Happy Birthday to me!

Today was a GREAT day of celebrating my birthday... more on that tomorrow. (And thank you Facebook friends for chiming in!)

In the meantime, I can't get this song out of my head. Of course, I had no idea what she was saying! That's why the lyrics follow.



Lyrics:
happy birthday, happy birthday
happy birthday, happy birthday
happy birthday, happy birthday
happy, happy birthday in a hot bath
to those nice nice nights
i remember always, always
i got such a fright
seeing them in my dark cupboard
with my great big cake
if they were me
if they were me
and i was you
and i was you
if they were me
if they were me
and i was you
and i was you
if they were me and i was you
would you have liked a present too?
happy birthday, happy birthday

Chandler's Music Video Debut

Chandler and Regan made this video for a Disney contest. It's only 40 seconds. You have to see it.



Be a friend and go here to vote for her and give her some love!

Scrapbook Pages test

I'm trying to figure out how to make it so you can click on the images to enlarge them. I think this works...

Update: O.K. I think it worked!

Latest Scrapbook Pages

Logic! What do they teach in school these days?

One of my biggest goals in homeschooling is that my children learn to think. As such, I have spent two years teaching Logic, and Chandler is signed up for a Logic class as she begins her high school journey. I have found that the Letters to the Editor provide a perfect place to look for both logical and illogical thinking. One particular letter attacking Miss California provided the most egregious examples of logical fallacies I have yet seen.

I had to respond!

Yesterday it was published in our local newspaper, The Press Telegram. Here it is in its entirety.


Regardless of what you believe about same-sex marriage, the attacks on Miss California are so full of logical fallacies as to be embarrassing, and are actually working counter to the cause.

The letter from Jason Thompson (" `The Donald' has it all wrong," May 24) is a perfect example. He first states that she never answered the question, but only gave her opinion. The question was, "Vermont recently became the fourth state to legalize same-sex marriage. Do you think every state should follow suit?" Her answer implied a clear "no" and yes, it was her opinion. That's what was asked for when the judge prefaced his question with "Do you think ..."

Thompson wonders what this teaches our children, and then follows with several non sequiturs about it being a divisive topic and wondering whether she gave her life to God before or after breast implants. Are Christians not supposed to have plastic surgery? Where is that in the Bible? And what does that have to do with what we are teaching our children? Jason Thompson is teaching the children that you can use ad hominem attacks on a person you disagree with.

Then he brings up the racy photos of her that in his legal opinion constitute fraud, even though the person she supposedly defrauded, Donald Trump, doesn't see it that way. Now we are onto the red herring fallacy. What do these photos, her Christian faith or her alleged fraud have to do with her opinion on same-sex marriage, which began this whole controversy? Nothing.

One point I have never seen mentioned is that as the representative of California, where same-sex marriage was rejected, she only said what the majority said at the ballot box. She is also parroting the opinion of President Obama, whom the majority of Americans put in office. So her views are exactly in line with voters.

Michelle Lasch
Long Beach

This made me laugh out loud

This column from Andy Borowitz is very funny. I had to share it:

U.S. to Respond to North Korea with ‘Strongest Possible Adjectives'
Obama: We are Prepared to Consult Thesaurus

One day after North Korea launched a successful test of a nuclear weapon, President Obama said that the United States was prepared to respond to the threat with "the strongest possible adjectives."

In remarks to reporters at the White House, Mr. Obama said that North Korea should fear the "full force and might of the United States' arsenal of adjectives" and called the missile test "reckless, reprehensible, objectionable, senseless, egregious and condemnable."

Standing at the President's side, Vice President Joseph Biden weighed in with some tough adjectives of his own, branding North Korean President Kim Jong-Il "totally wack and illin'."

Later in the day, Defense Secretary Robert Gates called the North Korean nuclear test "supercilious and jejune," leading some in diplomatic circles to worry that the U.S. might be running out of appropriate adjectives with which to craft its response.

But President Obama attempted to calm those fears, saying that the United States was prepared to "scour the thesaurus" to come up with additional adjectives and was "prepared to use adverbs" if necessary.

"Let's be clear: we are not taking adverbs off the table," Mr. Obama said. "If the need arises, we will use them forcefully, aggressively, swiftly, overwhelmingly and commandingly."

