Are there other women out there like me?

OK, I have learned that I am not like the majority of women in a few areas. Here they are:

1) I hate malls. When I walk into a mall, I feel overwhelmed. I start looking in one store and then think, "Gee, there's 20 other stores that could have better deals!" I end up with one shirt at the end of the day and a feeling of, "What a waste of time."

2) Craft shows-I hate them. I mean, some of the stuff is kind of pretty, but to my way of thinking, it's just more stuff to lift off the shelf when you have to dust. I hate dusting too, but I think most women detest that.

3) State Fairs-It's actually a great place to go if you're feeling rather frustrated with your body. I have found that most people are pretty fat at the state fair. After walking around in the humidity, though, and seeing Johny win a ribbon for growing the largest cucumber in the Western hemisphere, I'm ready to call it a day.

4) Quilting clubs-What does one do with more than one or two quilts anyway?

5) Those little parties that you're always getting invited to where someone is selling candles or jewelry. You end up going because you don't want to hurt the hostess's feelings and then you end up buying something you don't want because, again, you don't want to hurt the hostess's feelings. There is one exception-Pampered Chef-you get to eat the samples!

I'm so proud of myself! I was talking with my Aunt Faith on the phone tonight and told her that I didn't know how to post pictures on my blog. Well, I just figured it out. Most of you are thinking, "Big deal. It's not that difficult." Yes, but I'm what one would call "computer challenged," so don't rain on my parade. I thought I would post a picture of my wonderful family. This was taken just two weeks ago the day after the arrival of our 4th blessing-Autumn Virginia Gruenwald. Adin, Arwyn, Ava, and Jim are seated next to the baby and me.

"Be still and know that I am God." Psalm 46:10

"A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones." Proverbs 17:22

These are two great verses for moms with little ones. I like to think of myself as a patient person, but sometimes my facial expression and calm demeanor don't exactly reveal the stress I am internalizing. My husband is out of town, so I am at home with my five-year-old, three-year-old, and one-year-old. Now they are good little kids, but, like all kids their age, they need me to do many things for them. Tonight as I was changing a poopy diaper, my three-year-old was asking me to do something, and my five-year-old was yelling, "Look at me, Mom! Look at me, Mom!" I started to feel my blood pressure rise. I reminded my five-year-old that I was only one person and couldn't "do it all." He actually understood and stopped clamoring for my attention. I calmly reminded my three-year-old that once I said I would do something, she didn't need to ask oh, say, 200 times for the same thing. Calm on the outside I was, but a bit stressed on the inside (I sound like Yoda). Anyway, I have a friend named Amy who is the epitome of a "calm" mom. In fact, she's just a calm person. Just the other day I was on the phone with her talking about their upcoming move to Arizona. Now they are moving in only two weeks. She was packing up the house, getting stuff ready for a yard sale, and being a mom to five kids. During the conversation, her oldest daughter came in the house to tell her something. Amy said, "Oh, Naomi just decided to poop outside." Naomi is her two-year-old. I must admit that if this were me, my first response would be something like, "What? This is great! Tell her to clean it up herself!" I'm hoping I would at some point realize the insanity of having my two-year-old clean up her own excrement and go do it myself. Anyway, my point is that being relaxed just seems to come easily to Amy, as I've noted in other people. Sometimes I'm relaxed, but other times I have a hard time just "being still." When I'm at home, it's as if the dust on our dresser is saying, "Hey, would you mind cleaning me? It's been a year!" So, I'm going to focus on Psalm 46:10 when this happens. I don't recall who wrote this, but I once read, "What seems urgent is not always what is most important." When I'm pulled in three different directions, I think I will just remember that some things are beyond my control and begin laughing hysterically. I've heard that sometimes it actually helps to make oneself laugh. I mean, I don't want my children to think I've gone insane, but I will remember Proverbs 17:22. After all, who wants dry bones?

A few thoughts on a common argument used by those in the pro-choice position

I recently read a few statements made by Rudy Guilliani who wished to re-iterate his views on abortion. He said that while he believed it was wrong, he still believed it should be legal. My first thought was, "How can you believe something is wrong and still believe it should be legal?" I discussed this with my dad and he made an excellent point. He basically said that there are cases where you can believe something is wrong, but you can't really make a law against it. He gave the example of lying. Yes, I believe lying is wrong, but it would be hard to make a law against it. I replied, "Well, I guess part of it comes down to how serious the issue is." Following this train of thought (the seriousness of the issue), I was reminded of an incident that was given by Scott Klusendorf, a man who travels around the country teaching others how to debate the pro-life position. He was at the park with his son when he got into a friendly conversation with a mom. She asked what he did for a living and after he finished with his job description she said, "You know, I believe abortion is wrong, but I still believe it should be legal." Scott then asked her, "So, why do you believe abortion is wrong?" She was silent for a minute and then said, "Wow, no one has ever asked me that before." I highly doubt she would have responded that way had someone asked, "So, why do you believe lying or shoplifting is wrong?" Again-when forced to think about why abortion is wrong, one realizes this is very serious topic. To be honest, I can't recall how the rest of their conversation went, but I realized that we so often never ask people why they believe something is wrong. The next time someone makes that oh-so-common pro-choice argument, I'm going to do what Mr. Klusendorf did-force the person to think about why he or she believes it's wrong. My hope and prayer is that people will be forced to think about their stance on abortion and ultimately come to the conclusion that it's wrong because the unborn are human.