A Prescription for Inscription

Backyard Baseball Team

Over the summer, our family focused on Philippians 4:6 and 8 as our theme verse. We especially focused on the Message translation that read, “Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him!

Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you’re on their side, working with them and not against them.”

We would remind each other to “Be on the team”, “Think about the team…please don’t head to the car empty handed”, or  “Choose to be on the side of this friend or that sibling”.

The thinking and the family goal of being on the same team has stuck since summer.

By freedictionary.com definition, a team is: (bold letters mine)

• A group of people with a full set of complementary skills required to complete a task, job, or project.
• Team members (1) operate with a high degree of interdependence,
• (2) share authority and responsibility for self-management,
• (3) are accountable for the collective performance, and
• (4) work toward a common goal and shared reward(s).

Building Brothers Team

• Currently, Eli is into Minecraft, so I must enter in to see, know, and care about each roller coaster constructed.
• I work at the Crossfit gym. On days when the family is there with me after a late class and I’m closing up, Drew and the kids help to turn off lights, pick up extra equipment, and take out the trash. It’s my job, but because they are on my team, they pitch in.
• Andi doesn’t like to be late, but also doesn’t like to be rushed. Drew is great to keep the morning on track so Andi is out the door on time and still emotionally in tact.
• Drew is calm in the mundane, and I’m calm when things are more insane. Between the two of us, we have regular days, and crazy times, covered!

Winning, as our family team, happens when all on our own, we think outside of our self.

Celebration doesn’t happen only because of a major family win (Our garden grew! We are headed to a vacation!), we can celebrate each individual win (Andi finished the puzzle! Eli scored 7 goals! Oaks says sentences!) and sustain each other in loss- collective or individual.

Everything that happens within our team requires the care, attention, and investment of energy of every person on the team.

The reward is growing in our awareness of what other people need, entering into how other people feel, showing people we are on their side when they are stuck or sad, and being cheered on by people who love us all the time, no matter what.

 

Sunshine and Shades Team

 

My home for the last 7 days

An almost pattern:

Two Wednesdays in a row at JAX…

Two years in a row spending 8 days at Young Life’s Winter Training school in St. Augustine Florida in January.

Two flights til I get home today.

Rocking chairs at Jacksonville International

Drew and I spent last Wednesday, January 7th, at the Jacksonville airport welcoming 396 Young Life staff people from all over the United States. The process of greeting, counting, and loading onto buses was exhilarating, (love seeing familiar faces and witnessing embraces) and exhausting (10 solid hours of walking, talking, and checking schedules)! Some respite came in short stinks of rocking in the rows of rockers here.

After airport welcome day, we settled into our respective roles. Drew was officially a “helper”- tasked with doing whatever needed to happen whenever necessary. He was able to offer capable help and did it all with his winsome personality and handsome beard. To have Drew join me in my work was a great experience for us both.

My official role was to be a TA for the Gospel’s class filled with 207 students under professor Mark Strauss, of Bethel Seminary, San Diego. Unofficially but possibly more importantly, I was able to spend a week with my 14 Gateway Region friends as they processed information, became better friends, laughed and played hard, and shared in deep, hard, and hopeful conversations.

I ducked out of Gospels occasionally to hear from other presenters down the hall at New Staff Training.  As I listened there and in smaller gatherings, I was reminded of the reasons and the real life of what composes my vocation:

• Jesus is our Message, Friendships are our Method.
• Comparing yourself to anyone else will only lead to defeat. Know you are okay, you are accepted here, you are worthy of the calling and placement of your position, and you are very especially loved by God.
• Young Life works if you love Jesus and show up in the lives of kids. “Don’t over think it”, Alex said. Just what I needed to hear.
• Expect some suffering, to be misunderstood, to have to forgive and ask for forgiveness
• Jesus did not live a balanced life but had boundaries
• Abandoned kids need to be adopted into a family of love and hope…accepted and affirmed, called to live up and out of God’s love in real life.
• Surround yourself with people who are different than you in multiple ways. Diversify to be inclusive, the kingdom doesn’t look like me.
• Humor in Young Life,  is mostly about leadership and taking people somewhere- from belly laughs to the feet of Jesus.
• Leading is easier when you start with good people around the table
• “Good people” work with integrity, humility, a heart for the people they serve, and very few words.