H/T dad

Prager University

I love Dennis Prager. I listen to him every day. Now he has started what he calls "Prager University". These are short video clips he has created to teach and inform his fellow Americans. Here is the first installment:

I'm a Crunchy Con

Somehow I found out about this book and I HAD to get if from the library. It's called Crunchy Cons, meaning crunchy conservatives. Here is the subtitle if you can't read it: How Birkenstocked Burkeans, gun-loving organic gardeners, evangelical free-range farmers, hip homeschooling mamas, right-wing nature lovers, and their diverse tribe of countercultural conservatives plan to save America (or at least the Republican Party) It was that "hip homeschooling mamas" that leapt out at me.

This conservative writer had started eating organic vegetables because they taste so much better and he liked the idea of supporting family farms, and he was teased by his fellow conservatives for going "crunchy". As he began to think about that, he started to rethink what being a conservative means.

He makes the case that true conservative seeks to conserve what he calls the "Permanent Things". A real conservative values faith, family, and friendships above politics and economics. Crunchy Cons are those that want their faith in God to inform every aspect of their life, whether that means being good stewards of the planet or favoring economic policies that help, rather than hurt, families. Crunchy cons know that it is only through faith in a being higher than ourselves that we can avoid the hopelessly empty trap of self-worship.

Again and I again I found myself in the pages. One thing of value to a crunchy con is the wisdom and beauty of the past in terms of architecture. How many times have I railed against cookie cutter track homes that are nothing more than places to sleep. These are not homes in the true sense. They don't invite you in. They don't shower you with warmth. And if you decide to customize your house in such a way as to appeal to your sense of hominess, watch out for the Homeowners Association! That's against the CC&R's.

He also nailed my ambivalence for Facebook, et, al... While crunchy cons value technology to the extent it furthers our vision of faith, family, & friends, when technology inhibits those things, it is to be rejected. Many times, Facebook is the opposite of what a crunchy con like me really desires - true relationship. Just this last week, I had other people tell me things they had learned about someone else. "He had surgery." "She saw that movie." "He tried that restaurant." When I asked, "How's he doing?, How'd she like the movie?, What did he think of the restaurant?" The response is, "I don't know. I saw it on Facebook." That's not real relationship!

Like other crunchy cons, I don't worship the Republican Party. But I do believe it is the party that best holds the values I do. One thing that excited me about this book is the possibility that the Republicans, or even a third party, (the Democrats, with their fairly open hostility toward religion would probably never go in this direction) would take these ideas to heart and see a groundswell of support from people like me.

But the book is out of print, which does not bode well for it's transfomative power. So I'm not holding my breath that any politician will start to promote a life that puts faith above all, family first in policies, and seeks genuine, authentic community.

Regan's Poem

Here is poem Regan wrote that I thought was particularly good. so I thought I'd share it here:

The Dark, Black, Woods
Many folks will tell you not to wander in the woods at night
Anything may jump out, giving you a fright.
The only men who’ll go into the woods, well, bravery, they do not lack
But notice how all who go in, ha! They never do come back.

Have they all been eaten?
Or maybe only beaten?
Only those who enter the forest
Can see what lies before us.

You see, on a dark and scary night,
One filling you with fright,
If you enter in the vast, black scene
You will hear an owl scream.

If you make it this far, you are likely to go home
For the scare the forest gives, chills all the way to the bone.
But, if you would wander further, just a little down the bend,
Everything would change as you travel to your end.

The black flower petals, start changing as you stare,
And soon, they become dollar bills, and coins, just right there.
The dirt underneath you becomes fine gold dust, yes it’s true.
The black, bleak sky turns to a beautiful blue.

Soon you see houses made from ice cream,
And fish that are red and green.
You see a whole village where gumdrops line the street
And cars, which look good enough to eat.

You see cows playing tubas, with many people standing around.
The ocean is a pretty purple, and so is the lovely ground.
Who could have guessed you just came from the lonely dark?
When you are standing on a spaceship, with a monkey, in a park?

So those folks who tell you men are eaten in the woods?
Well, they’re wrong, they’re just too scared to come and enjoy these goods.
Only men who’ve been there have the knowledge others lack.
For all of those that enter, why would they ever come back?

Carrots and Sticks

I'm not sure how to present this exactly.

On one hand, it can be a testament to homeschooling. I am fostering my child's natural creativity by unbinding her from the shackles of traditional school. She's free to learn and discover the world around her.

Or I am offering evidence of the way my daughter's mind works (I'll let you figure out which daughter), and you may decide that homeschooling is causing her to be quite odd indeed and that traditional school is called for immediately.

Either way, an experiment was done to see if the "carrot and stick" thing is real. Apparently not. Or we just have a very lazy dog. That's possible I suppose.

Do you tell them?

