I am so excited about this Zigo Leader giveaway.

Seriously. I don't know how many times I've entered the contest, but I am so not done.

Next blog giving it away: Rave and Review is giving away the Zigo Leader. One more perk about this bike is that with the kids up front, you can not only talk to them easier, but you will be more stable with the weight spread out in the front instead of dangling in the back like a traditional trailer. At least, that's what the reviews have said.

Found another blog doing the Zigo Leader giveaway! I'm not sure how many places are doing this, but I'm entering every one I can! The newest blog is SeeryusMama. I'm following her on Twitter, using an RSS Feed, using Google Friend Connect, using Facebook, and I may subscribe by email as well!

Christianity dumbed down

For a long time my husband and I attended churches that spoke to the lowest common denominator. They wrote their sermons for 7 year olds and nonbelievers. This disservice to the church is very common among many denominations. Then, one day, we happened upon a church that was different.

We decided to check out the evening service of a church we often passed. We thought the building looked very old and the architecture was interesting, and we wanted to see the inside. So we went to a service and were surprised to find a pastor preaching challenging, relevant, unsafe sermons.

He wasn't preaching to the lowest common denominator. He held himself (or maybe the elders are responsible for this) to a higher standard and he spoke so that anyone could take something away, but also so that everyone got more. We dug deeper and more thoroughly understood each verse. Sometimes we spent months or even years (well, the church spent years, we weren't there that long) on a very small section of scripture because there was SO MUCH information to unpack. My husband and I were changed, and maybe a bit spoiled.

We moved to Alaska for school, and we have not yet found (or heard of) a church that spoke to us on that level. More accurately, we have not yet found a pastor that spoke to us that way.

We've been to several churches, most were ok. We've also been to two churches with outstanding communities. OUTstanding! Fellowship and grace and love like I've really, really never seen.

I guess we'll keep looking. Or maybe we'll stick with one of the outstanding churches and just listen to podcasts of the more challenging stuff on the side. I don't know.

Oh Zigo, How I want you.

Go Graham Go is another website hosting the Zigo giveaway. This giveaway is serving many purposes for me. One, I get a chance to win an AWESOME bike/stroller/bike trailer/bike+kid pod and two, I'm finding lots of new giveaway blogs to keep my eye on. This site looks like a lot of fun, and as soon as I'm done entering the Zigo giveaway I'm going to come back and see what else Felicia's got for me!

Happy Hour Mom is running this giveaway as well. It's a cute site, and seems to have a lot of different ways to search through their posts, which I like. I can look only at the posts that are relevant to my child instead of wading through a ton of stuff that my daughter wont be interested in for years.

Giving Giveaways another go!

Starting another round of giveaways while my husband makes dinner, and my daughter plays with her annoying little 'piano'. It's a good day.

By the way, I'm pretty sure most of her toys will never get batteries. Just saying.

Found a new giveaway blog, Monkey Tales. They're giving away a Bum Genius Organic One Size All In One diaper (OS AIO). I have a few of these and love them. I'm a little concerned that the rise will be too small as my daughter gets older, but I have two friends who put these on older children (2 year old and almost 3 year old) and they fit those kids. Plus, these diapers have a really high resale value. So as long as I keep them in good shape, I can sell them and get different diapers if these no longer fit. Anyway, the diaper being given away is from Fluff Envy, which has a pretty cool site. Plus, I like the name. =)

The B Keeps Us Honest is giving away an Exergen Temporal Scanner. My midwives have one of these and it is much faster and less hassle than any other thermometer I've ever seen. Right now this would be handy because a feverish baby is not always the stillest of creatures. And I'm not really expecting her to become less active any time soon. This giveaway seems a little more reasonable too, there are 456 ways to win, just a few ways to enter so you can feel you've given yourself a fighting chance without spending all day on it.

I've found the mother of all giveaways. Jollymom (and lots of other sites) are banding together to offer the Zigo. This is a crazy fantastic bike/stroller/jogging stroller/bike trailer deal. You can ride it as a normal bike, a bike pulling a trailer, a bike with the child on the front, you can use it as a jogging stroller, or a regular stroller. And it has a fun look to it! I'm excited. This is something I might even consider buying. Whoa.

The Zigo giveaway is being hosted by babyelandaily as well. You can enter as much as you like. It's such a fun product for a communal giveaway!

Good luck!

Renewal

I feel incredible today. Ready to enter more giveaways, ready to win a few giveaways, ready to keep working on this baby weight (after this bowl of chocolate ice cream!), ready to help Nanook sleep through the night, ready to be her mom again tomorrow, ready to be diligent with my time, ready to relinquish control completely.

Today I'm remembering whose authority I live under. My life is not my own. I am not my own. And that is good.

Psalm 112:7-8
He is not afraid of bad news, his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord. His heart is steady; he will not be afraid, until he looks in triumph on his adversaries.

Bring it on.
"If that's what it takes to praise you, Jesus bring the rain."

no luck =(

So far no luck in any of my giveaways.

I suppose I should keep trying. Entering doesn't cost anything but time, so when I get some time, I'll give it to the giveaways.

For now, I've got my class, my workouts/weight loss, my daughter, my husband, my work, and my God to work on. That list is in no particular order by the way.

Sermons from this church have been kicking my butt lately. I put their pod cast on while I work in the kitchen (and since I started letting the kiddo have solids I spend a LOT of time in the kitchen) and I have been truly convicted, over and over. Preach it Russ, preach it!

Mirus and I attended that church while we were in Denver and we both really appreciated the way that Russ McKendry portrays/teaches/studies the Gospel. I always left church with something very practical and very important to work on, and I always felt equipped to do so. I also really respect the commitment of that church to be a church that the city needs. Russ always asks: "If we were to disappear tomorrow, would anybody notice?" It's a good question to be asking yourself. Really, truly, you should be noticed. Not because you're important or special, but because you did important, special things. This may be the only day you have, give it to God and leave your (and therefore God's) mark on the world.

i.e.: go out with a bang!

BANG!

Quiverfull?

Growing up, I knew a family with 13 children. Not only were all the children nice and funny and good sports (I knew them from showing horses - that doesn't always bring out the best in people, and certainly not kids), they were also an example of one of the only families I knew who said they believed in something and actually lived up to it. The parents didn't believe in birth control so they didn't use any. Any. None. Most people I know who say that don't believe in birth control are either only opposed to some types of birth control or only keep that belief until that belief is tested. They don't believe in birth control, but have 3 kids in 4 years so they decide to step in and take control of their fertility. That, my friends, is no trusting God.

I don't know where I stand. Right now, Mirus and I aren't using any birth control. We have condoms, and we used them for a few weeks, but neither of us are very sure about whether we should or should not use them. A baby would not be a burden (shouldn't a baby always be a blessing - regardless?) and neither of us feel 'unready' so . . .

If we aren't pregnant by this summer, we plan on trying. That is not quiverfull. Trying to get pregnant is the same as trying not to get pregnant. It's still taking charge of your family and your family planning. Somehow it seems less offensive to God.

This is one of those decisions that should be left up to grownups, but I find myself facing it anyway. Luckily for me, I breastfeed and cloth diaper, so babies aren't really very expensive in our house.