Most of the Gateway staff folks at the fort in St. Augustine

During the last few minutes of our Gospels class, we gave an oral thank you note to the prof which ended with cheers, chants and even a short but controlled crowd surf. 200 Young Life staff people in any room, even a classroom, can bring energy, noise, and smiles at levels that impress a seminary professor and hotel staff. Energy erupts and sounds like loud joy.

My favorite picture of what we were trying to do, came in the last hours of the last full day. I was walking the lake loop with a couple friends during a break. There was a group of 6 other YL staff approaching us from the other direction- a most ordinary occurrence for the week. However, as our groups drew near, the 6 people started yelling, “Ahhhhhh!” Yaayyy” and formed themselves into a gauntlet…joining hands in pairs to form a tunnel. Surprised by the spontaneity and immediately invited into the energy, we picked up our pace, joined the cheering, and ran through their outstretched arms.

Our spirits were immediately boosted. It feels incredibly good to be cheered on. I haven’t run through a tunnel in a long time- I lived fully into the fun of this one.

Young Life doesn’t do everything perfect, but in it’s moments of perfect expression, Young Life lifts up its arms to form a tunnel of cheers,to give affirmation, an invitation towards joy, and lifts up kids who are low. We hope to make shuffling feet start to run, sending them through to more freedom for where they go next, with a community of care to continue on with them.

I loved being around my Young Life family.

I cannot wait to get back to my Osborne family. Here I come Eli, Andi, Oaks and Drew! I’ll be a tunnel of love for you!

I have many additions this year to what is often my favorite season: Fall!

“New this fall” includes:

• a two year old and the language, personality, and fast feet that come with him…Oakley turned two on Saturday!
• a house in one of the quintessential fall tree-color-candy neighborhoods of the Northland. Yay for the Coves beauty!
• a niece- sweet and special June Marie Bruce.
• a (real!)perfectly shaped white pumpkin that came covered with subtle glitter sparkles from a fall fest- my mantle must-have!
• a chance to cheer- joining with a whole, hungry city, I’m loving the late nights watch-parties and the early morning paper pour-overs as we devour the story, emotion, and highs of the Royals’ playoff march.

I watched the Wild Card game after Young Life club at Gayle and Steve’s with Zach and Christine.  Drew had  momentarily given up hope after the 7th, and taken the kids home (great Dad move, poor fan move), and was watching alone on an iPad screen.

The KC Star has given us the chance to bring the Royals home…in the shape of square paper men. If this is what gets Drew Osborne to do a craft, I’ll take it.

Amongst pacing, rally cap wearing, actual nail biting, hooping, hollering, heartracing, high-fiving, groaning, and jumping up and down, we held onto each and every moment of the play of the Royals, the decisions of the coaches, and the unrelentless dedication of the fans standing up at the stadium. For those who know who went, they say it was “indescribable” and  “probably the best single experience of their life”.

These Royals are giving us a gift. We are surprised and grateful. In Kansas City, the fountains are blue and the people are anything but. People walk around wearing good cheer and tons of hip or vintage, very very blue, Royals gear. On big screens or live and in-person, we are interested in every (and every extra) inning. We lovingly bear the stress and strain of the small-ball squeak outs and late inning shut-em down hits.

