She's Not Here.

Ok here's the situation. Over a year ago I thought it would be an interesting experiment to see how long it would take for people to find Allison on Facebook. She reluctantly agreed to let me set up an account for her. So I created a profile for her but I didn't friend her just to see how quickly someone who registered for Facebook but didn't use it would be found by their friends and family. She, being resistant to FB to begin with, never logged in to her account, and it was left at that.

For months nobody requested her as a friend, until Facebook added the "You Might Know This Person" function. Then the requests started coming in, and I got into a little bit of trouble. From the beginning Allison didn't want to be on Facebook which I should have respected, but at the time I was drowning in the FB wave of awesomeness so I pushed it.

Here's the thing, the account that I set up for her is impossible to delete. I have tried everything I can to kill it but it refuses to die. This has given me a slightly uneasy feeling about Facebook and has made me second guess the decision to sign up in the first place. You should be able to delete yourself from FB if you want to, but apparently you can't really.

So, to all of you out there who are waiting for "friend approval" from Allison, I am sorry but it will never come. But it has nothing to do with you, and certainly nothing to do with Allison's feelings for you either. I apologize for the confusion.

Health Care

If I believe in praying for the sick to become well, then I cannot withhold from the sick the resources to attain that wellness. This healthcare debate is dragging me too deep into the news again. I believe a Lenten news fast is in order, but hiding just doesn't seem ok.

The fact that there is even a discussion about the inherent value of everyone (that includes children) having SOME healthcare exposes the depths of our moral and spiritual depravity.

Is there anything more sinful than denying the sick the care they need? The parable of the good Samaritan reminds us that it COST the Samaritan something (meaning MONEY) to help the stranger, and that was the moral and holy thing to do in the eyes of Christ.

How dare I look down from my employer supplied healthcare ivory tower and tell those below that they are not as valuable or as deserving of medical care as I am. ESPECIALLY since my employer is the Lord's church!

Thanks...

We appreciate your thoughts and prayers for us regarding the school lottery for Levi.

Unfortunately we didn't get a placement in either the District 3 lottery, or at the Manhattan School for Children lottery.

Here's a sign of the recession, public schools have now become very popular again all over the city. True, it's not all financial. There has been a huge baby boom in Manhattan, and the first wave of that boom are all coming into kindergarten at once. And I would also say that the public schools in NYC on the whole have gotten better thanks to Mayoral control.

But money does play a huge role in what's going on right now. People who before might have been fine with paying $25,000 for kindergarten now all of a sudden think public school doesn't look so bad. A lot of other people agree.

Two years ago there were 450 lottery spots available for kindergartners in District 3 and not every spot was taken. This year there were 251 spots available for 525 applicants. Levi was the 225th name drawn and all five of our school choices were full by then.

The second lottery was specifically for the Manhattan School for Children. They had 37 spots available for 357 applicants.

Again thanks for your thoughts a prayers. We are trying not to get discouraged and we still have a few options left. Right now it's mainly just a waiting game.

Your Prayers Requested

Allison and I would greatly appreciate your prayers over the next two days as we find out about the public school lottery for Levi.

For those who don't know getting into a really good or even just decent public school in NYC can be a very arduous thing. The school we are currently zoned for is not an option for us which means we must apply to other public schools out of our zone. Most of the ten or twelve schools we put down as considerations are already full in their kindergarten classes.

What remains are four schools that we could be comfortable with if Levi is given a lottery spot. Tuesday at 6:00 pm I will be sitting in an auditorium with hundreds of other parents eagerly awaiting our lottery results.

There are a lot of things that can play out with regard to Levi's school options between now and the first day of kindergarten. But this is a major point in our efforts to find for him a good place for him to go to school. Specifically, you can pray for us to get a lottery placement in one of the district 3 schools we listed.

Thank you so much and we'll let you know how it goes.

11 Years with my Amazing Husband!

Allison here . . . as I do not maintain my own blog, and many friends read Jason's, I decided to sneak in and post a few comments . . . I'm sure Jason won't mind, right?

A few details to set the stage. First, I am currently in the library finishing my thesis, which is due on Wednesday--yes, this coming Wednesday (nothing like a deadline). And Jason is currently riding bikes with our boys, and will be with them the rest of the day.

Next detail--today is our 11 year anniversary--hurray! And now, sift these two chunks of information together and let it settle--Jason/boys; Allison/library. Not usually the typical anniversary celebration.

And yet, this is the exquisite beauty of our relationship. Since the beginning, we have been a team. We do all of this--our life--together. We have worked, side by side (literally) for Shiloh. We both care for our boys on various days of the week. He does baths, I do pajamas. He does the dishes, and I do the straightening (ok, it's true, right now he is doing the straightening too, and NO ONE is cleaning the bathrooms). He does the wrestling, I do the cuddling. And when the kids are in bed, we do our thinking and talking and deciding together--and we love it. We still love it. Do we get frustrated, angry, annoyed--yep, we're great at sharing these things too. And we've gotten pretty good at overcoming them as well.

Which brings me to now. As I sit, working through the biggest paper of my academic life, I am overwhelmed by the knowledge that I am not alone in this. Not once, in the last three years of grad school, have I ever been alone. Every step has been taken with Jas--with his enthusiastic encouragement, his gentle reassurance, and his abiding love. He is my biggest fan--I even think I have him convinced that I am the creator of Writing Process--and I could not be more grateful, thankful, or humbled.

Beyond my wildest dreams and expectations, God has given me, in the truest sense of the word, a mate, and I wanted you all to know it (as if you don't already).

Today, after reading this, would you write a note of celebration to Jason? He truly deserves it.

I love you, Jas, and always will.

Allison