Absence

This has been my longest absence from blogging in a while. This is often a place for me to think about family life, personal progress, and kids. It has by all accounts been a hectic six or so weeks. I'm finally inspired to write again by the addition of my chromebook, which is encouraging me to do more light writing (and hopefully to make progress on a single chapter I'm writing for a project). Here is the good, the bad, and the ugly: (1) Wrapping up in Taiwan. We left earlier than planned, so things were not entirely smooth. I had to figure out how to finish things up, we relied on Linda for lots of help, and the plane ride itself was a bit ugly. If I looked stressed lately, it's because at some point (probably next week), I have take a driver's test, grade papers for my school, and write a sermon for the next Sunday. I think all of these things will come, but, wow, I just wish they were a bit easier. (2) Chicago. Our trip to the paternal home was wonderful. Super aunt and uncle Don and Nancy, and wunder-cousins Amy, Daniel, and Mary provided much needed baby-care and all manner of kindnesses and amenities (trips to a petting zoo, a pool for use, good pizza and ribs, etc.). It was really a nice homecoming. Sam played games with grandma and grandpa, who did a highly commendable job but who also looked a little surprised at how exhausting grandparenting three little kids can be. I decided in addition to talking about "parenting," there should be some way to talk about "childing." For example: "screaming at your parents and throwing food on the ground is especially bad childing." One of the funniest instances was when my parents bought Eva a little toy double stroller with two plastic babies. My mom was wanting Eva to have a doll and thought this would be great. What she underestimated was Eli's paternal instincts, or possibly just his love of wheeled objects. It was funny to watch because at 20 months it is still pretty hard to understand property rights. Who was the wronged child? Eli, who didn't get the dolls, or Eva, who was "mugged" by Eli? I did the first two church visits during this time. It was a great trip. It was very, very nice to be back in my grandparents' space. We watched tv, played in the yard. I looked through old dressers and learned new stories from Dad and Nancy. I feel blessed that as an adult I could be in my grandparents' house and have so many happy memories. After this trip, I Chicago will probably slip a little on my "most commonly visited places," but I really do like the city. Emily drove us through ominous clouds and then a truly fierce rainstorm on the way to Indianapolis. By the time we arrived, great-grandmother's power was out. We had a good visit though, and also saw Emily's twin aunt and uncle. Barb and I drove with the twins the rest of the way to Cinci, where Eva again screamed the whole way and also stole Eli's blanket and through it on the ground out of spite. (I should say that Eva is really a charming kid, it's just that her screaming is a bit more intense.) (3) Cinci. We're now at our "home." I've been a little traumatized by the steps involved in getting a driver's license here. I don't know what I could have done differently, short of coming home a month earlier. Still, this is a huge hassle. I am hoping the driving test is smooth and I can stop thinking about this. We have a lot of family here now: grandma and grandpa, Uncle Al, Reina and Ginny, and visits by Lisa and David. I think it'll be a nice month. I've schedule some meetings with pastors and I start a preaching streak on July 15. This is our life. It's a little more change a bit faster than I'd like, but I'm trying to stay upbeat and proactive about everything. More to come soon...