The Old Testament Song

Taylor and her best friend Sydney sing the books of the Old Testament for our church's talent night.

dog dreams

Here's a picture from Taylor (age 7).
Her cartoon has a surprisingly adult-ish wit to it I think. The New Yorker cartoons have nothing on this.

Can you tell she wants a puppy?

bloo bunny

blue bunny was in blue bunny town - Addy

Air Show

Yesterday the Blue Angels performed at the Smyrna Air Show. We didn't go, but we did the next best thing by watching parts of the show from a friend's back yard. We had a blast with lots of food, a trampoline, kittens, a couple games of corn hole, and of course the Blue Angels.

all dolled up

all dolled up
Originally uploaded by jnordmoe

Here are the girls all dolled up in their Easter attire. More photos are up on flickr.

Baptism

Taylor was baptised on Palm Sunday! She had been asking questions about God for over a year and was ready to begin her journey of faith this past November. We are excited to see her mature as a little lady and a follower of Christ.

This first picture captures Taylor's enthusiasm in the moment. She is our emotive child.

Homeschooling

My friend aka pastor guy posted a great piece on why he and his wife homeschool their boys, which reminded me that I have never posted on the subject, even though Janell is in her second year and now has two pupils.

In his post, he gives his reasons for homeschooling. I'm going to list them here with some of his comments and my own. I'm prioritizing them a little differently to match our reasons. Home schooling was actually a hard sell for me (based on homeschoolers I encountered as a kid). I was leaning toward public school, but as we looked into it found these reasons to be compelling (my wife can also be very persuasive). We are also blessed to have a network of homeschooling families in our church who provide encouragement and collaboration in this endeavor. My father has also been involved with homeschooling over the past couple of years as a homeschool cooperative administrator.

1. Educational Quality: the chances of our [daughters] getting a high quality education are better at home (where the teacher:student ratio is [1:2]) than in a public school (where the teacher:student ratio is 1:20+). Our ability to choose curriculum to fit particular learning styles & needs is substantially higher than a public or private school. We can also use travel in ways that public schools can not to further supplement our [girls'] education. We were also concerned with the quality of education offered in the local school system - based on the testimonials from parents who did use it. Most folks we know are moving across the county lines for better schools.

2. Flexibility: I don't think a lot of folks realize that good quality homeschooling doesn't take 8 hours a day - if [our kids are] concentrating & working hard, [they] can do most of [their] work in 90-120 minutes. (Just think about how much time in school is spent moving people from one place to another, taking attendance, listening to announcements, etc.) That extra 5-6 hours per day allows [them] lots of time to read, to play outside... and that doesn't even figure in our family's flexibility to travel.... That last point is especially true in this particular season of our life. We can take school with us on the road.

3. School Bureaucracy: Where we currently live, school zoning is completely whacked. There are three elementary schools within a 3 mile radius of our home, but we are zoned for a fourth that is 5 miles away. While that school is "brand new", it isn't in our community. I'm not going to bus my kids unnecessarily. And this has nothing to do with "diversity". My kids would be a "minority" in our community schools - something we don't have a problem with. School overcrowding is also a big issue.

4. Jump Start For our Youngest: By homeschooling, we are able to start our youngest in Kindergarten a full year earlier than in public schools (she turns 5 in November). We made that decision because she was demonstrating a desire to learn and because she had already been exposed to school last year while observing and absorbing her sister's lessons.

5. Spiritual Training: We incorporate bible lessons and activities such as AWANA into their curriculum.

6. Being Kids: The pressure from popular culture is for kids to grow up so quickly now - to become little adults in the manner & content of what they consume. [We] really want our [girls] to be kids as long as humanly possible - they will have plenty of time to be adults later. This is especially true for our girls. We try to encourage imaginative (dress up, tea times, birthday parties for stuffed animals) as well as creative play activities.

