of the masses.

Apr 3, 2009

Pearly white

Hannah has a tooth!  

We've figured she's been teething for a few weeks now, what with the increased drool and chewing on anything she can get her mouth on.  Yesterday I thought I'd feel around in her mouth to see if I could feel anything, and I found the beginnings of a tooth already pushed through her lower gum.  It is so cute!  I never thought I'd get so excited about a silly tooth.  Truth be told, I'm also excited that the fussing seems to have dissapated and my sweet, smiling, content little girl is back.  It's fun to watch her feel her tooth with her tongue.  She's been doing that for a while now, but just yesterday I figured out what she was really doing.

I've always paid attention to people's teeth.  I don't know why, but I would say that it is one of the first things I notice or remember about a person.  It is kind of weird to think that Hannah's mouth will now be forever different, no longer the gummy, toothless grin.  Ah, my little baby is growing up!

Mar 25, 2009

Sex God

A while back, I read on Dustin's blog that Community of Hope UMC would be doing a sermon series on sex, called Sex God.  I was curious what the premise would be and how forthright the discussion would be.  Their promo is all about how we never talk about sex in the church, but yet we are surrounded by talk/sight of it in our culture.  I have been very interested in what Joe, COH's pastor, has had to say.  I appreciate his candor and honesty.  He suggested in the first sermon of the series that parents take their young children to Sunday School instead of staying in the service, but that middle school and especially high school teens, needed to hear these messages.
 
You can listen to the sermons here, or subscribe to their podcast on iTunes.  I'm also catching up on previous sermons.

Mar 3, 2009

Lent

Once again, Lent is upon us, thankfully later than it was last year.  I'm not exactly sure when it was that I started, but most years I give up something for Lent.  One year it was chocolate (about a week after my sister had given me a box of cherry cordials for Valentine's day).  Another year it was pop, which lasted until the day before Easter when the Pizza Hut worker asked me to taste the drink I was buying for my co-worker to make sure they had the lines right in their pop machine.  Those are the big ones.

This year, Jeff and I decided to give up tv for Lent.  All tv.  For all of Lent.  Well, sort of.  We gave ourselves some exceptions, because the intent is to not have it on at home in the background all the time.  Admittedly, I watch more tv than Jeff does.  Almost every morning, I turn on NBC's The Today Show while we're getting ready.  Then at 11 I switch over to ABC for The View and it stays there the rest of the day until the news comes back on.  I just like NBC news better.  But at 10:35pm we tune in to The Late Show with David Letterman and fall asleep to that, unless its Saturday, in which case we fall asleep to Saturday Night Live.  Seriously, a tv is on in our house almost all the time.  

So the point is to be more intentional about spending quality time together.  We decided that we would not watch tv content online because that's really not that different than watching tv.  Also, we decided that didn't include renting and watching movies, or watching tv at friends' houses if that is the activity.  (We are aware that Lent falls mostly in March, during a thing called March Madness.  We are very thankful to be back in the listening area where we can listen to Bob Davis call the games on the radio, even when the KU Jayhawks play in the Final Four and National Championship games.)  I'm finding that the challenge for us is that we don't spend the evenings on the couch with each of us on a laptop.  That seems like replacing the tv with the computer and is not so much a sacrifice or different way of living, which to me is the point of giving something up for Lent: it forces you to rethink your every day patterns and way of living.

Which brings me to another blog I read today.  Jon Acuff writes the blog Stuff Christians Like.  It's kind of a tongue-in-cheek, real look at "stuff" Christians like, hence the name.  Today's post examined giving things up for Lent, specifically tv, and his points made me stop to think.  Particularly #9:

  Have I really learned anything if I just gorge myself on all the shows I missed the minute Lent is over? If I lock myself in a closet the day after Lent concludes and watch 19 hours of Lost and 30 Rock and the Office and the Soup, has anything in my life changed?

So I ponder this as I examine how my days are different without the tv on in the background.  How is your life changing by what you are giving up or adding for Lent?

