03.21.09
Posted in family, kids
at 7:26 pm
Wednesday of this week was Father’s Day here in Italy. And my kids made little cards and wrote me a letter. Here’s what they said:
Dear Dad:
Here are a few little things about you that I will always remember.
When we watch a movie together, three seconds after the film starts you forget all about it and fall asleep. When we go to the Auchan or Obi, when we leave you always ask if we can go to McDonalds. Every Sunday you make breakfast. And you play on your computer. And you help me with my homework. And we play Xbox together. Sometimes you and I go shopping. You are the dad that all of the kids would like to have!
You’re the best dad in the world!
I love you very much!
Chloe
Dear Dad,
I like it when you go outside and go hiking and sometimes you take me with you. And also when we play together.
Or when it’s Sunday and you make pancakes or the best french toast in the whole world.
It makes me laugh when you wake up early in the morning, and you’re so tired that you seem mad.
I also like it when you take me to the cheap seats and we watch Ancona soccer games.
You really are a great dad.
I love you very much.
Lance
Naturally, this was all in Italian. But no matter what the language, it really made my day.
Aww … shucks …
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02.15.09
Posted in kids
at 9:00 am
10 years ago today our son Lance came into the world.
For his birthday party I went through tons of old pictures from when he was little and made a video. Lots of great memories. God has given us a huge blessing through him. I can’t wait to see how God can use the gifts that He has given him someday.
Hope you enjoy the video:
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01.25.09
Posted in family, friends, kids, leadership
at 5:59 pm
I’m an introvert.
There was a time in my life when I thought that was a character flaw. Introverts don’t like people, right? They’re kind of anti-social and maybe even a little snotty. How can that possibly be a good thing? I once had a friend question whether or not an introvert could even be a missionary.
Then I learned the real definition of introvert. We’re not anti-social and snotty. We like people just as much as extroverts. But the difference is that being around people is draining for introverts. It makes us tired. Extroverts come home from a party excitedly talking about all the great conversations they had. Introverts would rather drive home in silence, ready to slip into bed. One time after church my wife was asking me all kinds of questions about things that had happened, and I finally had to sheepishly admit that I was out of words – I honestly didn’t have it in me to have any more conversation!
This week has been full of meetings. And the kids have needed a little more attention than usual. And being the interim team leader means people turn their head and look at me during a meeting when it’s decision time. Which all adds up to a very tired introvert. When I saw being an introvert as a bad thing, it also would have added up to a lot of guilt. “Maybe introverts really shouldn’t be missionaries?” I would think. Now I see it as a part of me being me. I need to take some time to get recharged before I drain all the way to zero. Staying at zero too long often leads to bad things.
It’s a good thing to start to feel comfortable with the personality that God gave me.
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01.18.09
Posted in Ancona, kids
at 6:45 pm
So my son is a fencer. When he first started I didn’t know the first thing about fencing. Now I know just enough to be able to tell who won a match after it’s over. It’s been a really great experience for him, and I think has taught him a lot of discipline. And maybe even given him some self-confidence.
Here’s a video we took of one of the preliminary rounds of his last tournament. A red light on the scoreboard means a point for him, a green light means a point for his opponent. However, if any of the lights are accompanied by an amber light, the point isn’t valid. In this kind of fencing, only a direct hit with the tip of the foil counts. The scoreboard knows which part of the foil hit. Our son is on the left, furthest from the camera. The lady with the black purse that walks in front of me is one of his coaches.
Hope you like the video!
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01.11.09
Posted in culture, family, health care, kids
at 9:55 am
Everything is cultural. Every now and then I start to think that surely there must be some universal truths that are true for everyone in every culture. Like raising an infant. There have to be some dos and don’ts, right?
Wrong! Our kids’ pediatrician is teaching us that. Around Francesca’s five month check up, she hands Heidi a badly photocopied recipe called: Diet from the 6th Month. Here it is:
Make a vegetable puree with:
one potato, one carrot, one zucchini, one onion, and either some Swiss chard or celery.