7. Values: This is not just about kids - people pick up values from their environment, not from what they're taught. (Does any school teach that cheating is OK? No. Does that stop kids from cheating? No. The culture is stronger than the information... and even the chance of punishment.) By homeschooling, we're spending our [girls'] formative years with them in an environment where they are swimming in our value choices. According to research from The Barna Group, most individuals don't radically change their values & beliefs after age 13 - which means that the elementary school years are key!

8. Enjoying Family: Here's something weird & wonderful about homeschooling. Relatively healthy homeschooling families (there are unhealthy ones) seem to enjoy being together more than other families, up into & including their teenage years. I hope this will be true of ours.

My friend goes on to discuss the issues of socialization and sheltering - I encourage you to read it. He also lists the curriculum they use. We are currently using Sing, Spell, Read and Write along with Math U See.

Beach Vacation

sunset
uploaded by jnordmoe

We had a family vacation last week to Seagrove Beach, FL. Besides the usual sun, sand and water, we also enjoyed the fellowship of eight other families from our church. I of course got baked on my first day on the beach. Fair-skinned Norweigians and hot, sunny beaches don't mix well. Check out more photos at flickr.

Here we are on April 13 - on our way to the Wycliffe Bible Translators USA headquarters in Orlando. Stay tuned for more info and pictures.

Fatherhood

Fatherhood is like an extreme sport. There are perils to avoid, fears to overcome, challenges to meet, sacrifices to be made, and disciplines to learn, but the rewards do equal the challenges: tickle fights, playtime with lincoln logs, plenty of hugs and kisses, giggles, being a human jungle gym, and squeals of delight when I get home from work.

Christmas Kids

The Fair

We went to the State Fair recently. The Fair is a dying cultural icon. It is rooted in an agricultural society that has become a foreign culture for us Suburbanites. Still we had a good time watching live sharks, eating overpriced funnel cake and riding the ferris wheel.
















"Hey kids, don't you want to recreate the feeling of going down with the ship!" ;-)

There's a new blog in town

Check out my father's blog, Mercy and Truth. It is based on a weekly newsletter he sends to the parents and students of the home school consortium he administers. I've posted a few of his writings on this blog (here and here), but now he will have his own presence in the blogosphere.

Nordmoes on the Mall

Dinosaur Bones!

We have been in Maryland visiting my in-laws this week. Yesterday we ventured down to the National Mall in Washington D.C. to take the kids to the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History. All week Addy has been torturing her older sister with two words: "Dinosaur Bones!". To our surprise, the Dinos were Taylor's favorite exhibit.

2005: The Year in Review

Well another year has come and gone, so I'll take this time to blog the highlights:

Mt. View Baptist Church
In December of '04, two congregations (Mt. View and New Life Community Church) voted to merge into one. We were attending New Life at the time and watched the merger unfold this past year. In the spring, we were part of the first membership class and officially cast our lot with the church. Despite the inevitable conflicts and setbacks, we remain convinced that the merger created a stronger church than either had been prior and that God is at work in our midst.

Family
It is wild to watch our little girls mature before our eyes. I won't take the time here to reminisce on all that they have done in 2005, but I hope I can write more about them in the near future. Here are some photos posted earlier this year: Taylor & Addy, Muddy Addy, and family picnic.

Bethel College
I taught four classes this year. Each experience has stretched me as a "teacher" and I have discovered new facets about the past (and about myself) each time through. I'm looking forward to the three classes already scheduled in the new year.

Travel
In April, Janell and I celebrated our 9th anniversary by visiting Monteagle, the University of the South and South Cumberland State Park.

We also took two family road trips to Frederick County, Maryland to visit my in-laws. Our trip in June was all about leisure and relaxation: riding on/driving Dad's new tractor, visiting the National Zoo, overeating, playing games, and laughing heartily. And our trip over Labor Day was dedicated to family - a chance to visit with Uncles, Aunts & Cousins galore and with Janell's brother Matt before his first deployment to Iraq.