I know the picture is lousy, but if you can't read it, it says, "Bad Credit. No Credit. Clearence Sale. Welcome!!!"

That "Clearence" just kills me! They paid a lot of money for this sign. Did it ever occur to them to do a spell check on it? Do they know it's misspelled? Do they want to know? Do the people who might buy a car from them see the sign and decide to go elsewhere? Are they trying to appeal to people who can't spell?

These questions go through my head every time I see that sign.

It's a real dilemma for me.

Chandler's Poem

I was cleaning out Chandler's writing folder and I came across this poem that she wrote. I just love it, so I thought I'd share it here.

Sorry I Missed Your Birthday
By Chandler Lasch - 2.26.09

Sorry I missed your birthday, pal.
I didn't mean to be so late.
I really wanted to come to your party.
Your parties are always so great.

You would've been terrified by our morning.
You would've cried like a newborn baby.
You're quite lucky that you weren't there,
But as usual, I was brave as can be.

You see, my parents were kidnapped by ninjas,
And I by cowboys from Spain!
It was all a mistake, a grand prank, you see,
And they said it wouldn't happen again.

While we were on our way to your party,
Our car suddenly rose in the air!
An alien vortex had captured us,
Then they dropped us and left us there.

I realized I'd forgotten your present.
And we hurried back home so as not to be late.
But my dogs were having a party,
And they'd thrown my cat in the lake!

Sorry I missed you birthday.
When I didn't come, I am sure you wept.
But we had an eventful morning,
And besides, I overslept!

And so it begins...

When we first started homeschooling, Chandler was in 4th grade and Regan was in third, I used a book called The Well-Trained Mind: A Guide to Classical Education at Home as my bible. This book promised "an academically rigorous, comprehensive education from preschool through high school -- one that will train him or her to read, to think, to understand, to be well-rounded and curious about learning." The theory harkens back to time long ago when an American education was something to be envied.

Although I have strayed slightly over the years, we have managed to build a strong program based on a lot of reading great books and writing constantly. I think we are exactly where we should be at this point in their education.

But next year high school begins for Chandler, and this is the point at which it all comes together. All my hopes and dreams for a well-rounded, well-versed, clear-thinking child start here. Since I first heard of the Torrey Academy that Biola does for homeschool, high school students, I knew that was my destination for her.

What is Torrey you may ask? "It is Classically Informed
Torrey Academy draws on the great minds of the Christian tradition for class curriculum and teaching methods. Students read Great Books and participate in tutor-led discussions, helping them to wrestle with and think critically about the ideas that have shaped the Christian worldview for over two thousand years."

For the last three years of her four year career, they offer one Torrey class. It counts for 30-35 units as it encompasses history, literature, Bible, philosophy, and language arts. For her freshman year, they offer a class in Logic. I stayed up until midnight tonight to assure her a place. Just listen to this course description: This course introduces students to Torrey Academy by exploring the importance of clear thinking for Christian spiritual development. Students learn why great Christian leaders have traditionally seen the life of the mind as a key component of spiritual growth. Students examine the basics of Socratic Logic, including terms, syllogisms, and evaluation of soundness and validity. The class also explores how argumentation plays out in everyday life, including a lengthy study of informal fallacies. Students end the year by exploring good methods for reading and engaging essays and literature using logical principles. Readings include With Good Reason by S. Morris Engel, How to Read a Book by Mortimer Adler and Charles Van Doren, and works by Plato, C.S. Lewis, Washington Irving, William Shakespeare, J.P. Moreland, and others. We recommend that parents and independent study programs count this class as meeting the requirements for ten high school academic units for Logic/Critical Thinking.

In addition to this, I want to sign her up for a speech and debate team that competes statewide. I am so excited about this I don't know how I'm going to get any sleep now!

Happy 2nd Birthday Emma!

This little miracle is such a blessing in my life. Words cannot describe how much I love and cherish her. Seeing her today on her second birthday is joy I only dreamed of for many years.

Happy Birthday, Emma. And thank you, God, for this amazing angel.

To see all of the shots I took at the party click on each link (good for the next 30 days)
Album #1
Album #2
Album #3

Lauren's Wedding 4.3.09

My niece, Lauren, was married a few weeks ago. As soon as I found out she was engaged, and maybe even before, I declared myself her photographer.

I took over 700 shots. Of course, I worry a lot more about the ones that didn't turn out, rather than appreciate the ones that did.

This is one of those images that didn't seem to turn out. It was blown out and I was so disappointed because I really like it. But then I decided to just go with it.

I blew out the highlights even more and made it seem like they were in their own little world rather than a community center surrounded by hundreds of people.

