Sometimes I Write

I find myself in a picture sort of mood today after changing my profile picture lastnight. I took the profile picture myself. These were done by a really great lady at Wallyworld. Benny and I make beautiful babies! 😉

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I’ve enjoyed the comments about my new tattoo. Benny’s was especially funny! LOL He always knows how to make me laugh. A few of my regular commenters haven’t weighed in yet and I’m pretty curious what they’re thinking. It’s possible that they don’t approve of tattoos, which is o.k. as long as they don’t totally give up on me because of this. It’s also possible they haven’t been reading here much lately. I know I’ve had a hard time getting into the swing of things since Christmas. Either way I thought I’d share a few thoughts that have been racing through my mind regarding my tattoo. (Don’t be alarmed – all of my thoughts race.)

There are many people in my life that have a problem with tattoos. Most of them don’t read my blog so I’m not throwing it in their face. Benny’s mom comes to mind instantly. She loves me very much and we’re very close, but I’m not rushing to her in my excitement about my new body art. I know it makes her uncomfortable and I’d love to know why, but I don’t push it. I hope to have that discussion some day. She didn’t like Benny’s bald head when he first shaved it either, but now it has grown on her (bad pun – sorry). She’s also had ten years to get used to it! 🙂

A year ago I was right where most of my friends who’ve commented are at. I couldn’t imagine asking someone to inflict pain on me with a tiny needle. It sounds insane! But then Benny got his tattoo and I loved it. Somewhere in the back of my mind it became a possibility. I talked to Benny about it and told him I would never do it unless it was uniquely mine (like his is unique to him) and it had to be something of great meaning to me. I have never found anything I would want on my body for the rest of my life until now. I’m glad so many people like it, and I hope it is a tool for me to share Jesus with people. I did it for me, and secondly for those whose ears would be open because of it.

I’m not sure why there are so many in the religious community who have a problem with body art. While I was growing up, tattooed and pierced people were looked down upon by “good folk”. It was a sign of fast living and bad choices made. I know there are many, many, people who are decorated for less than honorable reasons and with very “worldly” pictures and symbols. But like a lot of other things in this world (like holidays, stories, etc.) we can take what may have originally been meant for worldly means and claim them for Christ. For example:

Benny and I attended a Youth Specialties Youth Workers Convention in St. Louis in 2003. Jay Bakker (son of Jim & Tammy Faye) was one of the speakers that year and he had quite a following of youth workers there. These youth ministers and volunteers looked as Goth as some of the outcasts you know in your neighborhoods and local schools. I have never seen so many piercings and tattoos on Christians before, and it was clearly obvious to everyone around them that they loved Jesus and they loved teens. They were reaching out to a different crowd of teens than those that line your church pews on Sundays. My guess is that their looks got their feet in the door with the kids that don’t fit the church mold. It was not an act or a show. They were comfortable in their skin, and if I can teach you anything about teens, hear this: They can spot a fake a mile away.

This is Benny’s tattoo. It’s on the inside of his wrist and it’s a little smaller than a half dollar. The symbol is the Japanese kanji for “Oak” which is what God has been telling Benny his name is, and who he is becoming. He is strong with deep roots, and he is to be a place where people find shade and rest. The four dots are me and the kids, with room to add more when we adopt.:)

Body art tells the story of the one wearing it. Pay attention. Like me, the tattooed person may be waiting to explain why they chose the designs they did. People like to tell their story. We all have that deep need to be heard or known, or atleast be able to express ourselves. That’s one of the reasons there are now over 50 million blogs on the web written by people from all over the world.

