Baby Ainsley 365: Meeting the Babysitter

Beloved is going back to work this week, so we will need a babysitter on Wednesday nights when we're both doing Confirmation. Hollie came over to meet Ainsley yesterday afternoon and we thought the occasion deserved a picture.

Baby Ainsley 365: Sunday Morning with Dad

So, here we are, just before Dad leaves for the church and Mom & Ainsley leave for Alexandria. Cute outfit, huh?

Also, last night's moon was incredible. First, a full eclipse which I unfortunately forgot to photograph. But we did notice the beautiful moonlight when we were up with AJ for the 4:00 a.m. feeding. Earlier in the day I had made a snow angel after shoveling the walks again, so I snuck upstairs and snapped these shots I'll call "Angels by Moonlight."

Baby Ainsley 365: Playing with Mommy

Saturday Poetry Post

I was pointed to this poem by Gerard Manley Hopkins by a friend's preaching blog. Pay close attention to the second stanza.

34. As Kingfishers Catch Fire, Dragonflies Draw Flame"

AS kingfishers catch fire, dragonflies dráw fláme;
As tumbled over rim in roundy wells
Stones ring; like each tucked string tells, each hung bell’s
Bow swung finds tongue to fling out broad its name;
Each mortal thing does one thing and the same:	5
Deals out that being indoors each one dwells;
Selves—goes itself; myself it speaks and spells,
Crying Whát I do is me: for that I came.
Í say móre: the just man justices;
Kéeps gráce: thát keeps all his goings graces;	10
Acts in God’s eye what in God’s eye he is—
Chríst—for Christ plays in ten thousand places,
Lovely in limbs, and lovely in eyes not his
To the Father through the features of men’s faces.

An Ecumenical Lenten Conversation

Thanks to the Lutherpunk for this awesome Lenten post.

Baby Ainsley 365: Aussie Clothes

Since today is a snow day in Minnesota, we thought we'd get Ainsley's head out of the white stuff by dressing her in a jumper from her cousins in Australia, where it's currently the end of summer. So, Rachel, if a diaper is a nappy, what do you call a jumper like this?

Snow Day, Running Update, Artsy Craftsy Friday Five

Another snow day has come to Minnesota - YAY! The weather guy in the Cities says that this has been the snowiest week in 25 years, and I can believe it. We have been missed by the worst of the storm and we still have a good foot of white stuff on the ground again today. I heard that Duluth got two feet of snow yesterday - this is why I would love to live in Duluth someday...

The only thing that rots about all this snow is my training for the Lincoln Marathon. With the combination of a newborn keeping us up at night and the snow preventing outdoor training, I don't think I'm going to meet my 4 hour goal - I'm just too far behind in my training. I'll still finish, I think, and hopefully if Ainsley starts sleeping through the night soon I'll be able to better my PB of 4:35. But I've only gotten one 10-miler in so far and my legs just don't have the energy to put the miles in on a treadmill right now, so the extensive training I'd hoped to get done this spring has been pretty much laid to waste thus far. But that's okay - I get to be a daddy and that's far more enjoyable training (most of the time).

So - on to the Friday Five!

From RevGalBlogPals: During Lent here at Suburban Presbyterian Church, we are exploring the creative and liturgical arts, with classes and speakers dealing with storytelling, iconography, dance, visual art, writing, and so on. The theme is "A Beautiful Thing," inspired by the story of the woman anointing Jesus and his declaration that "She has done a beautiful thing for me." (Mark 14, NIV)

We are working on the notion that everything we do can be considered a beautiful thing--a creative offering to God--whether it's gardening or scrapbooking or accounting or sorting clothes at the clothes closet or child-rearing. And so:

1. Would you call yourself "creative"? Why or why not?
I think I'm fairly creative, especially when it comes to writing - as a preacher that is something of a must in the job requirement area. I'm no visual artist: can't paint or draw or sculpt with anything more than the most utilitarian artistry, but I can write.