Congratulations Lauren and Chris.

Shouldn't they be called "Most Wonderful Person on the Planet Jeans"?

I told Chandler that if she ever saw me wearing "Mom Jeans" or the equivalent, let me know.

Well that day has come.

My 14-year-old is now giving her mom fashion advice. She recently, very gently, told me that if the yoga pants I was wearing were jeans, they would be Mom Jeans.

So now I'm looking for a cool, hip pair of sweats (seems a bit of an oxymoron).

But that got me thinking about the term "Mom Jeans". I agree that they are not flattering and look dated. I just hate that term. Why is it that outdated and unflattering got the name "Mom" attached to it.

I think us hard working moms deserve better. Why can't super-cute, very stylish jeans be called "Mom Jeans" and the frumpy ones be called... something else. I can't think of anything clever off the top of my head, but I know we moms have to band together and fight this attack on our basic coolness.

Moms make the world go round. We deserve better.

This is why I don't pick books for my book club

I love to read. Most of my sentences start with, "I just read..." My taste in books is very eclectic and I love both fiction and non-fiction. But when my book club called to say it was my time to pick, out of mercy for them, I declined. You see, here's what currently on my nightstand.

Inside the Revolution: How the Followers of Jihad, Jefferson & Jesus Are Battling to Dominate the Middle East and Transform the World is the book I just finished, but I have When Skateboards Will Be Free: A Memoir of a Political Childhood, Meltdown: A Free-Market Look at Why the Stock Market Collapsed, the Economy Tanked, and Government Bailouts Will Make Things Worse, and A Slobbering Love Affair: The True (And Pathetic) Story of the Torrid Romance Between Barack Obama and the Mainstream Media coming up. I don't think anyone in my book club would appreciate me picking any of these.

This book has made a huge impact on me and I highly recommend it.

It starts with a very scary section on the Radicals of Islam and their plan for violent world domination. We in the west are completely blinded to their murderous agenda, yet we have only to listen to what they are saying. Iran has pledged to gain nuclear weapons and has promised time and again to use them against Israel first and then us.

To which western scholars scoff and say he must be bluffing. Surely Iran knows that they can't win that game. After all, they aren't suicidal, right? Yes, they are. It is almost impossible for secular analysts to comprehend the motivating power of religious fervor. People have sacrificed their lives for religious beliefs all throughout history. We make the mistake of believing that humanity has somehow moved beyond this at our own peril.

The next sections details the efforts of the Reformers to preserve "true Islam" and make it a religion of peace and tolerance. They are seeing remarkable success in such places as Morocco and Jordan. This part of the book began to offer some hope for a future not determined by the mad mullahs of Iran. It also offers a huge opportunity for sharing the gospel of Christ to one of the most hopeless areas in the world.

Finally, in the most exciting and moving section, Joel details story after story of Muslims and those born into a nominally Christian family in the Middle East turning to Christ in record numbers. The tales of "old men seeing vision and young men dreaming dreams" give you chills as you experience Biblical prophecies of the last days coming true, today. Time and again, Christians in the Middle East report that they don't even need to share the gospel. People are approaching them begging for Bibles and discipleship after seeing visions of Jesus!

That's right. Jesus is appearing to hundreds and thousands of people in the most closed societies on earth. If we can't get to them, He can. And this is no, "I saw a bright light at the end of my bed" type story. These people are having conversations with Christ, sometimes night after night, in which He is guiding them and teaching them the Word of God. And the conversions that result from these experiences do not produce fly-by-night believers. Rather, these are some of the most hard-core, committed Christians, many in hiding after having their lives threatened, yet they continue to boldly proclaim the truth of Jesus Christ.

I couldn't help but cry as I read story after story of Christ's miraculous saving grace. People who were hopeless and lost found truth and meaning. Many were former terrorists who laid down their weapons. Some were born into nominal Christian families but had no idea of what true Christianity was.

One particular story tells of two men, smuggling Bibles over dark mountain roads. For some reason, their car stops on the road and they get out to find an old man asking for the books they are supposed to be bringing to him. After stating they had no books, the man says that his entire village had a vision of Jesus the night before and He told them to go out on the road and wait for the books that were being delivered. So he asked again, "Where are the books?" An entire village, saved and just waiting for Bibles to be miraculously delivered to them!

