Snapshots of Life

Last week we took a field trip with the school to experience a bit of French culture and history. We visited a glass blower, who explained the process of making glass- all in French, of course. After that, we visited a museum/park dedicated to the history of mining in the Savoie region in France (the region that we live in). It was a bit of a rainy day, so that spoiled the outside tour a bit, but it was nice to have a break from a regular school day and see a new place.

Did you know that our apartment came with an indoor gym? You can see here that our hallway doubles as a workout room. Working out is still a priority to Eric and, as you can see, it's rubbing off on Malachi too. He's getting in his daily push-ups while Daddy works on his pull-ups.

The day we receive a package is always a special day. Here you can see the kids enjoying the discovery of the contents of a package from our family in Georgia.

Riding the bus, our secondary mode of transportation (the 1st being walking, of course), is always a hit with this little man. Can you blame him? No seatbelts, people getting on and off all the time, and a great view of the city. Here, he's avoiding a picture and drinking some applesauce. Yes, I said drinking applesauce. Applesauce comes in these neat little foil packages with a spout for the kids to suck the applesauce out of. It's both convenient and yummy at the same time!

A Parenting Moment

When I was in college, I had a professor who said that if you can simplify a concept enough to explain it to a kindergartner, then you really have a good grasp of the essence of that concept. For example, how do you explain grace or righteousness to a child? You must really know the essential components to that particular concept and be able to explain it in language plain enough for a 5 year old to understand.

Well, yesterday I had an opportunity like that. Recently, there has been a bit of talk around here regarding the upcoming presidential elections. We've all been working to register to vote absentee and there's been talk of candidates, voting, etc. Yesterday, on our way to the postoffice (which we found closed, of course, because everyone knows that the post office closes for some reason on Tuesdays at noon- except me, of course) Hannah asked me, "Mommy, what is voting?" So, as I tried to explain voting, I had to also define candidates, democracy, what a president is, etc. After we got through all that, the question came, "Mommy, how do you know who to pick?"

Well, for me there's a very simple answer to that question. Abortion. It's the very first thing I ask of anyone who wants my vote. It was one of those moments when, as a parent, you ask yourself, "Do I really want to answer this question honestly, or should I give an easy answer?" No doubt, there are certainly times when you must do the latter. Sometimes Hannah's not ready to know the answer to the questions she asks, but yesterday, I think she was.

So, asked her, "Hannah, have you ever heard the word abortion?" As the words came out of my mouth, I was shocked by the immediate sadness that overtook me. Maybe it's because I carried her inside of me and helped give her life, maybe it's because I knew that what I was about to tell her would be very difficult for her to understand or would change the way she looks at the world. For whatever reason the sadness was overwhelming to me. How do you explain to a child the depravity of such an act? As simply as I could, with as much composure as possible, and in as G-rated language as possible, I explained to my 5 year old daughter the horror of abortion. She asked me why people do such a thing, how they do it, what happens to the babies and more. It was a very difficult conversation, but one that I want her to have with me and not with someone else later on down the road.

The questions that fell from her mouth are the same ones that many of us adults ask as well. "Mommy, that's so mean. Why can't they give the baby to someone else?" To her, it just didn't make any sense, and really, it doesn't, unless you understand and believe in the innate sinfulness of man.

Moments like this hit parents out-of-the blue, usually when you feel least prepared. No one tells you that kids ask the most difficult and simple questions with such an abundance of ignorance as to the depth of the depravity of man. No one tells you that you must be prepared for these kinds of moments...you just have to be on your toes all the time.

Thank you Lord for your grace to us in showing us the Truth and please help our little ones to see the very same thing. Lord, please protect the lives of the unborn.

...And Then it was Winter

We woke up this morning to one of the most beautiful and cold things. The picture above should make it clear. Two things came to mind when I saw the scene above. The first was, "The heavens declare the glory of God." If these mountains were made for me they are way to big and beautiful, but if they are for God they could not be big enough.

The second thought was, "What happened to fall?" Right now there snow is only on the mountain tops, but we have two little kids who are hoping it gets much closer. When Malachi saw the snow he asked if he could go up there.

An Interview with Hannah

We thought it might be interesting to give you a glimpse into Hannah's perspective on this new phase in her life. First, we'll let her answer a few questions for you and then we have a couple of 'Hannah moments' we'd like to share.

What are your favorite things about living in France?

I like that I have nice friends who live in the apartment building with me and I like my class at school. I think it's neat to sleep in a bunk bed with Malachi.

What is school like?

Something that I really like about my school is that we have a library (in the class). We have neat toys at school like toy tools and stuff to play house- a baby room, a kitchen room. My teacher is nice because she tries to keep me comfortable and help me know what's happening in class.

What new foods do you eat here?

I like the chocolate cookies that we get at la boulangerie (bakery). Sometimes we walk there and get treats. Mommy and Daddy try new breads when we go. I like it when we eat taco salad at home with beans in it. There are a lot of new yogurts here, like the ones my friend Hayden (another kid whose parents are students here at CEF) brought to class.

What does it look like outside in Albertville?

Right now there's snow on the mountaintops and trees on the mountain. I like when it's sunny here and I get to go outside and ride my bike. The roads are different because they have bike lanes and places for people to walk.

Now, a couple of glimpses into Hannah's life:

Last week when she was making a card for a friend's birthday, Eric thought it would be fun to spell happy birthday for her using the French alphabet (same as English, but with different names/sounds). To our surprise, as Eric spelled the words, she wrote them down correctly. It was shocking, to say the least.

A couple of nights ago, Hannah woke up early in the morning after having a nightmare. I asked her what happened in the dream and she said something about Dora coming out of the television with something scary. So, I suggested she think on something good, like Dora going on an adventure somewhere exciting, like Six Flags. Hannah replied, "No, Mama. I think I'll think about Dora going to the Eiffel Tower." What in the world.