Take 2-3 tablespoonfuls of the vegetable puree and add:
2 teaspoonfuls of extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoonfuls of aged Parmesan cheese
3-4 tablespoonfuls of multi grain cereal or baby pasta
10 grams of powdered meat or 60 grams of pureed meat
And so once a day for lunch, that’s what Francesca eats. For dinner, we substitute ricotta cheese instead of the meat. Starting with the seventh month we add fish instead of meat. And from seven and a half months we add ham. And then month eight brings beans (surely we’ll notice the effects of that!).
We raised three kids in America, and I don’t ever remember boiling an onion or Swiss chard for the babies lunch. I can’t think of any pediatrician that recommends ricotta or Parmesan cheese for a six month old. But we tried it, and she loves it. No gas or tummy aches from the onion. The pureed meat is just fine.
And it all proves that everything – even what we feed our kids – is completely influenced by what everyone around us does.
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08.22.08
Posted in family, kids
at 10:25 am
For the first time since moving to Italy, we needed to head to the American Embassy. Americans who have kids abroad need to go there to register their child’s birth and get a fancy “Report of Birth Abroad” form.
We checked in right on time for the appointment, and gave the helpful clerk all of the forms we needed. She had us sit down and wait until the vice-consulate called us. Not long after, he called us to his window. He said he had no problem approving our application for our newborn’s citizenship. He signed a paper, looked at us, and said, “Now she’s an American citizen.”
And I got a little misty eyed. I was a little amazed that this man could grant (and I suppose deny) citizenship with the stroke of a pen. And I was also proud that my daughter was officially part of the country that I am proud to be a part of. Living in Italy has given me a new perspective on my home country, and perhaps the voices around me have emphasized some of its flaws. But I’m still 100% American.
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06.12.08
Posted in family, kids
at 1:57 pm
June 9, 2008, 22:10.
4.240 kg. 53 cm.
Named after my dad, David Francis.
Wish he could be here to see the pictures.
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04.16.08
Posted in Ancona, culture, family, kids
at 11:41 am
I ran across a surprising statistic the other day. We’ve long known that our family size of five made us more than a little unusual here in Ancona. Now we have a handy graphic to prove it, published by the city of Ancona. So in a couple of months when the new baby is born, we’ll join the other 420 families with more than five people present in the home. Only 420 in a city of over 100,000! At our kids’ schools, the majority of people have one, two kids at the most. The national average is 1.2 kids per family.
But it’s not just statistics that show how children are viewed by some here. I had a conversation the other day with a woman a bit older than me. She was married with one kid and marveled at how young I am and how many kids we have (we get that a lot). And then she said to me that if she had it to do all over again, she wouldn’t have had any children. She told me her son tries her patience, and “if she knew then what she knows now…”
I was kind of shocked. Granted, there have been days when the kids are grating on my nerves. But to wish that they had never been born?!
I’m trying to figure out where this comes from. Some of it, at least in people I have talked with that “regret” having kids, is just plain selfishness. Some of it comes from an inability to provide every single thing the child could ever want, especially as the family grows. But other than those two things, I’m stumped. I love my kids! I have learned so much about myself, and they bless my socks off! It breaks my heart to hear people (one time, in front of their child) lament ever having kids.
Don’t you see that children are God‘s best gift?
the fruit of the womb his generous legacy?
– Psalm 127:3 (MSG)
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11.25.07
Posted in family, kids
at 3:56 pm
Well, the news is slowly leaking out, so we might as well tell the world.
A surprise to us all … baby number four is on the way. Due June 18th. We’re learning all about the Italian health care system…
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11.03.07
Posted in kids, language
at 4:56 pm
I have to say it … one of the most fascinating parts of learning Italian has been learning the more colorful phrases. Obviously, our kids have picked up some pretty good ones. There’s an expression in Italian: Che cavolo! Literally, what cabbage! It’s not a bad thing to say, and in fact is even a sort of childish expression. It’s probably closest in English to “What on earth?” or maybe “Oh my!” But it’s a hard thing to translate.
Except for Trey, who I heard say in English the other day (without batting an eye), “What cabbage!”
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