Beasley weasley

Well, we've finally ripped the plastic covering off our windows. Spring is here in wilmore! How do we know? Mr. Beasley Weasley (Kelly's cat) has drug, not one, but two live snakes into the house! One left a trail of blood on the carpet. Claire reminds me daily that "beasley weasley" likes to eat snakes.
Minus the snakes, it's nice to have a breeze flowing through the house again. Spring should be better than Fall:
-Claire is potty trained -We will have lots of family visitors -the School year has an end in sight
-we can start planting and harvesting a garden again - we can take afternoon walks while it is still light out -claire can go to the park again!
We still feeling like we are in a bit of survival mode. It is hard to be away from family and friends and to live life in such a hectic schedule. The weekend feels like our only rest and, even then, we feel like we are playing catchup on chores and claire time. The weekdays are full of studying and rushing claire around back and forth from sitters from morning until evening. I'm also doing an internship with the youth at our church so wed and sun evenings are taken up for me and taken away from our family time.
There seem to be new babies and pregnancies galore. Claire is ready for a little brother or sister- everywhere we go she plays with babies and oohs and aahs more than the other kids. I feel like my mommy hormones are ready again, but I just can't fathom trying to have a newborn on top of grad school. So, Claire and Keith will just have to wait....
Keith has been attending a program in Pittsburg that teaches the intricasies of spiritual formation. He seems quite enlivened when he returns home from long weekends on these retreats. It's hard for him to leave Claire and I behind and hard for us, but it seems like it is going to pay off in the long run for everyone's spirits.
I am diving further into understanding God's call on my life, the details of ecumenical Christian theology, and how to study the bible inductively. I've also sat in on some wonderful seminars related to children's spirituality and the theology for women in ministry and the practical issues that women face in ministry.
I enjoy what I'm learning, but hate the deadlines and pressure to perform as much as I did in undergrad. I think I'm starting to get over it, though which reduces my stress level greatly.
We will probably not even be going home for Easter, but sticking around here to finish out the term. I hope to take 2 or 3 summer courses to move my degree along, too. We will get back home once or twice this summer, though, I think especially for Luke's wedding at the end of June.
Claire will soon have a twin bed, dresser, desk and hutch that was her Aunt Laura's while growing up. I'm quite excited about getting her little bedroom setup so she can begin to have more of her own space and take up less of ours;). She seems to be clinging more to Keith than in the past. It is nice for him to finally feel like he is a beloved "daddy" and nice for me to get some more space. We thoroughly enjoy every minute of her. She continues to be an extraverted, strong willed little lady -yet she exhibits Keith's deep sensitivity at times.
That's about all we have to report!
I'll have to post some claire pictures soon....

Stranded in Wilmore

First term of seminary is completed. Am I burnt out? I am burnt out in one specific way- that of being in Wilmore. I'm tired of the "Christian" bubble, the tiny town atmosphere and all that goes with Kentucky rural living. I miss crowds. I miss excitement. I miss friends. After being here for four years, I'm beginning to feel restless, lonely, and basically left out. We hear from many friends about the wonders of Chicago living and I have to admit it sounds enticing. Yet, we know this is where we are supposed to be. We need cheap living, childcare co-ops, the medical support of the KY government, safe street, spiritual refreshment in community, and a quiet atmosphere to make it through the challenging times of grad school, early marriage, and young children.
What have I learned this term?
1. Studying youth ministry and seeking future ministry work among youth is humbling. Most people who do youth ministry do not have a degree in it and certainly don't see it worthy of their life's work. Just saying I'm studying youth ministry makes me cringe because I know most people are either thinking I'm a nut or that I'm wasting my time. Humbled.
2. Group work is still group work. One person does all the work, the rest ride along even in grad school.
3. Saving in more than one place is tough as a mother. I lost my flash drive. I lost my work. I lost control. The last was good for me, but was also terribly frustrating. I will now save in 4 places and take myself and my work less seriously, because let's face it- I'm also a mother.
4. The health of my spirit will effect the excellence of my work and my physical stamina. Worship needs to be my number one priority or I will seek studying as an end in itself rather than as a means to more effective and efficient service for God's work.
5. There are many struggles ahead for myself as a female in ministry. It is sad in class how many men dominate the conversation and leave little room for the wisdom of women to speak through.
6. Specific to youth ministry- youth ministry needs to be taken seriously, undergirded with theology and spiritual formation rather than suffocated with endless programs and trends that create good youth ministry kids instead of life long Christians. As a youth minister, the most important thing I can do is encourage and train parents to live out and teach faith to their children in the home. Many youth in America are looking for means to feed their Spirit. They need to be taught to overcome distractions and choose faith as a piece of their internal identity. Nurture and conversion must be in balance for youth to form, commit, and grow in relationship with the Living God.

Juggling the roles of wife, mother, and student is difficult. At this point, my life almost needs compartmentalization in order to stay task-oriented and accomplish what I must in the time I have. It is my hope, though, that these three will come together while outlining a proper way for me to maintain priorities.
I'm gearing up for another term and aim to be more flexible, less controlling, and more content with our station in life. The station of Wilmore is simply the center of my current labyrinth of life. It will soon be the maze of the past. It is my time in the belly of the whale, a time to cease my struggle and open my ears again to the voice of God that I might live into the mystery of obedience after the the 3 days (or years) are up.