Too much fun

If you listen closely you can hear Holly say a few of her favorite words - no (this one's not my favorite), off, down, milk (sign language), and bye bye.

Passion::DC

Matt and I returned Sunday evening from a weekend in Washington DC. We were there to host 3 new friends from Paris, France as they experienced their first Passion conference. These are the guys (and girl) who will be integral in making Passion::Paris a success. What a weekend it was! I certainly understand why Passion's heart is specifically for college students - no one else would have the energy to start at 9 am and sing, dance, worship, and pray until midnight!

I think our French nationals had an incredible experience and walked away with a spiritual boost and renewed vision for their own ministries, not to mention an increased enthusiasm to see Passion come to Paris. We also had some really productive meeting time with them, which laid the groundwork for our upcoming meetings in Paris (we leave next Thursday).

This was the first Passion conference for Matt and me, as well, and it was amazing. I can't describe what it's like to watch 3000 college kids join together in our nation's capitol to worship Christ. Louie Giglio does a much better job, so check out his blog.

And if you know any college students, send them to Atlanta the weekend of April 11-12. That is the final US Regional conference before Passion heads out on their World Tour. After that, we'll see you in Paris in June!

The Least of These

One of my favorite things about living in Hapeville is our community of neighbors. In fact, our small group/bible study is made up of four couples living within feet of each other. Matt loves the fact that he can walk to small group barefoot. Kind of grosses me out, actually.

Another great thing about Hapeville is that we're surrounded by opportunities to serve people in need. As much as I think I'd prefer to live in a gated, sheltered community of people just like me, I know that I would very soon become the sort of person I don't want to be around (no offense to gated communities). I would become self-serving, greedy...and comfortable. I know this about myself because I've been down that road before.

Our small group has been doing a lot of talking lately about how we can serve the people in our neighborhood and town - the elderly woman who needs someone to mow her grass, the family across the street that needs a warm meal, the couple a few doors down struggling with addiction. We've been talking about how best to reach out to them for months now. And we haven't done a thing.

On Sunday, the opportunity to be a blessing to others dropped down right in front of us (coincidence?). Three of the four couples in our group happened to be standing in our front yard enjoying a beautiful Sunday afternoon when a woman and her two children walked up to us. She had the most heartbreaking story of domestic violence, sexual abuse, and homelessness. We rallied around her and gave her money for a hotel and food to get by for a couple of days.

Yesterday, my doorbell rang. I saw them out the window - it was the woman and her two children. I hate to admit that when I saw them, my first instinct was to pretend I wasn't home. Hadn't we done enough already? Holly was sleeping, and to open the front door (much less invite them in) would surely wake her. But then the words of Jesus in Matthew 25 came to me: "I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me." Ouch. So I opened the door.

As I talked with her, I was unconvinced that she used the money we had given her wisely. But I was absolutely convinced that here stood a family in a desperate situation. I'm still not sure how God wants to use us to help, but I don't think our story with them is over. We might have to get creative as we think about ways to help meet needs (I'm perfectly aware that to give money can encourage addictions and feed bad habits). But I have a sense that God is trying to do something big here - and not necessarily in the lives of Melissa and her kids. I'll keep you posted...

** Thanks to Candace, whose "He is Radiant and Ruddy" blog post challenged me to view this "random" opportunity differently than I might have otherwise.

Dancing Queen

Holly loves to dance. As soon as she hears a tune - or even the train whistle as it passes by our house - she starts bopping to the beat. Here she is, dancing a jig with Matt.

Comments Allowed!

If you've tried leaving comments the past few days, you might have noticed that it said "Members only." Sorry about that - I received a very lewd comment (in the form of a very lewd video) from a sick stranger. I think I hit every possible option in my haste to delete the comment. So please don't take it personally if you were unable to leave a comment - unless of course you're the one who left it. It should be good to go now.

Thanks to Serena for bringing it to my attention!

Holly's Blanket

I was really attached to my blanket as a child. Okay, I was pretty attached to my blanket as an adult. In college, a few "friends" (you know who you are) thought it would be funny to steal my baby blanket. Those were some of the worst nights of sleep of my life (I slept on it like a pillow! Nothing unnatural or weird). A week or so later, we walked into our sorority chapter room for a meeting, and there it was in all its ragged glory, hanging from the ceiling like a flag. I'll never forget the relief - and horror - I felt that moment.