As I write today, October 13th, 2014, the Royals have a 7 game winning streak:

1. They won their last regular season game 6-4 versus the White Sox in Chicago.
2. Two days later, they won the Wild Card game versus the A’s, 9-8 in 12 innings, with a Salvador Perez double in the bottom of 12.           Then they won three against the Los Angeles Angels for the American League Division series
3. ALDS Game 1: Royals 3, Angels 2...  11 innings with a Mike Moustakas home run in the 11th inning! (We watched at home on our iPad)
4. ALDS Game 2: Royals 4, Angels 1...  11 innings with a 2 run home run by Hosmer in a 3 run 11th inning. (We saw the final 2 innings after going on a date to Blanc and Gone Girl…we were home in time to see the gone ball)
5. ALDS Game 3: Royals 8, Angels 3... 9 innings with an Alex Gordon triple that scored 3 in the first and amazing outfield catches by Cain and Aoki. (We watched at Kauffman!)
6.  ALCS Game 1: Royals 8- Orioles 6 in 10 innings with an Alex Gordon home run in the 10th and Escobar and Moustakas home runs earlier.  (We watched at Todd and Nancy’s house in JoCo- Eli and Andi staying up til 11:55pm when the game ended!)
7. ALCS Game 2: Royals 6-Orioles 4 with the 4-4 tie breaking in the 9th with RBIs by Escobar and Cain in the 9th. (We watched at Gayle and Steve’s and then James and Laura’s before we said goodbye to my Mom, the goodluck charm from Colorado)

Huddled together and keyed in close, Drew and I watched in awe and “Ah-yeah!” as the Royals took down the Angels and their “best record in all of baseball” and their “Matt Trout threat”…twice, at the Angels home. We went from Ipad small screen to seats at the K for Game 3 of the ALDS! After a tailgate with all our kids, my mom and sister from Colorado, and Laura and June, Drew, James, Quinton and I went to seats in 421- a bit towards first behind home plate.

From that game, I take away feelings of excitement, celebration, camaraderie, thrilling fun, and the recognition that I was a part of something live, in my city, that I’ve only ever watched happen to other towns on TV. I loved standing by Drew, high-fiving my family and hugging the stranger next to me. I loved sitting in the middle of rain and watching the Royals try their best and really enjoy the victory.

Game 3 was to be played here in KC tonight but is rained out and postponed. Our hearts be still. As much as sleep and schedules have been thrown off over the last two weeks, (Eli’s teacher took a personal day after the Wild Card game, my 5:30am Crossfit faithful have fallen off, and even police officers say the crime rate has been down…criminals stuck at home watching late inning games I guess!), as a city, we can take a rescheduled game. For people who have actually waited 29 years, they will wait 29 more hours.

For my kids, it’s been 7 years of cheering for the Royals. Eli hummed “Let’s Go Royals, clap, clap, clap!” before his mouth could mold the words. Eli was on the big screen 4 games in a row at Kauffman in 2007- as an almost 1 year old. Andi went to games as a brand new baby and wore pink Royals gear and picked Billy Butler as her favorite as a 2 year old. Uncle Zach would tease her and call her Silly Butler to which she responded with sass. Oakley, went to his first game as a 6 month old, and right now says, “Royals” when he sees a logo or crown on paper or clothing. If we say, “Let’s go Royals!” he says, “Clap, clap!”. His very pregnant Aunt Laura taught him how to swing a bat while babysitting him in September and he’ll ask, “Mom, pitch!” often now.

As a family, we are excited and grateful this is our fall.

What happens if they lose? We still win…this has been a really stinking fun fall.

So glad you asked.

We celebrated:

-April’s 60th birthday in Utah

-Quinton’s law school graduation in St. Louis, Hermann

-Memorial Day with my mom and Celebration at the Station- Oakley’s first fireworks!

-Father’s Day with my dad and the first party at our new house: Laura’s birthday

-Drew’s 33rd birthday (karaoke!!)

-Our 10th wedding anniversary (Michigan bliss)

-Eli’s 8th birthday (spins- beyblade tourney, a new ceiling fan, triple party desserts)

-Andi’s swim team spirit award (our first trophy!)

-My 34th birthday (Drew packed a party for me at the park!)

-Family- a reunion for the Henke side over the fourth of July

We got wet:

-Coves Swim Team! Go Crocs!

-Oaks and his water table

-Enjoyed a rainy and cooler June

-Watered the garden often in July

-Swam as a fam and with friends (Thanks for coming to the Coves Jae, Liv, and Hil!)