2. Share a creative or artistic pursuit you currently do that you'd like to develop further.
I've always wanted to do more photography. I got hooked on photography during my two summers shooting pictures as the Tipi Village Site Manager at Carol Joy Holling Camp in Ashland, NE. I took some pretty good shots, some of which my ex-wife got blown up and framed as a Christmas present one year; they're still on my wall today. I bought a Canon Rebel SLR a few years ago, and I've taken some good shots since then, but I don't have a good zoom lens or the money to really invest as I'd like to do. Maybe someday that can happen.

3. Share a creative or artistic pursuit you have never done but would like to try.
I would really like to take classes on two creative hobbies: woodworking and pottery. Both have intrigued me for years. I actually have some decent woodshop tools but very little knowledge as to how to use them properly - help!

4. Complete this sentence: "I am in awe of people who can _____________."
Quilt/Knit/Crochet/Needlepoint/etc. I know everyone says it's not that difficult, but I'm not a detailed enough person to be able to see both the larger picture and the stitches at the same time. I either focus on the small needs of the moment or step back to do the conceptualizing and lose the threads, so to speak. What a gift!

5. Share about a person who has encouraged your creativity, who has "called you to your best self." (I'm pretty sure that's from the Gospel of Oprah.
I think the person who first saw artistic talent in me was Mrs. Whipple, my band & choir director when I was in 9th & 10th grade. She encouraged me to be bold and use the musical gifts God has given me, and anyone who knows anything about 14 year-old boys in rural schools knows that it's not an easy thing to encourage. But she was insistent and I finally gave in. Thanks to her I have a gift in music that I treasure and hope to pass on to my children and grandchildren someday.

Baby Ainsley 365: Cuddly Cousins

While Zach's mommy recovers from the stomach flu and Zach's daddy drives home to Nebraska, Grandma Johnson brings Zach up to our house for one last visit with Ainsley.

Sheltering Hope

One of the casualties of having a one-month-old in the house has been writing. I'm barely able to be coherent enough to get sermons done for Sunday, so anything extra is really falling by the wayside right now. Besides, aren't the pictures enough? :-)

All of this is a preface to introducing a new writer I've discovered thanks to Real Live Preacher. His name is Milton, and his blog is Don't Eat Alone. Yesterday he posted a powerful reflection on hope - I would be proud to preach a sermon with this much depth and faith.

INFJ, and proud of it!

INFJ - "Author". Strong drive and enjoyment to help others. Complex personality. 1.5% of total population.

Take Free Jung Personality Test
personality tests by similarminds.com

Baby Ainsley 365

Playtime!

Baby Ainsley 365: Day 38

Beloved posted this one on our fridge. I must admit that it cracks me up every time I look at it. This is a face we see quite often, actually, and we're not sure exactly what it means just yet.

Baby Got Book

From New! Now In Lutheran Flavor. Thanks for this.

Baptism Part 1 - The Family Arrives

We had a big weekend at our house - Ainsley's baptism! It's quite the saga, so I'll take you through it bit by bit. First, Friday night - everyone arrives.

Uncle Butt had a lot of fun reading books with nephews Zach (left) and Quinn (right). Zach is 3, Quinn is 18 months.

Cousin Quinn met Ainsley for the first time this weekend and was suitably impressed and VERY polite. We think it's because he's nervous about a newborn having so much hair...

Uncle Kevin looks like a natural, doesn't he? Thankfully he's nicer to his niece AJ than he has been in the past to our cats, Ike and Reggie. They don't let him hold them nearly as much as Ainsley did.

Uncle Brian was pretty happy to hold our peanut as well, even when unexpected, um, outputs were part of the program (more on that later).

And Aunt Donna, of course, also got into the fun. In fact, Ainsley spent to much time being held on Saturday that she threw a MAJOR hissy fit when it was time to be going to bed Saturday night.

So, the family arrived and were very happy to be crammed into our little house. Why crammed, you say? Because the weather kept us from journeying outside! But that's yet to come...