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It’s mine. This afternoon I got my first tattoo. Yes it’s real. Yes it hurt. Yes I love it. It will look even better once the swelling goes down and the color evens out. I love the design. To me it represents a lot of things about my faith. The chain is made of prayer beads which remind me of my constant communication with God. The cross is my reminder of the sacrifice made for me. Having a chain around my ankle reminds me who I belong to. It’s on my left foot which is the side of the body(sort of) that my heart is on. You can’t tell by these dark pictures, but there is blue in the beads and the cross. Blue is a color of royalty, and I’m a daughter of THE KING. If you’re going to get a tattoo, why wouldn’t you want it to be somewhere people are going to see it so you have the chance to explain what it means to you?

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I finally saw NARNIA. WOW! Fantastic! Incredible! Amazing! I laughed…I cried…It moved me Bob! (little tribute to Veggie Tales there) Seriously, this is a must see. Benny and I took Max to see it on New Years Day. We had a great date, though it was a little strange to think that the last time it was just the three of us at a movie, he was our only child. Now he’s growing up and wants his own snacks and drinks instead of just sharing with us. However, he offered me his very last skittle with a tempting, “It’s red mommy…” My sweet boy!

There were so many lines from the movie that stick out in my mind that it’s hard to pick my favorite. I can’t believe anyone ever compared Narnia to the LOTR. It’s all about story my friends and one is NOT better than the other! That would be like me saying my story is better than yours, or yours is more important than mine. NONSENSE! We all have our part to play in this battle (which I believe life is) and there are no minor characters. But God calls us to be valiant and put away our toys for the tools He wills us to use. There have been enough books written that detail the “Christ parables” in these two movies (and books) so I’ll spare you my feeble attempts at a review. Just please hear me when I say both movies are worth seeing, and both stories are rich with Christ’s truth. I love it!

Benny and Robbie had the opportunity to take a few of the street kids to see Narnia yesterday. A few more will be going with Matt and Nikki on Thursday. Please pray for their eyes to see and their ears to hear the message of God’s truth and love. Seeds were planted when they all went to see The Polar Express a few weeks ago. Matt had a great blog post about it. Since I haven’t figured out how to link to certain posts yet (time to call Yoda again) you’ll have to scroll down until you get to “Seeing is Believing”.

BTW, I’m glad we took Max to see Narnia. He covered his eyes for the whole stone table scene, and the wolf jumping at Edmond. He did great, and I’m glad we were able to be with him when he saw the example of bravery in Peter, friendship in Lucy and Mr. Tumnus, the loyalty in Susan, and the forgiveness for Edmond. There are so many lessons he took away and more await him when he is older and has a deeper understanding of Christ’s sacrifice for us. Praise God for C.S. Lewis and the people who worked so hard to make this film. I look forward to more…

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In the room down the hall sleeps an adorable two year old boy. Tucked under his arm is a squishy basketball and a baby pooh bear. His sippy cup is well within reach and he is snuggled under his race car blanket. He is the baby of the family, which I’m sure he thinks is both a blessing and a curse. Petey is two years old today. We celebrated with birthday jello and a trip to the McDonald’s playland. He played hard today, like he always does. Here’s a bit of his story.

Zoe was six months old when I discovered I was pregnant. Talk about shock! You have to read my posts about Max and Zoe to fully appreciate my surprise! He was totally unexpected, but I hated it when people referred to him as an “oops” baby. He is no such thing! The pregnancy started off well, but fatigue became an issue by the end. It was easier being pregnant with my first child because I didn’t have a preschooler and a baby to take care of. But the real challenge came from the insurance company.

We had moved to Kansas three months before I found out I was pregnant. In switching insurance companies, there was a 240 day waiting period to have maternity coverage. If I delivered the baby before day 240, insurance wouldn’t pay a penny. Pete was due on day 239. So we had people praying I wouldn’t go into labor early, especially since we needed a scheduled c-section. He was due December 26th, we couldn’t deliver before the 27th, and that was a Saturday. The hospital doesn’t schedule c-sections over the weekend, so we had to wait until Monday the 29th. We prayed and prayed, and I put myself on bed rest the last few weeks of December. He was born right on schedule – Thank God! Now, two years later, I feel silly about worrying so much. I know that God was (and is) in control, and if he had been born early, God would have provided the money for our medical expenses.