-That day our neighbors drained their pool and left the hose spraying in the street- too much free fun!

-used the pool as a bathtub for dirty summer kids

-sweaty Crossfit wods

I coached:

-Robyn in life

-Stefani and Darren in raising ministry support

-Olivia in Crossfit 1:1 fitness

-Eli, Andi, and Oakley in how to live out Phil 4:4 and 6-8

We waited:

-for the garden to grow

-for paint to dry (on the stairs, on the chairs, (see next week’s post on: “Paint and [the] Patience [I don’t have], on the wall hole patch)

-for Laura’s baby to grow and get ready to come be our cousin

-for Eli’s teeth to fall out

-for Oaks to wake up from a wonderful 3 hour nap so we could go to the skatepark, the pool, the store…

-for a letter with a name on it- teacher’s for a new year

 We bought:

-flowers and dirt that grew beauty and sustenance

-drywall and paint to fix-up

-a lawnmower to last a long time

-1/4 of a grass fed cow (about 400lbs!)  to eat  for a long time

-car repairs

-summer produce! yum!

-ice cream that kept going on sale

-toys we really wanted: beyblades for Eli and a gumball machine for Andi (with their own money!)

-a vacation

-some childcare

 We ate:

-outside on our new deck

-right off the vine! Blueberries from Melissa, cherry tomatoes from our garden, cherries while picking in Michigan

-with friends (Zach’s end of the summer party complete with pinata!, bagels with our bagel fairy Carol, at Westside Local before Sara’s show, at Blue Bird Bistro for my birthday, with the Meyers, the Graves, and at the new GG and Poppy house!)

-Sheridans, Chipotle, not enough dipped cones

-All local while on our annivesary vacay

-Popcorn for dinner last night which totally wowed our neighbor Will- he said he’d talk to his parents about new dinner ideas. I was sure to remind him I had also served zucchini, broccoli, fresh green beans, celery and hummus, and 3 red pepper strips.

We read:

-Eli devoured the How to Train your Dragon chapter book series, more Jake Maddox, and a  Barbie book of Andi’s out of desperation while waiting for new ones to come in from our reserve list.

-Drew finished book 5 of Harry Potter and is starting Gone Girl with visions of Ben Affleck in his head

-Andi started sneaking off with books and reading more and more on her own. She will read aloud with confidence and emphasis on the right words

-I’m reading a helpful book on parenting that reminds me to notice and encourage what I see in my kids and avoid anger, frustration, and lectures about what I’d like to see when they’re in the middle of doing the opposite.

-I’m reading fiction and books I’m writing with my aunt on identity.

-Oaks reads books on his own and begs for them before every sleep.

-We read Twitter, the KC Star, Instagram comments, Facebook feeds, some ingredient labels, and more instruction/how-to manuals than we’d like at times.

 We adventured:

-bike riding for all! Oaks has a seat on the back of my bike…bless Drew for the hours of fiddling and working and reworking to get it to work.

-Worlds of Fun/Oceans of Fun- thanks to the most energetic, in shape, and ready to roll Geeg around!

-by learning new things…swimming strokes, names of neighbors, ways to fix walls, doors, toilets, ….

-in building an arcade and creating a restaurant in our basement

-in reconciliation and forgiveness, in messing up and trying to do better

 We rested:

-After a hosting-happy June, and a celebratory July, we’ve had some weekends without going or hosting in our house for the past three weekends. Granted we have filled the with some painting, furniture purchasing, re-painting, staining, protecting and re-upholstering…and two Saturday night fun nights with food outside and good friends, we really have chilled out a little bit.

-We’ve said no to mid week opportunities.

-I’ve said no working when there were kids right here and worked another time instead

-We’ve let bathrooms go two weeks between major cleaning and the kitchen floor major mop stayed in a slumber for almost a month

–We had home church yesterday. Drew got out his guitar and songs. We sang “Into your arms” first which Drew sang to me on an early date at a park in college (When were we ever, “take a guitar to a park and sing” kind of people, you wonder? Just that one night!). Then we sang “Somebody’s calling out your name”. It’s a classic echo. After singing it once through together. I asked Andi if she would just sing it with Daddy, believing she would actually find the key that eluded Eli and me in our echo attempt. Sure enough, sweetly and with confidence that sometimes falters, she sang after Drew…”Somebody’s calling our your name…Somebody’s ready to forgive…Somebody knows what’s in your heart..” Precious moment.