Another story points the readiness of fields ripe for the harvest. A Christian pastor went to the doctor and the radical Muslim receptionist told him his wait would be extremely long. After telling her she would regret that, he takes a seat. A few minutes later, the doctor happens to notice him and says, "Hi Reverend, I'll be with you soon." Once the other 15-20 people heard he was a Christian pastor, they all begged him to tell them about Jesus! He led the entire waiting room to Christ. Finally he looked at the receptionist and said, "I told you that you would regret it."

I don't want to rewrite the whole book. Joel Rosenberg does a pretty good job of it for himself. But I do want to encourage you that if you are wondering where the world is headed, READ THIS BOOK!

Karla and Daniel's Wedding

Several years ago, when Tim and I were leading a Life Group for our old church, Karla approached me and asked if she and her friend Valerie could come to our group. Well, it wasn't a closed, invitation-only group, so of course it was fine. But I had to wonder why a couple of early twenties, still in college girls would want to be in our group. Our group was older singles and married couples for the most part. And there was already a very popular college age group. I was nervous she would regret it her first night.

But they came. We had a bar-be-que that first night to celebrate the beginning or the end of summer. I don't remember which. During the course of the evening, Valerie had to jump in our pond to save a small child from drowning! So much for first impressions.

Maybe it was the great food, or the sense that if they didn't come each week children might die, but for some reason, they stayed.

What a blessing! I have never had the privilege to know two girls so committed to Christ at such a young age as Valerie and Karla. Their faith was unbelievable. Karla would tell us stories each week of people she had prayed for on the campus of Long Beach State. She once felt led to pray for a girl that had broken her leg. And a report came back that it was healed!

Then I found out that Karla was homeschooled all the way through 12th grade! Her mom became my hero, and Karla became my poster child. I saw Karla and prayed my girls would end up with even half her faith and devotion to Christ. She continually amazed me week after week with her maturity and insight and wisdom. She put grown ups to shame with her trust in God.

She moved home to Los Angeles after graduating and decided to go to Africa for a 6 month mission project (see what I mean about unbelievable faith.) So obviously she couldn't attend our group anymore. That was a big blow.

But when she came back from Africa, she announced she was dating someone and it was serious. I knew he had to be someone amazing to even earn a few minutes of her time. She's quite committed to the work of the Lord and has no time for silly, inconsequential stuff.

We attended their wedding on Saturday. It was an amazing, Christ-centered affair. With Karla, there would not have been a choice. It was the first contact we had had with Daniel, as he lives in South Dakota, but I have to say I was enormously impressed. He's a male Karla! Their love for the Lord was so obvious and beautiful. It made their love for each other that much more sweet.

I pray that God would shower them with blessings. Make them successful in whatever they do. Lead them and guide them. My heart is bursting with happiness for them and I continue to pray my own girls will have a similar story.

Congratulations Daniel and Karla.

George Will on denim

I recently got into a discussion about appropriate clothing to wear to church. One pastor had taken the position that he wore suits to show his respect for God. (I guess he doesn't respect God that much or he would have worn a tuxedo.)

My view holds that it is what is in your heart, not on your body, that matters.

Then George Will, a columnist whom I respect a lot, comes out with this article on wearing jeans. I was wearing jeans while reading it and began to get a little uncomfortable. He makes some good points that sound a little too much like something I might say. Not that I have ever thought much about jean wearers, but I do think a little too much about what various aspects our culture say about us, and where they are leading.

George Will believes that wearing jeans shows us to be a group whose development was arrested at age ten. We try hard to look like the hard-working people they were created for without actually getting our hands dirty.

Here is my favorite line: Denim is the carefully calculated costume of people eager to communicate indifference to appearances.

I'm not about to give up my jeans, but that line does sound an awful lot like something I would say.

So now back to what you wear to church. I still believe that it is what is on the inside that matters. Jesus tells us this when he calls the Pharisees whitewashed tombs. They looked good on the outside, but were dead on the inside.

But sometimes, as George Will would point out, the outside says something about the inside.

New Garden

I have finally finished planting my new garden!

I can't wait for everything to grow and fill in and grow up. We put a small patio area in the middle of it. For now, it's exposed, but my plan is for the plants to branch up and create a garden room. I've already spent time out there with my book and I love it!

A few years back, I found these white arbors, cheap. So I bought two! We used one right away in the entrance to our backyard, but this one never really found a home. So this was the perfect place for it.

Here is my wonderful sitting area. Just picture me, my iced tea, and a book!

The birds are loving this! And I love watching them.

I have done a lot of planting in the past around our house, and I'm very happy with the way they turned out. Here's my backyard...

here is my pond (the birds love this too!)

Hopefully my front yard will look this pretty! I'll have to update in the summer.