Baptism Part 2: The Weather Arrives

Friday night, we started to get sleet. By Saturday morning, the snow was pouring down and the wind was blowing it all over the place. We spent most of the Day Saturday watching the flakes drive down all afternoon - covering our cars and our house and finally shutting down most of Minnesota with over 8 inches of snow. I haven't heard any estimates as far as how much we got, but I know we had a bundle - probably 9 to 10 inches at least, if not over a foot. LOTS of snowmobilers out Saturday and Sunday, but not us, since the best we could do was my sister-in-law's Tahoe, and she thinks she needs it for more utilitarian purposes. (Killjoy, if you ask me. :-) )

Baptism Part 3: The Big Event

We wound up having a family baptism yesterday because we cancelled worship services due to the weather. In addition to the snow, our main plower called to say there was lots of ice underneath the snow and it wouldn't be advisable to ask folks to drive in for worship on these roads. I was really disappointed because I believe that baptism is a public event of the whole church, and I wanted our congregation to be witnesses to our little girl's big day. After all, the baptismal liturgy in our new hymnal asks the congregation to promise to support parents and sponsors in their baptismal vow to raise their children in the faith - don't you want a congregation who is willing to make that promise? But considering the weather AND my family only being in Minnesota for one weekend, we couldn't reschedule in good conscience, either. This, I believe, is the proof of the "good order" practice in the Lutheran church: when the situation allows normalcy, we follow a prescribed order, but the gospel flexes to meet the needs of the situation. Thus, emergency baptisms, the Lord's Supper when no ordained minister will soon be present, etc. Thus, our baby was baptised without the presence of my beloved congregation - with regrets for that, certainly, but also understanding about the situation, I'm sure.

So, after getting everyone up to Barrett and inviting extreme cabin fever due to the weather, after having to cancel worship services due to icy, snow-covered roads, we finally got the family over to the church for a small baptismal service Sunday morning, just after 11:00. And then things went according to plan. The Mooneyham plan, that is, complete with the usual cases of "How in the world did THAT happen?"

First, my brother's wife wasn't feeling so hot when she arrived at the church. By the time we were ready for the baptism, she was driving the porcelain bus instead. Major bummer. She recovered enough to journey into the sanctuary for the baptism, but chose, understandably, to forego the cold lunch after in favor of the couch, diet 7-Up and saltines back at the guest house. Thankfully, it seems to be a quick bug - by this morning she was feeling much better and ready to travel home. Unfortunately, it seems to be a contagious bug - my wife's sister and son were sick Sunday night after they got home. *sigh* Could we please get through a major event or holiday in our family without SOMEONE losing their lunch?

Second, the baptism. A wonderful moment in our life as a family, and in some ways all the more special because it was just us at the church. Let's take a listen, shall we?

The Reverend Grandpa Mooneyham, Presiding: We give you thanks, O God, for in baptism you free your sons and daughers from their slavery to sin and raise us up to new life in Christ. (Prayer continues to the end, at which point he concludes) ...now and forever.

ALL PRESENT: Amen.

Ainsley: [thbpthbpthbpthbpthbpthbpthbpthbpthbp] [thbpt] *squirt*

That's my little girl - always willing to offer her two cents' worth. Did I mention it was her first major 'blowout?' In her new baptismal gown? I know baptism washes us clean - now I have empirical proof, for in the end we were given a baby girl washed clean in soul and body.

Finally, my parents' car is not working particularly well this morning. We're not sure how far they're going to make it, or whether the dealer who's agreed to look at it this morning in Morris will be able to fix what's wrong quickly enough to get them back to Nebraska tonight.

But it was a wonderful weekend, filled with family and love and just about everything a new dad could hope to have. We're truly blessed and deeply grateful for our family and, of course, our little girl. And now, Pictures!

Is there anything more infectious than the sound of little kids chasing each other and giggling?


The happy post-baptismal family and sponsors. Well, happy save the baptized. Maybe it had to do with the brownish stain slowly working its way up her back...

