news to file under ‘no duh’

I just saw this “news” story on a recent email from Baby Center. Here’s some highlights the article:

Less TV brings more parent-child interaction

Wed, Sep 16, 2009 (HealthDay News) — Parent-child interactions suffer when a television is blaring in the background, a new report finds.

The finding is important because more than one-third of American infants and toddlers live in homes where the television is on most or all the time, even if no one’s watching, researchers say.

…

The researchers studied how much verbal interaction there was between parents and children, whether parents were actively involved in their children’s play, and whether they responded to each other’s questions and suggestions.

The study authors found that while the TV was on, parents spent about 20 percent less time talking to their children and were less active, attentive and responsive to their kids, resulting in a decrease in the quality of the interactions.

“Although previous research found that background television disrupts young children’s solitary play, this is the first study to demonstrate its impact on the quantity and quality of parent-child interactions,” the researchers explained in a news release from the Society for Research in Child Development.

Eureka! What a brilliant new discovery! Sheesh. Seriously… Someone needed to do a research study to determine this? I guess common sense just isn’t good enough, huh?

everything is a competition

Two things caught my attention recently and made me think about this. A few weeks ago, I saw an ad on HGTV for some upcoming show where their show hosts would be in some sort of competition of landscaping/decorations or such. I didn’t really pay that much attention to it. I thought, “You’re having decorators compete? Where does this ‘competition’ thing end?”

Then last Sunday in church, there was an announcement about the kids in the Awana program going to some Bible memorization competition. I’m all for kids learning Bible verses, but is a competition the right method to encourage this? Is it a good message to send to our kids? I don’t know. It just makes me wonder.

It just seems that everything in the world is a competition: singing, dancing, being locked in a house, castaway on an island, etc., etc., etc. Maybe it’s just human nature. I’ve watched my nephews make practically everything in life a competition between them–if they can make bathroom habits a contest, they can make anything a contest.

I guess I’m just pondering “out loud” at this point. It’s something I plan to study and pray about.

am i that transparent to God?

I had this thought last week.

My son (just turned 1 year old) was walking (yeah, he started that at 9 months, just like his Daddy) around the kitchen. I could see him admiring something on the counter. He then nonchalantly walked over to me with his arms open wide as if to hug me. But what he was really doing was hoping I’d pick him up. So, I did. He of course reached for the object on the counter with a sort of expression, “wow, look at this, I had no idea it was here.”

Now, perhaps I’m reading way more into my son there. But, it made me think about myself. How many times do I see something I want and then run to God with my arms wide open–pretending to seek Him but deep-down longing to be filled by that “thing” I seek, rather than longing to be filled by Him.

Yeah, I think I’m that transparent to God. Father, forgive me. Please help me purge my desire for this world.

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If you love the world, love for the Father [b] is not in you. 16 For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful people, the lust of their eyes and their boasting about what they have and do—comes not from the Father but from the world. 17 The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever. (1 John 2:15-17)

it’s a boy…

Just a tad belated here now that he’s 10 weeks old… But that’s why I haven’t had anything to say lately. My wife delivered a happy and healthy baby boy on 2/2/2008. He’s a lot of work but the best gift God has ever given me.

where have i been?

Nowhere really. I just haven’t felt like posting anything. Well, I’ve felt like it, I just haven’t had the motivation. I worked really hard at getting the nursery ready (hard because I’m such a perfectionist), all the new baby clothes washed and put away, and helping to take care of my wife who is now out of work and on bed rest. But for some reason I woke up at 5am today and couldn’t get back to sleep. So, I guess it’s time to do a little Bible Study and maybe post a couple random things before I start cleaning the house.

kick for daddy

Friday night I got to feel our baby kick for the first time. For the past week or two, when my wife prepares for bed, I’ve been laying next to her with my hand on her belly since the baby often kicks when she’s still. But I had never managed to feel one of the kicks. We just finished week 19, so the baby is still pretty tiny in there.

We usually read a devotion before going to sleep. Friday she suggested that I read louder and near her belly. The baby kicked a few times while I was reading but I was reading and didn’t have my hand on her belly to feel it. After reading, I was feeling for a kick but none came.

As I was about to get up (I usually tuck my wife into bed then get up for a few hours since I don’t require nearly as much sleep as she does), I leaned over and put my lips right against her belly and said loudly, “Kick for daddy!” The baby immediately complied with a rather forceful kick–enough for me to feel.

Amazing. My child is only 19 weeks and can follow directions. Well, that or I scared the poor child nearly to death. 🙂

careful what you ask a seven-year-old boy

This weekend we went on a family vacation. We went to a very nice state park in Delaware. My parents own a 28-foot camper. In addition to my folks, me, and my wife, my sister and her family (husband and 3 nephews: 7, 5, 2) came along. We had a great time.

The best part was during breakfast on Sunday morning. The adults had discussed that we would probably tell the boys about their new cousin this weekend. We got discussing some friend of the family when my sister said, “you know, [name of person] is a really nice name for a girl,” which lead to a few jokes about several possible baby names. After a minute or two of that, my sister asked her boys, “do you guys know why we’re talking about baby names?” They didn’t quite get it, so we told them to expect a new cousin early next year.

The best part was my sister asking her oldest boy (7), “don’t you have anything you want to say to your aunt and uncle?,” to which he immediately replied, “good luck!”

Everyone got a great laugh out of that.

photo of me and my wife

I just know everyone is really wanting to see what my wife and I look like. Here you go.

praise to God for my house, family, and job

This week I celebrated the 5-year “anniversary” of closing on my house. At the time, I was dating someone, though not convinced it would last–and it didn’t. Yet, as I went through the house shopping process (finally opting to have a new house built–and helping design the floor plan) I was confident God was confirming that I would eventually find the right woman to marry, there would be kids, and I would need a home office. When I told people that I was having a 4-bedroom, 3,000-square-foot house built, most would say, “All that just for you?” I told them that it wasn’t just for me, that eventually the house would be full with a family.

In those five years, God has chosen to bestow those blessings on me. I’m feeling really blessed and believe God is honored as I give Him praise for His gifts to me. He gave me a wonderful wife nearly three years ago. I have been working from home for the past year and just accepted a new job that will allow me to continue to work from home. And, we’re 7 weeks pregnant.

God is good. God has been good to me. God will continue to be good to me. Praise God, He is worthy!

7 weeks, 11 mm, all is well

We just went for our week 7 ultrasound and checkup today. Our baby is now 11mm long and had a heartbeat of 138 BPM. All is well! The baby is starting to look like a baby on the ultrasound. I’ll get the scanner out this weekend, promise 🙂