It appears Holly may be headed for the same fate. She loves - and I mean LOVES - the blanket her Aunt Megan gave her. Since she was 4 months old, the two have been pretty much inseparable. She has sucked the corners so much that they're stained brown. Matt seems a little concerned about the attachment, but I say let it be. I mean, I turned out all right, didn't I? :)

Not So Happy V-Day

Today started out a little rough for the Rife girls. I had a Board of Education meeting at 9:30 am (we're on the Founding Committee of Main Street Academy, a charter school we're trying to start in our area). I woke up at 6 to have Holly and myself fed, dressed, and out the door by 8:15. As you can imagine in Atlanta, it took us almost the full hour and 15 minutes to get to our destination, Sandy Springs Middle School. As soon as I got Holly out of her car seat, I smelled her. Dirty diaper = strike 1.

I decided it best to ignore the diaper (where do you change diapers in a middle school? In one of the short little stalls with no locks?). We finally found our meeting location, the Media Center in the back of the building. As soon as we walked in the room, the fire alarm sounded. Fire drill = strike 2.

So, the President of the Board of Education and the few parents that had already arrived filed outside with hundreds of middle school students. I knew this was going to be bad. You can only hold a 16 month old for so long before she wriggles out of your arms, desperate for freedom. Thirty minutes after walking outside, I put Holly down, hoping she would be mesmerized by the fire trucks. Instead she took off running. And then tripped and fell face first. Busted lip = strike 3.

With nothing more than her beloved pink blanket to stop the bleeding, I politely asked the school principal where I could find some ice. Her response - "If you turn right at the light and then right again, you'll see a QT." Not exactly what I had in mind.

Needless to say, we didn't stick around for the meeting. Holly's getting used to her swollen lip, and she likes the fact that she gets to drink out of a straw (sipping from her cup hurts). As for me, I'm a little bummed that my attempt to fulfill my civic duty didn't turn out as I expected. I think tomorrow I'll stick to grocery shopping and walking the neighbor's dog.

Happy Valentine's Day to you and yours!

It Takes a Village

Matt and I have pretty much adopted The South Beach Diet as our eating lifestyle. Well, I've adopted it, which means that by default, so has Matt. She who does the cooking determines the diet. Once you get past the first phase (the all important kick the craving phase), it's just a healthy way to live. Whole grains, lean proteins, lots of veggies, and low sugar foods. It was all going well until last weeked. Twenty hours in the car in 4 days doesn't help - it's hard to be healthy at Arby's, Chick-fil-A, and Subway (I know you CAN be healthy there, it's just hard when the roast beef sandwich and homestyle fries are staring you in the face). And it REALLY doesn't help when your husband and brother-in-law order 2 large pizzas for dinner.

So when I return to Atlanta and normal life, do I also return to my healthy eating habits? Not exactly... lunch today was country fried steak and macaroni and cheese (I also had broccoli, but does that even count next to the other two?).

All this to say... starting tomorrow, I'm back on the wagon. And I'm asking anyone who sees me start to step off to gently help me back on. Or not so gently, if I'm being persistently tempted by the Valentine's Day chocolates I trust Matt is going to get me (hint hint... and I guess I'll know Friday if Matt reads my blog).

It takes a village to keep this sweet tooth on track. You have permission to hold me accountable.


(For some great South Beach recipes, check out Kalyn's Kitchen)

Family Weekend

On Saturday we celebrated 91 years of MiMi, Matt's grandmother. How awesome it was to gather in Huntington, WV with all of her grandchildren and greatgrandhildren to wish this wonderful woman a happy birthday! Holly did pretty well despite coming out of an illness and being in the car A LOT. She quickly warmed up and had a blast paying with her third cousins, Katie, Sam, and Libby. And Matt and I had a great time catching up with his cousins and simply being with family. As much as we love living in Atlanta, we realize how much we miss having family nearby.

On Sunday, we made our way over to Ohio to visit with Matt's mom's side of the family. We winded our way through rural mountain roads with full confidence that Google Maps would get us there. But we quickly realized that Google had street names, but the streets we were driving had only numbers. To add to the drama, the gas tank was below empty. But by the grace of God (and Uncle Gary, who came to the rescue) we made it there without a problem. Matt's Aunt Emogene hosted a great gathering of aunts, uncles, cousins and their kids, and even threw a surprise baby shower for Kelly and Megan (by the way, it's a boy!!).

It was a whirlwind of a weekend, but such a great time. I'm already looking forward to next year!

The Best Medicine

How sweet is this? Holly wasn't feeling so hot today (she went to bed with a 102.7 fever)... and Daddy enjoyed every minute of it. He didn't enjoy the fact that she felt lousy, of course, but he loved the cuddling. Holly's not much of a cuddler. She usually only wants to be picked up if she's trying to reach something. But the sweet thing about sick toddlers is that they really want to be held. So while we can't wait for her to feel better, we're taking advantage of every opportunity to hold our little girl who's growing up too fast.