Lessons on Virtue

For Christmas, my sweet husband gave me a very important book. I say this, because I fully believe that this book will cause yet another revolution in our family life. {The book, by the way, is Raising Maidens of Virtue by Stacy McDonald.}

Our little girl, A., was born in February {making her 10 months old to-date}, and I felt fully unprepared for a girl. Our then-2.5-year-old was a boy and, for some reason, I fully expected to have a whole collection of little boys to keep my house dirty and my heart full. But God had other plans; He always does know where to stretch us.

And stretch us He has. I knew A. was a girl, even before the ultrasound confirmed it. It took my husband a while to accept it after we found out. We considered ourselves "boy parents." And here we were, with a bit of pink in our lives. Oh! But when she was born we were in love with her from her first breath, and she fit right in to the family. She was perfect for us, we knew, truly a blessing from God.

However, A. was born, and still we were without a real vision for the raising of girls. Which brings me back to this book Si gave me, which is all about seeking to recover a Biblical mindset for parenting "little maidens." It is actually meant to be a study that little A. and I would do together someday when she is perhaps 13 or 14, but I find that, as is true with anything, I need to sit at the author's feet now and be the student. And maybe 13 years from now I will finally be somewhat qualified to be the teacher.

This blog will probably be focused mainly on sorting out the lessons I am learning from Mrs. McDonald for awhile. As with any book I read, it consumes me until I have finished it. Tweet

Why Afterthoughts?

After being encouraged more than once by my dear friend Grace to create my own blog, I have decided to aquiesce. Grace is full of good ideas, and this may be one of them.

There are two reasons for choosing a name such as Afterthoughts. The first is a bit common, and this is that my best thoughts usually come after my first thoughts, which tend to be more reactionary and judgmental. I like to think, and I hope that Afterthoughts becomes a place for me to refine my thoughts and allow them to be conformed to Scripture.

The second reason is, naturally, the best. My husband once informed me that scientists (pre-Darwin, I'm guessing) used to believe that they were "thinking God's thoughts after Him." I have liked that mental image ever since, appreciating that a new discovery isn't one bit new to the Lord, and rejoicing that He chose to share some of Himself with someone so much smaller than He. And so, at my husband's suggestion and in recognition that any great thought I may stumble upon belongs to Him, this blog is henceforth entitled Afterthoughts.

Without further ado, I welcome you to Afterthoughts. Please feel free to share your thoughts with me, too. Tweet