Life Changes

When I last wrote, I was beginning a series of posts exploring the intersection of the Christian faith with American political policy & philosophy.  I had a whole set of topics I wanted to research, explore, and discuss...

And then my life priorities took a major shift.  A planned shift, but just how profound and how immediately it would affect me...well, that part took me by surprise just a little bit.

You see, this past year I became a Mom.  I learned that I was pregnant right around the time of my last post, and soon thereafter I encountered a fatigue unlike anything I have ever experienced before.  I began routinely going to sleep by 7:30, which left not much time for researching topics or writing about them...because what I really needed was tons of sleep.  My pregnancy was mostly symptom free aside from the need for so much sleep, I am happy to report!  I enjoyed being pregnant, at least up until the final week.  The final week I was placed on a very restrictive bed rest order to keep my blood pressure down, and I'm not terribly great at staying that still for extended periods of time.  Thankfully, my mom came into town to help out.  She did all sorts of things around the house, kept me rooted to the couch, and our conversations kept me entertained (and my mind off of all the things I was suddenly not allowed to do).

And now I have a completely adorable, very sweet, very happy baby boy.  He is almost 5 months old now.  My husband and I are totally enamored with him, of course...

So I trimmed down many of my activities this past year in order to focus on my health and my new family life, and that included a very long break from my blog.

Upon returning and reviewing my posts, I am going to wait on that series of posts exploring Christianity and political policy until later. I'm not sure when I'm going to return to those thoughts, but of a certainty, my life is not currently stretching in that direction.  But when I do turn back to that line of musings, I'd like to explore ideas on gay marriage/marriage equality, the drug war, welfare & other government poverty assistance programs, public education, and certainly not least...1st Amendment rights.  It may be a long time before I get to these topics, but someday...my thoughts will return to how I might responsibly exercise my voice as a citizen in ways that are consistent with my faith.

For now, my thoughts turn towards my family, my health, and my time-finance reality.  The New Year is a time for reflection and a renewed focus on improvements and commitments.  I am personally looking forward to the growth that I hope to achieve this upcoming year.  Last year was a pretty great year for me - I have a good feeling about this one too.

Best wishes to all for a happy, healthy, and prosperous 2014!