Trip to Columbia

Not really sure what the deal is with the name "Washington, District of Columbia." It's not as if we say "I'm going to the state of Texas." We just say "I'm going to Texas" (or Tejas if you prefer). So with that said, Amy and I are going to post some pics from our trip to Columbia.

Amy here: On Saturday after the wedding we went to see what we could see at night. This picture was taken by Thomas. We had our backs to the Lincoln Memorial (sorry, Abe) and could see the Capitol, the World War II memorial, the Washington Monument, and the Reflection Pool all in a row. We certainly thought of Granddaddy while we were there. Thank you for serving, Granddaddy, and Happy Veterans' Day!

We also saw the Vietnam Memorial and the Korean War Memorial (my favorite, and especially striking at night with the men's faces lit up.)

Thomas: Look at Amy. Isn't she beautiful. The Washington Monument also happens to be behind her.

Thomas: Amy again, with Abraham Lincoln. One way that Amy and I are different is that she is good at reading the quotes at places like this or reading placards at museums. I don't often read the whole thing. She's patient and takes them in.

Thomas: After seeing the monuments we saw the three branches of government, or at least their housing. We did this in the most American way possible, driving a gas sucking car. After seeing the Capitol and a corner of the Supreme Court, we parked at the White House because I wanted to get close. They've got the White House Christmas tree up and were setting up all of the fences for whatever lighting ceremony they're going to have.

Thomas: After getting up close to the White House, 8:45 rolled around and it was time...

Amy: to eat dinner. But we didn't want to eat dinner with just anybody (like the president or Justice Ginsburg.) We wanted to eat with Jenny Oliver. So we called to see if she had eaten. And of course she hadn't because she's teaching herself French and had been busy studying. So we met her at...

Thomas: Ben's Chili Bowl! As you see in the picture above it isn't actually a bowl. Rather, it's a dive of dives on U Street. Ben's has been around for fifty years and is a major institution for the African-American community. Every famous black person, it seemed, has been there, and ol' Ben has their photo on the wall to prove it, from Bill Cosby to Cornell West and James Brown. Ben's really brought out the soul in me, and I had a "half smoke" (big nicely burnt chili dog with onions and mustard). Amy had a chili dog, and we split some chili cheese fries. Sensing my soul, they even threw in some extra grease for free. Ben's hit the spot.

Amy: Yum! Jenny took me here last time I was in DC and while we were there we talked about how fun it would be to bring Thomas there. I had no idea the three of us would be there together that same year!

Amy: As always, it was wonderful to catch up with Jenny. She's as busy as ever but doing well!

Thomas: Ok, now it's time for me to brag. Ben's is in a really hoppin' part of town. Not only was there bumper-to-bumper traffic on U Street at midnight, but all the other streets around it are tightly packed row houses. The cars along the streets are dense, so we had to drive around for about 10 minutes to find a spot that looked as if it would be a tight fit...for Rob's Mini! A tight fit it was, but I pulled off the parallel parking job of the century in our Subaru Impreza (we're not too far into the present century). Impreza'd you should be when you look at these pics. Be sure to click on them so that they open larger in their own window. Notice how close we were in both the back and the front, so close I couldn't even walk between our car and the others.

Back - yes, there is space between our car and the other

Front

Sorry if this post is long, but we've got some more pics that we'll post later.

Amy: One thing more. Happy Belated Birthday to the fifteen-year-old Bailey! I'm guessing her last birthday party was not Barney themed like the first, but fun nonetheless.

The Greatest Generation

This past Wednesday was Veterans Day. Since this is a day when we thank and celebrate our veterans, I called the greatest veteran I know—Granddaddy. Here is the tail end of our conversation, as best I can remember:

me: Well, happy Veterans Day! Thanks for fighting and keeping us free.
him: It was an honor to serve. We just did what we had to do.

I have heard those same words from many interviews and conversations with men and women of that generation. If you ask them, you will, too. I cannot even begin to express the respect and gratitude that I have for them. For that generation sacrificing plans, relationships, comforts, and even life was just “something they had to do”.