Finally, we traveled to Knoxville for Christmas at my parent's place where we were joined by my sisters, bro-inlaws and grandmothers, one niece, one uncle/aunt combo, Janell's parents, 2 of her brothers, and a few family friends. I think there were 21 of us at Christmas dinner. My sister, Rebecca, is expecting in May and everyone learned the baby's gender on Christmas Eve - I'm going to have a nephew.

Friends
We have been blessed by the many friendships we have developed over the years. Many of you we hung out with this year (playing games, breaking bread together, laughing with and at each other, and encouraging one another). We also added many new friends to our list this year and heard from old friends as well. In particular it was nice to receive word and photos from Jason, Schimpf, Shelly, and April.

It was also the year for blogging as several of my friends started blogs of their own: Scott's Confessions, Mark Jackson's aka Pastor Guy and the One Hundred, Mark Pucket's Missionary Musings, Paul's Zion Red's Head, and Jeff's Thanks For Noticing Me.

Exercise
Janell joined Gold's Gym back in '04 and has kept with it throughout the year - capped by running her first 5k run this fall. I've been trying to go to the gym at work two days a week since July. It's not much, but it's a start.

Music
2005 was the year of the .mp3 for me - I spent quite a few hours ripping my cd collection to my laptop this year and I officially joined the iPod crowd this Christmas.

CT Magazines' Music Site posted their top 12 albums of the year. I purchased five of them and have two others on my wishlist (Room Noises by Eisley and The Everglow by Mae).

Here's my favorite albums of the year
1. How to Dismantle An Atomic Bomb - U2
2. O How the Mighty Have Fallen - The Choir
3. A Collision - David Crowder Band
4. Men and Angels Say - Ashley Cleveland
5. Nothing Is Sound - Switchfoot
6. Redemption Songs - Jars of Clay
7. Drunkard's Prayer - Over the Rhine

Discovery of the year: Mindy Smith's song Come to Jesus (view video here)

Movies

Janell and I don't get out to the theater like we used to (before kids) but here is a list of my favorites:
1. Batman Begins
2. Star Wars Revenge of the Sith
3. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
4. Wallace and grommet
5. Hitch

and here's is my top ten movies I didn't see in 2005 that I'd like to:

1. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (we may see it this weekend)
2. Walk the Line
3. King Kong
4. Millions
5. Cinderella Man
6. Elizabethtown
7. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
8. Tim Burton's Corpse Bride
9. War of the Worlds
10. The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy

Highlights on video this year:
Napoleon Dynamite, The Gathering Storm, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Village, All's Quiet on the Western Front, and Luther

Books
Janell does more reading than I do. In particular she read (and discussed with me) Winston Churchill's World War II memoirs (abridged edition) and a two volume biography on Churchill by William Manchester. Currently, we are both working on Manchester's history of the U.S.(1932-72) called The Glory and the Dream. We also re-read The Count of Monte Cristo and Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince. I plan to dust off the Chronicles of Narnia as soon as we see the movie.

Katrina Relief
In October, I went to the Gulf Coast with a group from my church to assist with cleanup and recovery efforts. See my blog posts for details and photos (Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Recap) It was a great experience and I hope to more similar projects in the future.

Politics
I haven't blogged much this year on politics (here, here, and here). It's been a difficult year for this conservative Bush supporter.
First, the President's social security reform proposals went absolutely nowhere dooming my generation to pickup the tab for our parents' and grandparents' selfishness.
The War on Terror has had its moments of both triumph and tragedy this year, but the key is to hold the course. I'm concerned that we as a nation don't have the same character as the Greatest Generation necessary to win a sustained conflict against evil men. Remember the men and women of the armed forces in your prayers and support them in whatever small way you can.
The confirmation of Justice Roberts was a bright spot in 2005. Bush's nomination of Myers was a tactical mistake (Alito should be confirmed).
Then Katrina brought out the worst from our leaders. Bush made mistakes, but received more than his fair share of the blame for problems in the rescue and recovery. In a just world, local and state leaders (in Louisiana) should be voted out of office for their inept handling of the affair and the shameless way they passed the buck.
A federal judge has saved us from the nefarious plot to mention the words Intelligent Design in biology class despite polls that indicates that a majority of Americans believe in either creationism or ID. The 1st Amendment is supposed to protect free speech and is not about expunging all references to religion from the public square.
And now we have a media-storm over domestic spying - coming from the same people who said Bush didn't do enough to prevent the 9/11 attacks.
All in all a difficult year - I've cussed the NPR broadcast multiple times this year. Here's hoping for a brighter 2006.