Feb 23, 2009

New Hannah pics

There are new pictures of Hannah up at www.theclingerfamily.com.  Click on the photos tab at the top of the page to see pics of her from the last couple of weeks.  Such a cutie!  :-)

Feb 12, 2009

"On My Own" - or - "Out of Proportion"

This week Jeff has been in Arkansas for the New Church Leadership Institute (NCLI).  It is the second of two weeks he has been gone for the institute.  He went to the first one in October, and we had the "what if" plan in case I went into labor (I didn't).  I think I spent at least one night in Lawrence with Barb and John (Jeff's folks) so I wouldn't be alone for the whole week.  This time, I had sole "Hannah duty" all week.  Jeff encouraged me to try to plan things to do each day to help the week go by faster.  And actually, the week has been pretty good.  Monday I met Sara and Kara for what I thought would be a "working" lunch but turned out to be just lunch for my birthday.  Tuesday I was able to get some work done during the day, and then Hannah and I went to walk around the mall while dinner was cooking in the slow cooker.  Last night I had a meeting in Lawrence and tonight I had rehearsal, so Wednesday evening I loaded up the girls (Hannah and Kayla) to spend some time with Barb and John.  They watched Hannah last night during my meeting and tonight during rehearsal.  Tomorrow I will meet Julia, a long-time friend, for brunch, then get the girls loaded in the car to go home.

This week has made me appreciate a couple things: #1 - all that Jeff does around the house and his presence and support; #2 - how helpful it is to be living close to family; #3 - how much I appreciate John and Barb being willing to watch Hannah (so, ok, we don't exactly have to twist their arms to do it, but still...); #4 - what a privilege it is to have the option to work part-time; and #5 - how difficult it would be to be a single parent.

Thanks for doing this parenting thing with me, Jeff!  I'm glad we're doing it together.

Jan 22, 2009

WAAY too long

I can't believe it has been so long since I've posted! If you're reading this, you no doubt know that on 11-11-08, "BC" became Hannah Marie! She was 8 pounds 2 ounces, and 19.5 inches long. She's now 10 weeks old, smiling, cooing, and generally being cute...except when she's being fussy, which seems to be more frequent lately. We're working on that.

We had an ultrasound on her pyloric valve after her 1 month doctor's appointment, and found that it was fine. We had been concerned about the amount she had been spitting up, and problems with that valve run in my dad's side of our family. She's fine and really healthy, so we feel blessed!

I went back to work in the middle of December. That's sooner than I would have liked, but I figured I needed to be around for Christmas Eve. I was part time before Hannah was born, and am still, which is nice. I have been driving to Lawrence just two days a week, on Sundays for worship and Thursdays for rehearsal. Mondays are Jeff's day off and I will probably be going to Lawrence then. It will mean we lose a family day, but I think it will be good for Jeff and Hannah to have time to themselves.

Last night we took dinner to some friends who have a one-month old and almost-three-year-old, and it was amazing how much bigger Hannah was than Kaia. Granted, they can still wear the same size clothes, but it was pretty neat to see the difference.

Life is different in the Clinger house, which we are making more "ours" with some painting and other changes. We are so thankful that we're close to family. Hannah ("little h" or "hmc" to distinguish from Mom) has had lots of time with grandparents and aunts/"unlces." My sister is in the middle of a rotation in Topeka (about an hour away) and we've been able to hang out much more than we will when she goes back to St. Louis. And Jeff's sister was able to spend several days here between Christmas and New Year's.

Hannah was baptized at Church of the Resurrection on Dec. 27th, and despite funky weather, we were able to celebrate with all six of her grandparents, aunt Erin and almost-uncle Jay, aunt Rebekah and almost-uncle Mike, great-aunt Patsy and great-uncle Wayland, great-aunt Charlotte and great-uncle Charlie, Grandpa Suffron's cousin Judy, Mom's cousins John and Sue. We were sorry my grandparents couldn't make it, but it was wonderful to be surrounded by our families.

I guess that's about it. I'm going to try to update on a more regular schedule. Feel free to hold me accountable. :-)