There are a couple of items that I think do a good job of highlighting the spirit these men and women had. The first is the Medal of Honor Citations awarded during World War II. Most of these citations read like a dry textualization of a scene from Rambo. The second is the HBO mini-series Band of Brothers. Band of Brothers is not for everyone, but it is a phenomenal portrayal of extraordinary valor and courage from that generation of Americans.

As the holidays loom, just take a minute to pray for those who are currently fighting and to praise God for his grace in raising up a whole generation who fought and sacrificed to preserve our freedom.

In Defense of Dates

At my old church, the former youth pastor had a startling yet endearing habit of somtimes referring to his wife as his girlfriend. It emphasized their ongoing romance, but also made for some feet shuffling awkwardness, as when he would introduce the whole family as "my girlfriend and our kids." That sort of humor might play well in Manhattan, but in Katy, he might as well have grown a second head.

That said, it was a stated goal of mine to continue dating Michelle after we got married, that in some sense she would always be my girlfriend as well as my covenant spouse. What this looks like is multi-faceted; it involves pursuing her emotionally, and (as I discovered this week) being deliberate about making time for just the two of us.

Despite my lofty ambitions, I found that we had settled into something of a rut, staying in on the nights when we didn't have some out of the house event taking up our time. We'd find ourselves eating at the coffee table, leaned over my laptop, watching French subtitled episodes of How I Met Your Mother. I know: the sheer romance of this tableau may be making you a little queasy. Put your head between your legs and the feeling will pass.

So, how to restore the oft-hoped, rarely acheived ideal? If I'm going to love my wife the way that Christ loves His Church, then I need to start thinking in a Christ-like way. Normally for me, this means focusing on self-sacrifice and putting Michelle's needs ahead of my own. But in this instance, what I needed to focus on is His unending pursuit of His Bride. Grace chases us down and amazes us in the ways that it provides for our needs, brings healing, and ultimately inspires worship. Similarly, I need to be chasing Michelle down. (Note: not in the Mini. That would be unfair)

We're going on a date tonight. Out of the house, dressed up, with wine and everything. The plans are actually a little nebulous at the moment, owing to an unforseen scheduling snafu, but whatever we do, it's going to be fun and deliberate, an application of Grace to a relationship that needs it constantly and doggedly. I don't bring any of this up to pat myself on the back for being such a great husband (if anything, I've been a neglectful one for quite a while) , but to see what the other dudes are doing to keep their wives feeling special and pursued. You know, like when she was your girlfriend.

Birthdays!

First, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO LAUREN!!!!

Lauren was our original 4th sibling, a Ford by loving adoption, rather than birth. Our time together now is always too short, but I can't wait to have her back for a whole month (!!) in December.

In other news, my nephew is turning 2 this month and Uncle Rob and I will be attending his fabulous birthday party. Joshua is brilliant (just like his mother and father and uncles) but I'm quite sure he doesn't read this blog yet. So, my question is - if you had a 2-year-old nephew (and none of you do!) what would you give him?

This seems like a trivial question at first, but Rob and I actually talk about it quite a bit. These are the first kids that God has put in our lives to stay foreverrrrrr. Wow. When I think about it in terms of my side of the family, I think about what we'll be able to invest in each others' kids that the kids' parents won't. For example, I'll be sending my son to Walt's house for a week every season to learn to hunt (not kidding. :). And how cool would it be to send my daughter to intern in Amy and Thomas's church one summer? After a week in the wild with Walt, and a summer with fabulous Aunt Amy, they'll think I'm the lamest mother alive but that's so awesome. The Fords and the Warmaths will offer them another version of a godly household, a different example of a godly marriage, and a way of viewing God's world and gifts that's different than mine and Rob's. That is so awesome and extremely valuable. in the effort to raise non-cookie-cutter children, but godly unique children.

This is all a little (ok, a lot) early, but I thought y'all wouldn't mind the advance notice of your heavy responsibilities. :)