Mercy and Truth

The following was written by my father as part of a weekly newsletter he does for the school he administrates. I thought it was blog worthy.

Nobody at CFC has asked me so far, but I am going to tell you anyway. I have been questioned in the past as to why I sign off with “mercy and truth.” “Why not ‘mercy and grace’?” I was asked once. That sounds a lot more gracious and friendly and loving and all those nice things. I truly do not have anything against ‘grace.’ It is a wonderful word. It is amazing. I was saved by it.

The reason I use ‘truth’ is that it reflects balance. I started looking one day, and it became increasingly clear that mercy is to be balanced with truth. Proverbs 3:3 states it plainly enough, “Let not mercy and truth forsake thee, bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart.” The Psalmist says, “Oh Lord, let thy lovingkindness and thy truth continually preserve me (Ps. 40:11).” Micah urges us to “do justly and to love mercy (Mic. 6:8).” Wherever I look I see this linkage between God’s love and God’s truth. Take time to do a word study, and it is amazing how many times these two themes are set side by side in Scripture.

Unfortunately, these themes are really a combination of oil and water that we have a hard time intermingling. How a holy God can love sinners is truly the scandal of the Bible. And I, in my flawed humanity, have a hard time hanging on to both at once. Most of the time, I readily embrace the love thing. It doesn’t take long in any week for me to realize again how I need the mercy of our God. And I love how His mercies are new every morning. Love, love, love. All we really need is love. The Beatles almost got it right. We surely are all sheep who have gone astray and are in desperate need of the Good Shepherd’s tender voice.

Preaching God’s love is an easy and popular message. Who doesn’t need to hear it again and again? And yet, there is that troublesome other half of the message, God’s truth. Our God is a God of righteousness and justice, and we are to be held accountable to His standard of holiness. Occasionally, I must confess, I take a certain amount of perverse satisfaction in applying God’s standard of truth to others who are drastically missing the mark. In East Tennessee, we would call that ‘whupping up’ on someone. And in certain circles and at certain times in history, God’s judgment is even the prevailing and popular message of the day.

We teeter and totter to one extreme or the other depending in part on our natural propensities or whatever is easiest or is the mood of the moment. Some of us are born ‘sticklers.’ Others just naturally ooze warmth and affection. But as parents, we are to reflect the whole image of God. To hold up God’s truth without His mercy is to fill young hearts with fear and despair. To hold up God’s love without His truth is to create a libertine spirit that cheapens the grace of God and makes a mockery of His law. Parents whose only concern is ‘truth’ can spawn frustration and bitterness. Parents who only show love with no standards of accountability can reap a whirlwind of out-of-control behavior. Administrators and teachers stand equally strung between these equal poles of tension. Discipline without love is cruel. Love without standards is meaningless.

I pray Godly wisdom for you as you raise up children in the fear and admonition of the Lord that you will know that perfect balance. Pray that also for me as I attempt to uphold standards in an atmosphere of love.

Mercy and Truth,

Mr. Moe

Discovering beauty in my own backyard

We often take for granted the things closest to us. I was reminded of this Saturday night when our family enjoyed a cookout at the lake that is only 15 minutes from our house.

So I married a....competitor

Congratulations to my wife, Janell, for competing in her first 5K race on Saturday!
Here's the photo finish.

For $.50 a day you can sponsor this child

My in-laws recently filled in a dilapidated swimming pool and they have a field of dirt that has entertained my girls better than any toy.