The Reverend Grandpa Mooneyham, Mrs. Reverend Grandma Mooneyham, The Reverend Mrs. Johnson, the freshly-washed in body and soul Ainsley, The Reverend Daddy, and Grandma & Grandpa Johnson. What a group, eh?


Auntie Kim, Mommy, AJ, Daddy, Quinn & Uncle Jerry.

Grandma & Grandpa Johnson with Zach & Ainsley.

Grandma & Grandpa Moonehyam with Ainsley and Quinn. We took this picture about five minutes too late for Quinn's liking.

Aaaaand now it's five minutes to late for Grandpa Mooneyham's liking. I think he needed a nap, too.

Worship @ Peace Lutheran Cancelled Tomorrow

This is just an announcement for anyone from my congregation: Sunday School and Worship have been cancelled for tomorrow, 25 February, due to inclement weather. If you're in town and would care to join us for Ainsley's baptism, feel free to walk up to the church, but don't drive on these roads tomorrow morning if you don't have to!

Baby Ainsley 365: Day 34

Grandpa & Grandma M are here for Ainsley's baptism, and Grandpa M met Ainsley for the first time last night. Here's a picture of the proud Grandpa with our little girl.

Baby Ainsley 365: Day 33

Oops - I'm a day late! But I was getting ready for baptism weekend, so I do have an excuse. You get a video today - Beloved reading to Ainsley.

Friday Five: Companions on the Way

Dante had Virgil as a guide. Before he had younger siblings, my oldest child had an imaginary friend named Patrick. Betsy had Tacy. Laura Ingalls depended on her brindle bulldog, Jack. All of them were companions on the way.

As we take the beginning steps of our journey through Lent, who would we take as a companion? Name five people, real or imaginary, you might like to have with you as guide or guardian or simply good friend.

Larry Meyer - I think I miss Larry more during Lent than at any other time. It was Larry who first opened my mind and heart to the disciplines of Lent, and as I've shared before, most of who I am as a pastor comes from his leadership and tutelage during my years at the University of Nebraska and the Lutheran Student Center.

Martin Luther - Obviously, as a Lutheran I bear a lot of respect for the man whose name we claim as our own. But I think Martin would have known better than most how to balance the penitential nature of Lent with the freedom God assures through Baptism and forgiveness of our sins. Some people think that Lent means misery - I think Martin would say they've missed the point. If the focus is our misery, we've strayed as far from the mark as we do when the focus is our joy - the focus, as Luther often said, is at all times Christ and Christ alone.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer - What might it have been like to study with my brother Dietrich at the seminary in Finkenwalde? Reading Bonhoeffer has opened my eyes to so many blessings in Scripture and in the world; studying the Psalms and conversing about them during Lent with Bonhoeffer would have been a privilege beyond words.

Rich Mullins - I was unlucky to discover the depth of Rich's music in the months after his death, so I never had the chance to hear him in concert or talk to him in person. Rich was so refreshingly honest and open - his willingness to be vulnerable in his songs has helped me do the same in some of my sermons. We are only human and only following Christ if we admit that we don't have all the answers, that there is pain and sorrow in life that cannot be defeated by our own strength, only survived through the love of Christ. I learned that from listening to Rich Mullins sing songs like this:

I've gone so far from my home
I've seen the world and I have known
So many secrets
I wish now I did not know
'Cause they have crept into my heart
They have left it cold and dark
And bleeding,
Bleeding and falling apart

And everybody used to tell me big boys don't cry
Well I've been around enough to know that that was the lie
That held back the tears in the eyes of a thousand prodigal sons
Well we are children no more, we have sinned and grown old
And our Father still waits and He watches down the road
To see the crying boys come running back to His arms
And be growing young
Growing young

Well, this has been a totally depressing Friday Five for me, so I'll close on a happier note:
Ainsley Joy Suzanne Johnson - This morning I worked at the office while Ainsley kept me company. Beloved needed some time at home to finish a project or two and I knew that my office stuff could be done while I took care of our little girl. What a joy it is to finally be getting to know our daughter. This is a special, momentous time for us and I'm loving every minute.