Then we read from the Action Bible…at first silly and all 2nd gradey- at one line, when he read, “and with God’s POWER”, Eli pumped his fist in the air. Somewhere in there, he’s grasping towards a God who has energy and excitement to match his own.

We ended with a blessing, a la the Loft- Jacob’s Well preschool style. “God made you, God blesses you, God loves you, God is with you”

We touched foreheads, spoke the words and passed it on. When Oaks had watched everyone else, he got up and touched his finger to Drew’s forehead, then mine, then Andi’s, and then Eli’s. Then headed back to Drew. He was delivering a blessing, with a touch and a smile that sent us out to live, changed by summer, touched by Christ and loved by each other.

Tonight is back to school night and Wednesday is School Day number 1. The first day at a new school, in 1st and 2nd grades, Andi and Eli will adventure out to make new friends and learn new things.

Thanks to summer, I’ve done a little of both myself.

I don’t mean to allude or suggest that I struggle with actual insanity. However, I do feel like I “lose it” from time to time,

teeter off the edge of calm and cool into the abyss of stress and angst, and as previously mentioned, I let little things get me, overwhelm me, disorient and distract me, and on the worst of days, defeat me.

Andi and I are saying, “Beat Defeat! Hold Hope!” this summer as mantra for us both- we’re reminding each other that neither tangled swimming suit straps (Andi) or spilled grease cans (Linds) will win- we will win, have fun, move on, and not melt down.

To let you in even further, invitation accepted?, to the conversations I have in my head, I often have to tell myself, “This is not a big deal…It’s just”…OR…”It’s ok”…OR…”They are little kids.” As a result of these chats with myself, I have some coping mechanisms to avoid small stuff sweating.

1. Lots of pairs of scissors

2. Lots of rolls of scotch tape

Yep, that’s all it takes.

Having scissors in my bedroom for the removal of tags, tape in Andi’s room because she loves to tape “bandaids” on Barbies, scissors in the kitchen for meat, scissors in the kitchen for crafts, scissors in the garage for tomato stake ties, tape on every level for projects and kids with new ideas.

I used to get really angry if I couldn’t find my blue scissors. Then I just bought two more pairs of scissors- problem completely solved, anger and angst gone! I used to stress out if the kids took the tape from the kitchen drawer and didn’t bring it back, if Oakley grabbed the tape and pulled out 5 yards, or if Andi stuck all the pieces I tore off to each other instead of a present. Now, I just buy lots of rolls at a time and think, “If Oakley finds it, uses gobs of it, and it’s all gone… Scotch tape is cheap! We have lots!”

The latest use of plenty of scotch tape and multiple pairs of scissors is the cardboard ARCADE in our basement bonus room! Eli, Andi and neighbor Will started construction one rainy day last week and the arcade officially opened this weekend! Just in time for weekend visitors, Grandpa and Judy, and Laura’s birthday party guests Saturday night- more family!

The sign over the entrance

The arcade has been a jackpot of creativity, team work, and family fun. The arcade has been a jackpot of sibling squabbles, Eli’s imagination making demands that just aren’t possible but still make me feel horrible for saying “NO”,and a bit of stress just because there’s a big mess and lots of crazy kid energy in my basement. Mostly however, it’s awesome. There are 6 games (bean bag toss, plinko, football throw, soccer shoot, basketball “pop-a-shot”, and the claw machine. You can (and the kids would LOVE for you to!) come and buy unlimited plays with a $1 fun pass! (We just got back from buying prizes for ticket redemption- it’s really ready. Please come by!)

The other coping mechanism I have as of now, is SPACE. Our new house can hold so much more than the old one. The space removes stress- there is a whole room downstairs that can contain the cardboard arcade construction, and there’s space to leave it up indefinitely!