Pete Allen Nowell is named after his grandpa Pete, Benny’s stepdad. Pete is a wonderful man, and I was so excited to be able to honor him by carrying on his name through our son. Allen is a family name and we decided all of our boys would share the same middle name. His name means “Rock”, and he is one strong and tough little guy!

Almost from the beginning Pete has struggled with skin problems, and other health issues. Our doctor thought it was probably eczema, but he wasn’t sure. Medicinal treatments were unsuccessful, and we were sent to a dermatologist for further testing. The guy took one look at Pete, asked me a few questions and prescribed a very expensive cream (that insurance didn’t cover) and told us it would solve Pete’s skin problems. He was a cocky jerk, and I should have gotten a second opinion. Pete cried everytime we put the cream on him, so I stopped. He was small enough that he couldn’t communicate with words, but the deep scratch marks all over his body and the constant rash told his story. I was feeling so helpless and defeated when we found a new hope through a chiropractor friend of ours. Dr. Todd Farney was treating Benny for back problems, and I can’t remember how they got on the subject of Pete, but Todd agreed to check him out too. He suggested the possibility of food allergies and told us about a blood test that could tell us what Pete might be allergic to, and we readily agreed to it. Two weeks later we found out Pete is severely allergic to milk and a host of other foods. (That was right about the time I started blogging last year.) Removing the offending foods from his diet and regular chiropractic care improved Pete’s skin problems and other health issues almost immediately. He was a different baby. He was happier, and the sinus problems cleared up. He started sleeping better which meant I did too. Over the past year we began re-introducing the offending foods to check for sensitivities. The skin problems slowly returned. We had him retested a month ago and he is still allergic to most of what he originally tested sensitive to. That is why we had birthday jello today – he can’t eat cake, even in small quantities.

Despite all of the special needs he has had and the sometimes painful state his little body has been in, he is one of the happiest little boys I know. He has quite a sense of humor, and like his brother, he is “all boy”. He is our sports nut, and there isn’t a single ball he doesn’t love. At this point he prefers basketballs and baseballs, but he loves them all. He even prays to dream about them at night. 🙂 He too is an eager learner and wants to “do school too mommy” when Max and I are working. He is fascinated by animals and scared of loud noises. He and I have a little game we like to play. I ask him, “Are you my baby?” He smiles and says, “No”. “Are you my little boy?” “No” “Well then who are you?” and he makes up a name or a word, usually one of our family’s names, or an object in the room. I didn’t teach him this, he taught me. Smart kid.

He wakes up too early in the morning for my taste, then he climbs into our bed to cuddle. He can be sound asleep and still hear Max or Zoe come in. He immediately slams himself against me and possessively says, “My turn cuddle mommy!” He’s a fighter, which is probably common for being the baby of the family. Maybe I need to read The Birth Order Book after all. While Max and Zoe love to play together, Pete is content to play alone. He is a bit territorial, and what’s his is his. He hasn’t caught on to the whole sharing concept yet, but I know he will. He loves to sing and dance, and can’t help but move when he hears music of any kind. He has a tender heart, and tries his best to kiss owies away for his brother and sister. He loves to eat, and had mastered the fork and spoon by 18months old. His vocabulary is amazing for his age. Another advantage to being the baby I guess. What Max learns he does his best to teach Zoe and Petey and they both soak it up. He also has really good balance and motorskills. He has a great sense of humor and he is my goofy kid. Angi says he has Benny’s sense of humor. He’s my athletic comedian. Is that a strange combination or what?

I look forward to seeing the changes that will take place in him through the next year, and the years after that. I’m so thankful God brought that little blessing to our family. I can’t imagine life without him. I never believed it when people said all three of my children would be completely different, but they are…and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Happy Birthday Petey!

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