Saturday night, the space of our new house held a party that brought together a mix of families. The space held relational reunion, introductions, celebrations, the energy of children, conversation among adults, and a feast of food. People could move to different locations for a new play mate or conversation. There were many places to sit, stand, tour, play, gather dishes, and open presents. At multiple times during the night, I said aloud, “This is so great. Our house can hold all these people, all these emotions, all of this event.”

Sanity can show up or stay put quite simply

Football toss- this is a tough one folks.

. I’m grateful for my tools-

Bean bag toss

small and cheap, big and blessed.

I am a sucker for a great Lent and Easter season. There’s no better reason to celebrate than to mark the moment God’s redemptive power consumed even death and birthed the promise of new, restored, resurrected, and eternal life.  Love that surrenders wins the ultimate and always victory. He is Risen Indeed!

We littered this year’s Lenten season with contemporary and momentous movements. From the Crossfit Clean-Eats challenge, to work trips and tax season busyness, to listing, selling, and packing up our house and finding and buying a new one, about the only thing we truly fasted from this Lent was calm. And yet, we experienced Christ, soaked in the story with our kids, and stayed connected to our community.

Must keep this week’s post brief…the list is long, cabinets still sprinkled with stuff that needs boxed up, and the baby sure to wake soon.

In a few more prepositions, here the long and short of it right now:

-We move IN 4 days

-Andi had a fun birthday party Saturday. Party Perks:

• OUT OF town Aunt E and Uncle Q were IN town to celebrate
• master baker and talented decorator (who knew!?) Melissa Graves made a cake for Andi’s 6 years WITH 6 pink layers!
• friends from school, neighborhood, and church mixed well and blessed our sweet birthday girl BEYOND expectations. 
  

  Amazing cake inside and out for our Amazing Andi Girl

-Oakley’s favorite thing is to walk and run freely. Unfortunately, he falls DOWN  often…poor Boo is getting lots of boo-boos on that sweet, soft baby skin! This week, he’s running across our cul-de-sac…next week, he’ll be in our new fenced backyard! WOW! 

Boxes of the kitchen contents

-Everything, LIKE everything, from our house INTO a box?! Oh my, so many. I’m pretty much down to the details, the awkward bottles of cleaning supplies, medicines, clothes, and junk drawer.

-It was completely worth the wait to let Oaks finish his 3 hour Easter nap and then join the egg hunt ALONG WITH his older siblings yesterday. He loved finding eggs! Also, he loved eating chocolate! Lucky day for this 1 year old!

Egg excitement!

– Eli is ever perceptive. Didn’t encourage any Easter bunny believing, keeps the moving day count- down in mind, and carries excitement in his body about what’s new while also mourning the loss of the house and neighbors he loves so much.

Who wants to play egg volleyball?

-Spring is IN the air! Perhaps the best part of the house we’re leaving is the back deck. This week and last, the deck has hosted many a spring love session. There were squirrels “wrestling” last week that Drew pointed out to the kids. “Squirrel wrestling?! I love it when they do that!” Eli said. Today, there are two birds necking (literally!) and offering “piggy back rides” on the deck railing. I’m happy to host procreation…Get it ON my nature friends.

ON that note, I’m saying goodbye from 5408 and will write again from 4501.

We’ve been hunting for a house. I don’t know much about hunting but if the metaphor holds up, hunts are about a goal attained by patience. I went into the whole process with 3 years of  occasional anxiety about whether or not our house would sell.  Living in our house for 8 years instead of 5 was not all anxious fretting however. Not at all. We have loved living here. Especially grateful, we cherish our neighborhood and neighbors. When it sold in 4 days of showings, we were blown away, grateful, and a little shell-shocked. We were really going to leave?!

So we started hunting. We dressed in  (read: I took showers and did my hair to go out with the Judy, our agent, on several occasions), and brought our ammo (read: we were pre-approved and had our house sold, making us a desirable buyer should the right house present itself).

Our initial list of new home hopes: